Emotional Mom Defends Son Accused of Killing Wife

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Good morning, ma'am. Before you have a seat, if you please raise your hand. Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony of you in this case is now here for the court for the truth for both truth and nothing but the truth? I do. If you may be seated and please state your name and spell it. [00:00:12] Paula Hildebrand: Paula Hildebrand, P-A-U-L-A-H-I-L-D-A-B-R-A-N-D. [00:00:22] Speaker 3: Good morning, Mrs. Hildebrand. Good morning. And Mrs. Hildebrand, do you know Zarius Hildebrand? Yes, ma'am. And how do you know Zarius? I am his mother. And when you say you're his mother, can you tell us when you met Zarius? I met Zarius when he was six years old. [00:00:49] Paula Hildebrand: How did you come to meet him? He came to our home as a foster placement and we ultimately adopted. [00:00:57] Speaker 3: And how old was Zarius when you adopted him? Eight. Did you raise Zarius? Yes. Did he live with you when he went to high school? [00:01:13] Paula Hildebrand: Yes. [00:01:14] Speaker 3: Do you recall where he went to high school? [00:01:16] Paula Hildebrand: Yes, Central Hardin High School. [00:01:18] Speaker 3: How old was he when he graduated from high school? [00:01:21] Paula Hildebrand: Seventeen. [00:01:22] Speaker 3: Did he live with you after he graduated? [00:01:25] Paula Hildebrand: He did. [00:01:26] Speaker 3: And did he ever move out? [00:01:28] Paula Hildebrand: He moved out for a brief time, roughly about three months. When he was out, how old? It would have been that, I believe that summer after graduation, maybe the next summer. He may have been, he was 18, so it was the next summer. [00:01:43] Speaker 3: And so it sounds like he moved out and then came back. He did. Did he move out, how long did he live with you when he came back? [00:01:53] Paula Hildebrand: When he came back, it was probably three or four months before he entered the military. [00:01:58] Speaker 3: Okay. And during that time, what part of the country were you living in? We live in Kentucky. Okay. And how old was Zarius when he joined the military? [00:02:11] Paula Hildebrand: He would have been 20, 21. And... 20? [00:02:17] Speaker 3: Fair to say he didn't live with you once he joined the military? [00:02:19] Paula Hildebrand: He was 19, sorry. It was in 2021 when he joined the military. [00:02:23] Speaker 3: Thank you. And when he joined the military, did he live with you during that time? [00:02:32] Paula Hildebrand: No. Well, until he left to go to basic training in September. [00:02:37] Speaker 3: September of what year? [00:02:38] Paula Hildebrand: 2021. [00:02:43] Speaker 3: Did you stay in contact with Zarius? [00:02:47] Paula Hildebrand: Yes. [00:02:48] Speaker 3: After he joined the military? [00:02:51] Paula Hildebrand: Yes, as much as we could. He couldn't call as often in basic or AIT. But when he called, when he could call, he would call. [00:03:01] Speaker 3: Do you recall where Zarius was living in, for example, November of 2021? [00:03:11] Paula Hildebrand: He was still at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, because he graduated basic right before Thanksgiving of that year. [00:03:21] Speaker 3: Did you speak to him? How often did you speak to him between the time period of, say, November 2021 up to his 21st birthday? [00:03:30] Paula Hildebrand: After he got out of AIT, I can easily say at least weekly. [00:03:37] Speaker 3: And do you recall if he moved to Alaska at some point? [00:03:42] Paula Hildebrand: He did. I don't remember the exact time. It was after he got out of AIT. That's where his orders were. [00:03:49] Speaker 3: And did you stay in touch with him when he lived in Alaska? [00:03:54] Paula Hildebrand: Yes, ma'am. [00:03:59] Speaker 3: From the time that you met Zarius, when he was six years old, to his 21st birthday. And when is Zarius' 21st birthday? [00:04:11] Paula Hildebrand: August 5th, 2023. [00:04:14] Speaker 3: From the time you met him in foster care to his 21st birthday, have you ever known him to be a violent person? No. I want to talk a little more about Zarius' – well, when you met Zarius, did he have any siblings? [00:04:35] Paula Hildebrand: He did. He had three. [00:04:37] Speaker 3: Was he the oldest, middle, younger? [00:04:40] Paula Hildebrand: Of that group, he was the middle. [00:04:43] Speaker 3: And did he know – who was his – who were his younger siblings? [00:04:48] Paula Hildebrand: His younger siblings are Olivia and Michael, who we call MJ. [00:04:53] Speaker 3: How old was MJ when you met him? [00:04:55] Paula Hildebrand: 22 months. [00:04:57] Speaker 3: And how old was Zarius again? [00:04:58] Paula Hildebrand: He was six. [00:05:01] Speaker 3: What can you tell me about the relationship between MJ and Zarius as they grew up? [00:05:09] Paula Hildebrand: Of course, at the beginning, MJ followed him around everywhere, and he didn't like it. You know, in middle school, you don't like your little brother tagging along all the time. So, you know, it wasn't as close. But as they got older, they became closer. They were both athletes. The other kids in our home didn't do sports as much. They were the athletes, and MJ idolized his brother. And Zarius grew to be a role model for him. [00:05:39] Speaker 3: Can you tell me what role model meant from what you heard? [00:05:48] Speaker 1: MJ wanted to live his life like Zarius. [00:05:54] Speaker 3: Was Zarius, as a matter of habit, emotionally protective of MJ? [00:06:00] Paula Hildebrand: Yes. As they got older, of course, he was. He was emotionally protective of all of us. [00:06:06] Speaker 3: Thank you, ma'am. I don't have any further questions. [00:06:17] Speaker 1: Okay. Good morning, Mrs. Hildebrand. Good morning. So, the defendant is your son, correct? Correct. And you met Soraya Hildebrand. I did. What did you think of her? [00:06:38] Paula Hildebrand: Oh, I loved her. She was a beautiful person, inside and out. [00:06:44] Speaker 1: And did you meet her in person? [00:06:46] Paula Hildebrand: I did. When they got married, he brought her to our house before they went to Utah to be married. And she spent about four to five days with us. Did she seem happy? Yes. [00:06:59] Speaker 1: She seemed like a sweet girl. [00:07:01] Paula Hildebrand: Oh, yes. Absolutely. She was a dog person and we're dog people, so we immediately hit it right off. [00:07:10] Speaker 1: And then you weren't in Alaska in August of 2023, correct? [00:07:14] Paula Hildebrand: I was not. [00:07:15] Speaker 1: You've never been to Alaska before this? [00:07:17] Paula Hildebrand: Oh, no. I did visit. I visited Zarius and Soraya in June of 2023. How was Soraya then? Wonderful. She cooked dinner for us, they did, and she hung out with us when she wasn't at work. [00:07:30] Speaker 1: How were... [00:07:31] Paula Hildebrand: They had both dogs, right? They had the puppy? Lily and Cope. How was she with the dogs then? Oh, she loved those dogs. [00:07:41] Speaker 1: And you didn't personally witness anything relevant to this case, right, around that time? You weren't here? No, ma'am. [00:07:47] Speaker ?: Thank you. [00:07:48] Speaker 1: And you've been emotionally supporting your son, the defendant, since his arrest, correct? Yes. You've been calling him? I can't call him. He calls me. He's been calling you. And you've been aware that those calls have been recorded? Yes, ma'am. Judge, will we approach? [00:08:06] Speaker ?: Yes. [00:08:07] Speaker 1: Let's go. [00:08:37] Speaker ?: Let's go. [00:09:07] Speaker 1: So you were aware that those calls were recorded? Yes. Zarius repeatedly asked you not to visit him or come to Alaska, right? Yes. And he repeatedly asked you not to come to this trial. He did. And when were you told that they wanted you here? Last Monday evening. And has it been difficult for you to come here and testify? Yes. And then since his arrest and all those calls that you've had with him, he never once talked to you about missing or loving Soraya Hildebrand, did he? No. Thank you, ma'am. Thank you for your time. [00:10:02] Speaker 3: Can you withdraw? [00:10:07] Speaker ?: Eight. [00:10:18] Speaker 3: No touch. Thank you. [00:10:20] Paula Hildebrand: Thank you for your testimony. Thank you. [00:10:24] Speaker 3: May we have your word? [00:10:25] Paula Hildebrand: Yes.