Apr 23, 2015

"It was a huge shock and I immediately started crying. I shut down"

Day 3 of the jury trial started with APD Detective Chris Ortega, now Acting Sgt, testifying about the two videos obtained from ReMax Realty and Humboldt Clothing.

The videos show a lone figure in a black trench coat walking on one side and on the other side you see a three people in a single file, just as Detective Ortega testified yesterday. Nicholas Stoiber and Juan Ferrer had hoodies on and the clearest image was that of Sophie Rocheleau. The black and white images with no audio flashed eerily on the projector screen.

The morning heated up as three witnesses testified. Virginia Jimenez, the ex-girlfriend who remained close friends with Douglas Anderson-Jordet even after a mutual break up, Damien Hofsted and Sarah Brody, a resident who lives on H Street between 11th and 12th Street and heard yelling as well as two key phrases that are crucial to the altercation that led to the death of Anderson-Jordet.

So far,  all the witnesses who have testified have supported the prosecution's opening argument and hey have disproved claims made by the defense. This morning was no different.
Except for Jimenez confirming that Anderson-Jordet liked to drink two, three times a week, and that he did say mean things and sometimes became angry when he was drunk, none of the witnesses have confirmed the defense claim that the victim was heavily intoxicated, that he was hostile with anyone that night in the bar or that he was homophobic or racist. In fact, he was described as likeable, friendly and that he was respectful. Brody described two distinct male voices that night raising doubt who started the altercation.

DDA started his questioning of Jimenez by showing her a photo. "That is Douglas Anderson." Other than his mail, she said, he did not include Jordet in his name. "He was a roomate and we bcame friends." They met in mid 2012 when Anderson rented a room in the same house as her. In December 2012, "we decided to try dating but it didn't work out." They stopped dating in April 2013 but remained friends and "hung out".  It was a mutual decision. She said Anderson worked at Abruzzi. "He worked there," she paused, then said, "until he pased away."

Answering DDA Roger Res questions, Jimenez said that Anderson didn't go out much, mostly stayed home.  He did go out sometimes,with co-workers.

"From what you knew, did he drink a lot?" Mr. Rees asked her. "No, he stayed home."

Jimenez described that the way she found out that Anderson had died was after APD detectives interviewed her. Initially, they just told her he had been assaulted. When they finally told her, "It was a huge shock and I immediately started crying. I shut down."

Jimenez said that Anderson was never physically violent and she never felt threatened by him. "If he got unhappy, he'd bark." Asked to clarify, she said, he would say things that would "hurt your feelings: I don't like you or Nobody likes you." Once when he felt she was ignoring him and paying attention to another friend, he got upset. Jimenez said she never heard Anderson say any "derogatory stuff about gay people or people of color."

Jimenez said she never saw Anderson use any controlled substances but he occasionally smoked marijuana. He didn't drink everyday, "maybe two or three times a week."

The day she last saw him, they had brunch at Robert Goodman winery and shared a bottle of wine and food. Then Anderson accompanied her to Adventure's Edge, he went home at 4 p.m. She came home after window-shopping around 5 or 6 p.m., she said.
Around 9 p.m., they had soup she cooked and went to their rooms. He did not have four or five beers as alleged by the defense. He had one beer.

Mr. Rees asked her to use one word to describe Doug, she responded with creative.




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