A win for Michelle Troconis’ defense Wednesday following a motion filed to exclude testimony from Connecticut’s Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. James Gill.
“He didn’t look at anything that required his expertise so anyone could come to the same conclusion,” defense attorney Jon Schoenhorn said outside court Wednesday.
The state planned to have Dr. Gill testify about his determination that Jennifer Dulos was likely dead based on information he had been given from investigators on the case. It's largely the same evidence jurors have already seen during the first four weeks of the trial, including the bloody clothing pulled from Albany Avenue in Hartford, forensic evidence such as DNA, and photographs taken from Jennifer Dulos’ garage.
In August of 2019, Dr. Gill determined based on the evidence, that Jennifer Dulos sustained injuries that were “non-survivable” without medical intervention.
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But because he made that determination based on evidence the jury has also been presented, and a body was never recovered for him to conduct an autopsy on, Judge Kevin Randolph ruled in favor of the defense's motion.
“The jury has heard more than Dr. Gill could testify to. The motion is granted,” Randolph said.
That decision followed a day of quick testimony, including new surveillance footage of Fotis Dulos dropping off and picking up Pawel Gumienny’s Toyota Tacoma from a car wash and detail in Avon.
The manager described various cleaning agents used in the detailing process, including shampoo and all-purpose cleaners. Video surveillance from inside the business showed Fotis Dulos paying cash for the service.
According to court documents, he left no name for the car, and the wrong model Toyota was listed. It was Michelle Troconis’ phone number left as the number to call when the detailing was complete.
Troconis' attorney clarified that information outside court Thursday. Saying his clients number was listed next to the Sienna in error, but that error was on the part of the car wash employee. The time the sienna arrived didn't line up with the time the Tacoma is seen on surveillance video arriving. He speculated the employee put down the number in the wrong line on the service log, and it was not Fotis Dulos offering false information.
“A customer didn’t provide a name?” asked Attorney Michelle Manning. “Correct,” said manager Cederic Candiotti.
The jury also saw new surveillance footage from a home on Weed Street in New Canaan. The footage showed a person, investigators believe to be Fotis Dulos, riding a bicycle in the direction of Jennifer Dulos’ home the morning she disappeared. A little while later, the same camera picks up what investigators believe to be Jennifer Dulos’ Chevy Suburban headed back in the opposite direction, toward Lapham Road, where her Suburban was ultimately found later that evening.
Before the trial started Wednesday, there were two motions that also offered insight into what else the state intends to present before they rest their case. One is testimony from another lawyer deeply involved in the divorce proceedings between Jennifer and Fotis Dulos.
The judge also ruled cell phone data seized from AT&T can be brought into the trial after the state submitted an appropriate warrant for the data back at the end of 2023. Defense attorney Jon Schoenhorn attempted to have that evidence suppressed, but the judge decided to deny that motion.
