OTTUMWA —
Opening arguments Thursday morning marked the start of Seth Techel's trial on charges of murder and non-consensual termination of a human pregnancy.
Techel is accused of shooting his wife, Lisa, in May 2012. She was four months pregnant at the time. The courtroom was crowded, but not packed. Most observers sat on the side used by Lisa Techel's family. Fewer were on the side with Seth Techel's family.
Techel watched prosecutor Andy Prosser as he read the charges to jurors and began his opening arguments, but showed little reaction. Prosser said Techel wanted out of his marriage, but did not want to divorce his wife for fear of alienating her father, a sheriff's deputy, and hurting his career prospects.
According to Prosser, Techel hid his relationship with another woman, which the defense says was not an affair. He used secret phones and meetings. He said he would tell Lisa he wanted out. The day before Lisa died, he said he had in a text: "She got mad, then sad, then I slept on a couch. All she wants from me is for me to be there tonight when she packs."
Lisa was killed by a shotgun blast. Prosser said Techel made no effort to save her after firing. He mocked Techel's pet name of "Mr. Resuscitator," given to him by the woman with whom he had the relationship.
"The defendant lifted not one finger to save the life of his dying wife and child, while he waited 18 minutes to call police," he said.
As Prosser spoke, his phone rang. A timer had gone off. Prosser turned it off, paused and looked at the jury. The timer, he said, was set for 18 minutes.
"I have been talking as long as it took for Seth Techel to call 9-1-1," he said.
Prosser said Techel went to great lengths to continue the affair, hide his communications, and then hide his involvement in his wife's murder. He said the defense claim that an "unknown homicidal maniac," picked the Techel house at random, found a weapon inside and killed Lisa is ridiculous.
Defense attorney Steven Gardner attacked the prosecution's case during his opening statement. He spoke slowly and deliberately, telling jurors the state's opening focused on emotionally loaded content, not the facts of the case.
In fact, said Gardner, prosecutors spent 35 minutes talking about love, lust and jealousy, compared to only "12 minutes talking about what they claim to be the facts."
Gardner called the prosecution's 18-minute time frame "pure speculation." Techel didn't look at a clock when he found his wife's body, so he estimated when he found her.
So prosecutors arrived at 18 minutes "solely based on the outer edges of when Seth Techel said."
Gardner played part of the 9-1-1 call from the Techel home. Techel told the operator, "I need an ambulance, my wife's been shot."
Gardner promised jurors will hear the full call and asked them to consider whether Techel, during that call, sounds like someone who has just committed a cold-blooded murder.
Evidence will show Lisa Techel's death was almost immediate. "You will hear from the state medical examiner that Lisa would have died, probably, in a matter of seconds," Gardner said.
Both sides spent part of their opening statements talking about Techel's first trip back to the home, made with his father, Doug Techel. (Disclosure: Doug Techel is the Courier's circulation director.) Prosecutors say Seth Techel made a beeline for where the shotgun was found in the yard, evidence he wanted to see whether it was found. The defense says Techel was drawn to the site by paint on a tree, which was used by investigators to mark locatons.
The jury panel has nine men and six women. That's more than the 12-member jury, but alternates are not told who they are until the end of testimony, so that they are as focused on the case as the jurors.
Before jurors even got to the courtroom, they were the subject of discussions between the attorneys and the judge. A strong winter storm is forecast to move into the area this afternoon and all sides were concerned about how it might impact the trial.
Brown said it was in everyone's best interests to not have the jurors distracted.
"The last thing we want the jury worrying about is the storm, children issues," he said.
Brown had spoken with the defense and that both felt it would be a good idea to end Thursday's session early and start Friday's late. Wilson agreed.
"I don't like doing that ... but I don't want to put anyone's safety at risk," he said.
Wilson informed jurors of the plans when they entered later.
"I suspect that each of you may have been thinking about that," Wilson said as a couple jurors nodded.
The court plans to resume the trial Friday afternoon.
Local News
Related Photos
-
Prosecutors Andy Prosser (left) and Scott Brown compare notes before the start of Seth Techel's murder trial Thursday morning.
-
Defense attorneys Steven Gardner (left) and Robert Box discuss opening statements before the start of Seth Techel's murder trial Thursday.
February 21, 2013
10:45 a.m. trial update: Opening statements underway
- Local News
-
-
Missing teen located, returned home
SIGOURNEY — The 13-year-old girl reported missing from Hedrick on Monday has been found. The teenager, Hunter Kopp, was located at a Sigourney residence around 10 p.m. Wednesday, said Keokuk County Sheriff Deputy Jeff Runnells. "The officers last nig
-
Stabbing trial pushed back
OTTUMWA -- The trial of an Ottumwa man accused of stabbing another man to death has been pushed back. Twenty-year-old Brandon Seim was charged in November 2011, when he was 18, with the stabbing death of Andy Madren, 34. When officers arrived at the
- Downtown beautification supplemented with utility vehicle OTTUMWA -- A new utility vehicle will soon be zooming around downtown, making sure the rights-of-way remain in pristine condition. At Tuesday's city council meeting, council members approved the purchase of a city-owned vehicle to maintain downtown l
-
Ottumwa man charged with indecent exposure
OTTUMWA -- A man has been charged with indecent exposure after passers-by noticed a teenage girl in distress Monday afternoon. Angelo Nick Orfanos, 28, of Ottumwa, was charged with indecent exposure Wednesday as a result of an Ottumwa Police Departme
- Tornado creates local questions OTTUMWA — If there's a tornado in Wapello County, where would I go afterwards? It isn't hard to understand why local callers are asking Wapello County Emergency Management that question. Josh Stevens, emergency coordinator for the county, said since
- Correction Due to misinformation provided to the Courier, the incorrect time was published for the Eldon Memorial Day services. The city of Eldon will hold its annual Memorial Day services at 10:30 a.m. Monday at City Park across from the BP station.
- Clarification ELDON -- It looked even worse in the light of day. A Wapello County farm damaged by high winds in the storm this week, neighbors had first believed, suffered some damage. But the situation is even worse, Eldon's mayor informed the Courier, saying tha
- A waiting game OTTUMWA — Family and friends of a hospitalized toddler are waiting for answers, as are local police. On April 22, officers found a 2-year-old boy unresponsive at his home in the 100 block of East Woodland Avenue. He was immediately transported to Ott
-
Training goes beyond fires
OTTUMWA — Our firefighters aren't afraid to run into a fire, said one official, but when it comes to a Hazmat situation, they walk. On Wednesday, the Ottumwa Fire Department was on the grounds of Cargill Meat Solutions, training as realistically as p
-
Hedrick teen missing
OTTUMWA — A 13-year-old Hedrick girl has been reported missing. Hunter Kopp, 13, was last seen leaving the Hedrick area (her hometown) around 6 p.m. Monday. Kopp is a white female, 130 pounds, 5-feet-7-inches, with shoulder-length brown hair and blue
- More Local News Headlines
-
Missing teen located, returned home
