AUSTIN, Texas — The murder trial for Kaitlin Armstrong continued with Day 2 of testimony on Friday.
Armstrong is accused of killing Wilson in East Austin on May 11, 2022. She faces a first-degree murder charge, as well as a felony charge related to an attempted escape in October.
KVUE Senior Reporter Tony Plohetski has been in the courtroom each day of the trial, livetweeting updates.
Day 2 of testimony
On Friday, Nov. 3, an Austin Police Department (APD) revealed details about the first police interaction with cyclist Colin Strickland, Armstrong's on again, off again boyfriend who was with Wilson the night she died.
Body camera video showed Strickland's reaction to being told Wilson was dead and that the case was being investigated as a homicide. It also showed Strickland telling the investigator that he was with Wilson on the day of the murder, that they had gone to Deep Eddy Pool and that it was "a little bit before dark" when they got back to the apartment.
Strickland told the investigator that he didn't see anyone "weird" or "lurking" around." He also said Wilson was not acting strange, but described her as generally a quiet, reserved person.
When asked about the nature of his relationship with Wilson, Strickland told the investigator that they had a brief relationship in October 2021. He said he had been advising Wilson on how to negotiate sponsorships, but that they had not had a "romantic relationship" since October 2021.
Strickland also said that he and Wilson had no communication after he dropped Wilson off, but that she didn't seem anxious or fearful when he last saw her.
When police asked Strickland to go to APD Headquarters to supply an official statement, he agreed.
At 2:44 p.m. Friday, Strickland took the stand to testify.
According to Strickland, he and Armstrong had a pattern of breaking up and getting back together. Armstrong moved in with him because of the winter storm in 2021 and Strickland said their relationship remained tumultuous. She lived in the house despite short periods of breaking up, according to Strickland.
Strickland spoke about a time when he told Armstrong about a young woman he saw in Colorado. Armstrong then sent Strickland a photograph of the woman that she had sent Strickland, with prosecutors raising that Armstrong accessed his phone.
In Bentonville, Arkansas, in January 2022, Strickland went on a mountain bike ride, causing friction in his relationship with Armstrong. He did not invite her to go on the ride "because she did not have the skill." Strickland said he had encouraged Armstrong to take up bike racing.
"She was perturbed that I went on that ride with other female cyclists," Strickland said of Armstrong.
He said the experience ended their relationship and that "it was extremely clear" they were no longer dating.
At the end of October 2021, Strickland and Wilson went on dates while she was visiting friends in Austin. At that time, he had broken up with Armstrong. At that point, the two became romantic, Strickland said. Armstrong's possessions remained at his house.
Strickland discussed the purchase of handguns at McBride's in Austin in December 2021. He said Armstrong often expressed "paranoia" about being alone on a bike in the woods and after a road rage incident.
"It led us to a conclusion it would be reasonable," Strickland said of the gun purchase.
By the spring, Strickland said he was clear with Armstrong that he and Wilson were not in a romantic relationship.
Strickland testified that he had Wilson's name on his cellphone as "Christine Wall" to avoid conflict with Armstrong. Strickland also said he desired to see Wilson "in my home city" and finalized plans to meet the day of the murder over text. Wilson gave him the address where she was staying and Strickland acknowledged he didn't tell Armstrong he planned to meet Wilson.
"From past experience, I simply did not," Strickland said.
Strickland said he encouraged Armstrong to write down a timeline of where she was "so it could be explained."
"I suggested that several times. I asked her, 'where were you and make a record of it,'" he said.
Recap of Day 1 of testimony
On Thursday, Nov. 2, attorneys cross-examined Roland Ramirez, a homicide detective for the APD.
Armstrong's defense attorney has painted the investigative focus on Armstrong as a rush to judgement by police. Prosecutors suggested on questioning of Ramirez that the notion of "confirmation bias" can be used to discredit or challenge police investigations.
"We let the evidence lead us to the suspect," Ramirez said on the stand.
Also on Thursday, APD crime scene analysis Caitlin Longoria walked the jury through hundreds of photographs from the scene where Wilson was shot and killed. Much of Wilson's family left the courtroom during this portion of testimony, according to KVUE Senior Reporter Tony Plohetski, and Wilson's friends bowed their heads to avoid seeing the images.
Caitlin Cash – the friend who found Wilson's body in her home – testified about finding Wilson in her bathroom and how she initially thought Wilson was laying on the floor to cool off. She then realized what had happened and called 911.
Prosecutors played Cash's 911 call, in which she told dispatchers that Wilson was lying on the bathroom floor and that there was blood everywhere, including on Wilson's face and the back of her head. Cash also told dispatchers that Wilson was not breathing.
Later on Thursday afternoon, in cross-examination of an APD sergeant, Armstrong's defense pressed why police didn't search the area after Wilson's murder for other Jeeps besides Armstrong's or gather DMV data about similar cars in the area – suggesting that police only wanted to build a case against Armstrong.
David Harris, the landlord and a neighbor of the apartment where Wilson died, also testified Thursday. He described that on the night of the murder, he heard someone rushing downstairs of Wilson's apartment and the "whisking" sound of a bicycle being moved.
"Immediately, someone took off," he said.
Prosecutors asked Harris point-blank whether he killed Wilson. He replied that he did not.
The judge in this trial is not allowing cameras in the courtroom during testimony. However, KVUE will be in the courtroom and we will provide updates on air and online.
The trial is expected to last several weeks.