A jury convicted Joshua Austin, 31, of five charges in the murder of 21-year-old Tyrez Malik Countess on Sept. 5.
Austin was found guilty of fatally shooting Countess during a street dispute in Druid Heights on Dec. 27, 2024. Countess died the next day. Austin was charged with first-degree murder and four firearm violations. Jurors found him guilty of all charges.
On Sept. 5, an eyewitness testified that investigators showed her photographs of several individuals for identification but didn’t identify the shooter.
Austin then took the stand and admitted that he and Countess were selling drugs on the 2100 block of Druid Hill Avenue before the incident occurred. He testified that the dispute began when Countess tried to step into a sale.
Austin recalled telling Countess, “I already hit the sale,” and, “You gonna make me go in your mouth.”
Countess allegedly became angry and said, “I don’t do no fighting, I’m gon’ put that thang on you.”
After Austin told Countess to stop threatening him, Countess reportedly reached for his coat and replied, “You heard what I said, bitch — if you touch me, I’ll blow your face off.”
The prosecution insisted Austin was the first and only person to draw and fire a gun during the altercation. They argued Austin acted out of retaliation, not self-defense.
“Saying it over and over doesn’t make it so,” prosecutors said. “That’s not self-defense, that’s murder.”
