DETROIT (WXYZ) — The Samantha Woll murder trial took a dramatic turn on Wednesday afternoon when defendant Michael Jackson-Bolanos took the stand in his own defense.
Jackson-Bolanos said on Oct. 21, he left his girlfriend’s home and was out looking for opportunities to steal from unlocked motor vehicles.
“I had told her I was going for a walk, but I was actually going to look at cars,” he said.
Jackson-Bolanos gave details of his route paired with surveillance video of him walking that night.
VIDEO: Defendant takes the stand, says he did not kill Woll. Watch part of his testimony below:
He said he was trying to avoid security and possible confrontation while he was looking for accessible vehicles.
Jackson-Bolanos said while he was out, he saw a “dark figure” lying outside. He said he approached and when he could tell it was a person, he touched their neck before realizing the person was dead.
He described the body as being “cold and crusty.”
Jackson-Bolanos also testified that he decided against calling for help.
“I was over there … going into motor vehicles, and I felt like if I had to call the police I’d be incriminating myself,” he said.
The defendant maintained that he didn’t stab Woll and he didn’t go into her apartment.
“I had no weapons on me the whole night,” he testified.
He also testified that he touched the person he saw on the ground because he wanted to check on them.
"Yeah I’m out going around, but I still wanted to make sure that this person was OK. When I realized she was dead, I wanted nothing to do with the entire situation. I’m a Black guy in the middle of the night breaking into cars and I found myself standing in front of a dead white woman — that doesn’t look good at all," he said.
Before court ended for the day, the defense was playing phone recordings from the defendant, who maintained his innocence during the calls.
The trial will resume on Monday, July 8.
The first witness to take the stand on Wednesday was a forensic pathologist who argued that the autopsy of Samantha Woll was incomplete.
"Let's face it, there is a diagnosis of a cause of death, multiple stab wounds. That's fine. I can agree with that. The manner of death is homicide. But what happened to this young lady that underwent this horrible situation? What actually happened? That is a missing interval that I cannot reconstruct from the from what I received as the autopsy report generated," said Dr. Ljubisa Jovan Dragovic.
Woll's sister, Monica Rosen, also briefly took the stand to talk about questioning following the murder.
Brett Foreman was the last witness to take the stand before the court recessed for lunch. He said he had an "unrequited romantic crush" on Woll.
VIDEO: Watch Foreman's testimony in the video player below:
He was questioned about a conversation he had with an acquaintance about hypothetical scenarios regarding Woll's murder.
The prosecutor cross-examined him, asking him if he killed Woll. He said no.
Read the Tuesday story below:
The prosecution has rested their case three weeks into the trial of Michael Jackson-Bolanos in the murder of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll.
Four people testified on Tuesday, which was the twelfth day trial. All witnesses who testified are members of law enforcement.
The case resumed with the playing of the police interrogation video involving the suspect, Jackson-Bolanos. He told police he had nothing to do with Woll's murder.
VIDEO: Interrogation video shared with jury
Also, Michigan State Police detective Lt. Richard Sanchez testified that the crime scene was on the main floor where significant blood was found. The defense raised questions about the thoroughness of the investigation and tried to raise doubt about how far the crime scene may have extended.
Defense attorney Brian Brown honed in on a stain on a seat in Woll's car and asked the detective if it was tested.
"You never followed to see which forensic tech processed the car, correct?" Brown asked.
The detective replied, "Correct."
Watch more of the interrogation in the video player below:
Brown continued, "And you never specifically went and asked them whether or not they tested this specific seat for the presence of blood, correct?
Sanchez replied, "Correct.”
The prosecution countered by asking Sanchez for clarification.
The assistant prosecutor asked, "Was there ever any indication that there was blood on the exterior of her vehicle?"
Sanchez said, "I was never notified of any blood that was on the exterior of her vehicle."
VIDEO: Samantha Woll murder trial focuses on blood and DNA evidence in latest testimony
The assistant prosecutor continued, "You ever seen any pictures or seen any bit of evidence that Ms. Woll ever made her way from inside her apartment over to where her car was parked?"
The detective replied, "No."
The assistant prosecutor asked, "Is there any evidence that she was stabbed at the wedding and she was bleeding in the car as she was coming home from the wedding?"
Sanchez said, "No.”
