Day Seven - Video Of Christopher Lee Interrogation

San Bernardino Sheriff's Department Sgt. Daniel Hanke was called back to the stand, so the prosecution could continue to play Hanke's videotaped interrogation of Christopher Lee, which took place in the early morning hours of July 1, 2014.

Erin Corwin/Facebook

The first 90 minutes of the interview aired in the courtroom Wednesday of last week. For a review of what was said, you can click here.

ADA Sean Daugherty pushed play, and Chris Lee described to Hanke how his wife Nichole found out about his texting relationship with Erin. Chris said Nichole was suspicious enough to remove the SIM card from his phone, put it in her laptop, and read what her husband was texting to Erin. Chris said Nichole was furious with him, because Chris and Erin both told each other "I love you" via text.

Hanke pressed Chris on his true feelings for Erin. Chris replied:

"I thought I was in love with her, but it was a make-believe life I was in love with."

Hanke asked Chris about the physical contact between Erin and him. Chris said it consisted solely of four kisses. Chris also admitted he considered leaving Nichole for Erin, but he decided against it because of his young daughter, Liberty:

"If I didn't have Liberty, I might have."

Chris also said when he and Erin were at their closest, they never fought.

"We thought we were perfect together."

Hanke then steered the conversation to Chris's movements the weekend Erin disappeared. Chris seemed okay with this, because he described the months he was involved with Erin as...

"Part of my life I wanted to move past."

Chris went through a rough timeline of Friday, June 27, 2014 (the day before Erin went missing) until the following Sunday. Chris said he and Nichole and Liberty went out to White Rock Horse ranch. On the drive home, they stopped at Stater Bros. market so Nichole could buy bread, and Chris could talk to his friend Skyler (not sure about the spelling) in the parking lot about going coyote hunting the next day. Skyler could not because of a shoulder injury.

Chris said he woke up at six on Saturday morning, talked to Conor Malakie about going coyote hunting, then went on the trip by himself. Chris claimed he got lost on the trip, and that at one point, a stranger shot a handgun at him. He also told Hanke he visited a mine (which to me, sounded like the mine shaft next to the one where Erin's body was found) and used his rifle to shoot at rocks to make sure his rifle was "on." He said he picked up all the casings.

When he got home that afternoon, according to Chris, Nichole was in a panic because she hadn't been able to reach him by cell phone all day. Chris said Nichole was crying and even had an asthma attack because of her frantic state.

I'm going to cut to the chase a bit, because detective Hanke and then his sergeant started to corner Chris with evidence they said they had that proved Chris was with Erin on the day she went missing. Keep in mind, law enforcement officials can lie to suspects they are interrogating, and it's perfectly legal. So, Chris was told that his tire tracks matched those that were next to Erin's car (this proved later to be false). But Chris then changed his story, and said he did see Erin's car that morning, drove up to it to check out the tires, and then drove away. He claims he never saw Erin.

Chris was also told that his DNA could be compared to the DNA on file of Erin's embryo. Now, there was no DNA from an embryo. But what struck me is that Chris Lee never said, "Erin was pregnant?" He just listened silently, as if he already knew that she was.

However, despite the detectives pleas to Chris to confess his knowledge of what happened to Erin, he sat stoically, silently, except for the occasional statement:

"I didn't meet her on Saturday."

Time for bed. Court continues tomorrow (Tuesday) at 10 a.m. with the remainder of the Chris Lee videotaped interrogation. Goodnight, all.

UPDATE: Day Six - Afternoon Session With Isabella Megli And Chris Lee Interview Video

Erin Corwin Missing Poster/Pinterest

This post covers the courtroom action for Wednesday's session after the lunch break. Again, there is no court today because a juror suffered a death in her family, and needed the morning to attend what sounded like a funeral service.

Isabella Megli was the first witness called by the prosecution after the lunch break. Megli is the owner of the White Rock Horse Rescue. (She refers to herself as "Isabel Megli" on the White Rock Horse Rescue website, which is why I referred to her that way in previous blog posts.)

I could not see Christopher Lee's face from where I was sitting in the courtroom, but the prosecutor pointed out that the defendant was smiling at Megli. Megli was not smiling back.

Megli testified she met Erin Corwin when Erin sponsored a horse at the ranch. (The horse, Cassy, is pictured below.) Although Megli was not allowed, due to the defense objections of hearsay, to answer many of the questions ADA Sean Daugherty asked her, Megli did make some damaging points:

• Chris and Nichole Lee were at White Rock Horse Rescue on the afternoon and evening of June 27, 2014, the day before Erin disappeared. Chris asked Megli if he could have her propane tank (which Megli identified as looking like the one found in the mine shaft next to Erin's body). When Megli asked if Chris wanted the tank for a barbecue,  Chris said no, "He was going to use it to 'play games.'"
• The Sunday before June 28, Christopher Lee told Megli he had been out exploring areas in the desert. He told her he found a mine that was so remote, "No one would ever find it."
• Megli testified that on June 29, both Nichole and Chris were at Megli's horse ranch. Megli said she heard from Nichole that Erin Corwin was missing. Nichole said she believed Erin was playing a game and hiding but, as Megli testified, "She (Nichole) didn't care if she (Erin) was dead."
• When the prosecutor asked Megli if Nichole said to her that Christopher Lee was "too stupid to keep his lies straight" she said "Yes."
• Megli testified that prior to Erin going missing, Nichole Lee told her she wanted to kill Erin, "If Erin didn't stay away from her husband."
• Megli said Nichole Lee told her after Erin disappeared: "(If) there is no body, there is no case."
• Megli testified Chris Lee never returned the propane tank he borrowed.

The defense did not cross-examine Megli.

Erin Corwin's horse, Cassy

The next witness was San Bernardino Sheriff's Department Sgt. Daniel Hanke, who conducted a roughly six hour interview with Christopher Lee on July 1, 2014. Ninety minutes of that video was played in court Wednesday afternoon.

Lee went willingly with Hanke to the Sheriff's Department substation. Hanke testified Lee said to him on the drive from base to the sheriff's station:

"I really want to help you guys find her, because as much as she lied to me, I really cared about her."

Hanke started the interview by chatting warmly with Lee about Lee's daughter, his plans for life after leaving the Marines, the annoyance of having to pack up everything and move back to Anchorage, Alaska. Lee was fidgety, scratching his legs often and crossing his arms in front of him.

Lee claimed not to be able to remember simple facts, like where in Oregon a friend of his lived, or even Erin's last name. Lee blamed this fogginess on combat-related memory problems. He also explained why he lied about his relationship with Erin when law enforcement approached him the morning after Erin went missing:

"It didn't seem pertinent at the time."

Hanke asked Lee to describe how his relationship with Erin developed. Lee said the two bonded over their shared unhappiness with their life circumstances. Lee said he was suicidal after returning from a deployment in Afghanistan, because he missed the simplicity of his life there and wanted to go back:

"I was indifferent about life."

Lee said he and Erin first kissed after playing the video game Halo together on Xbox. They also had a shared love of the television show "The Walking Dead." Lee told Hanke he was able to confide in Erin all of his problems and his desire to kill himself - things he could not tell anyone else:

"She was a secret, so I could tell her my secrets." 

Lee said he and Erin would text each other several times an hour every day. He described his relationship with Erin as his make-believe life:

"She was my happy place."

Lee claimed the physical part of his relationship with Erin consisted only of kissing, and for only a couple of weeks.

The prosecution plans to play the rest of the video in court on Monday. Until then...

Detectives 'Looking For A Crime Scene' In Erin Corwin Case (Video)

Originally published on Home Post July 23, 2014 | 10:05 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

Erin and Jonathan Corwin

Detectives with the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Specialized Investigation Division are "looking for a crime scene" in the disappearance of pregnant Marine wife Erin Corwin, according to a department press release.

Several media outlets have obtained a probable-cause affidavit filed by Detective Cory Emon that indicates Corwin was involved in a romantic relationship with a married Marine veteran named Christopher Lee, whom she met at White Rock Horse Rescue.

According to what Emon wrote in the affidavit, a friend of Erin's who lives in Tennessee told detectives

“...Erin may be pregnant with Lee’s child.

"[The friend] knew Erin and Lee were going on a day trip together on 06-28-14, for a celebration of Erin’s pregnancy."

Yet despite this "celebration," Erin had confided in her friend from Tennessee that Lee was concerned his wife, Nichole, would divorce him and take their child away if she found out Erin was pregnant with his baby. 

Christopher and Nichole Lee with their daughter

Detective Emon's assessment of what may have happened on June 28, the last day Erin's husband, Marine Cpl. Jonathan Corwin, saw her alive, is not hopeful:

“It is highly likely Erin could have been harmed by an unknown firearm. Sometime after Erin left with Lee, her phone was de-activated (turned off).”

Also in the affidavit, White Rock Horse Rescue Ranch owner Isabel Megli shared with detectives a conversation she had with Nichole Lee following Corwin's disappearance:

"Nichole made statements to Isabel about the detectives having missed something at their residence when it was searched because detectives did not search the garage.

"Nichole told Isabel that without a body the detectives did not have a case against them and the detectives would never find the body."

The Desert Sun reports there is forensic evidence that may tie Christopher Lee to Erin Corwin on the day she disappeared:

[P]olice found a single set of shoe tracks at Corwin's abandoned vehicle. The tracks led from the driver side door of her Toyota and then disappeared next to a set of tire tracks.

The court document states that tracks found at the scene are "consistent" with the tire tracks left by Lee's Jeep.

Not surprisingly, HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell has a whole lot to say about this case, especially the fact Lee was arrested after police searched his home:

 

NCIS Involved In Erin Corwin Case; Search Warrants Info Revealed

Originally published on Home Post July 21, 2014 | 8:18 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

Erin Corwin/Facebook

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service has confirmed its investigators are involved in the search for Erin Corwin. 

The pregnant 20-year-old was last seen three weeks ago at her home on the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms. 

Spokesman Ed Buice told The Desert Sun that NCIS is helping the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department with their probe into Corwin's disappearance:

"We're assisting them as far as some of the more military aspects of the investigation. The military world is sometimes very confusing to non-military investigators. We help them connect the dots and find a way through the red tape."

As Home Post has previously reported, Marine Cpl. Jonathan Wayne Corwin told law enforcement officials he last saw his wife on June 28, before she left to drive to Joshua Tree National Park. He reported Erin missing the following day. 

Meanwhile, San Diego television station CBS8 has learned new details about the search warrants executed by sheriff's deputies at the home Erin Corwin shared with her husband, and the apartment of Marine Corps veteran Corporal Christopher Lee and his wife Nichole. To watch that news report, click here.