1 week Ago By The Enquirer
A Northern Kentucky man is on trial, accused of after a fight in a Florence subdivision. He claims it was self-defense. Wayne Haggard’s attorneys say he was concerned for his and his relatives’ lives when he opened fire on 21-year-old Dan Likiko, who in April 2023 was on Winthrop Circle, just a few houses from where Likiko lived with his family.
However, prosecutors argue the evidence doesn’t support that Likiko, who was outnumbered and without a weapon, posed a threat to Haggard. The murder trial began Monday in Boone County Circuit Court and is expected to wrap up before the end of the week. Haggard, 39, was living with his mother on Winthrop Circle and invited family members over for a cookout on the night of the shooting, his attorney, Ryan Beck, said during opening statements.
He and his family grew concerned about an unfamiliar car parked facing the wrong way outside his mother’s house, Beck said, adding some in the neighborhood were on edge due to a recent auto theft and reports of vandalism. In court filings, prosecutors said, “There were no reports of the vehicle making excessive noise, suspected drug activity, or anyone inside the vehicle making threats towards anyone involved with the Haggard gathering.” When Haggard and his brothers approached the man sitting behind the wheel, they confronted Likiko and a fistfight broke out, according to prosecutors.
Haggard told police that after the fight, Likiko threatened to shoot and reached into the car, prompting him to open fire. Likiko was shot five times and police found him dead in the driver’s seat with the car running, prosecutors said. The only gun recovered from the scene was Haggard’s.
“There is no question about who did it,” said Assistant Boone County Commonwealth’s Attorney Joe Dolgas, adding that witnesses who overheard the fight didn’t recall mention of a gun and video of the incident also showed no mention of a gun before the shooting. Likiko was simply trying to get back home that night but never made it to his front door, prosecutors said. “There’s fact and there’s fiction,” Dolgas said.
“The facts in this case show the defendant intentionally shot and killed Dan Likiko while he sat in his car and that it was not self-defense.” Beck said that after the shooting, Haggard holstered his gun, waited for officers to arrive and immediately told police that he shot Likiko. The attorney also played audio of a Florence police detective saying “Wayne believed that Dan Likiko was retrieving a weapon from his vehicle” and felt he had to shoot to prevent someone from getting hurt.
“Wayne was justified in acting in self-defense,” Beck said. “Not only self-defense but also the defense of the others around him.” Haggard is expected back in Judge Richard Brueggemann’s courtroom Tuesday morning.
Court records indicate the trial is scheduled to last three to four days..
