Fears, 20, is accused of the 2002 shooting deaths of Patsy Sue Wells of Sallisaw and Reba Spangler of Fort Smith, Ark. He is also accused of wounding eight others in a shooting spree that began in Sallisaw.
Rob Nigh, Fears' attorney, began his defense by bringing in friends and family to testify to Fears' strange behavior preceding the 2002 shooting incident.
Fears' aunt, Linda Gonzales, testified that Fears was always quiet and "off to himself" when he would visit her in Texas.
She said when Fears was in high school, she noticed he was quieter.
"Daniel would never laugh," Gonzales testified.
Gonzales said she came to visit her sister, Oralia, Fears' mother, a month before the shootings, and at that time she hadn't seen Fears in two or three years.
"When he came in the door, I had a real fleeting moment of fear because I didn't like the look on his face," Gonzales said. "His eyes bothered me. His eyes were, like, dead."
Even so, Gonzales said Fears was respectful to her and hugged her.
During a conversation one night with Fears and his sister, Iliana, Fears told them about hearing voices.
"He could hear voices, and he had named one of them Robert," Gonzales said.
Gonzales told him if he honestly heard voices, there was medication that he could take to help.
"He said, 'No, I've learned to control them,'" Gonzales said.
She testified Fears told her when he felt like doing something wrong, the voices told him not to. Gonzales said she thought he was being dramatic, and told him that it was his conscience.
"He was very firm about the voices," Gonzales said. "He said he had learned to control them."
Gonzales said the conversation concerned her, and the next morning she told her sister what he said. Gonzales said her sister knew about the voices, and her other sister, Rosie, asked her why she hadn't taken him to the doctor. Gonzales testified that Oralia Fears told her that she didn't want her son to be on a lot of medications.
During cross-examination, Doug Kirkley, assistant district attorney, asked Gonzales if she knew that Fears abused any drugs. Gonzales said her sister told her that she found an empty package of cold medication in his room, but Fears never told Gonzales that he abused cold medication.
Fears' father, O.T. Fears, professional fisherman, said when his son was very young he was normal, inquisitive and happy.
O.T. Fears said Daniel was a bright child, and was in the upper percentile for scholastic achievement. He said his teachers in grade school wanted to put him in advanced classes, but "he threw a fit."
"Daniel avoided being singled out," O.T. Fears said.
During junior high and high school, O.T. Fears said Daniel was never in trouble and generally gave him no discipline problems.
He said his son didn't have very many friends, and when family would visit, Daniel would end up in his room and had no interaction with the family. He said his son never talked about his sexuality or aliens. Fears told authorities after the incident that he was directed by extraterrestrials to kill as many people as he could.
Before the shooting spree, O.T. Fears said Daniel talked about wanting to be an underwater welder. "That was a purpose he had for his future," Fears said.
"The Daniel I know and helped raise would never do anything like the events described. Never," Fears said.
Fears said when he saw his son the night of Oct. 26, 2002, after the shooting spree, he said his son looked liked a "zombie."
"His eyes were like there was nobody home," Fears said, becoming emotional.
When Kirkley cross-examined O.T. Fears, he asked Fears if he thought there was anything wrong with his son's mental health.
Fears said he thought it was a phase his son was going through, but without training, he didn't know how anyone would know if it was a mental illness. O.T. Fears also testified that he and his son had discussions about religion. O.T.
Fears is a Christian and Daniel Fears is agnostic, he said.
Iliana Sprinkle, Fears' sister, said she was never close to her brother because of their age difference. She is about five years older than Fears. She said her brother acted different from other students at school and it was hard for her to relate to him.
"He didn't act like any of the kids I knew," Sprinkle said.
Sprinkle said her brother's behavior is how she had always known him. She testified she thought it was pointless to go any further with it by telling her parents her concerns.
She said in early 2002 she was visiting her mom and family and the family dog died. She testified that Fears picked up the dog and brought it to the backdoor and cut off his dewclaws. She said he placed the claws in a container, labeled them and put them in the freezer. Sprinkle said Fears told her he wanted to have a piece of the dog when cloning was perfected.
She said when they later buried the dog, he said a few words. She said the words that he was saying were sad.
"It never came out as genuine emotion," Sprinkle said. "It was very forced."
She said he was hysterical at times, and was like someone trying to act sad. She said it was like he was trying to convey the correct emotions and words.
Sprinkle said in September 2002 she and her aunt had a conversation with him in which he told them he heard voices and he learned to control them.
"He considered them separate pieces of his personality," Sprinkle said. "He had given them names."
Sprinkle said the conversation concerned her, but she didn't say anything to her parents because she didn't feel like it would do any good. She said her mother's fear was Daniel would be medicated or institutionalized if he told doctors he was hearing voices.
Sprinkle said her mother wouldn't hear her concerns because her mother did not want to believe anything was wrong with her son.
Karen Money, the mother of a friend of Fears, said the first time Fears came to her home, he introduced himself as Adam. She testified about an incident at her home in the Spring 2002. She said her daughter and friends were watching movies at a workshop behind her home when Fears became violent.
Money said Fears had a machete and was acting erratically, speaking in an Australian accent.
"I said, 'Dan, can I call your mom?'" Money said. "He said, 'Don't call me that, my name is Colin.'"
Money said his hand was bleeding and after she repeatedly asked him to see his hand, he realized that his hand was cut and started crying. Money said she cleaned up his hand and he told her he was sorry and would never come back to her home again.
Ryan Brown, Fears' longtime friend, testified that he noticed things were different about Fears, but he overlooked them. He said several months prior to the shootings, Fears told him he had different levels of personalities.
"He said, 'I think there's something wrong with me. I think I'm going crazy,'" Brown testified.
Brown said he believed what Fears told him and said Fears sounded worried. Brown testified that he was concerned, but he tried not to think anything of it. He said he also heard Fears speak in a different accent at Karen Money's home, but he never asked Fears about it.
During cross-examination, Kirkley asked Brown about an incident where he and Fears talked about shooting people they didn't like and Fears commenting about being organized to get away with it. Brown admitted that the conversation occurred when they were about 13 years old.
"It was just a joke," Brown said. "We were trying to have fun."
Brown said Fears never said anything about killing people in high school and never talked about any plans.
Dr. Ronald Distefano of the state medical examiner's office reviewed autopsy reports on shooting victims Reba Spangler of Fort Smith, Ark., and Patsy Sue Wells of Sallisaw.
Wells was in her front yard when she was shot and had about 150 shotgun pellet wounds on her body. Spangler, who was shot at a Sallisaw car dealership, suffered a "large, gaping wound" to her shoulder and another to her neck, Distefano testified.
The prosecution showed the jury four atuopsy photos of Wells and one autopsy photo of Spangler.
While the photos were shown to the jury on a projector, Fears looked ahead and showed no signs of emotion.
Distefano said Wells died of a shotgun wound to the chest, while Spangler's cause of death was a shotgun wound to the neck.
Vicky Lyons, OSBI special agent, presented evidence and testified about what Fears told her following the shootings.
Lyons said she spoke to Fears several hours after his arrest and was interested in his physical well being. She said he had a small cut on his forehead, and she was concerned about it.
Lyons said that she thought it was possible he was under the influence of drugs because his pupils were constricted.
Lyons said Fears' demeanor was cooperative and coherent, and he appeared to understand her. She said he mumbled and he said things she didn't understand, but she never asked him to repeat them because it was not an interrogation interview.
"He made a comment, something about 'watching your kids.'" Lyons said.
Lyons said Fears did not show emotion, and there were times when Fears looked dazed.
Nigh asked Lyons if being dazed and mumbling could have been a sign of mental illness.
"Yes, it could've been a sign of a number of things, one of which could've been mental illness," Lyons said.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol Lt. Mike Sharp also testified about his part in the pursuit of Fears that ended near Roland when Fears' vehicle crashed into a ditch.
Sharp testified that as soon as Fears' vehicle came to a rest, Fears threw the shotgun out the window, came out of the driver's side with his hands up and retreated to the rear of the truck.
Sharp said there was no indications that Fears was intoxicated or had mental health issues, and he appeared coherent and oriented to the time and place. Sharp transported Fears to the city jail, and on the 20-minute ride he asked Fears questions.
"I asked him why he shot those people in Sallisaw. He said, 'The aliens were messing with my brain,'" Sharp said.
Sharp said Fears then made more statements, which he couldn't understand because Fears was mumbling.
"Were you concerned with his mental health?" Jeff Sheridan, assistant district attorney, asked.
Sharp said he was not concerned with Fears' mental health after making statements about aliens because he thought Fears might have been "faking it."
Sharp said he asked Fears why he shot the people at the dealership, and Fears told him that he wanted to make it worthwhile.
"He told me he didn't want to end up like his dad and he said he already was," Sharp testified.
"He said, 'You should've heard them scream when I shot them."
Sharp said Fears expressed surprise that the shots didn't kill people immediately. He said Fears told him that was going to have police kill him at the end of the pursuit, but he backed out.
Sharp said Fears was not remorseful and he seemed proud. He said Fears didn't cry and he wasn't belligerent.
"At one point, he asked me how it felt to be sitting next to him," Sharp said. "I told him he was still a nobody."
During cross-examination, Nigh pointed out previous testimony from Sharp when he quoted Fears as saying that aliens were controlling him.
Nigh asked Sharp if, in his 20-year career as an officer, any violent criminals had ever made statements about aliens.
"No, sir," Sharp replied.
The trial recessed until Wednesday, when mental mental health professionals testified Fears was schizophrenic. Although the prosecution and defense mental health professionals disagreed to which Fears' mental health impacted his actions on the day of the shooting spree.
District Judge John Garrett sent the jury home early Wednesday afternoon.
Closing arguments and instructions to the jury are planned Thursday. The jury will then begin their deliberations.
