Sentencing Phase Begins in Rickey Cummings Trial - kcentv.com - KCEN HD - Waco, Temple, and Killeen

UPDATE: The defense has rested in the sentencing phase of the Cummings trial.

The state is calling rebuttal witnesses and closing arguments will be made tomorrow.

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UPDATE: The defense has been calling people to the stand to testify about Rickey Cummings character today.

They also called Frank Aubuchon of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to discuss the type of punishment Cummings would receive in prison.

He said Cummings would face life without parole as a level three inmate and talked about the living conditions and solitary confinement linked to that.

Aubuchon said, "Rickey would go to the state penitentiary until he dies .... Where Rickey is going, there is no air conditioning."

We will continue to update this story.

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UPDATE: The prosecution has rested its case around 2:30 this afternoon after spending the day trying to show the jury Cummings' violent past.

Former Waco High Assistant Principal Gerald Brewer also took the stand. He said when Cummings was a student at his school, he assaulted several students and was sent to the alternative school several times.

Another witness testified about an incident in high school when Cummings went up to a student he didn't even know and started punching him for no apparent reason.

The defense will pick up the case at 8:30 tomorrow morning.

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UPDATE: One witness who was to appear this morning and did not has been located and is now in court. The sentencing phase of the trial is now back on.

A security officer was called to testify about an incident in 2008 where Cummings was arrested for pointing a gun at club goers and then running and dumping the gun.

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(KCEN) -- The sentencing phase is now underway in the trial of Rickey Cummings.

On November 2, Cummings was found guilty of shooting and killing 21-year-old Keenan Hubert and 17-year-old Tyus Sneed in March of last year.

The prosecution called a former Waco ISD administrator to the stand today. He said in 2003 Cummings trespassed on a middle school campus and became agitated when asked to leave. Cummings told administrators if he had a gun, they would not be asking him to leave the school.

Detective Joe Williams was called to testify about a case of family violence on Cummings' grandmother's husband, where Cummings was behind the assault. Cummings apparently hit the man in the face, jaw and knee.  Williams said he had heard of Cummings around the Waco Police Department.

Cummings faces the death penalty or life in prison without parole.