Defense attorneys for Calvin Harris enter the court building on Monday to continue presenting their witnesses in this third trial held in Schoharie County. Calvin Harris is charged with Second Degree Murder in connection with the disappearance of his wife Michele in September of 2001. (Photos by Wendy Post)
Into its ninth week, the second degree murder trial for Calvin Harris, the Spencer, N.Y. resident charged in connection with his wife’s disappearance in September of 2001, has shifted to defense witnesses as attorneys grapple with what evidence will be allowed for presentation to the jury.
Kevin Tubbs, the farmer that saw Michele Harris at the end of the family’s residence with another man during the timeframe in which the prosecution claimed Calvin Harris killed her, was expected to testify Monday, but that has been delayed until Wednesday.
Instead, the defense attorneys representing Calvin Harris began to pick apart testimony delivered over the last month by prosecution witnesses in the case.
The prosecution concluded its witness testimony last week, with defense attorneys beginning a battle as they work to introduce testimony and evidence that will counter claims by some of the prosecution’s key witnesses.
One such claim, that was picked apart on Monday with testimony finally being allowed, late in the day, was testimony from 17-year-old Jenna Harris – one of Calvin and Michele Harris’ four children.
In her testimony, which centered around photos of her mother that she keeps in her room, and even photos where Jenna and her sister, Cayla, tried on their mother’s wedding gown for photos, Jenna Harris talked of how her father helped keep memories of her mother alive for her through photo albums, and some clothing items that belonged to Michele Harris.
Important to the defense in this testimony is a contradiction to prosecution claims that Calvin Harris’ behavior following Michele Harris’ disappearance was an indication of guilt.
The sun rises over the courthouse in Schoharie County as the Calvin Harris murder trial moves into its ninth week. Calvin Harris is charged with Second Degree Murder in connection with the disappearance of his wife Michele in September of 2001.
This also contradicted testimony by prosecution witness Barbara Thayer, the nanny, who told jurors that Calvin Harris wanted to get rid of Michele Harris’ things in an effort to just make her disappear.
The attorneys and prosecution argued all day about testimony from Kayla, with the prosecution calling her testimony self-serving, and the defense arguing relevance in that the prosecution witnesses were not truthful when they took the stand.
This argument also carried on through the day in relation to another contradiction that the defense pointed out from prosecution testimony – in particular a statement made by hairdresser Jerome Wilczynski that Calvin Harris would kill his wife [Michele Harris] and make her disappear.
In this statement, which has served as a centerpiece in the case built by prosecutor’s that is circumstantial, as no body or weapon has ever been found for Michele Harris, is now being challenged by the defense as they work to present a ‘lead sheet’ to the jury from the original interview with Wilczynski that took place during the initial investigation. The ‘lead sheet’, the defense argued, does not contain this statement at all.
On Monday New York State Police Sergeant Todd Phillips took the stand to explain the purpose of a ‘lead sheet’, and how it is normally used in an investigation; although the sergeant was handed the ‘lead sheet’ in question and stated he did not recognize it.
Also taking the stand, to build a foundation for defense attorneys to present the ‘lead sheet’ to the jury, was New York State Police Senior Investigator Steven Andersen, who explained further what the lead sheet represents during a criminal investigation, and that officers are expected to fill them out accurately.
Andersen recognized the ‘lead sheet’ as being one from the initial investigation conducted following Michele Harris’ disappearance in September 2001.
But Schoharie County Court Judge George R. Bartlett III was hesitant to present this ‘lead sheet’ to the jury without a better foundation, or basis.
“I’m troubled by the foundation, but understand the importance,” said Judge Bartlett, who then gave the defense team one night to find more witnesses that might help build a foundation to present the ‘lead sheet’ to the jury.
The defense attorney, Bruce Barket, was frustrated throughout much of the day’s trial, telling the court that the core of the District Attorney’s testimony is based on the statement that Calvin Harris would make his wife disappear.
Barket, seemingly shaken, stated, “How can the court admit false testimony to the jury, over and over.” He added, “He [Tioga County District Attorney Kirk Martin] has an obligation to correct false statements with the court. He’s not free to sit quietly while witnesses testify falsely.”
The prosecution stated it is not written anywhere that the notes from the investigation match the testimony given. “That is what a court and sworn testimony is for,” said Martin, “the jury can sort it out.”
As the trial continues, the defense is working to present witness testimony and evidence that will prove that Calvin Harris is innocent. In fact, the defense plans to file again to bring evidence they state would exonerate Calvin Harris entirely, but the judge has already denied one such request.
The defense claims that two Texas residents, Stacy Stewart and Christopher Thomason, had involvement in Michele Harris’ disappearance.
Witnesses were expected to testify that Thomason burned bloody clothing on Stewart’s Tioga County, N.Y. property on Sept. 12, 2001. This testimony is also aligned with that of Kevin Tubbs, who is expected to testify later this week. Tubbs claimed to have seen Michele Harris at the end of the family’s home on Hagadorn Hill Road in Spencer, N.Y. in the early morning hours of Sept. 12, 2001, and previously testified that she was arguing with a man who was not Calvin Harris. The truck at the scene, as described by Tubbs, matches the description, according to witness testimony, of that driven by Stacy Stewart.
Barket is now arguing that these witnesses, and their testimony should be allowed into court to reveal the truth behind what may have happened to Michele Harris.
The defense is planning to once again request from the court that they be allowed to offer what is termed “third-party culpability”, and have six witnesses listed in their previous request that will reveal what Barket is referring to as the truth.
Calvin Harris, the 55-year-old Spencer, N.Y. resident and Tioga County businessman, was convicted twice for killing his estranged wife, Michele Harris, convictions that were both overturned.
Now into a third trial at a new venue in Schoharie County, Calvin Harris continues to claim his innocence of accusations that he killed his estranged wife, Michele Harris, sometime during the evening of Sept. 11, 2001. Michele Harris’ vehicle was found at the end of the driveway at the residence the couple shared on Hagadorn Hill Road in Spencer, N.Y.
Calvin Harris and the couple’s property was the immediate focus in the investigation into Michele Harris’ disappearance that evening as neither her body, nor a weapon was never found. Prosecutors, in 2005, indicted Calvin Harris in relation to her disappearance.
During the first trial in 2007, the prosecution argued that blood spatter was found on the garage floor and just inside the Harris’ residence, and that Calvin Harris had motive for murder.
But when a farmer, Kevin Tubbs, came forward claiming he saw Michele Harris arguing with a man who was not Calvin Harris at the end of the couple’s residence on Sept. 12, 2001, the first conviction was overturned and a second trial ordered.
Once again, in 2009, Calvin Harris was tried and convicted in Tioga County, N.Y. for the murder of his estranged wife, Michele Harris, and subsequently sentenced and sent to Auburn Correctional Facility.
Three years later, the New York Court of Appeals ordered a new trial, and a new venue was granted as the defense argued that Calvin Harris could not get a fair trial in Tioga County, N.Y.
Defense testimony is expected to continue Tuesday in the Schoharie County Courthouse in Schoharie, N.Y.
