Went to closing arguments. Saw the prosecution. Had to leave before the defense. Took a long time to get going, because Shadid read the jury instructions *before* the arguments, and that took forever and a day.
My pen died during the arguments, so I couldn’t take notes, but I remembered a couple things of note. Nelson gave the closing statement.
1) Nelson says Yingying tried to pull the knife out of her neck after BC stuck it in her immediately following being struck in the head with the bat. So, possible she was alive while being decapitated.
2) Conseling Center: Nelson says that BC “not wanting to be that type of person” is a lie. Only went because Michelle wanted him to go. Michelle saysBC is good liar, says that second visit and saying no plans to commit murder was a lie.
3) cleaning in Astra extensive; not just front passenger seat, but back seat and trunk. Luminol staining shows up on seat fabric. FBI agent says this is rare because cleaners usually soak deep into the seat and Luminol staining not visible on the surface of seats. For it to show up on the seat means lots of cleaning agent used. He didn’t say this, but this indicates she was likely beaten and bleeding in the car, and could also indicate her remains taken out in the car.
4) Got rid of bag on Monday. Nelson doesn’t mention her body being disposed on Monday, but mentions that they think her stuff (clothes, backpack, books, iPhone, glasses) were in the bag when he disposed of it on Monday.
I don’t expect fast decision. Before weighing, they have to vote on all the statutory and non-statutory factors to determine which ones are proven and under consideration for weighing against the mitigating factors. Then they h@ve to go through all ~50 mitigating factors and see which ones are proved by preponderance of evidence; they have to write in the # of jurors who find each mitigating factor proved on a blank after each listed factor. That will take some time.
Still, I don’t think it will take forever. If they h@ve a verdict by the end of the week, my guess is it will be death. If it drags into mid-late next week, it will be life in prison.