FULL TESTIMONY — Sophie's brother Jackson R. testifies in the Ouellette manslaughter trial

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Your high school degree? Yes. When was that? 2019. What school did you graduate from? Northwest Catholic High School in West Hartford. And did you have any schooling after that? Some college. [00:00:12] Speaker 2: Where did you go to college? Iona College. And when was that? After I graduated in 2019, so [00:00:19] Speaker 1: 2019 to COVID. And after you stopped college, did you start working? Yes. And what were you [00:00:28] Speaker 2: doing for a living? Construction work. And are you currently working? I'm currently out on [00:00:34] Speaker 1: workers' comp. And do you live in Connecticut currently? Yes. Where do you live? With my [00:00:40] Speaker 2: parents in Burlington. What's the address there? 28 Fieldview Drive, Burlington, Connecticut. How [00:00:47] Speaker 1: long have you been living there? My whole life. And if we could display State exhibit one. Take a look at that screen, we're going to bring something up for you. [00:01:00] Speaker ?: Is State's exhibit one displayed in front of you? No, still a black screen. [00:01:07] Speaker 1: Is State's exhibit one displayed in front of you? No, still a black screen. Yes, my younger sister. [00:02:00] Speaker 2: younger younger five years or six years. I don't know the math. I'm 26. She was 17. I was 22. Yes. My brother Tyler and did you Tyler and Sophie grow up in that same house. Yes. [00:02:30] Speaker 1: And in May of 2023, how old was Sophie? 17. And was she in high school? Yes. What year was she in? Junior. Are you familiar with the person named Cooper? I am. How are you familiar with him? He was my sister's boyfriend. How long were they dated? More than a year, less than three years. And in that time, did you have time to interact with Cooper roulette when he was dating your sister? Yes. About how many times would you say? More than I could count. Would he regularly come to your house to pick up Sophie? Yes. And during those times, you'd speak with him cordially? Yes. Do you see the person you know as Cooper roulette according to that? I do. I do. And would you please point him out and describe an article with clothing anywhere? [00:03:27] Speaker 2: In the blue vest standing. All right. The record will reflect the in-court identification. [00:03:32] Speaker 3: Thank you. Have a seat, sir. [00:03:36] Speaker 1: Now I'm going to direct your attention to May 20th of 2023, okay? During May 20th of 2023, were you at your house on Field U Drive all day? Yes. And was anyone with you that day? [00:03:48] Speaker 2: My girlfriend, now fiancé, Layla. [00:03:50] Speaker 1: And why were you staying at your house on May 20th of 2023 all day? [00:03:55] Speaker 2: I had a broken right ankle. [00:03:58] Speaker 1: How'd you break your ankle? [00:03:59] Speaker 2: I was jumping down a couple steps of the stairs at home. [00:04:05] Speaker 1: And at that time, did you have any kind of cast or boot or anything on you? [00:04:09] Speaker 2: I had some sort of splint. I had surgery that coming Monday. [00:04:18] Speaker 1: So after May 20th of 2023? Yeah. Is that the surgery scheduled for your own house? And do you recall if that was May 20th of 2023, do you recall what day of the week that was? [00:04:31] Speaker 2: Saturday. [00:04:31] Speaker 1: And was Layla staying with you that weekend? [00:04:35] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:04:38] Speaker 1: And you mentioned she's your now fiancé. When did that engagement occur? [00:04:43] Speaker 2: April 8th of this year. [00:04:45] Speaker 1: Good memory. Do you know if Sophie was supposed to go out that evening? [00:04:51] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:04:51] Speaker 1: And where was she going? [00:04:54] Speaker 2: To a friend's house. [00:04:56] Speaker 1: And before she went out, did she come to speak with you? [00:04:59] Speaker 2: Yeah. [00:05:00] Speaker 1: And what do you recall Sophie telling you? [00:05:03] Speaker 2: She stopped in briefly, smiling, said she was going out. [00:05:08] Speaker 1: And was that normal for her to do? [00:05:09] Speaker 2: Yeah. [00:05:12] Speaker 1: And I want to fast forward to about 11.50 that evening. Were you still at your house in Burlington? [00:05:18] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:19] Speaker 1: And did there come a time where Sophie came home that evening? [00:05:22] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:23] Speaker 1: And who was with you when Sophie came home? [00:05:28] Speaker 2: My girlfriend Layla in bed with me. [00:05:31] Speaker 1: And what were you two doing around 11.50 on May 20th, 2023? [00:05:36] Speaker 2: Watching TV or playing video games. [00:05:39] Speaker 1: Were you awake? [00:05:40] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:05:41] Speaker 1: And did you hear anything out of the ordinary around 11.50 of May 20th, 2023? [00:05:47] Speaker 2: Yes. I heard my mom scream, a scream I'd never heard before. [00:05:52] Speaker 1: And when you heard that scream, what, if anything, did you do? [00:05:57] Speaker 2: I hopped down the stairs and outside. Yeah. [00:06:03] Speaker 1: When you got outside, what did you see? [00:06:05] Speaker 2: I saw Sophie laying on her back outside of the passenger door of the truck. [00:06:13] Speaker 1: And what did you do when you saw your sister on the ground next to the truck? [00:06:17] Speaker 2: I started freaking out. [00:06:22] Speaker 1: And did you see the defendant Cooper O'Goulette outside the truck? [00:06:25] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:06:25] Speaker 1: Where was he? [00:06:28] Speaker 2: Danding around the truck. [00:06:31] Speaker 1: And did you go to speak with Cooper or did you go to see your sister? [00:06:36] Speaker 2: To see my sister. [00:06:37] Speaker 1: And when you saw your sister, what did you observe? [00:06:41] Speaker 2: I just saw her moaning, kind of just laying on the ground. Yeah. [00:06:48] Speaker 1: And when you first saw her, was she able to talk? [00:06:50] Speaker 2: No. [00:06:52] Speaker 1: Could you hear anything from her that night? [00:06:56] Speaker 2: No. [00:06:58] Speaker 1: Was Sophie able to move by herself? [00:07:00] Speaker 2: No. [00:07:01] Speaker 1: And did your mom, did your mother or father do anything relative to Sophie? [00:07:07] Speaker 2: Uh, yeah, they helped her into the garage or carried her into the garage. [00:07:13] Speaker 1: And did you see them carrying her? [00:07:15] Speaker 2: Uh, yes. [00:07:17] Speaker 1: And when they got her into the garage, what, if anything, did you do? [00:07:21] Speaker 2: Um, I sat with her at the steps from the garage to the, like, main door to the house. Uh, I sat with her. [00:07:31] Speaker 1: And as you were sitting up there, did you observe any injuries? [00:07:35] Speaker 2: Uh, yeah, there was blood coming out of her mouth and her face was, had some scratches on it. [00:07:43] Speaker 1: And at that time, what were you thinking? [00:07:47] Speaker 2: That something was seriously wrong to have blood coming out of your mouth. [00:07:51] Speaker 1: And did anyone call 911 at that point? [00:07:54] Speaker 2: Uh, yes. My girlfriend, Layla, called, if I remember correctly. [00:07:59] Speaker 1: And did, uh, did an ambulance arrive at your home? [00:08:04] Speaker 2: No. [00:08:04] Speaker 1: What happened next? [00:08:06] Speaker 2: Uh, the ambulance said it was going to take a long time, too long for us to wait. Um, so they got Sophie in the back seat of my dad's SUV. [00:08:21] Speaker 1: And what did they do? [00:08:23] Speaker 2: Uh, took her to the hospital. [00:08:26] Speaker 1: Did you go to the hospital with them? [00:08:28] Speaker 2: No. [00:08:28] Speaker 1: What did you do? [00:08:30] Speaker 2: Sat on the couch and waited until I heard something. [00:08:33] Speaker 1: And after, uh, Lynn and Sarah had taken your sister out of the house, did anybody come back to your house? [00:08:42] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:08:42] Speaker 1: What was that? [00:08:43] Speaker 2: Cooper. [00:08:44] Speaker 1: And when you, when, uh, Cooper came back to your house, did you speak with him? [00:08:49] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:08:50] Speaker 1: Where was this conversation? [00:08:52] Speaker 2: Uh, in the main area of the house, uh, just in front of the front door. [00:08:59] Speaker 1: And do you recall about how long that conversation was? [00:09:03] Speaker 2: Uh, no. It was brief. [00:09:07] Speaker 1: And when he gets there, what's the first thing you say to him? [00:09:13] Speaker 2: What happened? [00:09:14] Speaker 1: And did Cooper respond to you? [00:09:16] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:09:17] Speaker 1: And what did he say? [00:09:19] Speaker 2: He had two versions of what happened. [00:09:23] Speaker 1: Let's start with the first one. What was the first thing he told you? [00:09:26] Speaker 2: The first one was that on the street that connects to ours, Polly Dan, he was coming down at where the street dips down. Um, and there's two pull-offs on either side. And he said that he got down there and pulled off to the left side. And while he was slowing down, she fell out of the vehicle. [00:09:46] Speaker 1: So, if you could bring up States Exhibit 2. This is a closed exhibit. Didn't go on. I got it. Showing you States Exhibit 2. Does this depict the area of field view, Polly Dan, your, in your home that we're referring to? Yes. And if I can approach you with the mouse, it's up there. [00:10:22] Speaker ?: Mm-hmm. [00:10:22] Speaker 1: If there is a mouse in front of you, could you use that cursor and show where you know the dip in Polly Dan to be? [00:10:31] Speaker 2: Yeah, it's right here. [00:10:38] Speaker 1: May the record reflect there is a dip in the road is halfway between field view and Polly Dan, approximately? [00:10:44] Speaker 3: Record so we will reflect. [00:10:47] Speaker 1: And is that the area that Cooper Ouellette directed you to as to where this happened? [00:10:53] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:10:54] Speaker 1: And you said he pulled over to which side of the road? [00:10:57] Speaker 2: The left side. [00:10:59] Speaker 1: And are you, are you familiar with that area of Polly Dan Road? [00:11:03] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:11:04] Speaker 1: Are there homes there? What does the, what does it look like? [00:11:07] Speaker 2: That part of the road, there's a gap in the houses. It's water and just two kind of dirt turnarounds on either side. [00:11:17] Speaker 1: So is there a dirt pull-off to the left and a dirt pull-off to the right? [00:11:21] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:11:22] Speaker 1: And he first mentioned going to the left. [00:11:24] Speaker 2: Yeah, to the drivers, where the driver's side would be towards the, towards the trees, towards the bushes, off, away from the road. [00:11:33] Speaker 1: That strike it was on? [00:11:35] Speaker 2: Yes. Why? Because usually when you have a passenger, you pull over to the right side so that the passenger isn't in the road when they get out. [00:11:45] Speaker 1: And at that point, did you confront Cooper with that contradiction? [00:11:49] Speaker 2: No. [00:11:50] Speaker 1: Were you just listening? [00:11:52] Speaker 2: Yeah. [00:11:53] Speaker 1: And did he then, at some point in this conversation, change where he stopped? [00:11:58] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:11:58] Speaker 1: How did that happen? [00:12:00] Speaker 2: Just going over it. He said that on the second version that it was, they got up towards Fieldview Drive, onto Fieldview Drive. And that's when she fell out. [00:12:12] Speaker 1: Did he direct you to any area specifically on Fieldview Drive or just Fieldview Drive? [00:12:16] Speaker 2: No, just Fieldview Drive. [00:12:17] Speaker 1: And the dip is on a Polyvan, not Fieldview Drive? [00:12:20] Speaker 2: Correct. [00:12:26] Speaker 1: And, I'm sorry, you said when he, during the first iteration of the story, when he said he pulled over, what did he say happened to the story? [00:12:33] Speaker 2: He said that she fell out and that, yeah, that she fell out. [00:12:39] Speaker 1: And did he mention whether his vehicle was moving or not? [00:12:43] Speaker 2: Yes. The first version, he said he was almost stopped. [00:12:47] Speaker 1: And you said the first version, he said it was almost stopped. Did that change? [00:12:50] Speaker 2: Yes. How did it change? In the second version, in the second version, the Fieldview Drive one, he said that he wasn't slowed down, was just moving at a normal pace, and she fell out while the car was moving at a normal pace. [00:13:05] Speaker 1: So, during the first version, he had been saying he was stopping? [00:13:11] Speaker 2: Yeah, that he was slowing down and almost at a stop, yep. [00:13:14] Speaker 1: And the second one, he was not breaking at all? [00:13:17] Speaker 2: Correct. [00:13:22] Speaker 1: Did Cooper tell you if he had anything to drink that night? [00:13:26] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:13:26] Speaker 1: How did that come up? [00:13:27] Speaker 2: He said that he had had a drink at, I think it was six o'clock, one beer at six o'clock earlier that night. [00:13:34] Speaker 1: Did you ask him if he had anything to drink? [00:13:37] Speaker 2: No. [00:13:37] Speaker 1: At this point, were you still just listening to what he was saying? Yes. Were you in any way confronting him with any contradictions? [00:13:43] Speaker 2: No. [00:13:46] Speaker 1: And so, after he brings up that he had one drink at six o'clock, does he repeat that statement at all? [00:13:52] Speaker 2: Uh, I don't recall. [00:13:59] Speaker 1: And after speaking, within that brief conversation you discussed, did Cooper let me leave your house? [00:14:05] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:14:05] Speaker 1: Did you say goodbye to him? Yes. How did you do that? [00:14:08] Speaker 2: Uh, I gave him a hug and leaned in. [00:14:11] Speaker 1: And when you leaned in, did you notice anything? [00:14:14] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:14:15] Speaker 1: What did you notice? [00:14:16] Speaker 2: The smell of alcohol. Of beer. [00:14:21] Speaker 1: How would you describe that smell of that olive beer? [00:14:24] Speaker 2: Strong. Stronger than one drink. [00:14:29] Speaker 1: Have you spoken with Cooper or Lett since that day? [00:14:31] Speaker 2: I have not. [00:14:35] Speaker 1: During the investigation, did you sit down with members of the Connecticut State Police to provide a formal name to the state? [00:14:41] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:14:42] Speaker 1: And do you recall when that was? [00:14:44] Speaker 2: I do not. [00:14:51] Speaker 1: I may approach counsel. [00:14:52] Speaker 3: You may. Is this to refresh recollection? Yes, sir. [00:15:00] Speaker 1: Just take a look at this. See if there's anything in there that helps you refresh your recollection as to when that statement occurred. [00:15:11] Speaker 2: Okay, yep. [00:15:13] Speaker 1: Turn it over for me. Having reviewed that, does that help refresh your recollection as to when you gave that statement? Yes. Do you recall when that was? [00:15:20] Speaker 2: Uh, June of 2023. [00:15:23] Speaker 1: And you had mentioned that you were, uh, about to have surgery on your ankle. [00:15:28] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:15:28] Speaker 1: Was that part of the reason for the delay in giving the statement? [00:15:31] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:15:33] Speaker 1: And were you on any kind of pain medications following your surgery? [00:15:37] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:15:39] Speaker 1: When you were giving the statement to the police, were you, uh, did you tell them all the information that you had available all the time? [00:15:44] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:15:45] Speaker 1: And were you being open and honest with them throughout? [00:15:47] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:15:48] Speaker 1: Were you in any way, uh, with trauma? Were you given an opportunity to review that statement prior to, uh, it being submitted? [00:15:58] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:15:59] Speaker 1: And did you check it for accuracy? [00:16:01] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:16:01] Speaker 1: When you reviewed it for accuracy, did you notice anything missing? [00:16:05] Speaker 2: Mm, not, no. [00:16:07] Speaker 1: And were you given an opportunity to swap, to sign and swear to that statement? [00:16:11] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:16:15] Speaker 3: Good afternoon. Good afternoon. [00:16:27] Speaker 4: Just a few questions. You gave that statement on June 14th, 2023. Is that correct? [00:16:35] Speaker 2: That's correct. [00:16:36] Speaker 4: And you were the only one who gave a statement on that day. There were multiple police there on that day, is that correct? [00:16:46] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:16:48] Speaker 4: And your mother gave a statement on that day? [00:16:51] Speaker 2: I'm not sure. [00:16:53] Speaker 4: Did your father give a statement on that day? [00:16:56] Speaker 2: I'm not sure. [00:16:57] Speaker 4: How many police officers were there when you gave that statement? [00:17:01] Speaker 2: More than two. [00:17:03] Speaker 4: More than two? [00:17:04] Speaker 2: Mm-hmm. [00:17:04] Speaker 4: Three? [00:17:06] Speaker 2: Couldn't tell you. [00:17:06] Speaker 4: And that you don't know if you were separated in different rooms, your mother, your father, and you, with different police officers getting that statement? [00:17:19] Speaker 2: Can you repeat the question? [00:17:20] Speaker 4: Yes. There were multiple police officers there. At some point, your mother was there, your father was there, and you were there. [00:17:29] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:17:30] Speaker 4: June 14th. And at some point in time, the three of you were separated, and three police officers asked for a statement for each one of you. [00:17:40] Speaker 2: I'm not sure. A lot of personal knowledge. [00:17:43] Speaker 4: If you have personal knowledge. [00:17:45] Speaker 1: That's overruled. He can't know what's happening in another room. I mean, yeah. [00:17:48] Speaker 3: The question is, are you asking him where he was interviewed, and was there anybody with him when he was being interviewed? You can answer that. [00:17:56] Speaker 2: No, I spoke to a police officer. [00:18:01] Speaker 4: And you said there were two versions in the truck. [00:18:05] Speaker 2: Yes. [00:18:06] Speaker 4: So there were two times when your sister exited that vehicle, correct? His truck. [00:18:16] Speaker 3: But I'm confused. [00:18:18] Speaker 4: According to your version, he gave you two different versions, correct? [00:18:24] Speaker 2: Correct. [00:18:25] Speaker 4: And this is 6-14-23, correct? When you gave that statement. [00:18:33] Speaker 2: When I gave the statement, yes. [00:18:35] Speaker 4: It is now. Do you know what date it is today? [00:18:38] Speaker 2: Huh? [00:18:39] Speaker 4: Do you know what date today is? [00:18:41] Speaker 2: Yeah, the 29th. [00:18:43] Speaker 4: And as of the 29th, 26th. So today is what? October 29th, correct? [00:18:51] Speaker 2: Correct. [00:18:52] Speaker 4: 20-26. Do you know there are two who they drive? Do you know that your sister left that vehicle at two different times? Do you have personal knowledge? [00:19:05] Speaker 2: No. Yeah. What? I'm confused about what you're asking. [00:19:11] Speaker 4: Do you know today's day is 29th of October, 2026? So as far as today is day, you know that your sister, your own personal knowledge, left Cooper's vehicle at two different times. Do you know that? [00:19:29] Speaker 2: Do I know that she, I wasn't there? [00:19:33] Speaker 4: No, I understand you weren't there, but you have personal knowledge today that your sister left this truck on two different times that night. If you do, you know. If you don't know, you don't know. [00:19:49] Speaker 2: I mean, I guess I don't know because I wasn't there. Like, I'm kind of confused. [00:19:54] Speaker 4: If you have personal knowledge of the fact that your sister exited that vehicle at two separate times and each. Objection? This has been asked to answer. [00:20:04] Speaker 3: He doesn't know. [00:20:05] Speaker 4: You don't know. [00:20:06] Speaker 3: Yeah. [00:20:07] Speaker 4: Nothing further. [00:20:09] Speaker 3: I know. That's sustained. All right. Thank you, sir. You could step down. Just go.