DETROIT (WXYZ) — A jury has been seated in the murder case of Zion Foster, a 17-year-old girl from Eastpointe who disappeared in January of 2022.
Watch the opening statements below
The jury consists of six men and eight women. The selection process took about six hours on Monday. On Tuesday they heard testimony from Zion Foster's mother.
Twenty-five-year-old Jaylin Brazier is on trial for allegedly killing Foster and putting her body in a dumpster. Brazier is charged with first-degree murder in her death. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Investigators said Brazier confessed to putting her body in a dumpster and said he panicked when she suddenly stopped breathing after the two got high. Brazier denies killing Foster.
Foster's phone location pinged to Detroit, which led investigators to Brazier's home. Investigators believe her body ended up at a landfill in Lenox Township.
In May of 2022, Detroit police launched Operation Justice for Zion to recover her remains. Investigators searched the Pine Tree Acres Landfill for months, but her body has never been found.
VIDEO: In a previous report, Foster's mom responds to end of landfill search operation:
Jury selection in the trial started on Monday and opening statements are expected to begin on Tuesday. Jurors will soon hear the story, see evidence and determine Brazier’s fate.
One of the main elements of the case — to our knowledge at this point — is that Foster’s body has not been recovered.
"I will tell you that I relive this every day. I relive this every night. There is hardly a night where I get sleep. This is just — toward, I guess, the ending," Foster's mother Ciera Milton told us outside the courthouse.
Brazier is related to Milton's ex-husband.
Former state and federal prosecutor, attorney Abed Hammoud, gave us insight on the case and said the prosecution not only has to prove that Brazier committed murder, but they must prove that a murder took place.
Hammoud, who is not tied to the case, said the prosecution most likely has enough evidence to proceed in order to prove the case.
“Meaning other types of evidence,” he said. “It could be video evidence, it could be statements by people, it could be traces of blood, it could be DNA traces. This is not the first of its kind in this state.”
Hear more about the case in the video player below:
Hammoud said there have been many cases in Michigan where a person was convicted of murder without the body being found.
"Normally in any murder case, the defense is going to (say) the prosecutor did not meet their burden in proving that the client, or the defendant, committed the crime," Hammoud said. "Here, I'm assuming the defense is going to be two layers. First layer is: how can we even know there's a murder? They can't even prove that there is death, not even murder."
He said the prosecution has to prove Zion's death.
"As far as our proofs, my client maintains his innocence. So, we're just waiting for the conclusion of this trial," Brown said.
