Burnett Trial: Day 4
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Updated: 8:59 AM May 21, 2008
Burnett Trial: Day 4
Continuous updates from the courtroom here.
Posted: 9:16 AM May 20, 2008
Reporter: Cayle Thompson
Email Address: cayle.thompson@kake.com
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4:41 p.m.: In the last half of the day, prosecutors call officers who helped handle the case. Detective Kelly Otis testified after Trudy Guthrie left the stand that she had told investigators Burnett called her asking for an alibi after his arrest.

Prosecutors also showed pictures from inside Burnett's apartment, which he shared with Guthrie. They found cables and latex gloves, similar to those Gentry claims Burnett used when strangling Brooks.

A DNA and fingerprint expert on the stand this afternoon testified that Burnett's DNA was found only on a white wash cloth and multi-colored towel that came from his own apartment. Nobody's DNA was found on the cord around Chelsea's neck or her cell phone, found on the side of the road near Rose Hill. Defense attorneys say there's just not enough physical evidence to convict Burnett.

Jurors are expected to begin viewing graphic graveside photos tomorrow. Court will dismiss at 5:00 this afternoon and resume Wednesday at 9:00 in the morning.

2:00 p.m.: Prosecutors question Guthrie for only a few minutes. They say she told police Burnett asked her for an alibi the night of the murder. But on the stand this afternoon, she denied making any such statements. She said the night of the murder was like any other night, and that Burnett was home by dark.

Prosecutors are now questioning police, who interviewed Guthrie after Brooks' death. Guthrie said her memory of that night was hazy because she was high on drugs. At the time she interviewed with authorities, however, they say she did not exhibit signs of being high.

Although Guthrie says in her testimony today that she knew Everett Gentry, she initially told police she did not know him. Gentry was selling drugs out of Guthrie's home, which she shared with Burnett. He was going by the name "E" at the time.

1:42 p.m.: Trudy Guthrie is on the stand. She was Theodore Burnett's girlfriend at the time of the murder. It's alleged Burnett may have confessed to Guthrie after the murder. Prosecutors will question her about his alleged involvement in the case.

At Burnett's preliminary hearing, Guthrie was an uncooperative witness. In the first few minutes of her testimony today, she is being more open and responsive to questioning.

1:30 p.m.: Court is back in session.

11:45 a.m.: After the morning recess, jurors heard testimony from a Wichita Police Officer describing how Everett Gentry's car had mud caked to parts of its underside, consistent with Gentry's testimony that he had driven Brooks and Burnett down a dirt road where the girl was eventually buried.

One of Elgin Robinson's girlfriends took the stand next. Kim Waltersheid testified she was with Robinson in Kansas City at the time of the murder, just as Gentry said was planned. She said she never heard mention of Theodore Burnett until after Robinson became linked to the crime. Waltersheid said she did not know Brooks was pregnant until the night she disappeared and Brooks' family began calling Robinson, concerned about her whereabouts and safety. Wiltersheim says she still speaks to Robinson on occasion, even though he is in jail awaiting his trial.

Prosecutors then moved to several Butler County officers, describing how they found Chelsea's abandoned cell phone along the side of a road in Rose Hill, not far from where Gentry says Burnett tossed it out the car.

Defense attorneys said that there is not enough physical evidence in this case directly linking Burnett to the crime. But prosecutors have Gentry's testimony, which - if jurors believe it - says Burnett strangled Brooks. Prosecutors are painstakingly recounting and proving details of Gentry's confession, trying to show he is telling the truth and that Burnett was involved, just as Gentry says.

The jury will break for lunch at noon. Court will resume at 1:30.

10:20 a.m.: The first witness to take the stand Tuesday reviews the cell phone records between Chelsea Brooks' and Everett Gentry's phones. Prosecutors show how both cell phones were hitting the same towers the night Brooks died. Prosecutors maintain there was distinct movement from where Gentry said he picked Brooks up at a south-side skating rink, and eventually drove her and Burnett north of Andover where Gentry said the two planned to bury the body.

In a two-hour time period, both Gentry and Brooks tried dozens of times to contact Elgin Robinson. Robinson did not return Brooks' calls but he did return Gentry's.

Brooks last call was made at 10:01 p.m. on Friday, June 9th. After that, her phone activity stopped.

Burnett's defense attorneys said that the cell phone records, though they may put Gentry and Brooks together, show nothing of Burnett's alleged involvement. There are no outgoing or incoming calls from Burnett. His attorneys have maintained from the start of this trial that there is lack of physical evidence that ties him to the crime, aside from Gentry's testimony on Monday.

The jurors take a 15 minute break after the witness leaves the stand. Court will resume at 10:40 a.m.

Testimony expected to resume at 9:00 this morning in the capital murder trial against Theodore Burnett, one of three men accused in the murder-for-hire plot of pregnant 14 year old Chelsea Brooks.

Today, prosecutors plan to present cell phone records, speak with WPD Crime Scene Investigators, and question both Burnett's girlfriend and another one of Elgin Robinson's girlfriends. Updates available on KAKE.com throughout the day.


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