FULL TESTIMONY — Police Detective Matthew Harrington testifies in the OUELLETTE murder trial

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: I use a letter of evidence. Please do so. [00:00:02] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:00:06] Speaker 1: When did you become a Connecticut State Trooper? [00:00:09] Speaker 2: July 2019. [00:00:11] Speaker 1: And what type of training did you receive in order to be certified as a Connecticut State Trooper? [00:00:16] Speaker 2: Went to the Connecticut State Police Academy, graduated with the Academy. [00:00:20] Speaker 1: And how long have you been a trooper for? [00:00:22] Speaker 2: Since 2019. [00:00:24] Speaker 1: And when you began your career as a Connecticut State Trooper, what was your first assignment? [00:00:28] Speaker 2: I was assigned to patrol at Troop B in North Canaan. [00:00:32] Speaker 1: And what are the duties of that assignment? [00:00:35] Speaker 2: To patrol the area of Troop B. [00:00:39] Speaker 1: Do you answer calls for service? [00:00:42] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:00:43] Speaker 1: Were you investigating crimes? [00:00:44] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:00:46] Speaker 1: How long were you assigned to that position, sir? [00:00:49] Speaker 2: Approximately two years. [00:00:50] Speaker 1: And what assignment did you take after that? [00:00:53] Speaker 2: I was assigned to Western District Major Crime out of Troop B. [00:00:55] Speaker 1: And what does Western District Major Crime do? [00:00:58] Speaker 2: Investigates crimes that are kind of above the level of a patrol officer. [00:01:04] Speaker 1: And did you obtain the rank of detective at that time? [00:01:07] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:01:08] Speaker 1: And how did you obtain the rank of detective? [00:01:10] Speaker 2: I went through a, there was an interview process, so I interviewed, I put in a packet to. I'm currently assigned as a task force officer with the FBI, so on the Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force. [00:01:24] Speaker 1: Okay. How long did you, how long were you a member of Western District Major Crime? [00:01:30] Speaker 2: From 2022 to 2025. [00:01:33] Speaker 1: Now, where is Western District Major Crime housed out? [00:01:38] Speaker 2: Out of, uh, True Bell in, uh, Litchfield, Connecticut. [00:01:43] Speaker 1: And as part of, uh, your assignments at Western District Major Crime, had you had the occasion to investigate crimes involving death someone? Yes. And how many times have you had the occasion to do that, sir? [00:01:53] Speaker 2: Multiple times, like, I don't know how many times, multiple times. [00:01:56] Speaker 1: With respect to your assignment with Western District Major Crime on May 21st of 2023, were you still with them? Yes. Uh, and on that date of May 21st of, uh, 23, was Western District Major Crime called to assist involving an investigation of the death of a female? Yes. And I'm going to show you, uh, what's been marked as state's exhibit crime, it should pop up on the screen in front of you, and this one right over here over my left shoulder. Are you familiar with that name that's indicated there? Yes. And, uh, is that the person that, uh, the Western District Major Crime was investigating? Yes. And for the remainder of the testimony, if you have to refer to that person, I just ask that you refer to her as Sylvie, okay? [00:02:44] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:02:47] Speaker 1: Now, on 5-21 of 23, where were you first dispatched to begin that investigation? Bristol Hospital. And what other members of Western District Major Crime went with you to the Bristol Hospital? [00:02:58] Speaker 2: It was Detective Ryan Slaby and Detective Tyler Bastos. [00:03:01] Speaker 1: And when your unit arrived at the Bristol Hospital, did members of your unit speak with the mother and father of Sophie? Yes. And who from your unit spoke with the mother and father of Sophie? [00:03:13] Speaker 2: It was Detective Slaby and Detective Bastos. [00:03:16] Speaker 1: And as a result of those conversations that they had, did your investigative team learn information that would be helpful in this investigation? Yes. Now, as part of this investigation into this case, was the clothing that Sophie was wearing that evening when she was brought to the Bristol Hospital seized? Yes. And were you responsible for seizing that clothing? Yes. Now, prior to securing the clothing that she was wearing, was a photograph taken? Yes. I'll show you what has been marked as State's Exhibit 12 and it is a full exhibit. Just ask you to look at it. Is that a fair and accurate photograph of the clothing that Sophie was wearing that night when she was brought to the hospital? Yes. [00:04:00] Speaker 2: Did you publish that, please? [00:04:01] Speaker 1: Yes. And what clothing is depicted there, sir? [00:04:03] Speaker 2: There's a gray sweatshirt, a pair of jeans, red underwear, and one cowboy boot. [00:04:22] Speaker 1: And did you take the sweatshirt, did you take those items into evidence? Yes. And did you secure each one of those items in separate evidence bags? [00:04:37] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:04:38] Speaker 1: And how did you do that, sir? [00:04:43] Speaker 2: I just secured basically paper bags out of my police cruiser and put items into those bags. [00:04:56] Speaker 1: Okay. And did you don gloves when you touched those items? Yes. And did you secure each of those items in a separate bag? [00:05:03] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:04] Speaker 1: And did you label those items? [00:05:06] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:07] Speaker 1: Now, I'll show you what's been marked as State's Exhibit 13. This is marked as a full exhibit as well. [00:05:11] Speaker ?: Do you recognize that item, sir? Yes. [00:05:13] Speaker 1: And is your evidence tag on that item? Yes. And did you create that evidence tag? [00:05:28] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:29] Speaker 1: Okay. And what does that evidence tag indicate that is in State's Exhibit 13? [00:05:34] Speaker 2: It's one gray hooded sweatshirt with Tidy Services LLC graphic down front with blood-like substance. [00:05:40] Speaker 1: And did you bag and tag that item when you seized it at the Bristol Hospital? [00:05:46] Speaker 2: Yes. I mean, this tag wasn't created there, but it was created later on. [00:05:51] Speaker 1: Was the sweatshirt placed into this bag at the Bristol Hospital? [00:05:53] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:54] Speaker 1: And when you got the sweatshirt back to the troop, did you create this evidence label? [00:05:58] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:59] Speaker ?: Can I have one moment? [00:06:00] Speaker 1: So what I'm going to ask you to do, with the court's permission, is I'm going to give you a pair of scissors and I'd ask you to place some gloves on if you could. Okay. [00:06:18] Speaker ?: Okay. Here you go, officer. Dr. Detective. I'll just ask you to remove that evidence. [00:06:24] Speaker 1: I'm going to pop that evidence sealed, please. [00:06:29] Speaker ?: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:06:34] Speaker 3: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:06:36] Speaker ?: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:07:01] Speaker 1: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:07:04] Speaker ?: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:07:20] Speaker 1: I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:07:29] Speaker ?: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:07:47] Speaker 1: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:07:57] Speaker ?: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:08:09] Speaker 1: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:08:12] Speaker ?: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:08:22] Speaker 1: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:08:27] Speaker 2: I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. I'm going to pop that evidence. [00:08:38] Speaker 1: And did you tag bag those items while you're at the hospital? Yes. And did you later create the evidence tag that is on that piece that is on that bag when you were at the trooper? [00:08:49] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:08:50] Speaker 1: And is your initials or name on that evidence tag? Yes. I'm going to ask you to cut that open, please. With the court's permission, may we remove those two items that are in there? Yes. [00:09:20] Speaker 3: Yes. Standing for me. This is not objected to, correct? No objection. All right. [00:09:25] Speaker ?: So. [00:09:30] Speaker 1: And are there two socks in that bag, sir? Yes. And what type of socks are they? The Nike private socks. Okay. And in looking at those socks, can you discern which is a left sock and which is a right sock? [00:10:03] Speaker ?: Okay. Right. That was his answer. It's hard to talk. That's fine. [00:10:08] Speaker 1: And looking at both of those items, or both of those socks, is there an indicated wear pattern on the heel of either of those socks? Yes. Okay. And could you hold that one sock up? And what do you notice about that? The heel is more warm. And is there ripping in that area, sir? Yes. And this one is ripping. Okay. [00:10:38] Speaker ?: Okay. And this one is ripping. Okay. And can you place those back into the bag? Yes. [00:10:43] Speaker 1: And this one is right there. Okay. And can you place those back into the bag? And then you sit down. So I'm going to show you what's marked the state's exhibit 15. It's also a full exhibit. I'm looking at state's exhibit 15. Can you tell us what that item is, please? One tan cowboy boot, size eight and a half, left foot. And was that seized from the Bristol Hospital at that time you were there? [00:11:40] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:11:41] Speaker 1: And did you create that evidence label? [00:11:43] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:11:44] Speaker 1: And is your identification on that evidence label? Yes. And again, with the court's permission, I'm going to ask that you unseal that exhibit. [00:11:50] Speaker ?: And can you remove the item, please? And is that the cowboy boot that you seized as evidence on that day? Yes. Yes. [00:12:02] Speaker 1: Now, in looking at that cowboy boot, is that a left or a right boot? Left boot. And was there a right boot at the Bristol Hospital? No. Now, looking at the heel of that boot, sir, are there any obvious signs of a drag mark or wear on the heel of that boot? Yes, it is worn. [00:12:31] Speaker ?: Okay. [00:12:31] Speaker 1: And can you show that to the jury, please? All right. Where is he pointing to? Because I can't see. He's pointing to on the heel area of the boot, the sole of the boot. A drag mark you stated? [00:12:37] Speaker ?: Or is that your testimony? It's worn. [00:12:39] Speaker 3: It's worn. Okay. [00:12:41] Speaker 1: Can you place that back in the bag, please, sir? Can you see that, attorney Manolo? [00:12:43] Speaker 3: the sole of the boob. A drag mark you stated? Or is that your testimony? It's a warrant. Okay. Can you place that back in the bag please? Can you see that attorney Manolo? Yes, your honor. Yeah, that's fine. No problem. [00:13:13] Speaker 1: While you're at Bristol Hospital, did members of your unit receive a consent to seize Sophie's cell phone? Yes. And was it seized as part of this investigation? Yes. And as part of your duties that day, did you take Sophie's cell phone into evidence? Yes. And did you bag and tag Sophie's cell phone? Yes. And do you recall what type of cell phone you took? It was an iPhone 14 Pro Max with a purple case. And did you take that cell phone back to the Western District Major Crime? Yes. Now, to your knowledge, as part of this investigation, were the contents of that cell phone extracted in this case? Yes. And to your knowledge, after an arrest was made, was that cell phone returned to Sophie's parents? If you know? I'm not aware. Okay. Now, after you seized all those items of evidence from the Bristol Hospital, what, if anything, did you do with all of them? [00:14:22] Speaker 2: After I seized them? Yes. I placed them in my cruiser and transferred them to Troop L. [00:14:29] Speaker 1: Okay. And when you transported those items of evidence to Troop L, did you store them somewhere? Yes. Where did you store them, sir? [00:14:35] Speaker 2: In the Western District Major Crime Evidence. [00:14:38] Speaker 1: Okay. And is that a secured vault? [00:14:40] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:14:40] Speaker 1: Yes. And do you need access or do you need a written notification in order to go into that vault? Is a log kept when someone enters the vault? [00:14:51] Speaker 2: Yes. Yes. [00:14:52] Speaker 1: Thank you. May I have one moment? Nothing further. Thank you, owner. [00:14:59] Speaker 4: Just a few questions. [00:15:00] Speaker 2: Yes, sir. [00:15:02] Speaker 4: How long do you think you do this major crime? [00:15:09] Speaker 2: January 2022. [00:15:11] Speaker 4: So this is there. [00:15:12] Speaker ?: Children's major crimes? [00:15:15] Speaker 2: I'm assigned to the, uh, as a task force officer with the FBI, to their violent crime task force. [00:15:22] Speaker 4: Are you in the Narcotics Division? [00:15:24] Speaker 2: It's Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force. [00:15:28] Speaker 4: And you seized these clothes, and do you have any training in forensics? [00:15:37] Speaker 2: I've been to some classes that talk about forensics. [00:15:40] Speaker 4: Can you tell the jury, you know, what a pattern recognition extra is? [00:15:47] Speaker 2: I'm, I've heard of it. I'm not aware of what. Pardon me? I'm not aware of what that is. [00:15:52] Speaker 4: You're not aware of it? Do you know what that means? [00:15:55] Speaker 2: I mean, I've heard of it. What kind of patterns? [00:15:59] Speaker 4: So let's say you have a case, and there's a case that where, uh, someone who's, the clothes [00:16:07] Speaker ?: are run over, and you have the car in your possession, correct? [00:16:12] Speaker 4: Just assume you have the car in your possession, okay? [00:16:17] Speaker ?: And you can take the pattern off a tire and look at clothes, and a pattern recognition expert [00:16:25] Speaker 4: can tell you if those clothes were run over by a vehicle that you were having in your possession. Do you understand that? [00:16:35] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:16:36] Speaker 4: Have you ever heard of that before? [00:16:39] Speaker 2: I'm sure I've heard of it, but I can't, like, speak to it. I'm not a pattern recognition expert. I've never spoken to one. [00:16:48] Speaker 4: So now that you know what they do, does Connecticut State Police, you have a state lab, forensic lab, is that correct? Yes. Where is that located? [00:17:02] Speaker 2: Colony Street in Meriden. [00:17:04] Speaker 4: In Meriden? Have you ever been there? [00:17:05] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:17:06] Speaker 4: Have you ever had training in forensics? [00:17:11] Speaker 2: I'm sure in the academy I had some, you know, evidence training. [00:17:14] Speaker 4: Have you personally had training in forensics? [00:17:17] Speaker 2: No. [00:17:18] Speaker 4: And you're a one major crime? [00:17:20] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:17:20] Speaker 4: You were a one major crime. And it's your testimony you never had any training in forensics. Is that your testimony? [00:17:29] Speaker 2: I've been to some trainings, like a New Jersey homicide conference, where they spoke, it would be like a one-day training on forensics, but I've never been to a specific forensic class. [00:17:40] Speaker 4: That's all the training you had, is one day? [00:17:43] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:17:44] Speaker 4: So you seized these clothes, correct? [00:17:47] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:17:48] Speaker ?: All right. [00:17:48] Speaker 4: What is your other involvement with this case? [00:17:53] Speaker 2: I was tasked to do a few- [00:17:55] Speaker 4: Do you know if the Connecticut State Police seized the parole-less car? [00:18:00] Speaker 1: I'm sorry, Honor. May the witness actually answer the questions I posed before another question is indicated? [00:18:04] Speaker 3: That's- let him answer the question, okay? Rephrase the question that you just asked about the- previous to the car. [00:18:13] Speaker ?: Pardon? [00:18:14] Speaker 3: You asked the question previous- previous to the one about seizing his automobile vehicle? [00:18:20] Speaker 4: Now I'll move around that. [00:18:21] Speaker 3: Okay. [00:18:21] Speaker 4: What part did you have in this investigation, besides seizing your clothes? [00:18:30] Speaker 2: So I was involved with a few different interviews. I was also involved with neighborhood canvas. [00:18:37] Speaker 4: Were you ever involved in the accident reconstruction of this particular case? [00:18:47] Speaker 2: No. [00:18:48] Speaker 4: Do you know what cars is as far as the state police is concerned? Have you ever heard of cars? [00:18:54] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:18:55] Speaker 4: Can you explain to the jury what cars is? [00:18:58] Speaker 2: So basically any type of major motor vehicle accident that would involve like a fatality or serious injury, they would be called out and they have this special training where they do different analysis of the scene. [00:19:14] Speaker 4: And in layman's terms, they analyze the scene of a major accident and decide they do an examination of the whole scene of the vehicle involved, any forensic material. [00:19:33] Speaker 1: Be honest, go. I'll allow that. [00:19:36] Speaker 3: Overruled. [00:19:39] Speaker 4: So cars does- [00:19:40] Speaker 3: Well, let him answer the question. All right. [00:19:44] Speaker 4: And are you familiar with a trooper or a detective named Spencer Bronson? Yes. And who is he? [00:20:02] Speaker 2: He was also assigned at Troop B, so that's how I know him. But I believe at the time he was assigned to cars. [00:20:10] Speaker 4: And he was assigned to cars. And his job is to do an accident reconstruction of major accidents like this. [00:20:20] Speaker 3: Let's be honest with you. [00:20:20] Speaker ?: Yeah. [00:20:20] Speaker 3: I don't know how he knows what trooper Brown did. [00:20:25] Speaker 4: He knows he's a member of cars. He's a member of the same department he is at Troop Bell. And cars does accident reconstruction. [00:20:36] Speaker 3: Okay. But how is that relevant at this point with this witness? [00:20:39] Speaker 4: With this witness, he's worked on this case. Let me rephrase it this way. If you look at the accident reconstruction of this case that the Connecticut State Police performed. Relevance. [00:20:58] Speaker 3: What's the relevance? What is the relevance, attorney? [00:21:01] Speaker 4: The relevance is he's part of the investigation. He's seizing clothes. He's taking interviews. Is it irrelevant if he looks at the accident reconstruction done by his own department, your honor? That's not relevant? All right. The cause for a yes or no. Did you look at the report? I did not. Okay. Are you familiar? Do you know who Sergeant Tachico is? Yes. And I'll ask you one more time. Do you know what a pattern recognition expert is? Ask and answer. [00:21:35] Speaker 3: It has been. And I believe he says, I'm not sure what that means. Never spoke to one. Sustained. [00:21:43] Speaker 4: That's it. Thank you. [00:21:44] Speaker ?: All right. [00:21:45] Speaker 3: Can you redirect? [00:21:48] Speaker 1: SECRETARY KERRY: No, thank you. [00:21:49] Speaker 4: All right. Thank you, Detective. I appreciate it that way.