Sarah Boone needs to testify in trial for BF's 'hide-and-seek' suitcase death to prove 'she was a victim', warns expert
ORANGE COUNTY, FLORIDA: A defense lawyer has advised Sarah Boone that if she wants the jury to be in favor of her during the trial for the murder of her boyfriend, she must take the stand. Boone, now 45, was arrested in February 2020 after reportedly packing her boyfriend Jorge Torres Jr, 42, into a suitcase and leaving him there for hours despite his cries for aid.
Boone apparently claimed that she and the other person had been drinking the night before she contacted the police to report that her boyfriend was dead. According to the arrest document, they believed it would be silly if Torres got into the luggage while they were playing hide and seek. The Florida woman went upstairs and promptly fell asleep after putting Torres in the suitcase. She discovered him lifeless in the suitcase the next morning.
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When will Sarah Boone face trial?
The Florida woman will stand trial in July for second-degree murder, with her counsel apparently planning to employ a battered spouse defense. Domestic violence victims who thought the only way to stop the life-threatening abuse was to murder their partner have utilized this argument.
Who is Mark NeJame?
Mark NeJame, a trial attorney, philanthropist, entrepreneur, and legal analyst, earned his Bachelor's Degree and Juris Doctorate from the University of Florida. In 1980, he graduated from UF's, College of Law. He primarily works in Central Florida, with his main office in Orlando, as per NeJame Law.
What did the expert warn Boone about?
NeJame, a defense lawyer from NeJame Law who is not involved in Boone's case, told The Sun that if Boone's attorney argued abused spouse syndrome, she would need to elicit sympathy from the jury. The attorney said that Boone will "have to be able to show that she was a victim of this ongoing cycle of violence." He went on to say that Boone would have to testify in order to prove that she was a victim of domestic violence and that she thought she had no other option. "Since there are not any third-party witnesses to really tell that story, it's gonna rely on her," he said.
NeJame further stated, "If she has any other people that would be actual eyewitnesses ... to the actual acts of violence, you should have those on a witness list. If there's anybody that saw the after-effects of black eyes, bruising," that could be needed to "build a case so that there's a measure of sympathy." But, "if she presents herself as other than sympathetic then it's entirely possible that that makes that defense all the more difficult," added NeJame.
What did video evidence reveal?
Video evidence discovered on Boone's phone allegedly showing Torres screaming for help and that he couldn't breathe could be used against her in a self-defense motion at trial. In the video, Boone can be heard grinning and uttering things like, "That's what you do when you choke me." "There's no question that hurts" Boone's case, NeJame said of the video.
