The judge presiding over Darius Miles’ preliminary hearing denied Miles’ attorney’s motion to set bond, saying that district prosecutors had established probable cause. 

Miles was charged with capital murder following the shooting death of Jamea Harris on Jan. 15. According to investigators, he provided Michael Davis, also charged, with the gun used to kill Harris after an exchange that lead investigator Brandon Culpepper said got “heated” earlier in the night between Miles and Davis, and Harris, her boyfriend and her cousin. 

Miles’ attorney, Mary Turner, argued in the preliminary hearing Tuesday that the state had failed to show probable cause when it arrested Miles, saying the defense believed that Miles felt threatened by Cedric Johnson, Harris’ boyfriend, after the initial incident between the two groups, leading him to tell Davis where the gun was for defense reasons. Turner said Miles provided the gun to Davis for protection.  

Miles texted standout Alabama basketball player Brandon Miller, who drove him that night, at 1:38 a.m., after the initial exchange between his group and Johnson’s, saying “I need my joint [gun] a n****r rl jus got a fakin.” Turner said that “fakin” meant that Miles was saying he had been threatened, citing Urban Dictionary.  

Police say that when Miller met back up with Miles, Miles allegedly told Davis: “The heat is in the hat.” Brandon Culpepper, the lead investigator on the case, said that meant a gun was present. 

Harris was shot while sitting in the passenger seat of Johnson’s Jeep, which is why Miles and Davis were charged with a capital offense. In the state of Alabama, those charged with capital offenses are not permitted to be bonded out.  

Miles’ case is now bound for a grand jury, which will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to indict him and have him stand trial.