A person who’s accused of killing his girlfriend, the mom of his lacking daughter, in her Ansonia dwelling in December 2019 took the stand in his personal protection and instructed the jury he noticed the assault however couldn’t do something as a result of he was on PCP and he defined how he cleaned up the home after she was attacked.
Jose Morales has been charged with the homicide of Christine Holloway and tampering with proof.
The protection rested its case on Thursday afternoon.
Morales took the stand on Wednesday and resumed testifying on Thursday.
He instructed the jury that one particular person attacked Holloway and one other took their child daughter, Vanessa.
Morales instructed the jury that carried Holloway’s physique to the bathtub after she was killed and stated he used a bucket and towels to scrub up blood, then put the water down the rubbish disposal.
He additionally stated he was unhappy, needed to decorate Holloway and he put her clothes within the washer whereas he was on the home.
The dramatic flip within the case got here on Wednesday when Morales first took the stand after the state rested its case and a felony psychologist testified as a protection witness.
Earlier than he testified, the choose requested Morales if he was certain he needed to take the stand and Morales responded, “I am sure.”
Throughout cross-examination on Thursday, prosecutors requested Morales if he ever recalled calling Holloway “a pig,” and Morales responded that he did.
The prosecution additionally requested Morales if he had accused Holloway of being untrue and Morales responded, “probably.”
Prosecutors additionally confirmed a sequence of textual content messages between Morales and Holloway the place he was asking the place she was, citing cash and elevating issues that she was seeing another person.
Holloway responded to these messages by saying she cherished him, there was nobody else and never to surrender on her, prosecutors stated.
The trial is going on 5 years after Holloway was killed.
On the ninth day of the Jose Morales trial, he appeared offended and aggravated whereas speaking a couple of banging noise coming from the storage beneath the condominium on Myrtle Avenue.
Police discovered her physique on Dec. 2, 2019 and Morales was arrested on Feb. 7, 2020.
State’s lawyer Howard Stein cross-examined Morales and tried to poke holes in his story about two males coming into their condominium and one of many males beating Holloway with a crowbar.
At one level, Stein grew to become very direct.
Mr. Morales, did you kill Christine Holloway?” he requested.
“No,” Morales replied.
“Mr. Morales, were you so intoxicated on a substance — PCP or alcohol, or any other substance, that you do not remember killing Christine Holloway?” Stein requested.
“I did not kill Christine Holloway,” Morales stated.
The couple’s daughter, Vanessa Morales, was 14 months previous on the time and she or he not within the dwelling when police discovered Holloway. There was no signal of her since.
On Thursday, Stein requested Morales why he didn’t name police to report that Vanessa had been taken and he instructed them he was scared.
He was additionally requested why he didn’t carry out CPR on Holloway.
This adopted his statements from a day earlier than when Morales instructed the jury of how and Holloway met, by way of a courting app, and she or he he was dwelling in Ansonia on weekends and in New Haven, the place his dad and mom reside, in the course of the week.
He additionally supplied an account of Thanksgiving weekend in 2019, simply days earlier than Holloway was killed, they usually spend time together with her household in addition to his.
Morales instructed the jury that he was on PCP (phencyclidine, which is also referred to as angel mud) whereas he was inside the house on Myrtle Avenue in Ansonia the place Holloway was killed.
Morales stated he heard screams and sounds of a wrestle.
He instructed the jury that he noticed a person in the home repeatedly hitting Holloway with a crowbar however that he could not assist due to the results of the PCP.
“This is 10 minutes, not even, from when I smoked the PCP. I went inside the apartment, I tried to look for Vanessa everywhere, the car seat was gone,” Morales stated.
He additionally testified that the unknown man instructed him if he referred to as the police, his daughter would undergo the identical destiny.
The state’s lawyer objected to the testimony as rumour, however the choose allowed it, with limits.
Courtroom won’t be in session on Friday so closing arguments will occur on Monday. The choose instructed the jurors not to have a look at any protection of the case or to debate it.
