Man Accused of Killing Sheffield Police Sergeant Set for 2025 Trial

Brian Lansing Martin, the 45-year-old Colbert County man accused of killing Sheffield Police Sgt. Nick Risner and his former roommate in October 2021, has a trial date locked in for August 24, 2026, after Colbert County Circuit Judge Mitch Hays made clear he is done waiting. "We're not going past August to have a trial," Hays said during the March hearing. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty.

The case has its roots in events from October 1, 2021, that began on Avalon Avenue in Muscle Shoals, where investigators say Martin killed William Mealback Jr., a Tennessee man described as his former roommate, and kicked his body into the street. What followed was a police chase that ended in a shootout behind Southgate Mall. Sgt. Risner was critically wounded in that exchange and died the following day. Lt. Max Dotson was also injured but survived.

The two killings are being prosecuted as separate cases. Prosecutors have said they will try the Risner capital murder case first. Charges in that case, as reported by WAFF and Fox10, include three counts of capital murder, three counts of attempted murder, three counts of discharging a firearm in an occupied vehicle or building, and one count of certain persons forbidden to carry a pistol. In the Mealback Jr. matter, Martin faces charges of murder and abuse of a corpse. Other outlets have reported two counts of capital murder in the Risner case rather than three; the discrepancy should be resolved against the actual charging documents.

The competency question that had been hanging over the case was put to rest at the hearing. Defense attorney Rebecca Green Thomason withdrew her earlier request for a competency hearing after three separate evaluations concluded Martin is fit to stand trial. Thomason had told News 19 in a November email that Martin "can stand trial after three mental evaluations and being put on medication." Judge Hays granted the withdrawal and set his scheduling expectations immediately: "Since we don't need to have a competency hearing in January, I expect to have a pre-trial hearing in June."

Whether Martin was competent at the time of the shootings, as opposed to now, remains a separate question. The defense has 14 days from the hearing to decide whether to present evidence or witness testimony arguing Martin lacked competency on the day of the attack. Both sides were also given 14 days to exchange all evidence and disclose what witnesses they plan to call.

Martin arrived at the hearing with his own agenda and left with all of it denied. A handwritten motion he submitted from jail seeking access to body camera and dash camera footage from the night of the shootings was rejected. Judge Hays ruled that a defendant represented by court-appointed counsel cannot file motions on his own, though he noted the motion might have been considered had his attorneys filed it. A request for Martin to serve as co-counsel alongside his attorneys was denied on the same grounds: Alabama does not recognize hybrid representation. Defense attorneys Rebecca Green Thomason and her team had actually brought the co-counsel request to the judge themselves on Martin's behalf.

Hays made the trial timeline non-negotiable. Continuances will only be granted for medical emergencies on either side. The final pretrial hearing is scheduled for June, with the capital murder trial beginning August 24, 2026.