Closing arguments set for Wednesday after defense rests in Markeith Loyd murder trial

ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - Defense attorneys rested their case on Tuesday as Markeith Loyd took the stand once again for cross examination.

Loyd is on trial for the murder of his pregnant ex-girlfriend Sade Dixon. He'll face another trial for the murder of Orlando Police Lt. Deborah Clayton following this one.

Cross-examination resumed at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday and lasted less than an hour before the defense decided to rest its case. During testimony, Loyd admitted to pointing a gun at Dixon. 

Prosecutor: "What prevented you from getting in the car and driving away? (before the shootings)"

Loyd: "She didn't ask me to leave and she didn't tell me to leave."

Loyd also said he was in 'warrior mode' at the time of the shooting and that he was defending himself. Closing arguments are set to begin Wednesday morning.

Saying he never meant to kill Dixon or their unborn child, Loyd took the stand for the first time on Monday, testifying in his murder trial. The testimony lasted nearly five hours, and at one point, he and his attorney were role-playing the events that occurred on the night of Dixon's death.  

Loyd said he and Dixon had been arguing over the phone because he had told her that he had been intimate with an ex-girlfriend. He said he felt compelled to talk to Dixon in person, so he went to see her at her parent's house, admitting to the court that he arrived armed with two guns.

"She said, 'I am glad you had fun going out to eat. Now I know. Don't expect no baby.'"  

Loyd said after hearing that, he thought she was going to end the pregnancy.  

"Do something to kill the baby or get an abortion," he said. 

Loyd said he and Dixon had broken up just a couple days prior and claimed he had shown up at the house to try one more chance of reconciliation. 
Jurors on Monday learned that Dixon was approximately 12 to 13 weeks pregnant and was expecting a boy. 

Loyd explained that Dixon was fuming over his infidelity, and at some point, she went upstairs to get a gun. Loyd said he felt threatened and was even attacked by Dixon's brother, Ronald Stewart  -- something Stewart has denied under oath. Stewart testified last week that he had come outside to try and diffuse the argument between Loyd and his sister, but during a struggle, shots were fired. 

Stewart was injured. Dixon had been shot eight times, including one shot right through her heart. According to the medical examiner, that was likely the fatal shot and it killed her quickly. 

In other developments, an alternate juror has been excused from the trial -- the second juror to be dismissed since Saturday.  It happened around 6:45 p.m. on Monday after a juror wrote a note for the judge, describing a conversation she overheard on Sunday between another juror and a deputy. The juror indicated that the conversation, which is said to have happened in the common area of the hotel where the jury is sequestered, pertained to the case.  

The deputy told her it was unrelated to the case. The judge brought in another juror who said she asked the deputies about gun laws because she is interested in applying for her concealed weapon license. The woman said her questions were generic and included topics such as gun ranges. 

The trial is expected to wrap up in about two weeks.