Witness testimony begins Tuesday morning within the trial of a felon accused of killing a former skilled poker participant by dousing her with gasoline and setting her on hearth after sexually assaulting her.
Jeffery Morris, 62, is charged with first-degree premeditated homicide and felony homicide for the 2020 loss of life of Susie “Susie Q” Zhao, 30. Her burnt physique was present in a DNR leisure space parking zone in White Lake Township on July 13, 2020, and Morris was arrested 18 days later.
Felony homicide is homicide throughout the fee of one other felony. For Morris, the cost is linked to Zhao struggling second-degree felony sexual assault by the hands of Morris, in response to the prosecution.
The trial, held earlier than Oakland County Circuit Choose Martha Anderson, is anticipated to take roughly one week. Lead litigator John Skrzynski, prosecuting the case with assistant prosecutor Brandon Barlog, informed the courtroom he has 17 potential witnesses. Morris’ lawyer Michael McCarthy mentioned he hasn’t recognized any witnesses for the protection.
In his opening assertion Monday following a 3-hour jury choice course of, Skrzynski mentioned Zhao had schizophrenia and Morris used her to make his “pornographic fantasies come true after which burned her alive.”
He additionally informed the jury that cellular phone proof will probably be introduced to help the prosecution’s assertion that Morris bought gratification from brutal sexual exercise which he inflicted on Zhao earlier than killing her. Different cellular phone proof, Skrzynski mentioned, will probably be introduced to point out the place Morris and Zhao had been within the hours main as much as the slaying — together with on the Sherwood Motel in Waterford — and Morris’ location afterward.
Post-mortem outcomes present Zhao was alive when Morris lit her on hearth after which left her to die within the parking zone of the heavily-forested leisure space, Skrzynski mentioned. He mentioned Morris talked her into going to there, subjected her to a violent sexual act, “sprinkles fuel (on her) and lights her physique…then he leaves.”
McCarthy, in his opening assertion, informed the jury that Morris has been wanting ahead to his trial’s begin as “his day for vindication” after greater than two years within the Oakland County Jail. Jurors can anticipate to see “disturbing proof,” he mentioned, including that “there’s no query she died a horrible loss of life.” Nevertheless, McCarthy mentioned, the prosecution has no eyewitnesses to the slaying.
He informed the jury that by the tip of the trial, “affordable doubt will probably be sowed into the minds of all of you.”
At Morris’ preliminary examination in 2020, Andrew Hanosh, MD, deputy medical expert for Oakland County, testified that Zhao had been sexually assaulted and had in depth injury to her genital space. He additionally mentioned at the least 90 p.c of Zhao’s physique was burned, and that she was alive when set on hearth as indicated by soot in her airway and different findings.
Police have described Morris as a homeless transient with an in depth felony document. His previous run-ins with the legislation embrace a 1989 conviction for rape in Pontiac.
As an expert poker participant, Zhao had runs on The World Collection of Poker Major Occasions. She had dwell earnings of $224,671, in response to Herndon Mob, a poker database.
Zhao attended Bloomfield Hills’ Cranbrook Kingswood College and went on to review psychology at Northwestern College. She lived for a time in Los Angeles and was initially from Beijing, China, based mostly on her social media posts.
In response to police, Zhao moved again to Oakland County not lengthy earlier than she was killed, dividing her time between her dad and mom’ dwelling in Waterford and the Sherwood Motel.