PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. — The death penalty phase of Donnie Rowe's murder trial is well underway in Eatonton.
Open statements took less than an hour Friday, and then the state called up several witnesses.
Thursday, a Putnam County jury found him guilty on all counts for murdering corrections officers Curtis Billue and Christopher Monica.
Lawyers started the day explaining why or why not Rowe deserves the death penalty, and then jurors listened to 16 prosecution witnesses.
Prosecutor Allison Mauldin made the argument for the lethal injection, because of what she says is "a life of crime."
For the defense, Erin Wallace argued Rowe should serve life without parole in a maximum-security prison because of his childhood.
After opening statements, witnesses testified before the jury, highlighting multiple events in Rowe's life where he broke the law.
"It seemed like he'd done this before, because he was so confident in what he was doing," Allen Anderson said.
Anderson was the 10th witness of the day.
In 2001, he was working in Macon, having come from Indiana.
He was also with his co-worker, witness number 11, Kyle Vandergriff.
Both were sleeping at a Motel 8 off Arkwright Road when a man knocked on their door, at about 2 a.m.
"So, I went to the door and asked who it was. They said room service. I was still half asleep and they opened the deadbolt and cracked the door," Anderson said.
Rowe forced his way in.
Anderson said, "We began to struggle at first. He started putting his hand through the door. At that point, I knew it wasn't room service, so I tried to fight back and he busted in the chain of the door -- busted off. Before I could stop him coming through the door, he had a pistol against my head, and when he pulled the handle back, I stopped fighting and backed up against the wall."
Rowe shot one bullet, then held them hostage, and stole some cash.
"His hands shaking, he shot at my face. He missed. The bullet went through the headboard. I remember it was inches away from my head," Anderson said.
Vandergriff said, "Guy came in the room, asked us where's our money and was pacing back and forth.
Vandergriff didn't get shot at, but Rowe still pointed the pistol at him.
Vandergriff said, "He put the gun and put it by my ear, by my eyeballs, and my mouth and told me to close my eyes during this, and then told us to lay in our beds and get out or, 'If you get out of your bed, I am going to kill both of ya.'"
Now, Anderson said, Rowe eventually left, but he made them cut the phone cord to the motel.
They were eventually able to call 911 on a cell phone.
Bibb County Sheriff's deputies arrived within 10 minutes.
The jury will be back in court Saturday morning.
Rowe was charged with two counts of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, escape, and hijacking.