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(NewsDakota.com) – Defendant Janelle Cave took the witness stand Tuesday afternoon in the murder trial against her in Stutsman County District Court.
Jurors also heard about two hours worth of audio from interviews Cave gave with investigators on July 8, 2011.
The 22-year-old Cave and 34-year-old Leron Howard are charged with murder and criminal conspiracy in the death of Ahmed. Howard’s trial is scheduled for August.
Ahmed’s body was found in a ditch near Spiritwood on April 30, 2011. He was stabbed and suffered blunt force trauma to his head, which the state forensic examiner testified Monday was the likely cause of death. He said the stab wounds by themselves were survivable.
Cave said that Howard struck Ahmed outside her residence in the early-morning hours of April 30, although she did not see the altercation. She came out of the residence to see Ahmed unconscious on the ground across the street, and Howard with his hands in the air saying ‘I barely hit him.'”
She says Howard dragged Ahmed across the street and put him in the backseat of her car. Later, near where Ahmed’s body was found, Cave said Howard stabbed Ahmed.
During questioning by her attorney, Cave said she was afraid of Howard after seeing what he did to Ahmed. She said Howard did not threaten her, but she felt intimidated when he asked her to act normal, saying “I felt if he would have found out if I said something, he would potentially hurt me or my family.”
In her first interview on July 8, Cave said she did not see Howard stab Ahmed. Later in the day she asked to speak with investigators again, and in the second interview told what she said was the truth regarding the stabbing. During audio recordings played for the jury, Cave said Howard pulled a semi-conscious Ahmed out of the car and asked her if he should kill Ahmed. She said she replied, “No, there’s no reason to kill him.”
The prosecution will get a chance to cross-examine Cave on Wednesday morning. She is expected to be the last witness called in the case, which could go to the jury for deliberation on Wednesday.