Uncle on Trial: Judge Overrules the State and Lets Defense Ask if His Interviews Were Used in Court

The State objected, the jury was sent out, and a judge had to rule on one defense question. It was about the uncle on trial's own interviews. This is State of North Carolina v. David Wesley Prevatte, in Pender County Superior Court. David Prevatte is charged with first-degree murder in the death of his five-year-old niece, Paitin Fields. He has said he found her unresponsive and tried to save her. Investigators named him a suspect in 2018, and he was charged in 2022. He is presumed innocent, and only the jurors decide this case. On Day 7, defense attorney Luther Johnson Britt III finished his cross-examination of Investigator Eric Short. Short told the jury David was interviewed "over seven or eight times, I believe," by Detective Leatherwood and others. Then Britt walked him through how investigators found David in 2022. Short said he did not know David was in Louisiana. He agreed a female detective reached David through a Facebook page, and when Britt put it to him that she pretended to have gone to school with him, Short answered, "Seems like so, yes, sir." Short said he flew commercial to Louisiana, took the arrest warrant to the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office, and that investigators there took David into custody. Short said he tried to interview him after that. David did not give one. Then comes the question this clip is built on. Britt asked whether any of what David said in all those interviews has been used against him in this trial. The State objected, and the judge sent the jury out of the room. The jurors did not hear this argument. The prosecutor, Mr. Smith, called the question "self-serving hearsay." He told the judge the State can choose to put David's statements in front of the jury or not, "and we've elected not to." Britt answered that he never asked what David said, only whether any of it has been presented in this courtroom. "That's not hearsay." The judge ruled: "I do not find it to be hearsay." The judge also drew a line. No yes-or-no questions about specific things David said. The jury came back in, heard that the objection was overruled, and Britt asked it again. Short's answer is the last thing in this clip. By the investigator's own count, this man was interviewed seven or eight times. With the jury out, the State told the judge that whether those statements go in is its call, and that it chose not to. The jurors never heard that reason. They heard a question, an objection, a few minutes in the jury room, and an answer. What does a jury do with that? I am not the jury and neither are you, so watch the argument and the ruling and tell me what it should mean. --- KEY MOMENTS 0:00 What this video is, and a preview 0:16 Video starts 2:03 Short agrees a Facebook page led investigators to David in Louisiana 6:14 The defense asks if his interviews were used. The State objects. 7:46 Jury out: the prosecutor fights the question 12:05 The judge rules on the objection 13:46 The jury is back and Short answers --- COMPLETE CASE COVERAGE justiceisaprocess.com SUBSCRIBE for daily trial coverage. CASE BACKGROUND REPORT: https://justiceisaprocess.com/nc-v-da... Complete case overview including the charges, the timeline, the key players, and the legal questions this trial raises. State of North Carolina v. David Wesley Prevatte. Pender County Superior Court in Burgaw, North Carolina. Prevatte is charged with first-degree murder in the 2017 death of his five-year-old niece, along with other charges. Jury selection began on September 28, 2026. He is presumed innocent unless and until the State proves each charge beyond a reasonable doubt. LATEST ARTICLE: https://justiceisaprocess.com/desk-20... PLAYLISTS AND RESOURCES Website: https://justiceisaprocess.com/coverag... Full Trial Live Broadcasts:    • NC v. David Prevatte: Full Trial Live Broa...   No Breaks Edition:    • NC v. David Prevatte: No Breaks Edition   Trial Analysis Podcast:    • NC v. David Prevatte: Case Story Trial Pod...   Key Moments and Testimony:    • NC v. David Prevatte: Key Moments & Testimony   Commentary:    • NC v. David Prevatte: Commentary   Subscribe for Daily Coverage:    / @justiceisaprocess   FAIR USE AND EDUCATIONAL PURPOSE This content is produced under Fair Use (17 U.S.C. 107) for news reporting, criticism, and educational purposes. We provide transformative commentary on public court proceedings, advancing public understanding of the judicial process through timestamps, analysis, and educational context. #JusticeIsAProcess #DavidPrevatte #PrevatteTrial