Ryan Widmer murder trial

Final day of testimony in Ryan Widmer murder trial

LEBANON, Ohio - The defense calls its last two witnesses in the third murder trial for Ryan Widmer. Closing arguments are set to begin on Monday.
The second mystery woman in the Ryan Widmer murder trial took the stand. The defense called on her to testify to go against the claims of the original mystery witness, Jennifer Crew.
Melissa Waller, 29, is a married woman from Washington. She contacted Ryan Widmer after watching the Dateline NBC program that aired in 2009. She had recorded the show on a DVR, but the recording stopped before the completion of the show. She did a Google search to find out more information and found the www.freeryanwidmer.com website.  She said she felt a connection to Ryan because her family experienced a sudden and unexpected death in the family when her sister-in-law died from Lupus. She made a donation to help with Ryan's legal expenses. She said Ryan sent her an e-mail thanking her for the donation. They began frequent communication, first, by text, and then by phone.
Waller made a music video tribute to Sarah Widmer that she posted on youtube.com . She got the text for the video from the eulogy letter that Ryan wrote for Sarah's funeral. It also included many pictures of the couple.
Attorneys focused on a particular day of phone calls. It was October 26, 2009. That was the same date that Jennifer Crew testified that Ryan called her that night and seemed drunk and upset. Crew said Ryan confessed to her that he killed Sarah. Defense Attorney Jay Clark presented the evidence of phone records that showed the dates and times that Ryan and Melissa Waller talked that night.  She said they talked for about an hour and a half during three separate calls. She said Ryan did not sound drunk or upset.
Clark asked, "In any time during the 116 minutes of your conversation that night was he drunk or intoxicated?"
Waller answered, "No."
Clark followed by asking, "Was he emotionally distraught or upset?"
Waller replied, "No."
Clark questioned, "Was he so upset or emotional that he could hardly speak?"
Waller said, "No."
On cross examination, prosecutor John Arnold asked Waller about the same topic.
Arnold stated, "You never had a phone call with him where he appeared to be intoxicated in your opinion. Correct?"
Waller agreed by saying, "Correct."
Arnold added, "Or upset in your opinion, correct?"
Waller said, "Correct."
Arnold finished by asking, "So you don't know what he would sound like when he was intoxicated?"
Waller hesitated, then said, "Correct."
Clark tried to show to the jury the differences between Waller and Crew by asking several questions about Waller that drew objections from the prosecution.
Clark asked, "Have you ever used a second or false social security number?"
Arnold objected.
Judge Neal Bronson sustained the objection.
Clark asked, "In the last 10 years have you been convicted of any crimes of dishonesty?"
Another objection came from Arnold, but it was overruled by the judge.
Waller answered, "No, I have not."
Clark asked, "In the last 10 years have you been convicted of any theft convictions?"
The prosecution objected once again.
What is expected to be the last witness for the defense is an expert in engineering, human behavior, and statistics. Dr. Chandler Phillips testified in the first two trials about the statistical odds of Sarah's death happening as a result of violence or a fight or struggle with Ryan. The doctor testified that, in his opinion, Ryan Widmer did not forcibly drown Sarah Widmer.  He said there were no defensive injuries and the bathroom showed no signs of any kind of disturbance or fight.
Closing arguments are expected to start on Monday.
Widmer is accused of killing his wife Sarah at their Hamilton Township home in 2008. He was convicted in his first trial, but the verdict was overturned due to juror misconduct. The second trial ended in a hung jury.
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