HOUSTON
The lingering question of whether Susan Wright will testify remains unanswered. She was in court all day Wednesday as her defense team built their case. There was one piece of evidence that appeared to interest the jury the most and that was video of her son.
Susan Wright saw her son, Bradley, in court and smiled. Bradley was shown on a video recorded in 2003 by Harris County Child Protective Services. At the time, Bradley was 4 years old. The court did not allow us to show the video, but in it, Bradley is coloring and is being interviewed by CPS.
Interviewer: Have you ever seen your dad hit your mom?
Bradley: No.
Interviewer: Did you ever see bruises on your mom?
Bradley: She has some on her legs.
Interviewer: How did she get them?
Bradley: I don't know.
The defense has spent this week calling witnesses to back up Susan Wright's claims of abuse by her husband, Jeffrey Wright. Susan Wright was convicted in 2004 of killing her husband by stabbing him nearly 200 times.
The jury also heard from a clinical psychologist who treated Susan Wright days after the murder. Dr. Jerome Brown did not testify at her earlier trial. But on Wednesday, he testified Susan Wright, at the time of the murder, was floating in and out of reality. At times, says Dr. Brown, she was fearful Jeffrey Wright would come back and get her even though he was dead.
"She kept looking at the door and looking at the vent, the air conditioning vent in the room, and saying things like, 'Is he out there?'"said Dr. Jerome Brown.
If Susan Wright takes the stand, our legal expert says it would happen later than sooner.
"She doesn't want to conflict with what other people are saying and if she goes on first and they tell a different story than her, she'd have to come back. So basically she's sitting back waiting to hear what everyone else says," said KTRK Legal Analyst Joel Androphy.
If Susan Wright testifies, our legal expert says the stakes are high. If it can be proven Susan Wright killed her husband in 'sudden passion,' she could get as little as probation. However, if the jury does not believe the sudden passion defense, she faces a maximum of life in prison.
Susan Wright's lawyers said they still have not decided to put her on the stand. Eyewitness News will be there if Susan Wright takes the stand and tells her own story to the jury.
Battered women syndrome expert takes stand
Susan Wright did not take the stand this morning in her resentencing trial, but an expert on battered women did.
Dr. Toby Meyers, an expert on battered women syndrome, took the stand Wednesday morning. It was the prosecution's turn to question her. They questioned Susan Wright's claims of abuse by trying to prove Susan Wright did not report abuse to authorities prior to her killing her husband Jeffrey Wright.
The prosecution this morning told the jury five days before she killed her husband, she wrote a check to go to college. The prosecution says if Jeffrey Wright exercised emotional and economic control then why would Susan Wright write a check.
"If you do a retrospective look on where there is a killing, you see things mounting. And I believe, but I don't know for sure, but it's my belief, that she did this because she was planning on getting out," said Dr. Toby Meyers.
The defense says they plan to rest their case as early as tomorrow.
