This commentary appeared in today’s edition of the MTSU Sidelines:

The recent fatal stabbing of basketball player Tina Stewart near campus is causing investigators and attorneys to scratch their heads about what happened on the night of March 2 at Raiders Crossing Apartments, where the roommates lived.

No doubt the incident is tragic, and I sympathize and mourn the loss with the Murfreesboro community and Stewart’s friends, family and the Lady Raiders, who were like family to the promising young athlete.

I want to commend President Sidney McPhee and administrators for their subsequent handling of the issue. These difficult issues are always an administrative nightmare for those in charge.

I want to caution MTSU, however, from convicting Shanterrica Madden before all the facts of the case are discovered. According to Madden’s attorney, Joe Brandon, Stewart’s fatal end came after a struggle between the two girls.

Brandon alleges it was Stewart who attempted to attack Madden with a knife before she gained control of the weapon and turned it on her attacker.

News reports suggest the evening’s events were contentious, and the presence of drugs was likely. Details are few and the picture is unclear, but evidence may be found in the unlikeliest of places.

In the coming weeks, investigators and attorneys will examine use of social media as it pertains to this case to collect facts. Stewart may posthumously testify based on a series of tweets she issued on the night of the incident.

According to local media, these electronic communications could play a key role in illustrating the events, which led to Stewart’s death: what caused the disagreement, who initiated it, and so on.

As we become more technologically advanced as a society, tools like Facebook and Twitter will undoubtedly play a role in the investigation of serious crimes. Online posts will likely be used as evidence in an increasingly technological world.

We must remember in our justice system, judges convict criminals. Twelve jurors must believe beyond a reasonable doubt that a defendant is guilty of a crime before he or she can be convicted.

While the public debate may sometimes get emotional, we must remember that in our system, defendants are innocent until proven guilty – not the other way around.

I am certainly not trying to diminish this tragedy, as the loss of life is always heartbreaking. I am simply asking the MTSU community to separate emotion from fact in pursuit of the truth.

I think it is very important for me to first say: Death is a tragic event, no matter how it happens, and particularly to someone who seemingly had her whole life ahead of her. That being said, we must approach the death of MTSU basketball player Tina Stewart from the perspective of our justice system, which will sort out fact from emotion to discover what actually happened on the night of March 2nd.

Social media sites like Twitter and Facebook have come a long way, since they burst onto the scene in the mid-2000s. They’ve brought old friends together, toppled tyrannical governments, and even perhaps offered insight into a murder case that hits close to home at MTSU.

On the evening of March 2, MTSU basketball player Tina Marie Stewart and her roommate, 18 year old Shanterrica Madden, allegedly got into a disagreement at their Raiders Crossing apartment.

WKRN’s Christine Maddela reported that on the night of March 2, Ms Stewart tweeted the following, which was retweeted by another account:

I just called the police on my roomate!! I feel like a snitch but I don’t like this bitch

Since the original tweet came from a blocked account, there is no way for me to tell if there was more to that initial tweet. Presumably, defense attorney Joe Brandon, Jr. will investigate the other tweets sent out around that time.

From the WKRN account:

Joe Brandon Jr. is Madden’s attorney.

He told Nashville’s News 2 that tweets from Stewart’s personal Twitter account may be admitted as evidence in court.

“I have been a part of trials before where MySpace and Facebook pages have come into evidence,” Brandon said.

He continued, “When you’re investigating a case, you look anywhere and everywhere there’s possible evidence.”

Before the stabbing event Stewart posted the following on her personal Twitter account, ‘I just called the police on my roommate. I feel like a snitch, but I don’t like this B….”

“And she was getting responses from another individual saying, ‘You don’t need to hurt her.’ That’s very alarming,” Brandon said.

Brandon has claimed since the beginning of the investigation that Madden killed Stewart in self defense.

“Miss Stewart had a knife in her possession and it got turned on her. It’s an unfortunate situation, but those are the facts,” Brandon recently told Nashville’s News 2.

In the motion he filed, Brandon said the tweets indicate that Stewart was planning an assault on Madden.

“I’m not trying to determine intent, Miss Stewart that is. We are entitled to exculpatory evidence, indicating, showing, someone is not guilty of what they are charged with. We just want to make sure all the evidence is preserved in this case,” Brandon explained.

Sam Stockard writes in The Tennessean:

“Police confirmed last week that Stewart contacted the Raiders Crossing apartment complex about an hour before her death and complained about drugs being in the apartment. The complex’s courtesy officer, who works for Murfreesboro Police, checked into the matter but determined the complaint to be “unfounded.”

Assistant District Attorney Paul Newman said Wednesday afternoon that he and DA Bill Whitesell were reviewing the motion to save Internet postings and would not object to it in court.

“We agree to it. We’d like to reciprocate,” Newman said, noting his office is aware Stewart maintained online social accounts and will preserve all evidence.”

…

“Brandon said last week he plans to make a self-defense plea in court and contends Stewart was killed with her own kitchen knife after she attacked Madden in their Hazelwood Drive apartment. Police rejected that scenario after filing charges that Madden intentionally killed Stewart and that the slaying was premeditated.

The arrest warrant says that on the night of Stewart’s death, Madden told a Murfreesboro Police detective she killed the older student.”

Unfortunately what oftentimes happens in cases where the victim is well known or holds some celebrity status is that the community rallies around the victim and convicts the person who carries out the crime without first examining the evidence.

Locally, this happens to beloved teachers like former Blackman High School teacher Dr. Warren Johnson, who was accused and pled guilty to inappropriate relationships with underage students. For whatever reason, the community sympathizes with the wrong person.

I say that not to prematurely convict Ms. Stewart in any wrongdoing. The facts of this case are still being collected. But what if defense attorney Brandon is correct, that his client acted in self defense?

Our legal system generally supports acts of self defense. And as one who respects our legal system and wholeheartedly supports the right of one to be secure in his or her person, I must take a look at the facts and watch the case unfold before convicting Ms. Madden.

It’s certainly a tough case, but the public should seek out the entire story before passing judgement on either young lady in the case. While we can certainly mourn the death of Ms. Stewart, who by all accounts had much promise, we cannot do so at the expense of Ms. Madden.