Jerome Power holds up a sign proclaiming his innocence and implicating another man, who's name has been blurred out for legal reasons, for the camera before the start of his first degree murder trail Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012 at the Linn County District Courthouse in Cedar Rapids. Power is accused in the strangulation death of his neighbor, 68-year-old neighbor Doris Bevins, in September of 2010. (Brian Ray/The Gazette-KCRG)

Today in Linn County District Court was a day unlike any I have ever experience in my 16 years of covering court cases. When Jerome Power first saw me taking his photo when he arrived in the courtroom  he was pretty mad. At first he was trying to hide his face and get his attorney to make me go away. Much to his chagrin his lawyer told him we would be there all week. I took a few more photos of Power and then I sat back to wait for the proceedings to start. I kept noticing Power glancing my way but thought nothing of it until about five minutes later I noticed him trying to get my attention. As soon as I looked up he held up a sign pronouncing his innocence and accusing another man of the crime. I got off two frames before Power put the sign down after the courtroom deputy noticed what he was doing. Originally the photo was posted with out blurring out the other man’s name but on the advice of the company attorney the original version was taken down and the altered version you see above was posted. Normally we would not alter an image but this one was so unique that it warranted a special circumstance. The rest of the photos from today’s proceeding are in the gallery below. —-Brian Ray