Restaurateur Greg Leon to testify in his murder trial. Judge refuses to declare mistrial

Restaurateur Greg Leon, who is accused of murdering his wife’s lover on Valentine’s Day 2016, says he plans to testify in his murder trial.

Leon told circuit court Judge Walton J. McLeod IV that he plans to testify in his trial, which resumed on Thursday. His intentions were revealed as McLeod denied a defense request for a mistrial. Leon’s attorneys had sought a mistrial because of a pathologist’s change of opinion on whether the victim’s right arm was raised when he was shot.

“Our position is that our case was critically impaired and damaged by the failures to disclose that information to us,” defense attorney Jack Swerling told the court Thursday.

The sudden turn of events came halfway through Leon’s trial in Lexington. Leon is charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime for shooting Arturo Bravo Santos, a 28-year-old construction worker who was having an affair with Leon’s wife.

Initial reports based on the the autopsy performed by Dr. Janice Ross, a Newberry pathologist, stated that Bravo Santos’ right arm was extended when he was shot. This buttressed the defense’s claims Leon had acted in self defense because he believed that the younger man was reaching for a weapon.

But on the stand Friday, Ross said she had now determined that the victim’s arm was down by his side at the time of the shooting.

“When was the first time you disclosed this information?” defense attorney Alissa Wilson asked Ross on the stand Friday.

“I’m not sure. For one thing today…but I think I said something about it earlier, a couple of weeks ago,” Ross replied.

In reality, the first time she had ever disclosed this information was just minutes before she was brought upstairs to testify, said 11th Circuit Solicitor Rick Hubbard.

Hubbard rested the state’s case Friday following Ross’ testimony. But Wilson and lead defense attorney Jack Swerling appeared confused by Ross’ new determination.

The two attorneys indicated that they planned to work through the weekend. When court resumed Monday, circuit court judge Walton J. McLeod IV immediately called for a two day recess.

“It really came down to some legal issues and we all needed a chance to sort that out,” Swerling said Monday.

But those issues were not resolved by Wednesday morning. The parties spent the morning discussing Ross’ testimony in chambers. Veteran Columbia defense attorney Dick Harpootlian, who formerly represented Leon, was called as a witness during the morning discussion.

When court resumed at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, the judge almost immediately dismissed the jury once again. That afternoon, Hubbard, along with one of his chief deputies, Suzanne Mayes, met with Swerling and Wilson in McLeod’s chambers to discuss a path forward.

On the stand Friday, Ross testified that the presence of a so-called “slap wound” — an abrasion caused by skin being in close to the path of a bullet — on the inside of Bravo Santos’ right arm indicated that his arm had been down at his side when a bullet entered his armpit.

Bravo Santos was shot three times. The wound in question came from a bullet entered into the backside of his right armpit and exited through his collarbone. It was not the fatal shot.

In opening statements, Swerling argued that the case was fundamentally one of self-defense: Leon heard his wife scream seconds before he came upon the couple in the backseat of a Toyota pickup in an empty park-and-ride on the night of Feb. 14, 2016.

“Imagine what he thought when he looked in the back seat of that car and saw Arturo Bravo naked, with his socks on and his wife’s pants down, Arturo Bravo threatening him,” Swerling told the jury.

“You’d be crazy not to fire that shot in self defense.”

If a mistrial is declared, the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office has the option to retry the case.

This is a breaking news story. Check back here for more updates.

This story was originally published June 29, 2023 at 9:30 AM.

Ted Clifford

The State

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Ted Clifford is the statewide accountability reporter at The State Newspaper. Formerly the crime and courts reporter, he has covered the Murdaugh saga, state and federal court, as well as criminal justice and public safety in the Midlands and across South Carolina. He is the recipient of the 2023 award for best beat reporting by the South Carolina Press Association.