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18
March 14 • 2013
JN
'Flabbergasted'
Grandmother's handgun purchase
a surprise to her husband.
Ronelle Grier
Contributing Writer
F
labbergasted" is the word
Fred Layne used to describe
his reaction when he discov-
ered his wife, Sandra, now 75, had
purchased a Glock 17 semi-automatic
handgun three weeks before she shot
and killed her 17-year-old grandson,
Jonathan Hoffman, on May 18, 2012.
Fred Layne testified for the prosecu-
tion Friday, March 8, in the ongoing
trial of the West Bloomfield grand-
mother, who is charged with open
murder and possession of a firearm in
the commission of a felony.
Layne said he learned about the
handgun purchase after his step-
grandson had been shot. He testified
his wife sent him out to walk the
dog, and that he was nearby when he
heard sirens. He told the court his first
thought was "I hope it's not Johnny."
Defense attorney Jerome Sabbota
claims Layne shot her grandson in
self-defense because she was afraid
of him. Hoffman was on probation
after being arrested for possessing
marijuana, psilocybin mushrooms and
Adderall. He tested positive for K2 (or
Spice, synthetic cannabis) on the day
he was killed.
"Sandra Layne is not a murderer"
Sabbota said during his opening argu-
ment on March 5. "What does she gain
from shooting her grandson?"
A very different picture was por-
trayed by Oakland County Chief
Assistant Prosecutor Paul Walton,
who began his opening argument with
the words from a 911 call made by
Hoffman during the shooting.
"I'm going to die ... help me" he
said, telling the operator he had been
shot in the arm and the chest by his
grandmother.
Two minutes and 40 seconds into
the call, which documented the last
moments of Hoffman's life, more gun-
shots are heard as Hoffman screams he
has been shot again, this time in the
stomach.
Minutes later, with police stationed
near the front and rear of the condo,
Layne came to the front door holding
a 9mm Glock 17 semi-automatic gun,
which she set down on the foyer floor.
"I just murdered my grandson" she
said, a phrase she repeated several
times, according to police testimony.
Layne was immediately apprehended,
I
1
Sandra Layne
handcuffed and taken to one of the
patrol cars while the area was secured.
Hoffman, who had an electronic heart
rhythm but no pulse, was taken to
Botsford Hospital in Farmington Hills,
where he was pronounced dead.
Hoffman had been living with his
grandmother and her husband since
the fall of 2011, after his divorced par-
ents, Michael and Jennifer Hoffman,
and his sister, Jessie, moved to
Arizona. Jonathan had originally made
the move with his family, but soon
after they arrived, Jessie was diagnosed
with a brain tumor, requiring surgery
and an extensive therapeutic regimen.
Layne invited her grandson to come
and stay with her so he could finish
his senior year with his friends at
Farmington Central High School.
Prosecution Witnesses
Since the trial began, a number of
witnesses, in addition to Fred Layne,
have testified — including sev-
eral members of the West Bloomfield
Police Department who were called to
the scene, evidence technicians, the
paramedic/firefighter who examined
Hoffman, the emergency dispatch
operator who received the 911 call
from Hoffman, the Target Sports sales-
man who sold Layne the gun and gave
her shooting lessons, two of Hoffman's
friends and representatives from the
Oakland County Medical Examiner's
office, including Chief Forensic
Pathologist/Medical Examiner Dr.
Ljubisa J. Dragovic.
The defendant is also expected to
take the stand.
Target Sports salesman Kevin
Bedker said Layne wanted a gun for
"home protection" She took two one-
hour lessons from Bedker.
"She was proficient" he said. "She
hit her target every time:'