A judge bound the murder charge against Montgomery Police Officer Aaron Smith over to the grand jury during a nearly two hour preliminary hearing today, according to reports.

An agent with the State Bureau of Investigation testified that Smith provided two different versions of what happened the night of the deadly shooting to investigators, the Montgomery Advertiser reported.

Officer Aaron Smith shot and killed Gregory Gunn, 58, of west Montgomery on Feb. 25 during an apparent altercation. Smith was arrested and charged with murder six days later following an investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation.

Smith's attorney Mickey McDermott says the shooting was justifiable because Gunn became violent against the officer.

Investigators said today that the pole Montgomery police first accused Gunn of wielding during an attack on the officer had no fingerprints on it, the Montgomery Advertiser reported.

Gunn was Tased three times, beaten with a baton and shot five times by Smith, a state investigator said today. Smith fired seven shots.

According to the agent, Gunn ran when Smith confronted him as he was walking in the middle of the night in the Mobile Heights neighborhood.

He said Smith couldn't say why Gunn couldn't be stopped without using deadly force.

Aaron Cody Smith (MCSO)

According to the report, Smith didn't turn on his body camera and his dashcamera in his police cruiser wasn't operating.

McDermott requested a preliminary hearing to learn what evidence the state has against the officer. The defense attempted to close the hearing to the public, but the request was denied by Montgomery District Judge Jimmy Pool.

McDermott spoke with reporters following today's hearing saying Smith was forced to patrol alone in a high-crime area at night due to the city's budget constraints.

The attorney claims Gunn pushed Smith and ran away.

McDermott claimed Gunn had previous arrests and had a substance abuse problem.