Varna murder defendant takes witness stand

Much like the first day, the second day of 22-year old Bradley French’s murder trial showed two different sides of the Varna man.

A tired and, at times, confused French was shown talking to police when the prosecution played almost two hours of a recorded interview between police and French. During the interview, which was shown Wednesday morning, he said he saw 38-year old Joshua Scaman attack the window of a car where his friend was locked inside. He then said “that’s when I took him down,” shooting and killing Scaman with a bow-and-arrow in a parking lot at Illinois Valley Community College.

After the prosecution rested in the afternoon, French took the stand. He talked about how he believed his life was threatened by what he described as an enraged Scaman. French broke down to tears on the stand, saying that he never meant to kill anyone.

State’s Attorney Brian Towne used his chance to question French to point out the stark differences in French’s interview and testimony. The defense is expected to continue building their case Thursday.