On Tuesday, October 2, in less than a day of deliberating at the Beverly Hills Courthouse, the 12-member jury agreed on a verdict: Scott Joseph Barker, a 25-year-old who came to Los Angeles from Florida in the hope of becoming a screenwriter and actor, was found guilty of murdering Beverly Hills resident Tony Takazato. Barker sat expressionless when the court clerk read the decision.
Barker was convicted of first-degree murder with a special circumstance -- and faces a sentence of life without parole. Undoubtedly a fate he never expected when first arriving in L.A., Barker may end up growing old and dying in a California state prison.
The murder trial involved a bizarre love triangle that went bone-chillingly sideways -- and one that the L.A. media took little interest in, although it spoke more to L.A.'s dark side of broken dreams and ugly behavior than another Lindsay Lohan bust.
According to L.A. county prosecutors Amy Carter and Linda Loftfield, Scott Barker, who was 23 years old at the time, was enraged that Tony Takazato had pushed his girlfriend, then 20-year-old Chie Alexandra Coggins-Johnson, into prostitution and pornography. Takazato also was abusive toward Coggins-Johnson, the prosecution said.
Coggins-Johnson and Takazato once were romantically linked, but that turned into a "friendship," the prosecutors said. She lived on and off with Takazato in Beverly Hills. In the early morning of July 20, 2010, that arrangement ended forever.
According to the prosecution, Barker went to Takazato's Trousdale Estates home in Beverly Hills and stabbed him 58 times, leaving the 21-year-old in a pool of blood and with wounds to the face, the arms, the neck and the back of the head. The fatal wound was a knife thrust to the heart.
Coggins-Johnson was initially at the scene and drove away. She and Barker were later charged with murder. Working closely with prosecutors, she pleaded no contest to assault with a deadly weapon under the theory that she'd aided and abetted Barker and would testify against him.
Bradley Brunon said in his opening statement that Johnson is a "pathological liar," and Barker did not commit the murder.
On Tuesday, the jury of nine men and three woman didn't go for Brunon's argument. In fact, the jury started deliberating on Tuesday morning, quickly returning with the guilty verdict by the early afternoon. The trial took a little over four weeks to complete.
"It seemed like a foregone conclusion," Brunon told L.A. Weekly about the verdict. "I think [the jury] accepted everything at face value."
At 3:50 p.m., the courtroom of Judge Elden S. Fox was filled with Beverly Hills Police Department officials and various court observers when the verdict was read. Barker sat next to Brunon, and his parents sat behind him in the gallery. Barker's parents showed no outward emotion when hearing about the fate of their son, but they appeared to be stunned.
"They're shocked," Brunon said later. "They thought the worst that would happen is a hung jury."
After their son was taken away, Beverly Hills Detective George Elwell, the lead investigator in the Takazato homicide, walked over to George and Cheryl Barker and extended his hand. Elwell offered moral support with a handshake and a kind word. George Barker accepted. His wife did not.
L.A. County prosecutors Linda Loftfield and Amy Carter were pleased with the result. "I thought it was a just verdict," Loftfield told the Weekly. Carter said the evidence against Barker was overwhelming. "It was just one thing after another," Carter said.
"It wasn't just one thing" that pointed to Barker's guilt. She added, "The reason [the trial] took so long was that there were so many details."
Takazato's movie producer father, Fuminori Hayashida, was not present in the courtroom for the verdict. Neither was Barker's ex-girlfriend, Chie Coggins-Johnson, who proved to be a main witness against him.
Attorney Bradley Brunon was unsure that Barker has fully grasped the consequences of the verdict. "He's just a youngster," said Brunon. "I don't think he really understands the enormity of what happened."
Barker arrived in L.A. hoping to make it big in the entertainment industry. Within a matter of months, he found himself charged with murder and locked up in a Los Angeles County jail. Just before the death of Takazato, Barker was planning to move back to Florida. When he's sentenced on November 9, Barker may find himself stuck behind bars and never leaving the state of California again.
dum bitch is a liar i happen to be in jail with scott this man is innocent the eddie guy killed him and she set him up and when ur dealing drugs u should know the rules before u play....if his daddy gave him everything hes an idoit for dealing drugs.and.having enemies..scott is innocent i love u dogg appeal u can expect it
Tony was a friendly, courteous and respectful young man. He would not have engaged Chie Coggins-Johnson as a prostitute for money. All of Tony's materialistic needs were met by his father (a house in Beverly Hills, a sports car, housekeeper, etc.). Chie is a liar and she will have to live the rest of her life knowing her evil involvement in Tony's death. As for the vicious murderer, Scott Barker, we have been waiting for his conviction I wish he was eligible for the death penalty--by stabbing--58 times. RIP, Tony. No one can ever hurt you again. You will always be in our thoughts and in our hearts.
The media weren't interested because the girl seems to have the lowest online profile of any pornstar or prostitute I've ever heard of, she obviously didn't want to 'sell' the story (as it appears likely she was more involved than she claimed) and the overall story is just another dull LA 'rich dumb young people think they're gangsters' BS.
Stabbed 58 times. Im confused. Why did Barker stab this guy again? Because his girlfriend was a pornstar? Is that the girl that testified against him? Were there any other suspects? Did they find the murder weapon? Did they find blood on Barker? What Evidence was used against him? I just dont believe this kid would do such a thing.
@nicolantonioucci Hi Nico, I suggest that you check out my series of posts on the murder trial. But, yes, the murder weapon was found, and the prosecution made the case that Barker was upset about the porn and prostitution and went after Takazato, who Chie said pressured her to do it. There was a lot of other evidence used against him, so that's why I suggest reading my posts, particularly the one about the closing arguments.
Take care,
Patrick Range McDonald,
LA Weekly
So sad. Two lives lost, the victim's and the perpetrator's. I hope Barker's girlfriend gets a harsh sentence. Is she going to trial at all?
@russkie69 Hi Russkie, Chie Coggins-Johnson already pleaded no contest to assault with a deadly weapon through the theory aiding and abetting. She served one year in jail with five years probation. She no longer has to serve any more time in jail.
Take care,
Patrick Range McDonald,
LA Weekly
@patrick.range.mcdonald Thanks for the update. Seems a bit unfair. She gets one year and the boy losses his whole life. I could understand if she'd called 911 or something but clearly she was heavily involved. In fact there probably wouldn't have been a murder if she hadn't have instigated it.
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