By Oliver Camarena
Woodland, CA – The murder trial of Theo Kelso and Isaiah Berkley reconvened Thursday here in Yolo County Superior Court with Deputy District Attorney Richardson calling only two witnesses, both members of the Woodland Police Department, to provide routine, if not dramatic, evidence.
Kelso and Berkley are facing robbery, use of a firearm, and attempted murder charges, in a drug deal gone bad.
The first witness called was an officer who recounted the process of collecting some evidential photographs. She also talked about part of the process in towing the red Honda back to the police station for evidence.
The next witness is currently a records specialist for the police department, but at the time of the incident was working as a member of their crime scene investigator unit.
DDA Richardson produced three photographs that have been used throughout the trial to identify the red Honda in question and had this witness identify it.
She then went on to explain the process of taking vehicles to the police department to be processed. She said that she did take DNA samples and explained the process of acquiring the samples before moving on and explaining how they take evidence out of the vehicle to be bagged and processed.
The witness recognized all pieces of evidence shown to her by DDA Richardson, as she was the one who photographed and processed them. DDA Richardson frequently asked her if the pictures and evidence were a “fair and accurate representation,” to which she replied yes to all of them, confirming the authenticity of evidence.
The evidence ranged from pictures of the interior and exterior of the car, issued citations to Berkley, bullet casings, a backpack with marijuana, and a Wells Fargo bank card belonging to Kelso, including several other miscellaneous items.
During cross-examination, the defense counsel clarified the places in which the witness took the DNA samples as well as confirming that it is impossible for her to know how long the bank card belonging to Kelso had been there.
The trial will be ongoing through this and next week.
