DETROIT (WXYZ) — Seven people took the stand on day five of testimony in the Jaylin Brazier murder trial. Evidence included internet searches that indicated Brazier was concerned he was being watched by law enforcement, and several other web searches on ways to harm one's self.
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The prosecution also played police body-worn camera footage of Brazier’s arrest on suspicion of murder exactly 11 months ago today. The arrest took place the morning of June 13, 2023, in southwest Detroit.
Officer Ian McBee was called to the stand to testify about the arrest and to identify the two cell phones he said he seized during the traffic stop.
The prosecution also called Detroit police sergeant Shannon Jones back to the stand. This time, she testified about spearheading the search of a landfill in Lenox Township. She was asked to describe the scope and complexity of the search.
“Every day that we lost was weeks of trash that we had to search through," Jones said.
She was referring to the 15 days that had already passed between Zion’s disappearance and Brazier telling police he disposed of her body in a dumpster in Highland Park. Jones detailed how investigators tracked the movements of the truck, the trash and zeroed in on where they believed Zion’s body could be buried.
Jaylin Brazier faces more testimony, video in his murder trial
Jones testified, “We were going to try."
"With the truck and the video of the different things, being to kind of pin it down... we were going to go out there, and we were definitely going to try and make it to where the family could bring her home," she explained.
The prosecutor asked Felicia Jackson, a forensic technician with DPD, “Why did you want to be there (at the search site)?"
She replied, "I really wanted to help the family. I really wanted to get the family some closure.”
Jackson was among the dozens of volunteers from several agencies who searched for 5 months in what were described as potentially dangerous conditions but were unable to recover the 17-year-old's remains.
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The last to testify was Detective Sarah Markel with the Detroit Police Department. She examined internet searches and text messages she said she extracted from Brazier's phone.
Several web searches point to paranoia in January 2022 after Zion's disappearance
Some of the messages Markel read from January 12, 2022, include the following:
- "How tell if you're being watched by police"
- "How to tell if there's a stakeout on your property"
The detective said Brazier's searches also inquired about ways to harm one's self. Markel read the following searches from January 15, 2022:
- How much Motrin can kill?
- How does the FBI satellite find people?
- Can putting a toaster in the bath kill you?
- What happens when you report someone to the FBI?
- What happens if you put a fork in an outlet?
Markel is expected to be back on the stand first thing tomorrow morning.
