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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Teller Recalls Facing Death - Two Times 11 People Testify To Emotional, Physical Toll Of Terrorism Spree

The first time he pointed a gun in her face, the robber said he wanted no $1 bills, no exploding dye packs and no lies.

The second time, about 14 weeks later, he seemed to know where he was going, looking for the U.S. Bank teller with “those keys” to unlock money drawers.

Again, head teller Tracy Lafayette stared down the revolver’s barrel. Again, she was terrified, her heart beating so hard she had to remind herself to breathe.

“I thought they were - I thought we were gonna die,” said Lafayette, her chin quivering as she clutched a tissue in her right hand. “Both times.”

Lafayette was one of 11 people who testified Tuesday in the trial of Charles Barbee, 45, Robert Berry, 43, and Verne Jay Merrell, 51, all of North Idaho. It’s the second time the three men have stood trial this year in U.S. District Court in Spokane for a spree of terrorism in the Spokane Valley last year.

During the first trial, the three were convicted on minor car-theft charges. A lone juror refused to convict on the major charges related to bombing The Spokesman-Review and a Planned Parenthood clinic and twice robbing the bank.

A fourth man is accused of helping bomb the Planned Parenthood and rob the U.S. Bank branch last July 12. He faces a separate trial in September.

Federal prosecutors called witnesses Tuesday to illustrate the emotional and physical damage caused by the bombings and robberies April 1, 1996, and July 12.

They tried to establish the same men were responsible for the string of crimes. Prosecutors also called two witnesses who said Merrell was at or near the April 1 bombings and robbery.

Defense lawyers challenged the credibility of witnesses who identified Merrell.

Lawyers especially pressed Denise Derrickson, who said she saw Merrell in a Tidyman’s grocery store April 1. She said he was staring at a display about a half-hour before a bomb exploded at the nearby Spokesman-Review office.

Derrickson said she met Merrell in fall 1990, when he did repair work on her family’s Sandpoint home. Merrell worked for the family after they bought a home in Spokane, and even stayed with them.

She said the family decided not to rehire Merrell after he became upset and belligerent while watching TV footage of federal agents’ siege of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, in 1993.

Derrickson testified she was about halfway down the store aisle when she spotted Merrell at the other end. She said she was positive it was Merrell, then panicked and turned around, afraid to talk to him. Feeling foolish, Derrickson went back to find him, but he was gone.

After repeated questions from defense lawyers, Derrickson at one point said she was going back to check and see if the man was actually Merrell.

Lawyers treaded much more gingerly on bombing victims, some of whom still grew visibly upset when recalling the events.

Lafayette was transferred to another U.S. Bank branch after the second robbery. But she stopped working March 31.

“I’m on leave right now,” she said, shaking her head. “That branch received a bomb threat.”

, DataTimes