July

Gregory Vann is shot to death following a Fourth of July barbecue at Lowry Park. Javad Marshall-Fields and Vann's brother, Elvin Bell are also shot, but survive their injuries. Police say Sir Mario Owens, then 20, was Vann's killer and Robert Keith Ray, then 19, also fired a gun that night and drove the getaway car. Both Ray and Owens have lengthy criminal records and reportedly are tied to the Gangster Disciples street gang.

Police arrest Ray on murder charges nine days after the killing. Marshall-Fields had picked Ray out of a lineup as the man who drove the getaway car after the Lowry Park killing.

September

Ray posts bail and is released from jail.

July

Days before he is set to testify against Ray in the Lowry Park killing, Marshall-Fields and his fiancée, Vivian Wolfe, are gunned down on an Aurora street. Hours before the shooting, Marshall-Fields reportedly told his sister that he had been threatened by Ray's friends and was told not to testify against Ray.

Ray's trial in the Lowry Park shooting is put on hold after the murder of Marshall-Fields, who was a key witness for the prosecution. Ray is not named a suspect in the witness killing, but police said they expected evidence to tie him to it.

August

Ray's wife, LaToya Sailor-Ray, is arrested on accessory to murder charges related to the Lowry Park killing. Sailor-Ray is also charged with drugs and weapons violations. Prosecutors say she helped Ray and Owens destroy evidence the night of the killing.

September

Parish Ramone Carter is arrested on charges he threatened Marshall-Fields the day before Marshall-Fields was murdered. The arresting officer claimed Carter offered him $200,000 to let him escape.

October

Ray's sister-in-law, Divinia Ilene Ray is arrested and charged with accessory to murder charges related to the Lowry Park killing. Prosecutors said she allowed Ray to hide the getaway car at her house

Police name Owens a suspect in the Lowry Park killing and issue a warrant for his arrest. Officers begin hunting for Owens and said he may have fled the state.

November

Intimidation charges against Carter are initially dropped. Prosecutors said they would continue to investigate.

Police in Shreveport, La. arrest Owens after he runs from police trying to stop him for driving with loud music. Owens has a handgun when he is arrested. After fighting extradition, Owens is brought back to Colorado to stand trial for Vann's murder.

December

Ray's wife and sister-in-law agree to testify against Ray's in his murder trial. In exchange for their testimony, charges against Sailor-Ray and Divinia Ilene Ray are dropped and they are placed in witness protection.

Percy Alvin Carter Sr., 45, is arrested on accessory to murder charges related to the Lowry Park killing. Carter Sr. is Ray's stepfather and Carter's father. Prosecutors say he helped Owens and Ray get rid of the guns used in the Lowry Park shootings. He also faces drug charges.

March

A grand jury hands down a 23-count indictment against Ray, Owens and Carter that alleges the three men killed Marshall-Fields and Wolfe. The first-degree murder charges are handed down nine months after the gruesome killings.

October

Ray goes on trial for murder in the Lowry Park shooting. During the three-week trial, Ray's sister-in-law, wife and brother take the stand for the prosecution. The only witness Ray's defense team calls is Ray himself. He testifies that he drove the getaway car and that if he is guilty of anything, it is accessory to murder.

November

A jury convicts Ray of five counts, including attempted murder, but acquits him of Vann's murder.

Percy Carter is sentenced to 30 years in prison on drug charges and four years in prison for accessory to a crime.

October

Ray and Owens plead not guilty to killing Marshall-Fields and Wolfe. Carter does not enter a plea after his lawyer reveals he has only a third-grade education and may be mentally retarded. A judge orders a competency exam for Carter.

November

A jury convicts Ray of five counts, including attempted murder, but acquits him of Vann's murder.

Percy Carter is sentenced to 30 years in prison on drug charges and four years in prison for accessory to a crime.

Ray and Owens plead not guilty to killing Marshall-Fields and Wolfe. Carter does not enter a plea after his lawyer reveals he has only a third-grade education and may be mentally retarded. A judge orders a competency exam for Carter.

January

Owens goes on trial for murder in the Lowry Park shooting and a jury convicts him of first-degree murder. The conviction carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Feburary

A judge sentences Ray to 108 years in prison for his role in the Lowry Park shootings. The maximum sentence virtually guarantees Ray will spend the rest of his life in prison.

District Attorney Carol Chambers announces she plans to seek the death penalty against Ray and Owens in the Marshall-Fields and Wolfe killings.

March

Following a competency exam at the state mental hospital, doctors rule that Carter is fit to stand trial.

Nicole Sue Beal, 23, a civilian employee at the Arapahoe County Jail, is fired after investigators say she had inappropriate contact with Ray while he was an inmate. Beal had a knife on her when investigators contacted her at the jail, but it wasn't clear if there was a connection between Ray and the knife.

May

Prosecutors announce they will not seek the death penalty against Carter. Citing the gag order in the case, prosecutors say they can't elaborate on why they came to their decision.

June

Aurora police Detective Gretchen Fronapfel, the lead investigator in the Marshall-Fields and Wolfe killings, is named Colorado's officer of the year by the Colorado Chiefs of Police Association.

March

Jury selection begins in Owens' trial. The trial is expected to start at the end of the month and last five weeks. Ray is scheduled to go to trial in August. Carter's trial is scheduled for February 2009.

April

Trial of Sir Mario Owens underway. Prosecution presents a very powerful case detailing evidence and testimonies of witnesses regarding Owens participation in the events prior to and on the day that Javad and Vivian were murdered, as well as his actions post this event.

May

The trial ends on May 14th, and the Jury finds Sir Mario Owens guilty of killing Javad Marshall Fields and Vivian Wolfe. The jury is now charged with determining whether Owens will be sentenced to death or a life sentence.

June

After a sentencing phase that lasts about a month and includes testimony from Owens' mother as well as friends and family from his hometown of Shreveport, jurors recommend death for Owens. Jurors deliberated for less than a day before reaching the verdict.

December

At a formal sentencing hearing, Judge Gerald Rafferty sentences Owens to death. His initial death date is scheduled for March 2009, though that date passes quietly as Owens' appeals work their way through the courts. The other person on Colorado's Death Row has been there for more than 15 years.

April

After numerous delays, Ray's trial begins. During the trial, Ray's defense team argues that Owens killed Marshall-Fields and Wolfe on his own, not at the direction of Ray. But prosecutors say Ray ordered the slayings because he didn't want to risk going to prison and losing his $40,000-per-month cocaine business.

May

A jury convicts Ray of two counts of first-degree murder. Prosecutors say in their closing arguments that Owens was "essentially a loaded gun in Robert Ray's hands."

June

The same jury that convicted Ray says he deserves the Death Penalty for his crimes. During Ray's sentencing hearing, his family and friends from Chicago testify about his rough childhood in a violent neighborhood in the city's South Side. Ray takes the stand at the end of the hearing and asks the jury for mercy.

July

The first of Ray's formal sentencing hearings is delayed amid motions from his defense team for a new trial. The hearing will be delayed multiple times after that as Ray's defense team accuses police of withholding evidence and jurors of misconduct.

May

After numerous motions hearings and delays, Ray's formal sentencing is scheduled for May 5. Carter's trial is scheduled to start later that month.