Defense for man accused of killing Laken Riley tries to poke holes in prosecution timeline
Jose Ibarra’s defense team began presenting its case Tuesday in the trial over the murder of Laken Riley, calling two witnesses whose testimony was intended to cast doubt on the prosecution's timeline of events the day Riley was killed and to suggest Ibarra's brother could have been responsible.
Jose Ibarra’s defense team began presenting its case Tuesday in the trial over the murder of Laken Riley, calling two witnesses whose testimony was intended to cast doubt on the prosecution's timeline of events the day Riley was killed and to suggest Ibarra's brother could have been responsible.
The defense’s first witness, Joseph Clementi, said he was out running on the same trail as Riley the day of the murder. He testified that he told police he saw a man on the trail who caught his attention because “he was not in typical athletic gear” like other people in the area that morning.
“The individual was wearing very dark clothing, and they seemed to be wandering aimlessly,” he testified Tuesday.
Clementi’s testimony seemed to be aimed at calling the prosecution’s timeline into question. Prosecutors have said Ibarra, after he killed Riley, was captured on video tossing a jacket with her blood on it into a dumpster near his home around 9:44 a.m. Clementi testified that he saw the man on the running trail sometime between 9:46 a.m. and 9:48 a.m.
Under cross-examination, Clementi admitted he could not identify the person he saw. He also testified that he told police the person he saw may have been wearing khaki pants, in contrast with what Ibarra is alleged to have been wearing that day.
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