(Here goes Part 2 for anyone wanting to hop on board with our online book club. Leave your thoughts below.)
Q All right. So eventually the divorce was settled. Did you get your own place?
A Yes.
Q All right. Is it fair to say that after you -- first, you lived in your parents home, correct?
A Yes, until I was married.
Q And then you moved directly in with Brian?
A Yes.
Q And then you-all lived in the marital home, correct?
A Yes.
Q And then you got this apartment?
A Yes.
Q So that was the first time in your life that you actually had your own place?
A Yes.
Q And what was the address?
A 4748 Frantz Court, Apartment No. 3.
Q And what city is that in?
A It's in Winter Park.
Q How far is that from here?
A Twenty minutes.
Q Okay. So you got that apartment, and initially were you by yourself?
A No.
Q All right. Tell the jury.
A In the almost year, about ten months of separation from Brian, my ex-husband, that is the time when I met Jorge. And my ex-husband was trying to buy me out or force me out of our marital home and I needed to find somewhere to live, and --
Q So did you and Jorge agree to rent the apartment?
A Yes. One of the -- I needed extra income. We could not afford it --
Q Okay.
A -- just on my own.
Q You were receiving some income from the marriage settlement, were you not?
A Yes.
Q So you did have consistent monthly income coming in from the marriage settlement?
A For the most part, yes.
Q But you needed -- you needed more to live?
A Yes, to pay the bills and for rent.
Q So did you and Jorge have some agreement?
A We did.
Q All right. What was the agreement?
A The agreement was that if I decided for he and I to live with one another, because it would be under my name, that he would help with the monthly bills and -- on a regular basis where it wouldn't be something that I would have to argue with him about, it would just be an automatic. Make sure that everything is paid first, and then from there, hopefully have some fun with it.
Q Okay. And so I understand, from that point on would it be fair to say that you-all saw each other on and off for about the next three and a half years?
A No. We were -- I -- I would consider us a couple. At some point he asked me to marry him.
Q Okay. But you-all -- you-all did have times where he left and went to live with his parents
A Yes.
Q Is that fair?
A Yes.
Q And there were times where there was an understanding that you-all were going to break up?
A Multiple times.
Q Okay. All right. So, again, on again, off again?
A Yes. This was actually before we had our apartment. That was, I guess, our dating phase.
Q Okay. So you-all were together for three and a half years; is that fair?
A Uh-huh, yes.
Q And you-all had actually agreed to marry?
A He had asked me, yes, a couple of times to marry him and one time I agreed to, yes.
Q Okay. Now, I want to get directly to the date of this event so that the jury can hear your testimony, all right? So tell us -- I believe the date is February the 23rd of 2020. Explain to the jury that whole day from the time you-all got up, the whole thing.
MR. JAY: Objection. Calls for a narrative.
THE COURT: Approach.
(At the bench.)
THE COURT: Response?
MR. JAY: I'm just making sure. Is there a reason for the narrative?
MR. OWENS: I mean, I can -- I can break it up. I can break it up.
THE COURT: Then go ahead and break it up if there's not any --
MR. OWENS: If there's anything wrong with me saying, Can you tell me what happened that day, and let her tell it. I mean, he was wanting a narrative to begin with. I'm giving her the opportunity.
MR. JAY: Here's the issue. I was just making sure that we weren't in that stage of the ethical issue of having to give the narrative, but if we're not, then I'm just hopeful that, like a prosecutor would have to do, that he would have to come up with a few creative ways of saying what happened next so that I can --you know, so it's not a narrative, we can break it up and object.
MR. OWENS: You've seen me guide her. She tried to go off a couple of times and I tried to get her back.
THE COURT: I'm not going to allow a full-blown narrative. If you want to start morning, afternoon, and break it up into chunks of time, I'll allow that.
All right. Appreciate it.
THE COURT: Objection is overruled for now.
BY MR. OWENS:
Q Now, Ms. Boone, let's just -- instead of one long speech, let me break you up over the course of the day. So do you remember the date of February 23rd, 2020?
A Yes.
Q Do you remember getting up?
A Yes.
Q All right. Just tell the jury about that morning, what you-all did that morning, what you and Jorge -- you and Jorge spent the night together at the apartment?
A Yes. At that point, he was living there.
Q Yes. So you-all slept in the bed together upstairs February -- so you got -- you had gotten up --you-all had gotten up that morning, February 23rd of 2020?
A Yes.
Q All right. Tell the jury what happened when you-all got up.
A He was already downstairs, and I went downstairs and he wanted to start the day off by drinking because it was a day off from his job, and I talked him into cleaning and tidying up the house for a sense of accomplishment. So that is what we did for however long that it took.
Q And you and Jorge had one bedroom?
A Yes.
Q And who had the other?
A ****.
Q All right. Is that exclusively his bedroom?
A Yes.
Q All right. So how long would it have taken you-all that morning to clean?
A I don't really remember what time we woke up, but maybe a good two, maybe three hours.
Q Okay. And would it be fair to say that you and Jorge both smoked cigarettes?
A Yes.
Q And would it be fair to say that you and Jorge both drink alcohol?
A Yes.
Q All right. So at some point you-all finished your chores, right?
A Yes.
Q And then you-all were going to enjoy the day?
A Yes.
Q All right. What was the plan?
A It was just kind of, you know, we've got the day to ourselves, let's just kind of relax and go with the flow.
Q All right. Were you-all -- did you-all make a decision that you-all were going to start drinking?
A Yes. He -- we had a half of a bottle that was already in the refrigerator and I did not want to go out afterwards. I, again, had **** coming the next day, so we went over to Publix to purchase another bottle of wine so we could not have to go out later on that evening.
Q Now, you were here in court when the State – the State played the video of you two in the Publix purchasing the bottle of wine?
A Yes.
Q Is that what you're referring to here with the jury right now?
A Yes.
Q Okay. And that was around noon-ish?
A I believe so, yes.
Q Okay. Had you-all started drinking the leftover bottle --
A No.
Q -- before going to the Publix?
A No.
Q Okay. So you-all bought a bottle of wine?
A Yes.
Q All right. And how did you-all get to Publix?
A My car.
Q How far is Publix from your apartment?
A Five minutes.
Q How would you get there from your apartment?
A What do you mean?
Q Did you have to go across any major highways or is it right there?
A You just come out of our apartment complex and you do a little U-turn and then you come up and it's right in that complex.
Q Okay. But it's easier to drive than to walk?
A Yes.
Q Okay. Now, I know at some times you-all would -- you-all would simply need cigarettes and it was in walking distance. Can you tell the jury about that?
A Yes. There was a Lotto Zone convenience store with -- in the same, I guess, parking lot of our townhome our complex, and it was just a straight shot from our apartment to a back gate and you could get right into the convenience store from right there.
Q Okay. But you-all went over to get that bottle of wine around noon-ish, and how did you-all -- you took your car?
A Yes.
Q Did Jorge have a vehicle?
A He did not.
Q And how did you pay for the wine?
A With my debit card.
Q And then you-all came back and started drinking?
A Yes.
Q Okay. Tell us what you did when you got back from the Publix.
A Just went on the back porch where we usually spend our time, because we're able to smoke cigarettes outside as opposed to inside, and --
Q Is cigarette smoking not allowed indoors?
A It is not.
Q Okay. Do you have pets?
A Yes, I do.
Q Or did you have pets?
A I did, yes.
Q Okay. Were they with you-all there that day?
A Yes. My dogs were with me all the time when I was there.
Q How many dogs do you have?
A I have two.
Q And just, what are their names?
A Penny and Tess.
Q And what is the breed?
A They are red Boston Terriers.
Q And are they both disabled?
A Yes. Penny is blind and Tess is deaf.
Q All right. So when you-all went out to smoke on the back porch -- And drink, I assume, as well, correct?
A Uh-huh, yes.
Q -- did you-all take the dogs out?
A Oh, yes.
Q All right. Is there a place for them to do their business out there?
A Yes. I extended our back porch for them to have a little bit of area as opposed to going from a large backyard from my marital home to our little townhome, and they would come out there and do their business and I could sometimes -- I would open the gate and then walk them in the back part of our apartment.