BRUNSWICK — Police testified Monday that a man charged with killing his father and seven others inside a mobile home in August 2009 told authorities he had been using drugs and pointed them to a shotgun in his car's trunk that was spattered with blood.

Glynn County officers called to the witness stand for a pretrial hearing insisted they treated Guy Heinze Jr. as a witness rather than a suspect when they first questioned him after he called 911 and cried: "My whole family's dead."

"I wouldn't have been able to physically detain him as a witness," said patrol officer Roderic Nohilly, who said police had no reason to suspect Heinze at the time.

Days later, police arrested Heinze on murder charges. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

The Florida Times-Union reported (http://bit.ly/OHh8G5 ) that Heinze's lawyers asked a Glynn County Superior Court judge over three days of hearings to throw out evidence collected at the crime scene as well as statements Heinze made to police.

Nohilly and Lt. Keith Stalvey testified Heinze told officers he had smoked crack cocaine the night before the bodies were found. Asked if there were any guns in the mobile home, Stalvey said, Heinze told police he removed a shotgun and put it in his car trunk because he believed it was stolen. Heinze also said the shotgun was cocked and loaded, Stalvey said, so the officer asked Heinze for permission to "make it safe."

Stalvey testified that Heinze agreed, but said he didn't touch the gun after opening the trunk because he could see blood on it.