A man who turned himself in to Chapel Hill police in the death of a teenager last week told a judge Monday that the shooting was self defense.
Anthony Wuanya Holman, 22, of Chapel Hill is charged with first-degree murder, Orange County Assistant District Attorney Jeff Nieman said. Holman has been held at the Orange County Jail since Sunday without bail.
Chapel Hill police responded at 11:35 p.m. Thursday to University Gardens apartments, at 800 Pritchard Ave. Ext., police reported. They found 19-year-old Rahzel Tyreek Jenkins, who had been shot. Jenkins was taken to UNC Hospitals, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
On Monday afternoon, Holman told District Court Judge C. Todd Roper that the shooting “was self-defense” during his brief first appearance at the Orange County Courthouse.
Holman dropped his head to the defense attorney’s table as the judge spoke, quietly sobbing. Orange County Public Defender Dana Graves rubbed Holman’s back to comfort him.
Holman asked the judge to set a bond, so he could potentially be released from jail while awaiting trial.
“No, sir,” Roper said.
He advised Holman to talk with his public defender before the next hearing on Sept. 19. Holman could face life in prison or death if convicted of the first-degree murder charge.
The killing was the town’s fourth homicide this year, according to the Chapel Hill Police Department.
In 2021, there was one homicide and in 2020, there were none.
Nieman and Graves declined to comment about the pending case against Holman.
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This story was originally published August 29, 2022 8:34 AM.
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