Key witness refuses to testify in ex-soldier's murder trial

A key witness in the homicide trial of an Iraq war veteran accused of killing a fellow soldier refused to testify Wednesday, in violation of a deal he made with prosecutors.

Former Fort Carson soldier Bruce Bastien Jr.'s attorney, Rick Bednarski, told 4th Judicial District Judge Theresa Cisneros that Bastien changed his mind, but he didn't say why.

Bastien, who accepted a plea agreement to avoid two first-degree murder charges, was supposed to testify against Louis Bressler in the Dec. 1, 2007, shooting death of Spc. Kevin Shields.

Bastien has been sentenced to 60 years in prison for his part in the Shields homicide and for taking part in the robbery and shooting death of another soldier, in August 2007, Pfc. Robert James.

Deputy District Attorney Jack Roth warned Bastien that prosecutors can void the plea agreement and refile all the charges he originally faced. He also said prosecutors could call him as a witness anyway and he no longer has a Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination because he has pleaded guilty.

Roth told the judge prosecutors haven't decided whether to refile the murder charges against Bastien.

In testimony Wednesday, the seventh day of trial, Kenneth Eastridge, another former soldier present at the Shields shooting, testified that he saw Bressler shoot Shields.

Eastridge also accepted a plea deal with prosecutors and has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his part in the Shields killing. He was still in Iraq when James was killed.

During five hours on the stand, Eastridge said the four men were drinking heavily at downtown bars Nov. 30 and into the morning of Dec. 1. They all left in Bastien's Audi after Rum Bay closed and were smoking marijuana. The car was pulled over at least once when Bressler and Shields started vomiting, Eastridge said. Then Bressler and Shields began fighting.

Bressler missed two punches, and Shields threw him against the car, Eastridge testified under questioning by Deputy District Attorney Laurel Cain.

Bressler, bleeding from the nose, was furious, Eastridge said.

Bressler attempted to choke Shields when the men got back in the car, he said.

The car was stopped again in front of a house on 16th Street on the city's west side, and Bressler and Shields got out again, Eastridge testified.

"That's when I heard the first shot," Eastridge said. "Then Louie shot him when he was on the ground."

When the men got back in the car, Eastridge asked Bressler why he killed him, saying,

"It's his (expletive) birthday, and he's got kids."

"You just killed him over nothing," Eastridge testified he told Bressler.

Bressler responded by pointing the gun in his direction, Eastridge testified. Bastien then said: "We had to do it. He knew too much."

Eastridge said he didn't know what that last statement meant.

Prosecutors say Bressler killed Shields because he knew too much about supposed plans the other three men had to rob people.

Eastridge and Bressler were best friends, and Eastridge was living with him at the time of the shooting, he said.

On cross-examination, defense attorney Eric Anaya attempted to discredit Eastridge by telling jurors what he posted on his MySpace.com Web site.

Anaya wrote in big letters on an easel in front of jurors the words Eastridge put on that Web page: "Killing is just what I do!!!"

Eastridge said it was "just a joke."

Anaya pointed out several inconsistencies between Eastridge's testimony Wednesday and what he previously told police. Through questions, he also told jurors that Eastridge had been court-martialed on nine charges, including drug possession and insubordination, and that he went absent without leave for a month after returning to Colorado Springs from Iraq.

Anaya questioned whether Eastridge was just making up his version of the killing to downplay his involvement and avoid a lengthy prison sentence.

Defense attorneys also called a gunshot-residue expert to testify that a glove found by defense investigators under Bastien's driver's seat had gunshot residue on it. Bastien's blood was also found inside that glove.

The final witness Wednesday, Mark Fox, was in the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center when Bressler was brought there.

He told jurors that while he was a cellmate of Bressler's, Bressler told him he didn't know why he shot Shields.

Prosecutors are expected to rest their case today, and closing arguments could come Friday.

Defense attorney Ed Farry told Cisneros he didn't know if Bressler will testify.