Detective describes Auburn shooting scene - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

After a preliminary court hearing, the judge in the Auburn triple-homicide case found probable cause and ordered the case against suspect Desmonte Leonard to be bound over to a grand jury.

During the hearing, a police detective testified that witnesses say shooting victim DeMario Pitts struck Leonard and an associate with a bottle before Leonard started firing shots at a pool party in Auburn.

Auburn Police Detective Judge Hackett testified in the hearing for Leonard in Opelika. Pitts was one of three people killed last month during the party at an Auburn apartment complex.

Also killed were former Auburn University football player Ladarius Phillips and Ed Christian. Three others were injured.

The detective testified that witnesses said the trouble began with Leonard and Auburn player DeAngelo Benton getting in an argument inside the apartment clubhouse.

Some friends and teammates took Benton outside, Leonard followed and some blows were thrown before Leonard was hit with a bottle and the shooting began.

Leonard's attorney, Susan James, said in an interview after the hearing that a witness in the case said her client was invited to the party and that he was not the agressor. She is considering a request for a change of venue, and is against Leonard being transferred to Lee County.

James says her client safety requires that he remain in Montgomery.

It's currently too early to tell if the shootings occurred as an act of self defense, though security footage of the club house at the time of the incident was shown in court Wednesday.

It was too early to know if Leonard was on the tap, but some of the victims could be seen.

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. WSFA 12 News contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)