Wilkerson found guilty for actions in ’05 standoff

By Matt Smith/msmith@trcle.com

Jurors found Gary Cole Wilkerson, 29, guilty of three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon late Tuesday for his role in a 17 hour standoff with law enforcement officials in 2005.

Wilkerson was charged with three counts of aggravated assault of a peace officer, but the jury found him guilty of the lesser charge.

In the defense’s closing argument Tuesday, Wilkerson’s attorney, Bill Mason, argued that at the time of the incident, Wilkerson was delusional, incoherent and psychotic and contended that Wilkerson was not guilty by reason of insanity.

Prosecutors Kriste Burnett and Martin Strahan argued that Wilkerson fired shots from within his house, located at 114 Columbia St., with the intention of harming or killing three officers posted outside his home, Cpl. Dale Abbot of Cleburne’s SWAT team, Sgt. Chris Havens, a commander for the Burleson Police Department, and Neal Sandlin of Cleburne’s SWAT team.

During the trial, jurors heard the testimonies of 18 witnesses, including law enforcement officials, doctors and members of Wilkerson’s family.

Wilkerson was reportedly under the influence of methamphetamine during the standoff, which began at about 4 p.m. April 4, 2005, and ended at about 9 a.m. the next morning. No one was injured, but Wilkerson fired a total of 12 shots during the course of the standoff, prosecutors said.

Several officers testified that Wilkerson showed signs of methamphetamine abuse during the incident, pacing back and forth rapidly and talking constantly. But the testimonies of Wilkerson’s mother, father and sister indicate a long history of mental illness.

Wilkerson’s mother testified her son has been fighting “spiritual warfare” since day one and has shown signs of a mental disorder since he was a young boy. She said she sought help for Wilkerson several times but to no avail.

Prosecutors argued Wilkerson did not meet the criteria to be deemed criminally insane at the time of the standoff, using the testimony of a doctor to prove their point.

“There is no question Wilkerson suffered from a mental disease,” Strahan said. “But the bigger issue here is the defense’s excuses. They’ve been making excuses since day one. ... But we forget about Gary. When is it going to be Gary’s fault?

“Let me tell you something. Gary did wrong, and he knew it. Methamphetamine was in his system, and voluntary intoxication does not constitute a defense of a crime. Police formed a perimeter between him and us.”

During Mason’s closing argument, he replayed audio evidence of conversations between Wilkerson and police at the time of the incident. Wilkerson is heard saying, in an agitated and loud voice, that several federal agencies are trying to kill him, including the CIA, the president of the United States, a Navy Seal, the FBI and the North American Free Trade Agreement, in relation to an incident involving a meteorite.

Deciphering Wilkerson’s claims from the audio evidence is difficult, but he can be heard mentioning power plants and a nuclear bomb.

Police initially arrived at Wilkerson’s home after receiving a call from Wilkerson’s father, who said his son had attempted to assault him and was in possession of two firearms. He was later charged for illegally possessing the pistol and shotgun.

No one was injured during the standoff, which ended after officers entered a back door of the home and shot Wilkerson with a Taser, causing him to drop his weapon.

According to testimony, Wilkerson believed he was fighting a war during the standoff and protecting his family from the authorities.

Wilkerson was tried in the 18th District Court of Judge John Neill at the Guinn Justice Center. Wilkerson’s sentencing hearing was still in session Wednesday afternoon.

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