Marmolejo Trial: Witnesses Testify On DNA Evidence, Cell Phone Records

Thursday morning’s testimony in the murder trial of David Marmolejo was a continuation of what was heard Wednesday – extremely complex details about the DNA found at different areas in Gloria Marmolejo’s home.

David Marmolejo is charged in the homicide of his mother, Gloria.

At one point, even Judge Gonzalo Garcia seemed upset by the way the testimony was going in the court. He told Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Vandonbosh that if she asked more of the same questions, he was going to, “Lose it.”

During that testimony, defense attorney Greg Anderson reiterated to the jury that the DNA found inside the house isn’t necessarily from blood.

The forensic analyst on the stand said it could be skin cells, saliva, semen, or sweat.

He also said it would not have been unusual to find DNA from Gloria or David Marmolejo at those spots considering how long they lived at the home.

Anderson asked the analyst if any of these findings show that a crime was committed in that spot and the analyst said no.

In the afternoon, the prosecution poured over line after line of both David’s and Wilson’s cell phone records.

Despite objection after objection from the defense, the phone records were admitted into evidence. They showed a series of calls between David and Wilson the night Gloria disappeared.

Monica Barrigan, an operations manager for Cricket Communications, testified most of the afternoon. She explained to the jury how the company documents when calls are made and received and how cell phone towers work.

Vandenbosch also showed the jury combined Cricket Communications phone records from David and Wilson’s cell phones the night Gloria disappeared.

The cell phone towers indicate a majority of David’s calls originated on the East Side while a majority of Wilson’s calls came from the Northeast.

But the log also showed that at 1:07 a.m. July 26, 2009 Wilson received a call from an unknown number. Because the number was not a Cricket number, the company could not identify the caller or the cell phone tower that picked up the call.

Then, at 5:30 a.m. that same day, David called Wilson.

According to the log, both calls originated from the East Side.

Akasha Loo, 34, took the stand after Barrigan. Loo has lived off and on in Maui her whole life. She and David met in Maui in 2004 and have a son together named Benjamin.

She said she stayed in touch with David by cell phone. Loo testified she never saw Wilson and Gloria together.

“We were together, but I was busy. Things changed. He had his step-sister (Wilson) here. We did things together, but not a lot,” Loo said of why her relationship with David fell apart.

Talking about Gloria, Loo said, “(David) told me that she abandoned him and his brother. He told me they had to fend for themselves, live in Houston in the projects…it was a rough life”

Loo went on to say that Wilson and David were really close when they were in Maui.

“He would get overprotective of her,” Loo said.

Loo said she and David talked at 1:37 a.m. July 26, 2009, the night authorities think David killed his mom. Cell phone records from David show that call originated from a cell phone tower in West El Paso and the call lasted less than three minutes. Gloria’s body was found in the desert near Santa Teresa, New Mexico.

“It was mostly me talking,” Loo said. “He was pretty quiet. He wasn’t really saying anything.”

The following Monday David called Loo often.

“He asked me if I had heard from his mom,” Loo said. “No one could get a hold of her. He was calling pretty often.”