Barisone Trial Starting Monday, 3/28

[Knights_Mom]

@SierraMist

I’ve only skimmed through today’s testimony, and not going back to read a couple thousand posts so if some of this has already been discussed I apologize.

I actually think Deininger presents better than Bilinkas. He follows trial rules better and more concise in his questioning. I also think the judge does a good job keeping order in his court and keeping the attorneys following the rules.

It’s really sad to hear the various witnesses who’ve known MB for many years and had so many good things to say about him. He kept his life together well for all those years, perhaps because his ex wife handled so many things so that he could concentrate on training and coaching? And he no longer had that. However, the witnesses weren’t intimately involved with him every day and MHG did testify that he had mental issues before LK and RG were on the scene. Like many people, he could keep his professional appearances up around all those other people and privately speak with her about his depression and other issues. I’m leaning toward temporary insanity so far based upon how people have described him before, and the week leading up to the shooting. The whole situation was such a nightmare. I think he was insane for not evicting 6 months earlier.

MB had a lot of things to stress him out - his finances, running the farm, trying to perform business duties he’s never had to do in the past, having to pay out nearly a million to his ex wife when he didn’t have a lot of liquid assets. Again, it was very poor business practice to allow LK and RG back on the farm, poor business not to have any contracts. He even told his attorney right up until the day of the shooting he didn’t want to file eviction, he just wanted to scare her into leaving. And the witness saying MB had millions of dollars, who had no real idea of MB’s financial situation and monthly bills, when obviously those were not liquid millions or he wouldn’t have bee so stressed out about finances.

So I’m wondering, if MB is found not guilty due to insanity, and based upon his appearance and demeanor in court along with how his mental state was so diminished leading up to the shooting, wouldn’t it be better for him to be checked into a mental facility to get the help it appears he needs? If he’s just turned loose back into society, what if he falls apart very easily again because now he’s lost so much more than simply having a bad boarder, has paid over $600,000 in legal fees, etc. Who’s to say he won’t black out again, if that’s what happened, and go violent on someone else. Mental health is a real problem in this country (and many others) and part of the problem is that people don’t get the mental health treatment they desperately need, as so evidenced in this entire situation. (MB not the only person with mental health issues)

There are and have been millions of people who go through horrific domestic problems, such as divorce and custody cases, where the couple or other people are driving each other insane and ruining each other financially - worse than a problem boarder would be in my opinion. If people could get off with murder or attempted murder and simply set free after such an event without some kind of confinement in a a mental facility in order to get help, we’d be seeing many more violent situations that could be explained or excused away with an insanity verdict.

The guilt of MB cannot be confirmed beyond a reasonable doubt on any charge.

Continued incarceration in a jail or mental facility will not help him.

What he needs and what must happen is that he is found not guilty and released. Released to his way of life surrounded by the many people who love and respect him.

He needs to hug a horse. To ride. To help others succeed. He needs to do what he was born to do.

That is what he needs. And he needs it now.

[SierraMist]

@ Knights Mom You don’t think he needs any mental help? That just being around friends is all he needs?

[Knights_Mom]

@SierraMist

@ Knights Mom You don’t think he needs any mental help? That just being around friends is all he needs?

All abused people need mental help.

[MHM]

Ditto. That was unwise.

“Get her to take it seriously” or something similar might have been a better choice. But it’s easy enough for me to be an armchair lawyer in hindsight from a long way off.

[Mersidoats]

@SierraMist

I actually think Deininger presents better than Bilinkas. He follows trial rules better and more concise in his questioning. I also think the judge does a good job keeping order in his court and keeping the attorneys following the rules.

Deininger is also the lawyer who filed Michael’s civil suits. Interesting that he is co-counsel in the civil trial. Legal experts: is that sort of partnership between lawyers of different specialities common? Also, it seems that Deininger is only handling the defense witnesses - he does no cross examination of prosecution witnesses. And it seems that many of these witnesses that he has been questioning could also be sources for the civil suit.

[PDDT]

@Virginia_Horse_Mom

Whatever electrical work he did in the house and barn apparently wasn’t to code, and everyone had to vacate

If I heard correctly, the BI said they had to vacate the house because the fire alarms were no longer connected (oh, the irony) and from the barn because it was not up to code for use as a residence

[Sticky_Situation]

New true crime friends … if you have all night (and plenty of popcorn and wine) there were some verrrrry interesting appearances by someone very close to this case in the immediate aftermath. Poor a glass or 3 and settle in for a wild ride …

From the beginning:

Woman Shot at Barisone Farm

Someone on Facebook said it was related to safesport. Sending jingles to the poor woman. https://www.nj.com/morris/2019/08/1-shot-1-arrested-in-new-jersey-horse-farm-country-authorities-said.html

[MHM]

@SierraMist

And the witness saying MB had millions of dollars, who had no real idea of MB’s financial situation and monthly bills, when obviously those were not liquid millions or he wouldn’t have bee so stressed out about finances.

Who has said he was so stressed out about finances, other than LK/RG/JK?

The witnesses who were actually familiar with his business answered the questions about how much the monthly costs were, but I believe they said he had always managed to work it out in the past, and they expected him to continue to do so.

That description sounds to me like just about every horse business operation I’ve ever seen.

[soloudinhere]

@clipper

The Keystone Cops, oh sorry I meant the Police in this case do not sound capable of even preventing contamination.

In particular since Heymer testified that he disabled the weapon and I believe also handcuffed MB, it is very logical that any GSR could have been sourced from his handling of the gun as much as it could have been from being on MB’s hands prior. There is no way to know.

[Knights_Mom]

@Mersidoats

@SierraMist

I actually think Deininger presents better than Bilinkas. He follows trial rules better and more concise in his questioning. I also think the judge does a good job keeping order in his court and keeping the attorneys following the rules.

Deininger is also the lawyer who filed Michael’s civil suits. Interesting that he is co-counsel in the civil trial. Legal experts: is that sort of partnership between lawyers of different specialities common? Also, it seems that Deininger is only handling the defense witnesses - he does no cross examination of prosecution witnesses. And it seems that many of these witnesses that he has been questioning could also be sources for the civil suit.

As I mentioned before, the witness testifying that she was leaving MBs barn due to fearing LK and RG gives IMHO a basis to file civilly against LK et al for loss of income, libel and slander.

Ironically.

[Knights_Mom]

@soloudinhere

@clipper

The Keystone Cops, oh sorry I meant the Police in this case do not sound capable of even preventing contamination.

In particular since Heymer testified that he disabled the weapon and I believe also handcuffed MB, it is very logical that any GSR could have been sourced from his handling of the gun as much as it could have been from being on MB’s hands prior. There is no way to know.

The cop who testified today said no one was tested for GSR not even MB.

Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

[KurPlexed]

I stand corrected.

Imagine having a witness that is so unsavory, to put it kindly, that you have to object to 90% of the testimony about them.

Feel better?

[MHM]

@Mersidoats

If you have a free hour or 10, perusing them might give you some more information about the victim in this case.

You think somebody could get through those threads in 10 hours?? Maybe if it was Evelyn Wood coming back from the dead.

(For the 90% of the people who have no idea what that meant, the Evelyn Wood Speed Reading School used to be a thing many years ago. Lol.)

[MHM]

Like from handling Doritos!

[MHM]

@Knights_Mom

@soloudinhere

@clipper

The Keystone Cops, oh sorry I meant the Police in this case do not sound capable of even preventing contamination.

In particular since Heymer testified that he disabled the weapon and I believe also handcuffed MB, it is very logical that any GSR could have been sourced from his handling of the gun as much as it could have been from being on MB’s hands prior. There is no way to know.

The cop who testified today said no one was tested for GSR not even MB.

Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

I thought they said this morning that MB was the only one at the scene who was swabbed for GSR.

I even took notes today! Unlike those poor jurors.

[3PonyFarm]

Did MB actually test positive for GSR? I was not clear on that.

[caffeinated]

Sierra Mist- a couple of us have mentioned this before but folks found not guilty by insanity are generally institutionalized (and sometimes for longer than their prison sentence would have been). I think a lot of people have the impression that they are just found not guilty and go on their way, but that’s not the case at all.

And in this case I suspect he’d be in for a while. There was something about the trial date and the length of time he’d been in detention, that if the state has delayed anymore he’d have been entitled to release, but that he waived that. That snippet, and his general demeanor in court… I’m not sure he’d want to just be free anyway. I think he’s afraid of himself.

[BigMama1]

@Virginia_Horse_Mom

But… what about the GSR on MBs hands? Did he somehow get that gun away from LK and RG at the house… and then shoot LK with it?

That seems more complicated to me, than MB just having it and taking it to the house that day with him.

That seems as plausible to me as many other theories, and far more plausible than the notion she shot herself. If she confronted him with a gun when he arrived at the house and they struggled for it, he may well have gotten it from her and shot her. Or the gun may have gone off in a struggle. I would expect anyone who physically struggled with the shooter in the immediate aftermath of the shooting would have GSR. However the police only tested MB, so we have no idea whether LK/RG did as well, and how much compared to MB.

Or, he could have grabbed the gun from the safe, brought it to the house and shot them. But if that happened, then why would LK be describing the pink & black gun as missing in the days leading up to the shooting?

All along I’ve felt terribly sorry for MB, but had little doubt he was the shooter and saw no justification for shooting someone if your life wasn’t in immediate physical danger, no matter how terrible a person your target might be, and no matter how miserable they have been making your life. Even in America you don’t just get to shoot someone because they are a jerk. Now I have doubts that’s how events played out. The jury may have the same questions.

Was it ever discussed in the testimony so far that a gun was allegedly missing, at least according to LK?

[eggbutt]

Can we put the GSR to rest please? CPL FELLINI TESTIFIED TODAY THAT ALTHOUGH HE HAD A WARRANT, HE DID NOT TEST FOR GSR. THAT MEANS NO GSR WAS FOUND ON MICHAEL BARISONE!

That seems to be the cherry on top of a crime scene/forensics process as what is known in military circles as FUBAR. Look it up!

[SolarFlare]

@Cat_Tap (tagging you because there’s no way I’m scrolling back hundreds of posts to try to find yours to quote ):

The paramedics that were charged and convicted were right here in Hamilton, so I remember the case as well. The conviction was for “failing to provide the necessaries of life”.

2 Hamilton paramedics guilty for their roles in teen’s death get 18 months in...