Evidence presented Thursday in the murder trial of Corbin Lampert put him at the scene of teenager Taryn Hohbein’s death with a gun in his hand, though Lampert's attorney questioned whether the memory of two juveniles who testified might have been clouded by alcohol consumption the night of the shooting.
In a video of an interview conducted by Bismarck police following the June 25, 2023, fatal shooting of Hohbein, 16, a juvenile identified by the initials CP tells an officer Lampert fired the fatal shot.
“I know for a fact it was him,” CP tells the officer in the video.
But the juvenile under questioning by Lampert's attorney in court on Thursday acknowledged not having a clear memory of the events of that night, during which he had been drinking. A second juvenile also testified to drinking throughout that day.
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Lampert, now 19, is charged with murder and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in connection with the death of Hohbein during what authorities said was a gathering of juveniles in which drinking was involved. He could face life in prison without parole if convicted.
Defense attorneys have claimed Lampert did not fire the fatal shot, and that Hohbein’s death was caused by another of the juveniles at the apartment where the gathering took place. Lampert previously acknowledged being at the apartment, but he denies firing the gun. Thursday was day four of his trial, which is expected to last up to two weeks.
Video discussion
Portions of the video appeared to have been edited, which brought an objection from defense attorney Justin Balzer. He requested the jury be told to disregard the video because of it being edited in potential violation of evidence rules.
Burleigh County State's Attorney Julie Lawyer said the edits were because the interviewing officer had left the room, and conversations recorded between CP and his mother, who was present, didn’t have relevance to Lampert’s prosecution. Balzer disagreed, telling South Central District Judge Pam Nesvig those conversations did in fact have relevance.
Lawyer said prosecutors could provide an unedited interview that would exceed two hours. Nesvig noted Balzer’s objection for the trial record, and after a break a portion of the video lasting about 51 minutes was played.
“I know what I saw,” CP tells his mother outside the presence of police. He says another juvenile -- identified in court documents as FL -- brought the gun, "but Corbin is the one who shot.”
Following that exchange the officer reenters the room and tells CP police are trying to piece together events surrounding the shooting.
CP says Lampert was handling the gun immediately preceding the shooting.
“I was scrolling on my phone and I heard a bang,” he tells the officer. “All I see is Taryn sliding down on the ground.”
CP tells the officer the gun had only a single bullet in the magazine. After questioning by his mother, he admits to also having handled the weapon.
Trial testimony
CP, FL, Lampert, Hohbein and others were inside an apartment in the 2900 block of Ohio Street at the time of the shooting. A 9 mm handgun that authorities say had been stolen from a location in Lincoln was present. CP testified in court Thursday that the weapon belonged to FL.
CP testified he was scrolling on his phone and did not actually see anyone fire the fatal shot, but he also said he saw Lampert with the gun in his hand before the shot rang out.
CP answered questions about what had been shown on the video with “I don’t know” or “I can’t remember” responses. Balzer wondered if CP’s admitted consumption of alcohol throughout the day of the shooting was a factor.
“As you sit here today, you don’t remember much of what happened that night, do you?” Balzer asked.
CP replied “Not really,” saying the last thing he really remembered was being placed in handcuffs after the traffic stop in which he and FL were taken into custody and where the gun was found on FL’s person.
“Did you trust what you said in that video?” Balzer asked.
“Not 100%, no,” CP replied.
The juvenile identified as FL testified Thursday that he lived in the apartment, and that the gun belonged to him. He said he bought it from someone in a park the day before the shooting, and that he "had a bullet in my change jar" and put the bullet in the magazine. Authorities recovered the gun from FL during a traffic stop following the shooting.
While FL was on the stand, audio was played from an interview he had with police. He tells investigators that he and a group including Lampert and Hohbein were at the apartment “doing shots and chilling.” He says that at some point the gun was produced and was handled by several people, including Lampert. He says he didn't see who fired the gun, and also doesn't remember how it ended up in his possession, adding "I was really, really drunk."
A coroner testified earlier in the trial that Hohbein suffered a single gunshot wound to the head. Jonathan Thorn, a firearms and tool mark examiner with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, testified Thursday that he performed an analysis on the gun. He said the gun matched a shell casing found in the apartment and also matched a bullet found inside a light fixture by crime scene investigators, but that his analysis did not determine who pulled the trigger.
Authorities after the shooting arrested Lampert, who was 18 at the time, at an apartment on South 16th Street, where he allegedly told a girl "I think I killed somebody."
Hohbein's mother, Angela Schwarting, testified earlier in the trial that her daughter had previously told her that Lampert had pointed a gun at her in the past, though she never witnessed it and it was never reported to police.
Lawyer in her opening statement on Monday told jurors that Hohbein and Lampert had a disagreement of some kind in the apartment but had apparently settled it before the shooting.
FL during his interview with investigators said Lampert and Hohbein had issues previously, possibly to do with Hohbein being friends with Lampert's ex-girlfriend. The audio played in court Thursday showed him telling investigators that didn't want trouble the night of the party.
“I told them to go talk it out, go somewhere and talk it out,” FL said.
Balzer in court questioned FL about the admitted alcohol consumption and its possible effect on his memory.
“Is it possible, even if it was accidental, that you shot Taryn?” Balzer asked FL.
Lawyer objected, saying FL had already answered that question when he previously said he didn’t remember many details about the day.