Cooper Ouellette - Last Ride Home Trial | Day 3

Cooper Ouellette - Last Ride Home Murder Trial | Day 3 Day 3 of the Connecticut trial of Cooper Ouellette, charged in the death of his 17-year-old girlfriend, Sophie. Sophie died after leaving his truck on a Burlington road on the night of May 20–21, 2023. Today the jury hears the medical examiner’s cross-examination, phone records from Cooper’s iPhone, testimony from his mother, and accounts from friends of what Cooper said happened that night. The day opens with the defense’s cross-examination of the forensic pathologist from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The doctor told jurors on Friday that Sophie was run over. The defense points out that the words “run over,” “crush” and “tire” don’t appear anywhere in the autopsy report. The office first recorded that Sophie fell from a moving truck and kept the manner of death pending for almost a year. The state police reconstruction estimated the truck’s speed at 13 to 15.87 miles per hour. The doctor confirms a reconstruction sergeant told him the evidence didn’t support a run-over. The defense also brings out that the doctor never examined the truck or its tires in person. He compared photographs instead. He also signed the amended report on behalf of the fellow who performed the autopsy, who had left the office. Toxicology showed Sophie’s blood alcohol at 0.151. On redirect, the doctor says the office’s doctors agreed at several consensus conferences that a run-over caused her death. He describes reviewing an hour-long timeline animation of the night before the manner was ruled a homicide, and explains that a medical examiner’s “homicide” is a public health term that doesn’t weigh intent. He also walks the jury through how he believes the abrasions on Sophie’s back line up with her left-side rib and lung injuries. Elizabeth Arpin, an examiner from the Connecticut forensic science lab’s digital forensics unit, presents data extracted from Cooper’s iPhone 14 Pro. She reads earlier texts with a friend about drinking that night and where they’d meet. At 12:36 a.m., Cooper texted “Is Sophie okay?” to Sophie’s mother. Five minutes later the reply came: “No, no. She’s getting x-rays and lines put in, and there are about five people working on her.” Arpin says the record shows no reply from Cooper. Several homeowners and a business owner along Route 4, Field View Drive and Johnny Cake Mountain Road confirm the home surveillance footage they gave state police. Each drive is admitted into evidence. Carrie Ouellette, Cooper’s mother and the registered owner of the black Chevy Silverado, takes the stand. She describes waking to state police at her home on the morning of May 21. She talks about the six-minute phone call with Cooper on his drive home after midnight. She also describes checking his Life360 location. She admits telling police that Sophie had walked into her house, which she now knows is not true. She says she told visitors to her home that day not to talk about Sophie’s death. In the afternoon, Morgan Pease describes going to a post-prom party at a local shop, where she says Cooper was drinking. She heard Cooper speaking with a raised voice before he and Sophie left together. Around 11:40 p.m., Sophie sent her a Snapchat photo of a bleeding nose. She testifies that the next day, Cooper said Sophie opened the door to throw up while he was driving and fell out on Polly Dan Road. He said he put her back in the truck and took her home. A friend of Cooper’s testifies about a voicemail Cooper left him around 11 p.m. that night, and the jury hears it played in court. He also describes what Cooper told friends the next day: Sophie opened the door, Cooper slammed on the brakes, she fell out, and he put her back in the truck. On cross-examination, he says the friends often left each other joking voicemails like that one. Another friend testifies that Sophie called her boyfriend’s phone around 11:15 p.m. She says Sophie sounded scared, said she and Cooper had been fighting, and asked for a ride home. She describes tracking Sophie on Snap Map to Polly Dan Road. She also describes how Carrie Ouellette greeted visitors at the house the next day. The state rests for the day after the final surveillance witness and will call more witnesses tomorrow. #CooperOuellette #sophierinquist #LiveTrial #CourtTrial