Trial begins for former Sikeston police officer involved in fatal wreck

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. — A defense attorney representing a former Sikeston, Missouri, police captain involved in a wreck resulting in a woman's death is trying to convince a jury the captain was unjustly treated by officers who personally knew the defendant.

Andrew Cooper Sr. is facing several felony charges — driving while intoxicated with the death of another not a passenger, armed criminal action, first-degree involuntary manslaughter and three counts of DWI with serious physical injury.

Abigail Cohen, 22, died as a result of the collision Feb. 29, 2020. Her husband, Chris, was seriously injured, as were all three people in Cooper's car, including his son, Andrew Cooper Jr., and friend, Joshua Atchley.

Jurors heard the first full day of trial testimony Wednesday, June 7.

Prosecutors called four law enforcement officers to the stand: former Scott County deputy sheriff and current Cape Girardeau police officer and Morley, Missouri, police chief Hunter Juden; Scott County Sheriff Lt. Robin Meredith; Sikeston Department of Public Safety director James McMillen; and state Highway Patrol trooper Justin Johnson. All four knew Cooper personally. Juden said he knew the Coopers as well as the Cohens. He said he had worked with Abigail Cohen at different times at Walmart and Lowe's.

Meredith, who said Cooper was a mentor of his and once gave him a reference for a job, testified that "I remember the smell of alcohol from his person" and that he alerted authorities on the scene he believed Cooper was "(expletive) hammered."

Meredith, who was patrolling with other officers near Sikeston that night, stated under cross-examination that he was not qualified to make a determination of sobriety that night, as it had been many years since he had any training or worked any DWI cases. He was not involved in the investigation into a DWI, but, the defense noted, it was his observation that kicked off an investigation into Cooper's sobriety.

Prosecutors have not presented the results of sobriety tests, but the tests themselves were discussed at length Wednesday.

Johnson testified he tried to issue a breath test three times to Cooper in an ambulance, but he said the former captain tried to circumvent the test by not giving full breaths and not placing his lips securely around the device. Johnson said it's common for DWI suspects to use such tactics.

Johnson also said he didn't smell alcohol as he was attempting to give the test, but smelled it strongly after leaving the ambulance and returning after Cooper had been in the ambulance for a significant amount of time.

Defense attorney Travis Noble attacked Johnson's actions, arguing he had no justifiable reason for asking for another test, because he noted no smell or any other indicators of drunkenness on the patrol's DWI investigation forms. Noble referred to previous depositions in which Johnson stated he didn't believe there was enough evidence for an arrest based on what he'd gathered at the scene. However, Johnson said he was recently able to review audio and video from the scene and had changed his mind, saying the totality of the events were strong enough to spark a case.

Johnson told the prosecution that Cooper refused to submit to a blood test at the hospital, an action that automatically kicks in a one-year suspension of driving privileges in Missouri. After Cooper declined the blood test, Johnson applied for a search warrant. He said he told Cooper, "Andy, I hate to do this, and I don't want to do this" to which Johnson said Cooper responded, "Do your job."

Noble accused Johnson of ignoring what he considered a demand by the judge who issued a search warrant, by not taking two blood samples 30 minutes apart. Instead, he had the nurse draw two blood samples at the same time.

Prosecutor Stephanie Watson tried to clarify the issue of Johnson ignoring demands, by having Johnson read the warrant, some of which gave Johnson the authority to execute the warrant, with another part saying the judge demanded other things, but not the point Noble was arguing.

Noble said the samples should be taken 30 minutes apart to determine the absorption and excretion rates of the alcohol. Johnson said that policy has changed and the same information can now be determined from draws taken at the same time. Johnson could provide no evidence of such a policy.

Johnson said Cooper told him he'd had two beers that night, which he said he hears frequently during traffic stops. He said he was skeptical that Cooper was being truthful.

The topic of alcohol consumption was a core topic early in testimony Wednesday, when Andrew Cooper, the captain's son, and Atchley were called by the prosecution. Cooper and Atchley both testified to have consumed fewer than two beers at the elder Cooper's house before going on a drive to test out the captain's new Dodge Challenger Hellcat.

The younger Cooper and Atchley, an area agriculture pilot, both said they were at a local restaurant before heading to Cooper's house to see the new car. They said they arrived at the house near dark, which would have been around 5:45 p.m. Feb. 29. The wreck occurred shortly after 9 p.m. Both testified they only drove around for less than an hour, before heading back to Sikeston just prior to the wreck. Atchley and the younger Cooper said they were on their second beer, and believed Cooper Sr. was too, when they stopped drinking and decided to take the Challenger for a drive. They both testified Cooper was driving the car over the speed limit.

Noble dropped hints throughout his questioning of the witnesses that the wreck may have occurred at the intersection before running the stop sign, while also suggesting Cooper may have accelerated near the intersection in an attempt to avoid the other vehicle. Previous reporting by the Southeast Missourian on accident investigation reports showed Cooper was driving the car at full throttle and at excessive speed just before the collision. That evidence has not been presented in court.

Noble also argued that Chris Cohen may have been at least partially to blame for the collision.

The prosecution presented a 26-minute body-camera video that showed the scene, including emergency responders attempting to revive Cohen outside her vehicle. Multiple people, including the victim's mother, left the courtroom as the video was shown.

Two of the first passersby at the scene testified that when they came upon the Challenger and asked Cooper whether anyone had contacted the police, that Cooper told them he was a police officer. Johnson testified that when he came to issue the breath test on Cooper, Cooper asked Johnson whether he'd contacted his father. Johnson's father, Jeff Johnson, is a veteran officer with the state Highway Patrol. Witnesses testified that upon arriving at the scene, the elder Cooper kept asking his son where his cellphone was. Cooper's brother Bud Cooper is also a longtime police officer with the Highway Patrol.

The trial is set to resume Thursday, June 8. It is expected to take several days to get through the testimony.