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Cothron was the state's second witness to take the stand on Tuesday. He told the jury he was working on a special THP operation on a stretch of I-40 with another trooper when he observed a 2014 Kia Forte with windows that were completely tinted.

"I decided to stop that car for a window violation and pulled out of the median," Cothron said. 

Cothron said he was able to catch up to the vehicle, which came to a slow stop on the right shoulder at approximately 7:50 p.m. The trooper's body camera and patrol unit dash camera show that as he approached the car, two shots rang out and Cothron fell to the ground, hit with one 9mm round in the upper left side of his chest, just above his collarbone.

Cothron's body camera footage matched his testimony that, as he approached the Kia, the passenger side window comes down, and Rucker's face was looking back at the trooper. Then a blue-gloved hand appeared to the left of Rucker's head holding a pistol that fired at Cothron.

Cothron testified that he was not immediately aware of what happened just after the shots were fired.

"I realized I had been shot," Cothron said. "It all went extremely fast. I knew the gunshot came from behind Braze Rucker's head."

The trooper's body and dash camera footage showed him lying on the ground for several minutes before travelers on I-40 stopped to render aid to the wounded Cothron. State Trooper Ridge Long, who had been partnered with Cothron for the special operation, soon arrived on scene and began to render aid.

The jury also heard from Long, Putnam County Sheriff's Office Deputy Logan England and Trooper Rory Camardelle, who all responded to the scene in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. Body camera footage shown to the jury showed different perspectives of what transpired as officers performed lifesaving measures on Cothron. When officers discovered the gunshot wound, Cothron was placed in the back of a PCSO patrol vehicle and rushed to Cookeville Regional Medical Center.

As the opening day of the trial entered its second half, testimony turned from the actual shooting in Cookeville to the TBI-led investigation that took place afterward. Jeff Brown, a member of the THP's Criminal Investigation Division, testified that he responded to the scene and was able to run a photograph of Rucker retrieved from Cothron's body camera to identify the first suspect.

Two convenience store managers, one in Cookeville and one in Lebanon, testified and provided surveillance videos that tracked the movements of the accused shooters over the several hours following the shooting. A manager of a towing company testified that the Kia dinged a remote security camera at his lot. The car remained there until Sumner County deputies arrived to secure the scene.

The technology manager of a concrete business across the street from that lot testified about surveillance footage showing the tow business' footage from a different angle, but that new footage, which allegedly shows the vehicle's interior being set on fire, was not shown on Tuesday. TBI Agent Joshua Savley testified and showed still photos of the car after it was set on fire. He also told the jury he collected a hair from a passenger side door handle.

The jury also heard from the owner of the stolen car, who reported the Kia Forte as stolen at the end of June. 

In the morning, defense lawyers did not press witnesses hard on cross examination, but as the testimony turned toward the investigation, Public Defender Craig Fickling, representing Davis, began to question some of the investigation's findings, which is a strategy he outlined during his opening statement. Fickling told the jury before testimony began that Tennessee's various law enforcement agencies were under pressure to quickly resolve the case, which affected the quality of the investigation. He told the jury there was no DNA or physical evidence linking Davis to the shooting.

During the trial's opening day, Rucker's attorney, Jesse Montagnino, has portrayed his client as an innocent man that was in the car with Davis and was unaware of what was about to happen. He pointed to how Rucker was facing Cothron as the trooper approached the car, and the accused shooter's hand was coming from behind Rucker's head.

"One pulled the trigger," Montagnino said during his opening statement. "The other didn't see it coming."

The second day of testimony is set to begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Putnam County Justice Center.