"He was begging for his life," Michael said. "The man was so proud of his family that he told his killer about them."
Yet the defense countered that the judge must consider Morris' difficult childhood - which included sexual abuse, homelessness and continual exposure to drugs and crime - when deciding on a sentence.
"That couldn't be further from the law in any way I can imagine," said defense attorney Arcangelo Tuminelli, referring to the prosecution argument that the death penalty is the only legal option.
"You wouldn't need to go through the process if it were that simple," he said.
Tuminelli argued that the death penalty should be reserved for the "worst of the worst" and that sentencing all murderers to death is arcane legal philosophy.
"Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth ... that was the jurisprudence of 2,000 years ago," Tuminelli said. "What Mr. Morris did is a terrible thing, but it's way beyond the types of felony murders that are inconceivably worse."
Tuminelli called the prosecution's effort to discredit many of the defense witnesses a "weak attempt" and said the judge would not be "doing the victims any favor by imposing the death sentence" because of the lengthy and emotionally wrenching appeals process that often follows.
He reiterated that Morris did not have the opportunities that others have had in life.
"If one is being fair, we don't kill the weak," Tuminelli said. "We don't kill the feeble. We don't kill the disadvantaged."
During a brief rebuttal, the prosecution again put the focus on the victim.
"Brandon Morris wasn't weak and feeble when he pulled the trigger on Jeffery Wroten. ... It's not that hard to look at a helpless man and not kill him," Michael said to the judge.
If he does not receive a death sentence, Morris will serve life in prison without parole.
tyeesha.dixon@baltsun.com
