Antonio Horton Beatty, who has been charged with the first degree murder of 25-year-old Carlton Walker Whitley, was condemned by police officers for the conduct he displayed during his hearing.
While appearing in front of the court, the man accused of Mr. Whitley's murder in July repeatedly turned to smile at the grief stricken family while they sat through the accused's hearing.
Beatty, who was returned to custody following his courtroom appearance, is accused of shooting Mr. Whitley following an altercation in a car park in Wilmington, North Carolina.
While being led from the dock, Mr. Beatty took one last passing shot at the deceased's family by facing Mr. Whitley's fiancée and daughter, Chastity, and sticking out his tongue before leaving the courtroom.
Slamming the defendant's 'disrespectful' conduct during the hearing, Mr. Beatty's fiancé, Octavia Byrant, told waiting reporters that she 'didn't deserve that'.
Mr. Whitley had been pronounced dead on his arrival to hospital last July.
