The Murder of Casey Chadwick

Mock Trial recently took a trip to view the fifth day of the trial of Jean Jacques. Invited by Prosecutor David Smith, father of Lyme-Old Lyme High School students Julia and Marissa Smith, the team went to the New London Superior Court to learn more about life in the world of law, and to sit in on the fifth day of the trial of Jean Jacques. Jean Jacques, a 41 year old man previously convicted of attempted murder has resurfaced after being released from prison, with another accusation of murder. Jacques was born in Haiti, immigrated illegally to the US, and in 1996, was accused of homicide and convicted of attempted murder. He served 17 years in prison, after which he was released on parole and should have been deported back to Haiti, though somehow his case slipped through the cracks and within months of being released from prison, Jacques was back in jail, accused of the murder of 25 year old Casey Chadwick.

The team viewed the fifth day of the trial, when witness and Detective Anthony Gomes took the stand to speak about the interviews and evidence surrounding the case. First presented was a video of an interview between Jacques, Gomes, and one other officer. The detective repeatedly pressed about the presence of Jacques’s blood at the crime scene, though Jacques refused to comment on the subject. The video also brought up further evidence, which was to be discussed later in the day and trial. Jean Jacques went on to state, in broken English, “For what I kill her? What? I don’t kill this girl! I don’t kill this girl”. The interview ended with nearly all questions left unsatisfied. Resuming his direct questioning, Attorney Smith inquired about a certain Indira Barros-Gomes, and how she was related to the case. As it turns out, a black bag, belonging to Jacques,was found in the trunk of her vehicle. More suspect is the fact that inside of this bag, was a pair of blue jeans, belonging to Jacques, with the blood of the victim on the back right pocket. Indira is known to have changed her story several times, though, when questioned, she revealed that she had picked Jean Jacques up from Wauregan Laundromat near 7:15, on June 15th, 2015, hours after the murder is said to have occurred. The bag and jeans were presented by the detective in court, before Smith turned his line of questioning to the detective’s interactions with Tywan Jenkins. Jenkins had reportedly been a cell-mate with Jacques for two weeks, and frequently discussed the Chadwick Case with him. Jenkins divulged to the police many of the conversations he’d had with Jacques, revealing that Jean had even outright told him he had killed Casey Chadwick. Apparently, Jacques had originally told people that he had cut his hand while washing dishes at his job, at the Rustic Cafe. Jenkins, however, states that Jacques revealed to him what really happened: Jacques had gone to Casey’s apartment and given her a bag of marijuana. He later found out that Casey had given said bag to her boyfriend, Jean Joseph, to sell. This angered Jacques, who confronted Casey at her home. Jenkins tells that Jacques grabbed Chadwick by the throat and shirt, and cut his hands while stabbing the victim. Jacques also told Jenkins that he later cleaned up the apartment with a mop and bleach, after putting Chadwick’s body in a closet. What really made Jenkin’s testimony stick, though, was that he reported that Jacques had taken the victims’s cellphone, as well as a bag of marijuana and crack cocaine, from the victim’s house an planted them in a hole in a bathroom wall of his own apartment. Sure enough, when police arrived at Jacques’s Crossway Street apartment, the cellphone and drugs were recovered from a hole in the wall of the bathroom. Additional evidence was recovered from the victim’s phone, which revealed that she had texted her boyfriend on the night of June 14th, complaining that “Zoe” (Jacques’s nickname) was at her apartment. Bugsy, as her boyfriend Jean Joseph was nicknamed, replied saying “Tell him to leave”. The next day, when Bugsy could not locate Chadwick, he approached Jacques, who insisted he had never visited the apartment the night before. Later that afternoon, Casey Chadwick’s body was discovered by her boyfriend in the living room closet; it wasn’t long until the police began to suspect Jacques, and arrested him for questioning. After Jenkins’s account of the events were revealed, Smith went on to further his case before the Defense began cross-examination.

The Mock Trial team left to return to school at around 1pm, after which, Defense Attorney Sebastian DeSantis was to continue his cross-examination of Detective Gomes.

The team later discussed the evidence presented and all know facts of the case, and it was evident to them that Jean Jacques was guilty. This conclusion was fortified by the victory of Attorney Smith, setting in stone the guilt of Jean Jacques in the murder of Casey Chadwick. Jacques’s sentencing is set for June 6th, 2016.