The third day of the Jordan Graham trial wrapped-up with testimonies by two FBI agents that helped piece together the events of July 7, the day that Graham is accused of murdering her newlywed husband Cody Johnson by pushing him off a cliff near "the loop" parking lot at Glacier National Park.

THE CONFESSION

Agent Stacy Smiedala testified about an interview he conducted with Graham on July 16, during which she broke down crying and confessed "I pushed him and I took off" after he showed her a picture of her husband's vehicle pulling into the park.

The jury listened to a recording of that confession, which contained statements by Graham that her "emotions were running high," and that she "felt like a child" after trying to discuss her "wedding blues" with Johnson.

Graham rehearsed the fateful fight with Smiedala (not recorded) during which she reportedly told him Johnson had grabbed her "left arm to left arm" after she turned during an argument. She claims to have pulled her hand away and "pushed him with both hands in the back" in one continuous motion.

When asked by Smiedala in the interview if she had given a "false statement," during prior interviews with authorities Graham clear responds "yes."  These false statements include a story about friends from out of town taking Johnson for a "joyride" in a dark car.

It is important to note that, to accuse Graham of first or second degree murder, the prosecution must prove that Graham had pushed Johnson with "malicious intent" and that the incident was not an accident as the defense claims.

PHONE AND TEXT MESSAGE HISTORY DISCUSSED

The second FBI interview was a play-by-play of phone activity conducted by Graham and her now-deceased husband Cody Johnson while en route to  Glacier National Park and back.

Intelligence Analyst Nathan Allred testified that the cell phones of both Graham and Johnson had transferred data multiple times to nearby cell towers through evidence he had gathered from Verizon.

The RTT  (Real Time Transfer) data gathered from Verizon showed texts sent from Kalispell at 8:16 p.m. on July 8. The data transfers (these can be text messages, updates, e.t.c.) continue at until around 9:08 when the car drew close the entrance of Glacier National Park.

There is a long pause in data transfers (presumably while the Johnson and Graham are out of service area) until calls and texts begin again at 10:47. It is presumed that this pause time, Graham and Johnson are in the park having a discussion that (if Graham's testimony is to be believed) ends abruptly when Johnson is pushed by Graham in the back during an argument and he falls to his death.

During the trial, the jury was shown some of the text message correspondence between Graham and a friend. The text messages sent by Graham as she drove back to Kalispell (not all were revealed) showed nothing about the recent death of Cody Johnson. Below are a few examples:

  • Hey the coupon thing is canceled Friday, it will be the Friday after the party
  • Dude, you better work on those sweet moves although you are pretty amazing already!!
  • Ya, I know I'm a pretty good dancer. I"m the better dancer I know!
  • I can dance to any song
  • We got this in the bag!!! We will be amazing at the luau too!!!

Of note during the trial was a voice call placed on Cody Johnson's phone at approximately 1:00 a.m., however because the call lasted less than a second, it was impossible to determine who the call was placed to.

The analysis by FBI agent Allred also covered the time it would take to drive from Kalispell to "the loop" parking lot near where Johnson's body was later recovered. Allred showed multiple routes out of town, estimating that the longest trip (presumably going the speed limit) would have taken one and a half hours.

The trial begins again on December 12, at 8:30 a.m.

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