Two Lawrence residents have appeared in court this week on charges related to the unsolved killing of a local hip-hop artist found dumped on a rural roadside last fall.

But the shooting of 28-year-old Anthony Vital – known by the nickname “Clacc” – remains under investigation by Douglas County sheriff’s deputies, and so far no one has been charged with the killing.

The criminal charges filed so far – some involving gun violations and at least one involving a search for bloody clothing – represent pieces of the puzzle of what happened to Vital on the night of Oct. 14 and morning of Oct. 15, when he was found by a property owner along U.S. Highway 40, west of Lawrence. But at this point, District Attorney Charles Branson said he can’t talk about how the pieces fit together.

“We are unable to comment on the allegations in these cases due to the potential it may reveal information about an ongoing investigation,” he said Wednesday.

¢ On Tuesday, Judge Robert Fairchild found there was enough evidence to try 21-year-old Lawrence resident Carlos Green for being a felon in possession of a handgun. Deputy Jay Armbrister testified that he interviewed Green twice in the days after Vital’s death. Armbrister said he asked Green about gunshots being fired near 26th Street and Redbud Lane on Oct. 14, the day Vital was last seen alive, and that Green admitted handling a gun that night.

Green, a.k.a. “Smurf,” is barred from having a gun because of a prior felony conviction for aggravated battery.

His trial is scheduled for March 28, and he remains in the Douglas County Jail.

¢ Audrey Ferguson, 49, who is charged with obstructing the investigation of Vital’s death, appeared Wednesday afternoon in District Court, where Judge Michael Malone scheduled her preliminary hearing for Wednesday. Her attorney, Andrew Piekalkiewicz, said in court that deputies contacted Ferguson after an inmate at the Douglas County Jail, James N. Williams, told them they might find bloody clothes at her home.

According to jail records, she lives in the 2500 block of Redbud Lane.

Why Ferguson is charged with obstruction hasn’t been made public, but more details are likely to emerge at her preliminary hearing next week. She is free on bond.

Williams, the jail inmate, also has been charged with obstruction. He’s due in court Jan. 11 for a preliminary hearing.

A fourth defendant, Major C. Edwards, 27, – known as “Ja Ja” – is being held pending trial on gun charges in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan. His trial is set to begin Monday.