Day Nine - The Cross-Examination Of Christopher Lee, And A Visit From Nichole Lee

Erin Corwin/Facebook

Hats off to ADA Sean Daugherty for his patient, calm, methodical cross-examination of Christopher Lee. And he's only just begun. Court doesn't resume until Tuesday, Nov. 1, so we'll have to wait until then to hear how he continues to dismantle Lee's defense of why he killed Erin Corwin.

After the lunch break, the judge called in Nichole Lee, who was wearing a bright blue dress and (I believe) the same white pumps she wore that once garnered a compliment from a juror.

Before the jury was allowed back into the courtroom, Judge J. David Mazurek told Nichole that while the defense no longer wished to call her as a witness, the prosecution was interested in having her testify in its rebuttal case. I noticed Nichole began to shake. She said defiantly to the judge that her lawyer would be present if she was called to testify.

Then, the judge informed Nichole that as Liberty Lee's guardian, she needed to have the child available to testify if the prosecution wished. At this point the shaking increased, and she wiped a tear away from her face. When the judge was finished with her, Nichole stormed out of the courtroom and into the hallway. There was a loud booming sound. (It sounded to me like she threw the sunglasses she was holding, and perhaps her purse, and they hit the ground with a bang.) Everyone in the courtroom could also hear her shouting in the hallway. The bailiff then went outside to the hallway to get her under control.

The jury was let in, took their seats, and defense attorney David Kaloyanides finished his direct examination of his client.

It was now Daugherty's turn to cross-examine Lee.

Daugherty started in by establishing that Lee lied to the detectives who questioned him the day after he murdered Erin, when he claimed did not know her well; Lee lied to these same detectives later in the day in the Vons parking lot, when he called Erin a liar and said he had a brief texting relationship with Erin that only involved kissing; Lee lied to Detective Hanke during the multi-hour interrogation about having a sexual relationship with Erin, about knowing she was pregnant, and about seeing her on June 28, 2014, the day she went missing.

"You lie when you're ashamed of yourself," said Daugherty to Lee. "You lie when you're scared."

"Yes," Lee answered.

"Are you scared now?" Daugherty asked.

"Yes," Lee said, his voice flat.

"You're not lying today to protect yourself?"

"No."

Then Daugherty laid out all of the "coincidences" Lee claimed happened in the weeks, days, and moments leading up to Erin's murder:

• He Googled how to dispose of a dead body.
• He had a conversation with fellow Marine Andrew Johnson about the best way to dispose of a dead body, and asked specifically about the Amboy salt pits. 
• He drove to the exact mine shaft on the day he murdered Erin that he had visited a week before with friend Joseph Hollifield, and later described to Isabel Megli as a place so remote, "No one would ever find it."
• He had the murder weapon, a homemade garrote, in his Jeep.
• He murdered Erin just days before he was scheduled to leave the Marine Corps.

Daugherty also poked holes in Lee's ridiculous assertion that Erin molested Liberty:

• Chris Lee never called police after Nichole accused Erin of molesting Liberty.
• Nichole never called police after she "suspected" Erin of molesting Liberty.
• Neither parent took Liberty to a pediatrician to examine the little girl for signs of abuse.
• Both Nichole and Chris Lee still allowed Liberty to spend time with Erin.

And there was this exchange:

Daugherty: "You continued having sex with the woman you're wife thought was molesting your daughter?"

Lee: "It wasn't on the forefront of my mind."

The toughest, but most effective part of Daugherty's cross-examination of Lee was when he asked the defendant to demonstrate how he strangled Erin, using a stuffed cloth dummy. Lee stepped down from the stand, took the garrote, and twisted it around the dummy's neck. In one quick, horrifying motion, Lee spun around so that he was facing the opposite way of the dummy, his back touching the dummy's back.

The dummy was jerked up in the air by the force of Lee's action. It was such a shocking moment that I thought I heard a gasp from somewhere in the courtroom. Lee reenacted the murder with such callousness, and RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE JURY, that I can't imagine the jurors weren't as haunted by what they saw as I was.

Daugherty interrupted his cross so the court could take its recess, which will last until court resumes Tuesday at 10 a.m.

Apologies again for not posting in a timely manner. The migraine has stayed with me, which is not usual for me. Bad ones usually last about three days. Just grateful that the wonderful readers who visit this blog are so patient with me!

Day Nine - Christopher Brandon Lee Confesses To Murdering Erin Corwin

Erin Corwin/Facebook

Sorry it took me so long to write and post this. I'm battling a Migraine that came on during Christopher Lee's chilling and horrifying testimony. Yes, the defendant's words literally made me ill. And I'm sure I'm not the only one.

It's not exactly common for the defendant to testify on his own behalf in a murder trial. So I was shocked when defense attorney David Kaloyanides called Christopher Brandon Lee as his first witness. A fellow courtroom reporter mused it must be to make Lee seem more human for the jury, and I agreed. Boy, were we wrong.

Kaloyanides started with questions of Lee that allowed him to wax poetic on his idyllic childhood in Alaska. Lee said was fond of thing most kids like to do, like play with throwing stars and swords (???). Anyway, soon the questioning moved on to his relationship with Erin. Some key points:

• Lee admitted he and Erin had a sexual relationship.
• Lee admitted Erin told him she was pregnant, and that she was upset because she didn't know if Lee or husband Jon Corwin was the father.
• Lee said he was in love with Erin Corwin, and admitted it was he who wrote the love note that prosecutor Sean Daugherty showed the jury the day before. Lee said he gave it to Erin after Nichole had discovered the affair by looking at the texts he wrote to Erin. 

Then Kaloyanides asked Lee about the day Erin disappeared: June 28, 2014:

• Lee admitted he picked up Erin at the spot where her car was found off base in Twentynine Palms
• Lee claimed he was planning to build a tire fire in a remote mine, but didn't tell Erin this little nugget. Instead Lee testified he told Erin he was taking her out "for a surprise" while on a hunting trip.
• Lee testified he threw down the mine shaft the propane tank, the tires, the water jugs filled with gasoline, and the torch made of his t-shirt and a stick, all to start a mine fire. While doing this, Erin was supposedly just sitting in his Jeep, listening to music.
• Lee said was so upset he could not start the mine tire fire that he decided to play Russian Roulette in his jeep. This upset Erin, said Lee, so she walked away into an adjacent mine shaft.
• Lee testified was unable to kill himself with the gun, so he called Erin to come back out of the mine shaft. 

This is where things get dicey. Writing down the excuse Lee gave for murdering Erin - putting down it in black and white - somehow feels like I am giving it legitimacy. I AM NOT. It is such a ludicrous assertion that I believe it will turn any juror against Lee who wasn't already convinced he is a soulless, cruel, lying, cold-blooded murderer.

Lee testified that out in the desert, after his unsuccessful game of Russian Roulette, Erin admitted to him that she had molested his daughter, Liberty. (Lee testified earlier that Nichole saw "suspicious" irritation on Liberty's genitals, and automatically assumed she was molested, and by Erin Corwin, although neither parent called law enforcement or a pediatrician - in fact, both parents continued to let Erin babysit Liberty.)

Lee testified that a "red hot knife went through his heart" upon hearing Erin's "confession" and he lost it. As luck would have it, he just happened to have a garrote in his hand when Erin "confessed" and he got so angry he strangled Erin to death, then dumped her body down the mine shaft.

Lee was calm during his testimony. He looked scared. He appeared to try and express some true emotion, even making crying sounds at one point. But there were no tears, and no tissues were used. His vocal affect was flat, and much of what he said sounded rehearsed to me. We heard him used that same flat, vocal affect during the videotaped interrogation with Det. Hanke, when everything he said was a lie. But now, because he's under oath, he is somehow supposed to be believable?

After this revolting testimony, the court took a lunch break. I'll write about what happened after the lunch break in the next post...

Day Eight - The Prosecution Rests With A Love Letter

Erin Corwin/Facebook

I'm going to start with the end of the day and work backward, because the final piece of evidence the prosecution presented was truly the coup de grâce of an already overwhelming case against defendant Christopher Brandon Lee.

ADA Sean Daugherty showed on the overhead projector a photocopy of a letter that was discovered in Erin Corwin's jewelry box after she disappeared. It was in handwriting that Jon Corwin said was not his own. It was a love poem written in cursive to Erin. This is what it said:

"Like it or not you still hold a part of my heart
Ready or not we were gonna get caught
Don't give up and I won't too
Hopefully like me, you still think 'I love you'"

The fingerprint technicians were able to lift a print from the piece of paper that belonged to Christopher Brandon Lee.

This proved Lee's assertion to law enforcement that his relationship with Erin ended months earlier, and that he'd had not any contact with her, was a lie. 

After the prosecution rested, defense attorney David Kaloyanides made a motion, as virtually all defense attorneys do before they begin their own cases, to have the case against their client dismissed for lack of evidence. (This was AFTER the jury left the courtroom for the day.)

In denying this motion, the usually jovial Judge J. David Mazurek became very serious and told Kaloyanides that the prosecution more than proved its case, and that a reasonable jury would be able to conclude that the defendant was guilty of first degree murder with the special circumstance of lying in wait. Mazurek said there was plenty of evidence proving the defendant planned the murder, while letting the victim believe he was planning a special surprise for her:

"In fact, it was a surprise trip for her, but not in the way she thought."

Someone sitting near me wondering aloud if this was the first time Christopher Lee realized how truly f*cked he was. 

The defense begins its case tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.

Day Eight - DNA Evidence Ties Christopher Lee To Mine Where Erin Corwin Was Found

Erin Corwin/Facebook

Court was back in session today after Tuesday's session was cancelled; a juror had a family emergency. The first witness was Dennis B. Key, a Criminalist with San Bernardino County. Key has spent twelve years as a DNA Specialist.

The first part of Key's testimony consisted of explaining what DNA is for the jury. Key was very good at breaking down complicated scientific concepts for laypeople without degrees in biology (like me).

Key testified as to how DNA was obtained from Jon Corwin, Christopher Brandon Lee, and Erin Corwin (at her autopsy).

Here's what Key found:

• There was DNA consistent with Erin Corwin's DNA on the knob of the propane tank found in the mine shaft where her body was discovered. That DNA excluded both Jon Corwin and Christopher Lee as a match.
• Blood removed from the outside of one of the water jugs found in the mine shaft were Erin was discovered contained DNA consistent with Erin Corwin. That DNA also excluded both Jon Corwin and Christopher Lee as a match.
• Key found DNA consistent with Erin Corwin's DNA on the rebar handles of the garrote looped around Erin Corwin's neck. That DNA excluded both Jon Corwin and Christopher Lee as a match.
• The green t-shirt that was part of the torch found in the mine shaft where Erin Corwin's body was discovered contained DNA that had a one in 16 billion chance of belonging to someone OTHER that Christopher Lee. (The population of the Earth is just 7 billion.) Complicated way of saying the DNA on the shirt belonged to Christopher Lee. DNA on the shirt excluded Erin and Jon Corwin as possible contributors.
• Swabs taken from the mouth of the Sprite bottle found in the mine where Erin Corwin's body was discovered had two contributors of DNA, one male and one female. The male contributor was Christopher Lee (with a one in 20 quadrillion chance it was NOT Christopher Lee) and the female contributor was Erin Corwin (with a 1 in 1.4 quadrillion chance it was NOT Erin Corwin).

After Key stepped down, Detective Hanke was called back to the stand, so the remainder of the Christopher Lee interrogation video could be played. There was about ten minutes left, which basically consisted of Hanke and his sergeant asking Lee if he had any Google searches on his phone or computer they should know about.

Lee said he looked up the "best way to dispose of a body." He mentioned a Google search produced results like having pigs devour the body, cannibalizing the body and grinding up the bones to dust, and burying a body then placing a dead animal on top of it.  

Lee was asked when he was moving back to Alaska, and he replied July 7. One of the interrogators then replied, "Maybe we'll visit you in Alaska."

Court resumes at 2 p.m. I'll have another post this evening detailing this afternoon's events.

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.

Day Seven - Autopsy Details

Dr. Frank Sheridan/The Southern California Medical Museum

The third week of trial started off on a grim note, with Dr. Frank Sheridan called to the stand as the first witness of the day. Sheridan is the Chief Medical Examiner with the San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner Department. He is also the forensic pathologist who conducted Erin Corwin's autopsy.

Sheridan's lilting Irish brogue was quite the juxtaposition to the horrors about which he had to testify. I'm going to leave out some of the more disturbing details, because they don't add anything to the most newsworthy aspects of Sheridan's testimony, and there are other "real" news sources that I'd imagine will contain that information. But here's what I felt were the most important parts of Sheridan's testimony:

• Upon external examination of Erin's body, Sheridan found a garrote looped around her neck and partially entangled in her hair.
• Erin's skull sustained numerous fractures, with all but one suffered after death. However, Sheridan testified one fracture above and behind Erin's left ear appeared to be the result of blunt force trauma from being hit with a heavy object either while she was still alive, or very shortly after brain death.
• Erin also suffered postmortem fractures to her left clavicle and left first rib.
• Sheridan examined Erin for any signs of pregnancy. He said the severe decomposition of Erin's body hindered his ability to ascertain if she was pregnant at the time of her death.
• Sheridan said the cause of death was homicidal violence due to strangulation and possible blunt force head injury.

Dr. Sheridan made it a point to say that Erin was strangled to death, but not choked. When a person is choked, their airways are cut off, they cannot breathe, and this leads to eventual death. In Erin's case, according to Dr. Sheridan, Erin was strangled with the garrote. This cut off the blood flow to her brain via the carotid arteries and jugular vein in her neck. Sheridan believes she would have lost consciousness with twenty seconds of the beginning of the strangulation, and suffered brain death within four minutes.

On cross-examination, defense attorney David Kaloyanides pressed Sheridan on whether Erin could have been strangled as much as a day before she suffered the skull fractures and other broken bones. Sheridan it was possible.

I'll post later on this evening about what happened the rest of the day in court - the viewing of the videotaped police interrogation of Christopher Lee.

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...

Day Six - Morning Session

Wednesday was filled with twists and turns and technical glitches, so I'm going to break up today's update into two posts. This one is about what happened during the morning session of trial, before the lunch break.

The first witness this morning was Christi Bonar, a criminalist with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department who is assigned to the firearm unit. She testified that the bolt-action .22 caliber rifle - that either Nichole or Christopher Lee hid in Isabella "Isabel" Megli's bedroom at White Rock Horse Ranch - fired the spent cartridge casing discovered near the opening of the mine shaft where Erin Corwin's body was found.

The next witness was a Nevada resident named Deborah Valek who lived in Twentynine Palms in 2014. Her home was in the 2700 block of Ranch Road, where Erin Corwin's Toyota Corolla was abandoned. Valek said she first noticed the Corolla at around 8:30 the morning of June 28, 2014, the day Erin disappeared. She said she took note of it when she left with her daughter to get doughnuts. When Valek returned at around 9:15 a.m., the car was still there. Valek drove behind the Corolla and took pictures with her phone because, as she put it:

"It wasn't supposed to be there."

She said she kept her distance from the Corolla:

"I didn't get too close because I didn't know if anyone was inside."

Valek said the car remained in the same place for a couple of days.

"I was going to report it to the police, but I just didn't."

The final witness before the lunch break was the defendant's mother. Karen Lee was called by the prosecution to establish that her son and daughter-in-law were the primary drivers of the Chevy Suburban that was registered in Karen's name:

"Whenever they needed it, they drove it."

Important to remember all the evidence, like the homemade garrote, that was found in the Suburban by Detective Woods.

Karen Lee was shown a picture that law enforcement took inside her home of the People magazine issue that featured Erin and Jon Corwin, and Christopher Lee, on its cover. Mrs. Lee quickly said:

"My husband bought that piece of trash."

She explained she hid it in her bedroom:

"I didn't want Liberty to see it. I was appalled."

I will post what happened after the lunch break either later this evening or tomorrow morning.

Just a note: there is no court on Thursday because one of the jurors suffered a death in the family (this happened before the trial began) and she needed to be at the mortuary on Thursday. Friday is a dark day. Court resumes Monday morning. 

Day Five, Part Two - FBI, USMC, And CSI

FBI Special Agent Kevin Boles was the first witness of the day as the prosecution continued its case-in-chief. Boles is part of the FBI's Cellular Analysis Survey Team, or CAST. Boles testified about the location of both Erin Corwin's cell phone and Chris Lee's cell phone on June 28, 2014 - the day Erin went missing. Some key findings:

• By comparing Erin and Chris Lee's respective phone records, Boles surmised both were traveling in an easterly direction from the Twentynine Palms Marine Base around 7:30 the morning of June 28.
• At roughly 7:36 a.m., Chris Lee's phone was in the same location where Erin Corwin's Toyota Corolla was later found abandoned.
• The last activity of any kind on Erin's phone was at 8:04 a.m. on June 28.
• The last activity on Chris Lee's phone was at 8:22 a.m. until 3:13 p.m. that same day.

The second witness to testify was a Marine veteran named Andrew Johnson, who currently works as a Shipfitter at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Washington state. Johnson was in the Marine Corps from 2010 until 2016. He was based at Twentynine Palms and was in the same Company as Chris Lee.

Johnson testified he approached the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department in July 2014 after learning of Erin Corwin's disappearance. Johnson said he told the Homicide Detail about a conversation he had with Chris Lee before Erin Corwin went missing. According to Johnson:

• Chris Lee asked Johnson about ways to hide or get rid of a body.
• Lee specifically wanted to know about the salt evaporation channels in Amboy, and whether a body could be submerged in the chloride pits.
• When Johnson asked Lee, "Who do you want to kill?" Johnson said Lee responded, "Don't worry about it," and gave him a "strange smile."
• Johnson testified he saw Lee make a list on in a notepad with two columns. One had "tools" with things like a shovel and chemicals, possibly lye. The other column had a list with the price of those items.

Erin and Jon Corwin/Facebook

The third witness of the day was a Crime Scene Specialist with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department named Susan Jaquez. She told the jury about the items of evidence she processed for fingerprints and DNA. Most of these items have been discussed on this blog before, including the items recovered from the same mine where Erin's body was found; Jaquez mentioned the tire, the two water cans which contained traces of gasoline, the propane tank, the homemade torch, and the Sprite bottle.

Jaquez also talked about twine she recovered from Chris Lee's Jeep. Both the prosecution and defense stipulated that an FBI analyst determined the twine from Lee's Jeep and the twine from the homemade torch were of the same "color, construction, and composition" and likely from the same source.

Both sides also stipulated that on Aug. 17, 2014 a member of the Anchorage Police Department pulled over a Chevy Suburban driven by Chris Lee, with wife Nichole Lee in the passenger seat.

The final witness of the day was Detective Woods, who was recalled to discuss the search warrant he served to examine the Suburban in Anchorage. Woods recovered several items of note, including two spools of paracord, knives, and blue climbing rope.

But the most important discovery was a garrote situated underneath the front passenger seat. (Because we all keep homemade garrotes in our vehicles, right?) The garrote was made with two pieces of white plastic, braided paracord, and black electrical tape.

That's it for today. Bedtime. Court resumes tomorrow at 10 a.m.

Day Five, Part One - Wife Of Defendant Makes An Appearance

I'll be breaking today's post into two parts. Here's part one...

Court was scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., or "ten-ish" as presiding Judge J. David Mazurek likes to say. Before the jury was allowed in, Nichole Lee, the wife of the defendant, made an appearance in the courtroom. She was with her attorney, who said his client wanted to testify "over my advice." Judge Mazurek told Nichole that while she had been subpoenaed to testify by the prosecution, ADA Daugherty declined to call her. However, defense attorney David Kaloyanides did want Nichole to testify for the defense, and so she was still under subpoena. She had a smile on her face the entire time she stood before the court.

I'm going to describe how she looked, because this was actually an important factor in the morning's events. Nichole's long blonde hair hung loose down her back. She had her husband's dog tags around her neck on a chain. She was wearing a black skirt suit with off-white piping, and matching off-white pumps.

Cut to a few minutes later, after Nichole had left the courtroom. The sound of a woman's voice, raised and angry, could be heard coming from outside the courtroom. I turned around to see Nichole Lee in the vestibule that separates the courtroom and the hallway where the jurors wait to be called in. The bailiff approached the judge and told him he caught Nichole Lee talking to one of the jurors.

Both Daugherty and Kaloyanides were visibly dismayed at hearing this. Both attorneys asked the judge if he would call in the juror Nichole was seen chatting with, and ask what the two women were discussing.

The juror was called in and Judge Mazurek asked her about the topic of the conversation she had with the blond woman outside. Nichole's name was not used. The juror said she had complemented Nichole on her shoes, and Nichole was talking about where she got them. That was it, according to the juror.

Just a side note: all of the jurors wear yellow buttons on their shirts that indicate they are jurors, so it's hard to imagine Nichole didn't know she was speaking to a member of the panel deciding her husband's fate. As Kaloyanides said in open court of Nichole,

"This witness is unpredictable, and I'm not sure (the interaction) was benign."

I'll try to get the second part of this post up within a few hours...

Day Four - Prosecution Calls Five Witnesses

The first witness Deputy District Attorney Sean Daugherty called Monday morning was Paul Anastasia, a engineer medic and firefighter with the San Bernardino County Fire Department. Anastasia was the search and rescue member who recovered Erin Corwin's body on Aug. 17, 2014 from the mine shaft where searchers discovered her body on Aug. 16, 2014.

Anastasia described the air in the mine shaft as not habitable for humans, and the temperature there to be at least 100 degrees. He spent about a half hour in the mine shaft, placing Erin's body in two coroner's bags. Anastasia also noticed what he deemed to be a homemade torch, and made sure to bring it up with him when he left the mine. (In his opening statement to the jury last week, Daugherty said the torch was made, in part, with a t-shirt that contained the DNA of Christopher Lee.)

The second witness was Pedro Ligorria, a member of San Bernardino County's Search and Rescue team. He was a member of the search team that first discovered Erin's body in the mine. Ligorria testified that he found a bullet casing near the collar of the mine, and placed it in a plastic evidence bag using gloved hands.

Erin Corwin/Facebook

The third witness was someone court watchers have seen every day of the trial, because he sits next to ADA Sean Daugherty at the prosecution table. Detective Jonathan Woods works homicide detail for the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department. He is also the case agent for this trial, collecting paperwork and reporting to the District Attorney's office.

Woods relayed how the recovered evidence was examined and bagged by members of Crime Scene Investigation. Crucial pieces of evidence included the propane tank, two 20 liter water cans that had gasoline in the bottom of the containers, and a Sprite bottle.

Woods attended Erin's autopsy. He testified as to how Dr. Frank Sheridan, the Chief Medical Examiner for San Bernardino County, removed a garrote made of paracord and rebar from around Erin's neck. Woods also explained how dental records were needed to positively identify the body found in the mine as Erin Corwin.

San Bernardino County Sheriff's Detective Bryan Zierdt was the first witness to testify after the lunch break. Zierdt described a conversation he had with Nichole Lee in the days following Erin's disappearance. Nichole said her husband Chris kept the .22 caliber rifle Zierdt was inquiring about in a room at Isabel Megli's residence at White Rock Horse Rescue ranch. 

Nichole, daughter Liberty, and Zierdt drove out to White Rock. They entered Megli's residence, and Megli gave Zierdt permission to search one of the rooms. Nichole went right back to the room in question, reached up to a shelf, and took down a case that contained the rifle in question. 

The final witness of the day was Sgt. Mauricio Hurtado with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department. Back in 2014 he was a detective on the same four-man homicide detail team as Detectives Woods and Zierdt. Hurtado described how CSI specialists processed the scene surrounding Erin Corwin's abandoned car. He testified about the footprints that were seen leaving the driver's side of Erin's car, and towards another vehicle. Hurtado originally believed the tire tracks of that vehicle matched Chris Lee's jeep, but further investigation revealed they did not. 

Hurtado also testified about the searches he conducted of the Lee residence, the Corwin residence, a U-Haul truck rented by the Lees, and Megli's residence. There was one piece of evidence Hurtado described that I had not read about before: a purple latex glove retrieved from the side pocket of a pair of men's camouflage shorts that were found in Megli's living room.

Court continues Tuesday morning at ten.

Day Three - The Prosecution's Case Continues

The first witness today was Joseph Hollifield, the civilian friend of defendant Christopher Lee who took the photographs that ended up being critical in the discovery of Erin Corwin's body. On June 22, 2014, less than a week before Erin disappeared, Lee and Hollifield went out to the same remote mining district that was home to Mine #108 - where searchers found Erin's body in August.

Hollifield dressed in baggy jeans and a brown t-shirt for his court appearance. He admitted when asked by Deputy District Attorney Sean Daugherty that he still considered Chris Lee - and wife Nichole Lee - to be good friends. Key point in his testimony was how Hollifield denied knowing Lee planned to visit the same mining area the week after their June 22nd trip. Daugherty even confronted Hollifield with the undeniable fact he had texted Lee on the day Erin disappeared with the question, "How are the mines?" Hollifield said he didn't know if Lee planned to visit the mines or not. It was just a random text.

Right.

Jon and Erin Corwin/Facebook

The next two witnesses were the San Bernardino Sheriff's deputies who questioned Chris Lee the day after Erin went missing. Both Dep. Danny Millan and Dep. Cathy Tabor described how at first Lee denied knowing Erin as anything more than an acquaintance. Later in in the parking lot of a Vons supermarket, Lee admitted he had a romantic relationship with Erin that involved kissing but not sex. That conversation was tape recorded and played in open court. It was difficult to understand much of what was being said, but one thing that was audible to me was when Chris Lee said with very little emotion that Erin was "a pathological liar." My jaw dropped when I heard that. Both Millan and Tabor reminded Lee many times that he was the one who had lied to them the very first time they interviewed him.

The final two witnesses were involved in the discovery and recovery of Erin's body in the mine shaft. They were Cpl. Robert Whiteside, the program coordinator of the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department's Search and Rescue Unit; and Brenton Baum, an Engineer Paramedic for San Bernardino County.

This was the toughest part of the trial so far, because it involved playing video that showed Erin Corwin's body at the bottom of the mine shaft. I won't go into detail. I will say that from my vantage point in the courtroom, it appeared the defendant never took his eyes off the screen. By his own admission, he was romantically involved with Erin at one point. It was horrifying for pretty much everyone in the courtroom to see what had happened to Erin - but not to the man who once kissed and held her. I suppose a guilty man does not know how an innocent man acts.

Day Two - The Prosecution's Case Continues

Day two of the prosecution's case consisted of just three witnesses, but there was no shortage of bombshell testimony. I will try and cut to the chase in terms of the highlights of each witnesses testimony.

The first witness of the day was Douglas Billings. I would say this man knows caves and mines in the the vast desert near Joshua Tree National Park and Twentynine Palms like a mother knows the freckles on her child's face - and with that much affection. He's been exploring the area since he was a kid, and he's now 53.

Erin Corwin/Facebook

Billings was able to use photographs taken on June 22, 2014 by a civilian friend of the defendant to zero in on the mine where searchers ultimately found Erin Corwin's body.

The next witness was Aisling Malakie. Aisling lived with her husband, Conor, and young son in the apartment directly downstairs from Erin and Jon Corwin in 2013-14. Aisling and Erin were close friends at one point - close enough that Aisling took Erin to the hospital when she suffered a miscarriage.

Aisling also discovered the relationship between Erin and the defendant, and ended up telling the defendant's wife Nichole, and Jon Corwin.

Two points Aisling made that gave me chills:

• She said Christopher Lee talked about murder more times than she could count. She found it odd because, "No one else I knew talked about snapping necks and hiding bodies with coyotes."

• After Erin went missing, Aisling called the Lee residence to let Nichole know that investigators were looking for Chris. According to Aisling, Nichole replied (referring to Erin), "I don't care what happened to that little bitch."

The final witness of the day was Aisling's husband, Conor Malakie. Conor said he considered Christopher Lee to be a close friend. On the day Erin disappeared, Chris made a vague invitation to Conor to go coyote hunting. An hour after Chris Lee left to "go hunting" Conor attempted to get in touch with him. Chris texted Conor to meet him outside Joshua Tree National Park. Conor spent as many as three hours trying to find Chris, but to no avail. All calls and texts to Chris went unanswered. Later that afternoon, when Chris returned home, Conor noticed the propane tank that was in the back of Chris's Jeep earlier that morning was no longer there.

The big moment for me was when Conor explained what happened the morning after Erin disappeared. Conor saw Chris at the apartment complex and asked him if her knew where Erin was. Chris said he didn't. Then Conor asked his very good friend, "Did you do what I think you did?"

Let that sink in. If a young man who had great affection for the defendant immediately suspected he had murdered Erin, I can't help but think the jurors will draw the same conclusion, considering the mountain of evidence the prosecution is in the process of presenting.

Day One - Opening Statements And Prosecution Witnesses

I'm writing as a blogger, and not a journalist, meaning some of my emotions will be tangled up in my coverage of this trial. I can't help it. Sitting so close to the family and friends of Erin Corwin and realizing how much this gentle, trusting, beautiful 19-year-old girl was treasured - it's just near impossible not to feel her loved ones' hearts breaking.

Opening statements started around 11 this morning, after some technical difficulties getting sound for Deputy District Attorney Sean Daugherty's power point presentation. Things finally clicked into place, and Daugherty methodically laid out the evidence to the jury he says he will present during the course of the trial.

In my opinion, the most damning evidence Daugherty told the jury to expect was DNA evidence tying defendant Christopher Brandon Lee to the mine shaft where Erin's body was discovered on Aug. 16, 2014, roughly seven weeks after she went missing on June 28, 2014.

That DNA evidence includes:

• An olive green t-shirt used to make a torch that was found in the mine shaft. Daugherty says Lee's DNA was found on this shirt.

• DNA from both Lee and Erin Corwin was found on a Sprite bottle dumped in the mine shaft. 

During most of his opening statement, and for several of the witnesses, Daugherty had the photo of the People magazine cover that featured Erin and Jon Corwin (see above) up on the overhead projector so it was visible to the entire courtroom. The photo was taken at the Marine Corps Ball the couple attended just hours before heading to Las Vegas to elope.

The defense opted not to give an opening statement, which isn't that unusual.

Erin's mother, Lore Heavilin, was the first witness. The most moving part of her testimony was when she described her last conversation via phone with Erin. Lore was planning to visit Erin the following week, and Erin described to her mom all the home-cooked dishes she wanted Lore to make for her. Lore told Erin the ingredients she would need to buy. When Lore did come out to Erin's apartment, not for the planned visit but because she went missing, Lore noticed Erin had already purchased all those ingredients.

Erin's husband, Jon Corwin, was the second witness to testify. Daugherty asked Jon about his relationship with Erin, Erin's relationship with the defendant, and Erin's relationship with the defendant's young daughter. The defense attorney cross-examined Jon, asking him about Erin's relationship with her younger sister, Trish, who passed away when she was a child. The defense attorney seemed to want to make some connection between Erin's feelings for her sister, and her feelings for the defendant's young daughter. Not sure what he's getting at there.

The last witness of the day was Erin's best friend Jessica Trentham, who relayed text messages from Erin that placed Erin with the defendant the day she went missing. Jessica spoke in a soft voice full of emotion, evident to this courtroom observer how much she loved, and still misses, her dear friend Erin.

Jury Selection Complete In Erin Corwin Trial

Erin Corwin/Facebook

According to a poster very much in the know on Crimewatchers.net, a jury has been seated in the case of The People of the State of California vs. Christopher Brandon Lee:

"We have a jury and 6 alternates. They will have motions tomorrow and Thursday.

"The trial will start Tuesday the 11th."

As this blog explained previously, Monday the 10th of October is Columbus Day, and a court holiday. 

Jury Selection Underway In Erin Corwin Murder Trial

Jury selection is underway at Superior Court of California - County of San Bernardino in the murder trial of The People of the State of California vs. Christopher Brandon Lee.

Lee is charged with first degree murder for allegedly killing Erin Corwin, 19, and dumping her body in an abandoned mine shaft. Corwin was pregnant at the time of her death.