Closing arguments are underway in the Texas murder trial of Kaitlin Armstrong, who is accused of killing her boyfriend’s love interest.
Jurors in the case will not hear from Armstrong herself because she refused to testify in her own defense on Wednesday.
Armstrong, 35, is charged with murder in the May 11, 2022, death of Moriah “Mo” Wilson, 25, a professional cyclist who dated Armstrong’s boyfriend after the two broke up but later reconciled.
Prosecutors came out swinging during closing arguments Thursday, telling jurors in an Austin, Texas, courtroom that Armstrong was not the “shrinking violet” her lawyers had described.
“This is your shrinking violet,” prosecutors said, showing a photo of Armstrong firing a gun at a shooting range.
Pro cyclist Moriah ‘Mo’Wilson was shot while staying at a friend’s apartment in Austin
Armstrong’s former partner Colin Strickland, left, had previously admitted that he had indeed had an affair with Moriah Wilson, pictured right
Jurors immediately heard surveillance video of Wilson screaming, followed by gunshots.
“The last thing she did on earth was scream in fear,” said prosecutor Rickey Jones.
“Then she runs to Costa Rica, gets plastic surgery and teaches yoga on the beach, while the Wilsons have to clean up the place.”
Armstrong fled Austin, Texas, to Costa Rica days after Wilson’s murder to avoid charges.
She left the country with a passport that belonged to her sister Christine.
U.S. Marshals eventually tracked her down to a remote beach town, where she was living under several aliases and had undergone a rhinoplasty and a brow lift.
The former yoga teacher attempted to escape from police custody a second time, days before her trial began.
‘She’s running from you and you and you. You are a jury of her peers and everyone gets his or her due in court,” Jones added.
“Kaitlin Armstrong enters the courtroom,” he tweeted News Nation reporter Alex Caprariello.
‘She is wearing a black pantsuit and a dark blue blouse. She doesn’t make eye contact with anyone when she comes in. She takes a seat at the defense table. Two rows behind her are her parents and her sister Christine.’
Armstrong is seen here arriving at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston as she was brought back from Costa Rica
“I’ve never seen so much evidence against one person in my life,” Jones said.
No cameras are allowed in the courtroom for the trial that began on October 30, except for opening and closing statements.
Defense attorney Rick Coffey is now speaking to jurors, describing Strickland as the “poster boy for Peter Pan syndrome,” describing him as a liar and womanizer.
“Mo Wilson wasn’t the first woman in Colin’s life,” Coffey said.
Armstrong faces up to 99 years in prison if convicted.