5.Juan Torres — Direct/Cross
140 lines(In open court.)
THE COURT: State, you may call your first witness.
MR. CACCIATORE: The State will call Juan Torres.
COURT CLERK: Mr. Torres, raise your right hand to be sworn, please.
JUAN TORRES
being called as a witness, and having first been duly sworn,
testified as follows:
JUAN TORRES: Yes, ma'am.
THE COURT: Sir, good morning. You can be seated.
And once seated, if you'd state and spell your name for the record for us, please.
JUAN TORRES: Juan Torres, J-u-a-n T-o-r-r-e-s.
THE COURT: Thank you, sir.
You may inquire, Mr. Cacciatore.
DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. CACCIATORE:
MR. CACCIATORE: Good morning, sir.
JUAN TORRES: Good morning.
MR. CACCIATORE: Can you tell us how it is that you know Jorge Torres?
JUAN TORRES: He's my older brother.
MR. CACCIATORE: And how many siblings do you have?
JUAN TORRES: About six; six or seven.
MR. CACCIATORE: And how long has your family resided here in the Central Florida area?
JUAN TORRES: Twenty-plus years.
MR. CACCIATORE: And before residing in the Central Florida area, were you guys in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, Sir, and Massachusetts.
MR. CACCIATORE: Your brother, how often -- your brother, Jorge, that is, how often would you talk with him?
JUAN TORRES: Often. We would talk, I would say, on a weekly basis.
MR. CACCIATORE: And how far away did you live from Jorge?
JUAN TORRES: About five, ten minutes. Pretty close.
MR. CACCIATORE: Would you see him pretty often?
JUAN TORRES: I would try not to go over there too much.
MR. CACCIATORE: Okay. Who did -- who was Jorge living with at the time that he passed away?
JUAN TORRES: Sarah.
MR. CACCIATORE: And without getting into many details, what was your relationship like with Sarah?
JUAN TORRES: Not -- we didn't really have a relationship.
MR. CACCIATORE: Would it be fair to say you didn't get along with her?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. CACCIATORE: Back on February 23rd, 2020, did you have an occasion to talk to your brother on that day?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. CACCIATORE: And when you spoke with your brother on that day, did you FaceTime with him or did you speak with him over the phone?
JUAN TORRES: We talked on the phone.
MR. CACCIATORE: Was that phone to your ear or was that phone --
JUAN TORRES: It was on speaker.
MR. CACCIATORE: Okay. And who was present?
JUAN TORRES: My wife and my two kids.
MR. CACCIATORE: And without telling us anything that Jorge may have said to you, can you tell us what that -- what the topic of that conversation was?
JUAN TORRES: Just -- we were just talking like we normally do. Just -- he just calling me to check on me, basically.
MR. CACCIATORE: Now, in the background of that conversation on the evening of February 23rd, 2020, what did you hear?
JUAN TORRES: Sarah is in the background yelling.
MR. CACCIATORE: And you recognized her voice?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. CACCIATORE: What was she yelling about?
JUAN TORRES: Something about choking or how he choked her. I really don't -- that -- pretty much, that was it.
MR. CACCIATORE: About how long was this conversation that you had?
JUAN TORRES: Maybe ten minutes, I think it was.
MR. CACCIATORE: How did the conversation end?
JUAN TORRES: Because she was yelling in the background, so we just -- that was it. We just hung up.
MR. CACCIATORE: Did she sound upset?
JUAN TORRES: She sounded upset.
MR. CACCIATORE: Did you talk to your brother after that conversation?
JUAN TORRES: No. That was the last conversation I had with him.
MR. CACCIATORE: Have you ever spoken to Sarah since that conversation?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. CACCIATORE: I have no further questions.
THE COURT: Any cross-examination?
CROSS-EXAMINATION
BY MR. HENDERSON:
MR. HENDERSON: Good morning, sir.
JUAN TORRES: Good morning.
MR. HENDERSON: In the beginning when you started, it was hard for me to hear, but I know you were talking about other siblings, other family members that you had here. Could you repeat that for me, please?
JUAN TORRES: Here in Orlando, I have one sister and three brothers.
MR. HENDERSON: A sister and three brothers?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. Now, did your brother, Jorge Torres, did he ever stay with you at any time?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. HENDERSON: Would he ever live with you or any of -- I mean, not you, but any of your other siblings?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. All right. Sir, let's go back to this phone call that you were talking about that was on February 23rd of 2020, and that phone call was approximately 7:30; is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: All right. And who called who?
JUAN TORRES: He called me.
MR. HENDERSON: All right. And then you-all were talking; is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: All right. And when he called you, did you notice anything about his speech or his voice?
JUAN TORRES: No. He was fine.
MR. HENDERSON: Sounded normal?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. So he wasn't slurring his words or anything like that?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. HENDERSON: All right. By the way he talked or what he talked to you about, could you tell at that time if he had been consuming alcohol?
JUAN TORRES: No, because I knew when he would -- when he would drink.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. So in your opinion at that time, based on what you heard and what he was talking about, you do not believe he had been drinking alcohol?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. HENDERSON: Now, you said you heard Sarah?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: Is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: (Nods head.)
MR. HENDERSON: How did you know it was Sarah?
JUAN TORRES: I can tell her voice.
MR. HENDERSON: You recognized her voice?
JUAN TORRES: I recognize her voice.
MR. HENDERSON: So you could hear her; is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: All right. And you've heard Sarah speak before this, before that time; is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: And you've heard her speak on the phone before that time; is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: And you said that Sarah was yelling; is that correct, sir?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: And she was yelling about "he's choking me" or "tell him about choking me"?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. During that conversation and you heard her say that, did you ask your brother, What is she talking about?
JUAN TORRES: No, I did not.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. Did that statement -- at that time, did that statement surprise you?
JUAN TORRES: Not really.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. You've heard it before?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. HENDERSON: Based on Sarah's voice that you've heard, was there any indication to you that she had been drinking?
JUAN TORRES: No.
MR. HENDERSON: No? Okay. Sir, at some point your brother said he had to go; is that correct?
JUAN TORRES: Yes, sir.
MR. HENDERSON: And did he hang up on the conversation?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: And did he say bye and you say bye?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. Thank you, sir. I don't have any -- if I can confer?
THE COURT: You may, sir.
BY MR. HENDERSON:
MR. HENDERSON: Sir, other than siblings, do your -- your mother and father, do they live in this area?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: Were there times that Jorge would stay with them?
JUAN TORRES: Yes.
MR. HENDERSON: Okay. Thank you, sir.
No further questions.
THE COURT: Any redirect examination?
MR. CACCIATORE: No, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Can this witness be released?
MR. CACCIATORE: Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Defense?
MR. CACCIATORE: Actually, we'll keep him subject to re-call, Your Honor.
MR. HENDERSON: I would agree with that.
THE COURT: All right. Sir, you're released subject to re-call by either party. Thank you.
(Witness stepped down.)