The fentanyl-related murder trial of Jacob Blankenship continued Monday in Wichita Falls, with the second week of proceedings beginning in court.
Blankenship is accused in connection with the overdose death of 20-year-old Zoe Brewer. On Monday morning, the state called two expert witnesses, including investigator Brayden Little, according to court testimony.
Little testified to findings from Snapchat conversations between Blankenship and Brewer, including a conversation prosecutors said took place on the day Brewer died. According to testimony, Brewer asked Blankenship to let her know when he arrived at her house and which window to approach.
Defense attorneys questioned Little about the reliability of Snapchat as evidence, noting that the app deletes messages after a certain time period. The defense argued that the available record may not capture the full conversation between Blankenship and Brewer.
The state rested its case shortly before 11 a.m. Monday.
The defense opened its case in the afternoon. Lead defense attorney Todd Greenwood called toxicologist and pharmacologist Korin Leffler to the stand, and presented testimony that multiple drugs — including prescription medication — appeared in Brewer's toxicology report.
Greenwood argued that quantities of some medications were not listed in the toxicology report, which he said is significant because, according to Leffler's testimony, people can overdose on prescription medication. Leffler did not testify whether Brewer had a lethal amount of fentanyl in her system.
The trial is ongoing. All individuals charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.