The
Trial Of Jesse Prince |
The
trial was held in Courtroom 15 of the Pinellas County Court
House. The audio of the trial was recorded from the P.A.
system controlled by Judge Michael F. Andrews.
While
attempts were made to record the entirety of the trial, we were
unable to record the opening statement of Lydia Wardell from the
State's Attorney Office. The state's opening remarks will be
made available in transcript form.
Day
One
-
May 23, 2001
Denis
deVlaming's Opening Statement
Denis
explains to the jury that the arrest of Jesse Prince began with an
extensive Scientology operation that started months before Jesse's
arrest.
The
first part of Denis' remarks are missing from the tape but will be
available in transcript form.
Detective
Crosby's Testimony
Detective
Crosby from the Largo Police Department was contacted by
Scientology's Private Investigator, Brian Raftery. Crosby went
undercover into Jesse's home alongside Scientology's PI, Barry
Gaston.
Officer
Michael Bruno's Testimony
Officer
Bruno was the arresting officer who removed the single marijuana
plant from Jesse's pool area.
Lab
Technician's Testimony
Stacy
Mace analyzed leaves from the plant taken from Jesse's pool
area.
Request
for Judgment of Acquittal
At
the close of the State's case, Denis deVlaming asked for a judgment
of acquittal.
Paul
Johnson Appears on Behalf of the PIs
Paul
Johnson appears before the judge to address issues raised by Barry
Gaston's plan to plead the Fifth Amendment in his upcoming
testimony.
Fifth
Amendment Arguments
Judge
Andrews allows Barry Gaston to plead the Fifth.
Barry
Gaston's Testimony
Barry
Gaston was one of the Private Investigators hired by Scientology's
attorneys. He assumed the name "Rinzi
Trinidad" and befriended Jesse and Dee. Gaston became a
confidential informant for the Largo Police, then disappeared after
Jesse's arrest. DeVlaming's Private Investigator, Ray Emmons,
tracked down Gaston. This started to reveal the Scientology
connection.
Gaston
repeatedly took the Fifth Amendment on the stand. He would be signaled
by the raising of a hand from his attorneys, Paul Johnson and Helena
Kobrin.
Brian
Raftery's Testimony
Raftery
is one of Moxon and Kobrin's key Private Investigators in the
Clearwater area, earning over $180,000 a year for investigating
Scientology's critics.
Joseph
Fabrizio's Testimony
Fabrizio
is another of Scientology's Private Investigators. Gaston
wrote reports to Fabrizio nightly concerning his ongoing operation
against Jesse.
Day
Two
-
May 24, 2001
Arguments
Over Allowing Frank Oliver's Testimony
Part
of the planned defense for Jesse involved the operation of
Scientology's Office of Special Affairs and the Fair Game
Policy. Frank Oliver had been a member of OSA and was prepared
to testify about the tactics Scientology uses against it's perceived
enemies. The State sought to limit Oliver's testimony.
Frank
Oliver's Testimony
Frank
Oliver was allowed to take the stand and testify with some
restrictions.
Arguments
About Allowing Rebuttal Witness
The
State sought to bring Jesse's fiancé to the stand as a rebuttal
witness. DeVlaming argued that she should have been used in
the State's main case and not as rebuttal.
Dee
Phillips Testifies in Proffer
The
judge allows Dee to testify outside of the presence of the jury in
order to see the relevance of her testimony.
Discussion
of Jury Instructions
Judge
Andrews takes a moment to discuss which instructions the jury would
be receiving.
Arguments
to Allow Dee Phillips Testimony
The
State explains why Dee Phillips should be allowed as a rebuttal
witness.
Judge
Allows Dee Phillips' Testimony
Judge
Andrews decides Dee can testify with a few limitations.
Dee
Phillip's Testimony
Deneen
Phillips tells how she and Jesse met "Rinzi Trinidad" and
allowed him into their lives. Jesse, Dee and her two sons felt
"Rinzi" was a close friend until they discovered he was a
Scientology agent.
The
State's Closing Arguments
Lydia
Wardell tells the jury to focus on the law and not be sidetracked by
other issues.
Denis
deVlaming's Closing Arguments
Denis
explains why Scientology is such a major part of this trial and
can't be ignored.
The
State's Rebuttal
The
State has the final word.
The
Jury Has Questions
The
jury deliberated for several hours. Around 8:30 p.m. they had
some questions for the judge. Judge Andrews shared these
questions with the attorneys.
The
Judge Allows Readback of Testimony
Judge
Andrews had the court reporter read back the entire testimony of
Detective Crosby. The readback took over an hour but is
condensed here to about one minute.
The
Jury is Restless
In
this short clip, the judge announces that the jury is having a hard
time with deliberations. After Judge Andrews shut off the
audio feed, they discussed the fact that jurors were unsettled and
even getting physically ill. He gave the jury a 20
minute break to go outside the building and relax.
The
Judge Reads the Jury Instructions on Deadlocks
Soon
after the jury returned from their break, they announced that they
were deadlocked. Judge Andrews brings them in to tell them to
give it another try.
The
Judge Declares a Mistrial
Shortly
before 10 p.m. the jury returned to the courtroom. Many were
visibly distraught, some had seemingly been in tears. They
announced that they could not reach a verdict.
Judge
Andrews thanked them for their service and declared a mistrial.
We thank Judge Andrews for his permission to tape the
trial.
Return
to the Main Jesse Trial Page
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