The trial for a Charleston man charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy has been delayed.
William Ronald Pulliam, 63, was to go to trial on Monday, but Kanawha Circuit Judge Charles King agreed to a motion from Pulliam's lawyer on Thursday to delay the trial. The judge rescheduled the trial for Dec. 11.
Pulliam allegedly shot 15-year-old James Harvey Means along Washington Street East after they bumped into each other and had a verbal altercation on Nov. 21, 2016.
Pulliam has pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and use of a firearm during a felony. He also was charged with federal crimes for lying on federal forms to buy a .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol in July 2016. He wasn't allowed to have a gun because of a 2013 domestic violence conviction in Kanawha County.
In a criminal complaint, Charleston Police Detective Chris Lioi wrote that Pulliam said, "The way I look at it, that's another piece of trash off the street," after Means was shot and killed.
Witnesses told police they saw and heard Pulliam, who is white, and Means. who was black, exchange words after they bumped into each other on the sidewalk near the Dollar General on Washington Street East, according to the criminal complaint filed in Kanawha County Magistrate Court.
After the argument, Pulliam went into the Dollar General while Means joined some friends on the porch at one of the friends' grandmother's home, according to the complaint. After Pulliam left the store and walked passed the porch of the home, the pair allegedly argued again, with Means crossing the street to approach Pulliam.
That's when Pulliam is alleged to have shot Means, according to the complaint.
In a December hearing, Lioi testified Means was shot once in the chest before falling to the ground. When Means stood up and turned to run away, he was shot again in the back, Lioi said.
Pulliam's lawyers have said he acted in self-defense. Lioi said Pulliam said Means showed Pulliam a BB gun after their first argument, but Means had nothing in his hands when he was shot. A BB gun was found in a friend's backpack after the shooting, Lioi said.
After the shooting, Lioi said, Pulliam had dinner and visited a female friend. The .380 caliber pistol allegedly used to kill the teenager was found at her home.
Pulliam has been at South Central Regional Jail since he was arrested in November.
Reach Lacie Pierson at lacie.pierson@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-1723 or follow @LaciePierson on Twitter.