If you were the prosecuter...

RainbowsAndGumdrops

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I'm setting up a mock trial for Raven.

If you were the prosecuter, what points would you bring up to prove your case. Please note, that much of Raven's character and past (affairs etc) are not likely to be allowed in the court room.
 
Mock defense is below and points I would like to make as a prosecutor.

  • No weapon.

Raven's knife collection was missing along with the murder weapon. He liked to collect knives, pretty convenient that all went missing. Don't people hide their collection? Why were other things not stolen?


  • Someone stole the computer.
  • Raven didn't have time to hide the computer.
Raven's computer was confiscated by LE when he embezzled. He knew in advance his Laptop would be confiscated again. He could have brought the laptop with him to soccer, and left Janet without a computer. There is nobody to confirm that the computer was there when he left to go play soccer. We do not know if the computer was used by Janet AFTER Raven left.


  • No forced entry could simply be that the door was unlocked.
No forced entry but the door was opened, ajar, this was not confirmed or denied, we only have the word of Raven, who is a convicted felon.


  • The previous tenants were drug dealers. People could have come trying to get drugs and Janet didn't have any.
Janet was never a drug dealer, so of course she didn't have drugs. Drug seekers would have knocked first, thinking their dealers were inside. There was no signs of forced entry.

There would have been DNA found in the home pointing away from Raven.

Someone out to steal drugs would have had a gun with them, not a knife. Druggies would have made enough noise to wake Kaiden. They would have rifled through the cabinets seeking drugs, there would have been items all over that house misplaced. Things would have been turned over.

Knives are personal and not what a druggies would be out walking around with. That would then make it plural. There would have been DNA pointing towards someone coming into the home.

Janet was upstairs, Janet would have heard intruders "druggies' coming into the home and would have ran down to greet them, probably with a baseball bat.

Janet & Raven had animals.

Someone trying to steal or drug seekers would have had to go up the stairs and be able to SNEAK up on her.

If Janet answered the door and let them in, how would she be murdered upstairs? She would NEVER allow someone up near Kaiden.

In the end, Janet would have fought tooth and nail instead of allowed someone up behind her, put their arm around her and stab her multiple times. IMO She knew who was behind her with his arm around her.


Raven stated the door was ajar....Raven is not known for telling the truth.


  • Time of Death is approximate
TOD are always approximate without a witness. She was last known alive when the Church Member left, not when Raven states he left.


  • Raven didn't know how she was killed. He thought she was shot.
Raven knows the difference between a gun shot wound a knife wound. He knew she was killed by a knife wound and tried to point it away. He is into Franklin Covey planning and he had to sound innocent, the entire 911 call itself will be entered into evidence. That call IMO will play a huge part to show that Raven did not sound or seem like someone that just walked in to find his wife murdered.


  • Raven was playing soccer
Yes - but that doesn't mean he did not have time to murder Janet before or after.


  • There is no evidence to prove Raven was there when Janet was killed.
He was the last person to see her alive. He was the one with the means and the motive. He is the only person who stood to gain in he death of Janet.

If I were a Bird - another set up.

Rumors of affairs at time of murder.

Telling people that Janet committed suicide.

No vehicles home at the time of the murder = Raven's VX away from Home, Janet's vehicle brought into the shop (conveniently)

Large Life Insurance Policy
 
Can a list of affairs be noted. Can the fact that Raven had previously moved out be noted? Can his felony conviction be noted? Can alleged embezzlement with other companies be noted?
 
I'm setting up a mock trial for Raven.

If you were the prosecuter, what points would you bring up to prove your case. Please note, that much of Raven's character and past (affairs etc) are not likely to be allowed in the court room.

I was thinking about this case as we know the facts yesterday and came to the conclusion that unless there is physical evidence which cannot be explained away by Raven living in the household, it is mainly a circumstantial case only. Again, AS WE KNOW IT.
I would not attempt to prosecute him at this point if they don't have much more than we know.
It's sad, and it hurts me, but I think it would not get past a GJ at this point. I hope I'm wrong, more than I can say.
 
Can a list of affairs be noted. Can the fact that Raven had previously moved out be noted? Can his felony conviction be noted? Can alleged embezzlement with other companies be noted?

All depends.

Defense will do whatever they can to make sure none of this will be allowed into evidence.

Some things will be brought into evidence whether or not defense wants them in there, there would be many hearings and rulings made. Defense will win many of these hearings. Justice System seems to be set up in favor of defense more often than not.

Jurors don't get to see the Victim in real time, feel her, touch her, see her act and react. Defense attorneys make sure they depersonalize the victim as much as possible and she becomes almost nameless, it becomes more about the defendant than the victim and they really do their job which is to paint the defendant as the victim.

This case would be no different.
 
I was thinking about this case as we know the facts yesterday and came to the conclusion that unless there is physical evidence which cannot be explained away by Raven living in the household, it is mainly a circumstantial case only. Again, AS WE KNOW IT.
I would not attempt to prosecute him at this point if they don't have much more than we know.
It's sad, and it hurts me, but I think it would not get past a GJ at this point. I hope I'm wrong, more than I can say.

It is a Circumstantial Case, we have always known that, but even with a weapon it is still a circumstantial evidence case.

Without a witness it is a CE case. There was a person that was a witness, judge, jury and executioner of Janet and her unborn child.

CE cases do make it to trial and there are convictions. I believe this case will be one of those in the future.
 
It is a Circumstantial Case, we have always known that, but even with a weapon it is still a circumstantial evidence case.

Without a witness it is a CE case. There was a person that was a witness, judge, jury and executioner of Janet and her unborn child.

CE cases do make it to trial and there are convictions. I believe this case will be one of those in the future.

I agree with you- I believe it can be tried in the future. I hope they have much more than what we know about.
 
Nice thread R&G!

Does it work for or against the prosecution if they delay in an arrest? Does it look like they couldn't find anyone else, so they arrested raven? Or does it look like they looked at anyone else and it could only be raven? I can't imagine any more information coming forward that would make them arrest raven (in the future). At this point, it seems they have everything they are going to get in this case and they either have a case or they don't. I may be wrong, but I'm not seeing how time will help.
 
Nice thread R&G!

Does it work for or against the prosecution if they delay in an arrest? Does it look like they couldn't find anyone else, so they arrested raven? Or does it look like they looked at anyone else and it could only be raven? I can't imagine any more information coming forward that would make them arrest raven (in the future). At this point, it seems they have everything they are going to get in this case and they either have a case or they don't. I may be wrong, but I'm not seeing how time will help.

Re: working for or against prosecutor......

It has to do with double jeopardy. It's a circumstantial evidence case period.

All other avenues need to be exhausted.

Something re this case as a prosecutor..... Remember Nifong?

I wouldn't bring this case to Prosecutor's office during all the Nifong stuff and the elections etc.

Durham is not a big town with a lot of homicides. This is just one of many homicides.

The difference between most of the homicides and this one is this one is NOT A RANDOM ACT, and was committed in the home, not a break-in, not a drive-by shooting, not a drug related crime.

This case was a personal attack. Someone stabbed to death a young pregnant mother with a six month old child in the next room. This was a very personal attack. Nothing was taken but the laptop and Raven's knives?

The only person with anything to gain by the murder of Janet was Raven. #1 scapegoat for his embezzlement
#2 Financial gain if he got away with it
#3 Freedom from responsibility
#4 The ability to not get rid of his precious vx he could pick up and move back home with his Mommy, who missed her precious little boy.
#5 Janet would have probably ended up leaving him and taking Kaiden and he wasn't going to allow that, if he couldn't have Janet, nobody could and nobody was going to take Kaiden from him.
#6 He may have found out Janet was pregnant again and he needed money for his attorney because he was being PROSECUTED FOR EMBEZZLEMENT.

I could keep going but I believe 100% he is guilty and would like other's to take a crack at this.
 

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