LEXINGTON COUNTY, S.C. — We are now in day three of the trial of Thomas McDowell, the man charged with the kidnapping and killing of 4-year-old Jessica Gutierrez.
Wednesday, court wrapped early at exactly 4 p.m. The judge said she expects the trial to last until possibly Friday morning.
We heard from 11 witnesses Wednesday ranging from SLED and FBL employees to the sister and cousins of the defendant.
Prosecutors are trying to prove that Thomas McDowell kidnapped Jessica Gutierrez from her home in Lexington County back in 1986.
On Wednesday morning, the jury heard testimony from a fingerprint specialist with the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department who talked about a print recovered from a window frame next to the front door of the Gutierrez home. He said the print was a match for McDowell.
But the defense questioned why investigators weren’t more thorough. The defense got another Lexington Sheriff’s Department witness to admit they did not dust Jessica’s bedroom, the inside of the home or the door locks and handles for fingerprints.
The jury also got to see an animated video put together by the FBI, that showed how McDowell with a height of 5’11’ and approximately 150 pounds, could have broken into the home.
But the defense questioned if that model could match up to the specific dimensions of the home, including how big the suspect may have been.
The prosecution also spent part of the day talking about a white car they say eventually belonged to the McDowell family.
Investigators haven’t yet said exactly how it connects to the case, but they have said that it was searched as part of the investigation.
The prosecution also brought up several witnesses to testify how McDowell looked and dressed around the time of the killing
The defendant’s cousins testified that they noticed McDowell cut his hair, cut his beard and stopped wearing his cowboy that he always wore as soon as a week after Jessica’s disappearance.
The prosecution established the importance of this earlier in the trial, because Jessica’s sister, who witnessed the kidnapping, said a man with a hat did it.
Jurors also heard from sergeant David Pritchard with the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, who got involve din the case back in 2006.
He also told the jury about a statement McDowell gave to deputies saying he met Jessica’s mom at a card game, they dated two months, and that he learned about who Jessica was from his mom Shirley.
The judge told the jury to be back in court by 8:45 tomorrow morning.