Alverno Howse Jr.

ELYRIA — Alverno Howse Jr. didn’t mean to kill Charles “Chuckie” Howard Jr. on Aug. 19, 2009, but he did, Assistant Lorain County Prosecutor Mike Kinlin told jurors today during his closing argument.

Defense attorney Mike Camera disagreed, telling jurors his client wasn’t there. He said it was Chris Howse, Alverno Howse’s brother, who was with Howard when he was shot in the bedroom of a Taft Avenue home.

The closing arguments finished around 10:30 a.m. and followed nearly two weeks of testimony in a chaotic trial that has seen witnesses change their testimony, the judge clear the courtroom because of concerns over witness intimidation and a shouting match that erupted between a member of Howard’s family and a reputed member of the Middle Avenue Zone, a gang that Howse is allegedly a member of.

The jurors will consider two charges against Howse, reckless homicide and tampering with evidence.