Testimony resumed in a Stamford courtroom Friday in the murder conspiracy trial of Michelle Troconis.
Troconis is charged in connection with the 2019 disappearance and death of Jennifer Dulos.
Friday's testimony began with Sgt. Jamie Pearston, of the Connecticut State Police's Western District Major Crimes Unit. She testified to her role in mapping out the crime scene at the Dulos home on Welles Avenue in New Canaan.
The trial began in Connecticut Superior Court in Stamford Thursday, kicking off with never-before-seen body camera video of a responding New Canaan police officer from the night Jennifer Dulos was reported missing.
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Troconis is being charged with conspiracy to commit murder, tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution, among other charges.
A six-member jury will determine whether she helped Fotis Dulos cover up the killing after the fact. She denies the allegations and has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, evidence tampering and hindering prosecution.
Several motions were filed overnight Wednesday into Thursday by the defense attempting to set parameters on how the prosecution could approach certain words like “victim” when referencing Jennifer Dulos. The judge addressed some of the motions but decided he would take up motions when evidence would be coming up in trial.
The trial opening did not include opening arguments, which are not required under state law. It began with the calling of New Canaan Police Lt. Aaron Latourette as the first witness. Latourette was one of the responding officers the night Jennifer Dulos was reported missing by the family babysitter.
Latourette’s partner was equipped with a body camera that night, and the footage after arrival was shown in court.
“It’s strange to me that we have this in connection with a missing person,” you can hear one officer say on camera when referencing what appeared to be blood stains in the garage of Jennifer's home.
The two officers had already entered the New Canaan home looking for Jennifer. When they get back to the garage, they talk about the potential of a deer strike, but note the lack of fur.
“What appeared to be blood on the front of that vehicle,” Latourette said when answering state prosecutors about what they had noticed when in the garage.
Police allege Fotis Dulos waited for Jennifer Dulos to return home that morning, attacked her in the garage and tried to clean up the scene. He then drove off with her body in another SUV, which was later found abandoned at a local park. At the time, they were going through contentious divorce and child custody proceedings, with Fotis Dulos' contact with the children having been limited.
The state is continuing to build their case against Troconis, adding evidence including Ring footage from neighbors of Jennifer Dulos’ car traveling from her home but never returning, pictures from the New Canaan home and pictures from where investigators located Jennifer Dulos’ car following her disappearance.
“The burden is on the state,” said Judge Kevin Randolph, the judge presiding over this case, explaining to the jury the presumption of innocence a defendant is entitled to. It is the state prosecutors’ job to demonstrate to the jury beyond reasonable doubt that Troconis was involved in Dulos’ disappearance and alleged murder.
Troconis’ family spoke outside court Thursday, calling the entire situation a “tragedy” for all families involved, and maintained Troconis’ innocence.
“On behalf of my daughter who we know that she is innocent we are trusting the fair trial and we hope the result will be favorable for everybody,” Michelle’s father Carlos Troconis said.
Among the evidence expected to be shown to the jury is police surveillance video of Fotis Dulos and Troconis driving around Hartford later in the day that Jennifer Dulos vanished. Fotis Dulos is seen getting out of his pickup truck and disposing of garbage bags as Troconis sits in the vehicle.
Prosecutors Michelle Manning and Sean McGuinness are also expected to show the jury what police dubbed “the alibi script” — a document they say Fotis Dulos and Troconis prepared that detailed their actions and locations on the day of the killing and the day after. Troconis told police that Fotis Dulos' lawyer had asked them to list their activities on those days.
The trial is still expected to take six weeks.
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