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 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 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.

Judge Orders Body Of Slain Marine Wife Erin Corwin Released To Her Family

First published on Home Post Dec. 3, 2014 | 11:52 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth
  

Erin Corwin/Facebook

In a San Bernardino County courtroom this week, Judge Rod Cortez ruled that the body of slain Marine wife Erin Corwin could be released to her family - almost four months after searchers recovered her remains in a remote desert mine shaft.

KESQ.com reports Cortez rescinded a previous court order to keep Corwin's remains for further testing.

Marine veteran Christopher Brandon Lee has been charged with Corwin's murder. His attorney, according to the Desert Sun, is considering a change of venue request for his client because of the intense media attention the case has received.

Six weeks after she was reported missing, Corwin's body was discovered on Aug. 16 in a 140-foot mine shaft on Bureau of Land Management land in the Mojave Desert. Dental records were needed to confirm Corwin's identity.

She was last seen alive on the morning of June 28, when Corwin told her husband, Marine Cpl. Jonathan Wayne Corwin, she was heading to Joshua Tree National Park to scout photography locations. 

Cpl. Corwin reported his wife missing the next day.

The couple lived in an apartment at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms. 

Family members of Corwin say she was three months pregnant when she disappeared.

A probable-cause affidavit filed by Detective Cory Emon of the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department indicated Corwin was involved in a romantic relationship with Lee, whom she met at White Rock Horse Rescue.

Erin Corwin's Husband Speaks Out For The First Time Since Wife's Disappearance (Video)

First published on Home Post Aug. 26, 2014 | 1:59 p.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

Jon Corwin (left)

Marine Cpl. Jonathan Corwin, the widower of homicide victim Erin Corwin, is speaking to the media for the first time since his wife went missing on June 28. 

Corwin's body was discovered on Aug. 16 in a 100-foot deep mine shaft southeast of Twentynine Palms in the Mojave Desert. 

Jonathan Corwin spoke with The Desert Sun shortly before the start of a vigil held in Erin's memory at Luckie Park in Twentynine Palms on Monday evening:

“I had some hope, but overall, I expected the worst. It’s basically the only thing you can do after so much time. I have closure now. I know she is in heaven, now. She is in a better place, in no more pain.”

Erin and Jon Corwin

Corwin also talked with KESQ-TV off camera about his favorite memory of Erin. Reporter Natalie Brunell paraphrased what Corwin told her:

He said he'll never forget their high school prom; the first night he saw her all dressed up.

And even though they had known each other since middle school, he remembers there was just something about the way she looked that night.

Marine veteran Christopher Lee has been charged with killing Erin. Lee and his wife Nichole lived next door to the Corwins at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms. 

Corwin told The Desert Sun he knew his wife and Lee once had a brief affair, but believed it had ended. Now, he trying his best to forgive the man he once considered his friend:

"Obviously, I hate the actions that he did. But I feel like, if I let him bring hatred to my mind every time I see him, he is just going to pull me down.

“When I first figured out about the affair, and everything, he was still my next door neighbor. There was a part of me that wanted to go take care of him. But if I did that, I would be in the same boat as him — I would be a bad guy. And that is just not me.”

The Associated Press reports Lee, 24, was arraigned Tuesday afternoon in Joshua Tree Superior Court, where he pleaded not guilty to murder charges.

To watch KESQ-TV's story about the candlelight vigil held for Erin Corwin, click here.

Marine Vet Could Face 2nd Murder Charge In Death Of Erin Corwin's Fetus

First published on Home Post Aug. 21, 2014 | 10:57 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

The final results of Erin Corwin's autopsy could determine whether or not Marine veteran Christopher Lee is charged with murder in the death of Corwin's fetus. 

Erin Corwin

Lee has already been arrested and charged with murdering Corwin, 19, who may have been pregnant with his child.

San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos told the Desert Sun an additional murder charge against Lee is possible if the autopsy can determine whether or not Corwin was actually pregnant, and how far along she was in her pregnancy. 

Ramos said California law allows a murder charge to be filed in the death of an unborn baby just four to six weeks into the fetus's development.

Corwin's sister-in-law, DeeAnna Heavilin, was interviewed by the Desert Sun last month about Corwin's pregnancy:

"We don't know exactly how far along she is with this pregnancy. She only found out about the pregnancy two weeks before she went missing and a doctor hasn't confirmed a due date yet."

As Home Post previously reported, Corwin's body was discovered in an abandoned mine shaft on Aug. 16. 

On June 28, Corwin had told her husband, Marine Cpl. Jonathan Corwin, she was heading to Joshua Tree National Park to scout photography locations. 

Cpl. Corwin reported his wife missing the next day.

The couple lived in an apartment at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, next door to Christopher Lee and his wife Nichole.

Lee was in an Anchorage courtroom Thursday morning, where he waived his rights against extradition to California to stand trial for Corwin's murder.

Deputy DA Clint Campion of Anchorage told KTUU-TV he expects Lee to be transferred to California within a week:

"I would say (in) the next couple of days. The judge set a hearing for Sept. 8 to make sure he's actually gone."

 

Erin Corwin's Body Discovered, Alleged Lover Arrested In Her Death

Originally published on Home Post Aug. 18, 2014 | 12:42 p.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

Searchers discovered the body of missing pregnant Marine wife Erin Corwin on Aug. 16 in a 100-foot mine shaft on Bureau of Land Management land in the Mojave Desert, law enforcement officials announced Monday.

Dental records were needed to confirm Corwin's identity. An autopsy conducted Monday morning concluded the manner of death to be homicide, according to San Bernardino County Sheriff John McMahon.

Christopher Lee mug shot

Christopher Lee, the Marine veteran who police believe was romantically involved with Corwin, was arrested in Alaska on Sunday evening for her murder.

The Desert Sun reports Christopher Lee is being detained in Anchorage on a federal hold awaiting extradition back to California.

San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos told reporters:

"If Lee does not waive extradition he should be back in our county in four to five weeks.."

For those of you just learning about the case, here's some background:

On the morning of June 28, Corwin told her husband, Marine Cpl. Jonathan Wayne Corwin, she was heading to Joshua Tree National Park to scout photography locations. Cpl. Corwin reported his wife missing the next day.

The couple lived in an apartment at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms. 

Family members of Corwin say she was three months pregnant when she disappeared.

Marine Cpl. Jonathan Corwin and Erin Corwin

A probable-cause affidavit filed by Detective Cory Emon of the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department indicated Corwin was involved in a romantic relationship with Lee, whom she met at White Rock Horse Rescue.

Emon wrote in the affidavit that a friend of Corwin's in Tennessee told detectives that she may have been pregnant with Lee's baby, and not her husband's:

"[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," Corwin had confided in her Tennessee friend that Lee was worried his wife would divorce him if she knew of the affair — and would take away their child.

Detective Emon's concluded in the affidavit:

“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 Christopher Lee's wife Nichole 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."

There is also forensic evidence that ties Christopher Lee's vehicle to Corwin:

(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.

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

Zoo Fundraiser Held For Family Of Missing Marine Wife Erin Corwin

Originally published on Home Post Aug. 11, 2014 | 7:48 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth
   

The family of Erin Corwin has had to endure more than six weeks of not knowing what happened to the missing pregnant Marine wife. Friends of Corwin, 20, held a fundraiser at a zoo near her Tennessee hometown to boost her family's spirits.

Erin Corwin

WATE-TV reports friends and supporters from Erin's hometown of Oak Ridge hosted the fundraiser at Little Ponderosa Zoo to raise money the family can use for a reward.

Little Ponderosa Zoo James Cox told WATE-TV:

"We hope somebody will come around and tell the whereabouts of this family's child and get them home. I can't imagine the pain of what they're going through of just not knowing. Just waiting on that phone call and just not knowing.

 "We want to do our part to help them find their child and get her back home safely."

According to the Desert Sun, there are no new updates in the disappearance of Corwin, who was last seen alive by her husband, Marine Corporal Jon Corwin, on June 28.

The couple lived on base at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms. Court documents suggest Erin Corwin may have been having a romantic relationship with neighbor and Marine veteran Christopher Lee. 

The "Locate Erin" Facebook page reports search crews spent the weekend looking for Corwin.

Corwin's friends back in Tennessee explained to WBIR-TV that her love of animals prompted them to hold their fundraiser at a zoo.

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.

Erin Corwin Case Update: 'Witness' Comes Forward, Search Warrants Executed (Video)

Originally published on Home Post July 17, 2014 | 7:53 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

Erin Corwin/Facebook

A Twentynine Palms resident has come forward to say he saw missing pregnant Marine wife Erin Corwin on the day she disappeared.

Michael Beasley has told several media outlets he witnessed Corwin willingly get into a red car with an unidentified man, leaving her blue Toyota Corolla behind:

“They were just sitting and chatting. If she wanted to get out of the car and say, ‘I don't want to be in this car,' she could have.

“When I came back a half hour later, just the (blue) car was sitting there. Next thing, I hear the weekend goes by and Monday morning the sheriffs are there looking for this girl because she ain't home yet."

HLN reports police would not confirm to the network whether they've spoken with Beasley, or even comment on Beasley's assertion that he's an eyewitness.

In other news related to Corwin's disappearance, four search warrants have been executed, according to The Desert Sun:

The warrants cast a wide net for investigators, allowing them to search for everything from telephone records and computers to fingerprints and DNA.

KFMB reports two vehicles and two residences were searched:

• Blue 2013 Toyota Sedan bearing California license # 7CJX519
• Dark colored Jeep Cherokee bearing Alaska license # GHP564
• The premises at 6650 Jasmine St, apartment #F, Twenty Nine Palms
• The premises at 6650 Jasmine St, apartment #D, Twenty Nine Palms

A little background: Marine Cpl. Jonathan Wayne Corwin reported his wife Erin Corwin missing June 29 - one day after she disappeared while scouting for photography locations at Joshua Tree National Park.

She is three months pregnant. July 15th is her 20th birthday.

As for alleged witness Michael Beasley, he spoke with Jane Velez-Mitchell this evening. Take a look:

 

Mother-In-Law Of Missing Pregnant Marine Wife Erin Corwin Speaks Out

Originally published on Home Post July 10, 2014 | 9:10 a.m. | By Beth Ford Roth

The mother-in-law of missing pregnant teenager Erin Corwin is speaking out, telling the media that her son - Twentynine Palms Marine Cpl. Jonathan Wayne Corwin - had nothing to do with his young wife's disappearance.

Sheila Braden told television station KESQ rampant speculation that Jonathan Corwin had something to do with why his 19-year-old wife vanished is unjustified:

Erin and John Corwin

"John is stoic. He internalizes a lot of emotions. It's apparent he's torn up inside over Erin being missing and wants his wife back, and he's still hoping and praying that that's going to happen...

"He can't speak out, his command has asked him to be quiet.. He feels helpless because he can't help with the search."

Jonathan Corwin reported Erin Corwin missing June 29 - one day after she disappeared while scouting for photography locations at Joshua Tree National Park.
 

Because of the "suspicious circumstances" surrounding Corwin's disappearance, San Bernardino County sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Bachman said homicide detectives are on the case.

Corwin's 2013 Toyota Corolla was discovered July 2, according to Capt. Dale Mondary, who informed KMIR-TV that the vehicle was discovered not in Joshua Tree National Park, but near Twentynine Palms:

"It was near the base and the desert, yes, but keeping mind that's a very large base."

Erin Corwin is originally from Oak Ridge, Tenn., and local television station WVLT spoke with her sister-in-law about the family's plan to offer a reward.