By Mark Hansel
NKyTribune managing editor
Some days, the proceedings in a murder trial can be riveting.
Assistant Attorney General Jon Heck (left) continued his questioning of Det. Brian Cochran Wednesday (photos by Mark Hansel).
That was certainly the case Wednesday, as prosecutors and defense attorneys gave opening statements in the David Dooley murder trial for the 2012 killing of Michelle Mockbee.
Mockbee was killed at the Thermo Fisher Scientific facility in Boone County where she worked, in May, 2012.
David Dooley, who did custodial work at the facility for an outside contractor, was charged with murder, convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 2014.
He was granted a new trial, however, because Circuit Judge James R. Schrand ruled evidence that may have aided in his defense was withheld from his attorneys.
That retrial began Monday in Schrand’s courtroom with a jury selection process that took two days, and moved to opening statements Wednesday.
In his opening, Assistant Attorney General Jon Heck explained to jurors how he intended to prove it was Dooley who killed Mockbee.
Heck is the lead prosecutor in the case, representing the Commonwealth at trial.
Defense attorney Deanna Dennison pores over documents during Wednesday’s testimony in the David Dooley murder trial.
Heck said Dooley was altering time cards and Michelle Mockbee found out about it, which potentially motivated him to kill her in the early morning hours of May 29, 2012.
He claims Dooley was attempting to break into Mockbee’s office when she surprised him that Monday morning.
In her opening, defense attorney Deanna Dennison instead pointed to Dan Mockbee, Michelle’s husband, as someone who had motive to kill her.
Dan Mockbee has received life insurance and other compensation that Dennison said could total about $1 million since his wife’s death.
She said Mockbee was the only person who knew when his wife would be at work and will present evidence to show his computer was being scrubbed of deleted files at the same time he got a call saying she had been killed.
The first law enforcement officers on the scene spoke about what they saw and their actions to secure the facility and search the building and exterior perimeter.
Det. Brian Cochran with the Boone County Sheriff’s office spoke Wednesday about crime scene investigation and evidence collection.
Det. Brian Cochran removes a screwdriver from an evidence bag Wednesday. The prosecution said a screwdriver of the same size and type used in an attempt to pry open the door to Michelle Mockbee’s office was found in David Dooley’s janitor’s closet.
His testimony included graphic photos of Michelle Mockee’s bound and brutally beaten body that was found on a dirty warehouse floor. It also showed blood stains and a trail of about 40 feet from outside her office to the place where her body was found.
The evidence presented Thursday was not nearly as compelling, but it was just as critical.
A murder trial is often similar to a puzzle where jurors can’t see the picture on the front of the box.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys will place one piece in front of jurors, then another and another. Often the pieces are from different parts of the puzzle and don’t seem to connect to each other until the puzzle is done and jurors see the whole picture.
The goal is to present a finished product that presents a compelling argument for innocence or guilt, depending on which side is putting the pieces together.
Wednesday’s testimony included just three witness, one of whom was deposed last week.
It focused on crime scene investigation and evidence processing and analysis.
Cochran returned to the stand as testimony resumed and a large part of the day focused on him presenting pieces of evidence, known as exhibits.
From time to time, Cochran would meticulously open one of the exhibits, which were sealed to protect the integrity of the evidence. They included articles of clothing from Michelle Mockbee and Dooley, time cards, fingerprint samples and saliva swabs from several employees at Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Evidence is often presented early in a trial and its value is explained later, by subsequent witnesses, as the theory of the crime comes together.
Defense attorney Jeff Lawson (standing) questioned Det. Brian Cochran about evidence Wednesday, including some nude photos of David Dooley taken in compliance with a warrant that was issued.
The defense is expected to argue that investigators focused in on Dooley early in the investigation and excluded other possible suspects.
The hundreds of exhibits that will be presented by the prosecutors might be used to show that investigators did a thorough investigation before reaching the conclusion that Dooley was the killer.
Among the more immediately significant pieces presented Wednesday was a screwdriver found in a janitor’s closet used by Dooley. It is the same style and size as the one Heck said was used in an attempt to pry open the door to Mockbee’s office.
On cross-examination, defense attorney Jeff Lawson asked if there was any physical evidence in the janitor’s closet that could be conclusively to the crime itself, such as blood. Cochran said there was evidence of what appeared to be bleach in the sink.
A comprehensive search of the room, which included removal of a p-trap in the sink, however, yielded nothing else significant.
Lawson also questioned Cochran about photos showing Dooley in various states of undress, including some where he was nude.
Lawson asked Cochran why there were close-up photos of Dooley’s genitalia and buttocks. The detective replied that the photos were taken in compliance with a warrant.
Attorney Jeff Prather (left), from the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General, questions Det. Tim Carnahan Wednesday.
He said that sometimes when a violent crime is committed, the perpetrator incurs injuries that may not be visible and the photos were taken to allow a full examination of Dooley’s body.
The defense may show later in the trial that nude photos of Dooley taken as evidence were used in manner that had nothing to do with this case.
Also significant, was a reference to statements Cochran made at Dooley’s first trial. Schrand has ruled that jurors may not be told that Dooley has already been tried once for this murder and any references by witnesses should be referred to only as previous sworn statements or testimony.
That direction was followed Wednesday.
Late Wednesday afternoon, Boone County Sheriff’s Det. Tim Carnahan took the stand. Carnahan is also a crime scene investigator and worked with Cochran to examine evidence at the scene.
Carnahan testified for a short time before an audio clip of a forensic serologist who had tested some evidence but was available to testify, was played for jurors.
Carnahan is expected to return to the stand when the trial resumes at 9 a.m. today.
For links to the NKyTribune’s extensive coverage of the Dooley case, go to www.nkytribune.com and, using the search tool, enter the word “Dooley.”
Contact Mark Hansel at mark.hansel@nkytrib.com
