Jury hears new details in day 2 of trial of former Philly officer who fatally shot Eddie Izizarry
The Brief
Demonstrators gathered outside Philadelphia's Justice Center calling for the former Philadelphia cop charged in the death of Eddie Irizarry to be sent to prison.
Meanwhile, inside the courtroom, day two of the third-degree murder trial for Mark Dial evolved. The trial comes nearly two years after Dial fatally shot Irizarry during a traffic stop in Kensington.
CENTER CITY - Closing arguments are expected Wednesday in the murder trial of former Philadelphia police officer Mark Dial charged in the killing of Eddie Irizarry in Kensington.
What we know
Mark Dial sat next to his defense team on the third floor of the city's Criminal Justice Center, his head down, sometimes wiping away tears in the second day of his murder trial.
Charged in the August 2023 shooting death of Eddie Irizarry, as he sat in his car in Kensington, Dial, his supporters seated behind him in court, listened to audio recordings of the shooting, and looked away as bloody scenes of the interior of Irizarry's car were shown to the jury.
Dial's high-profile defense team argue Dial fired several times into Irizarry's, vehicle, in a shooting caught on police body cameras, believing the 27-year-old had a gun when it was a knife with a pistol-like-handle he was holding.
Jurors were shown that knife on Tuesday and they heard a prosecution witness claim Dial's approach to Irizarry's vehicle was flawed, endangering himself and leading to the gunfire.
What they're saying
Outside court, demonstrators held signs and demanded the fired ex-cop be sent to prison for the killing of Eddie Irizarry. A protester said, "Maybe he thought he could get away with it because Eddie is Puerto Rican or because it happened in Kensington or because we know in this country having a badge is a license to shoot first and ask questions later."
Back in the courtroom, the defense pounded the prosecution's expert witness on policing, pressing Dr. Mark Edward Brown, of South Carolina, to admit he would have fired and taken cover if he believed a gun was pointed at him.
What's next
The defense is expected to offer its own expert on policing Wednesday morning. The jury would then receive instructions from the judge and begin deliberations.
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