The People Vs. Lumumba Sayers Sr.

I am not comfortable in a courtroom. At the age of 22, I decided that life was too short to live and die in Texas, so after finishing my latest stint in Harris County Jail, sober after being locked up for just under a month, I left Houston and headed to Denver in October 2015.

More than ten years later, I am no longer that same person. I graduated from the University of Denver, became a professional photographer and shoot mixed martial arts cageside for many promoters. Still, I remember the days of being awakened at 4 a.m., rushed downstairs with thirty other men to get into a circle, turn around, drop our pants and cough so that the guards could check if we had contraband hidden in our butts. One always whistled “Love Shack” by the B-52s.

I’m used to ego-driven judges who would go off on self-righteous tangents during sentencing hearings. But that is not the case with Judge Jeffrey Ruff of  Adams County Court.

It’s cold in Judge Ruff’s courtroom as people file in for the trial of Lumumba Sayers Sr. Family and friends of the accused and the victim debate where to sit as though it’s a matter of life and death. I am behind the Sayers family on the left side. 

After 23-year-old Lumumba Sayers Jr. was murdered on August 19, 2023, the Colorado Combat Club held memorial services to show solidarity with the grieving father who, along with his son, had played an intricate part in training fighters at the Heavy Hearts Heavy Hands gym in Aurora.

A year later, Malcolm Watson was killed on August 10, 2024, in what was labeled a “revenge murder” for the death of Lumumba Sayers Jr. Lumumba Sayers Sr. was charged with the crime.

I know Sayers Sr. from the fight game; as a coach, he cornered dozens of fighters in the promotions I’ve worked for. I admired how his team would come from a gym on the east side of town, with fewer resources than some of the more established gyms, and still end fight nights with KO victories. 

I did not know Malcolm Watson. He was only 28 years old when he was killed in front of his family during a son’s birthday celebration. His family is out in force for the trial.

When Sayers Sr. enters the courtroom, he nods to those there to support him.

Only a few fighters and coaches show up; none of the promoters who made money on his ticketed events are there.

Sayers had been in Adams County Jail since August 10, 2024. I think of my time in Houston and how he’d described jail’s harsh conditions when I interviewed him in 2025 for a story on the future of Heavy Hands Heavy Hearts.

The district attorney brings up that interview during the trial; the jail had recorded our call. The DA says that Sayers’ language during the call was proof of his vengeful nature. He had said that his son’s killer was still out there “alive.” He did not use the word “free” or the phrase “on the run,” the DA notes.

The room feels colder.

I decide to watch the rest of the trial on a livestream. I am not comfortable in a courtroom, and finding my interview is now part of the case makes it worse.

In that interview, Sayers said that there were many young men in the jail who needed help. Sayers had always based his coaching on religion; he told me he intended to make the most of his time inside by using his faith to help others. The spirit with which he’d started the gym was still with him.

The verdict came on April 27: Lumumba Sayers Sr. was convicted of second-degree murder. The jury had come to its conclusion in just under two days of deliberation; contradictory eyewitness testimony did not appear to sway their decision. Sayers will be sentenced on July 24.

There are no winners in this courtroom fight. One father is locked up for killing the man he believes murdered his son; his victim’s three sons will grow up without a father. Justice will bring little relief to either corner.