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deirdreExecutive summary: William Rex Fowler, a prominent Scientologist, shot and killed a former employee coming in for a severance check of < $10k. Fowler's business was desperate for cash after Fowler gave ~$175k to Scientology. After shooting Ciancio, Fowler then attempted suicide, but lived.
It's clear that Fowler was intending to attempt suicide given his preparations, but less clear to me that he intended to kill Ciancio from the outset. Ciancio was a father of four who had been married to his high school sweetheart for nearly half his life.
Story here. Short version: two days of hearings, on the third morning, defense rested without calling a single defense witness.
I already linked to day 1 of the trial previously, here's the link to day two.
Most interesting bit: they had Fowler's son testify about giving the gun to his father as a Christmas present. Fowler's son was a member of Scientology's religious order, the Sea Org at the time. It's not clear if he still is; his claimed address is in Santa Fe, New Mexico, which is near Scientology's Trementina Base. (Even if you don't care about the trial, that link is interesting; you can see it from the air.)
ETA: Here's a short guide to a criminal case that'll say where the case is in progress. Because defense comes after prosecution for witnesses and evidence, that also means prosecution has rested. Since there were no witnesses, there was no defense evidence (because evidence is hearsay without witnesses), so there's no rebuttal, so I think we're up to jury instructions.
It's clear that Fowler was intending to attempt suicide given his preparations, but less clear to me that he intended to kill Ciancio from the outset. Ciancio was a father of four who had been married to his high school sweetheart for nearly half his life.
Story here. Short version: two days of hearings, on the third morning, defense rested without calling a single defense witness.
I already linked to day 1 of the trial previously, here's the link to day two.
Most interesting bit: they had Fowler's son testify about giving the gun to his father as a Christmas present. Fowler's son was a member of Scientology's religious order, the Sea Org at the time. It's not clear if he still is; his claimed address is in Santa Fe, New Mexico, which is near Scientology's Trementina Base. (Even if you don't care about the trial, that link is interesting; you can see it from the air.)
ETA: Here's a short guide to a criminal case that'll say where the case is in progress. Because defense comes after prosecution for witnesses and evidence, that also means prosecution has rested. Since there were no witnesses, there was no defense evidence (because evidence is hearsay without witnesses), so there's no rebuttal, so I think we're up to jury instructions.