Posted: Feb 24, 2010 2:21 AM
Updated: Feb 24, 2010 2:21 AM
TUCSON - The first day of testimony wrapped up in the Ronald Young trial Tuesday. Young is accused of killing Tucson business man Gary Triano in 1996. Detectives say Triano's ex-wife, Pamela Phillips, hired Young to kill Triano so she could cash-in on his life insurance policy.
Opening statements began prosecutors taking a look back to November 1st, 1996.
"Most of his hand was missing, there were large damaged areas to his head and face. And Dr. Parks who was the medical examiner who responded to that scene made his determination that it was sudden and impactful death," prosecutor Bill McCollum said.
McCollum ended his opening statements with a recorded conversation between Young and Pamela Phillips.
"Would you sit in a woman's prison for murder... be really sad... you're going to be in prison for murder," Young said in the recording.
The defense also used recorded calls between the two.
"Ron Young is not guilty of conspiracy to commit murder. Ron Young is not guilty of first degree murder. What Ron did he is not proud of, was blackmail Pamela Phillips," defense attorney Joel Feinman said.
The defense also says the state has no evidence Young was even in Tucson the day Gary Triano died.
"The state's evidence against Ron is not seamless. It doesn't have cohesion," Feinman said.
The trial's first witness was at La Paloma that day and remembers what he heard.
"I still remember the member that I was talking with, that I was standing at the end of the bar. And I heard a very loud loud boom that shook the building. Never experienced anything like it at La Paloma," the witness said.
The trial continues Wednesday and is expected to last seven or eight weeks.
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