Baby Kate Trial: Cell Phone Testimony of MSP James MacDonald (Ariel's Phone)

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On April 24, 2012, the prosecution called their first witness after lunch, a Michigan State Police trooper named James MacDonald, who had some background in dealing with cell phone data.  His testimony dealt exclusively with Ariel Courtland's cell phone. 

 

On Tuesday July 5, investigators related that Courtland's cell phone was left in Phillips' silver, 1998 Oldsmobile Intrigue when he allegedly took off with Kate.  The phone is described as black with a light purple trim ring around the display window.  It is an HTC Desire Model ADR627SA cell phone.  The phone is still missing, and here was a police sketch of that phone they released to the media:

 

 

Although it looks more like this when you look up that model phone in the catalogs (minus the purple trim: 

 

 

What struck me as strange in Mr. MacDonald's testimony was that Ms. Courtland had apparently 'replaced' the phone with another device (presumably via the phone company that very afternoon) within an hour of when Sean called the police, and likely before she knew that her phone wasn't now in Sean's car. 

Another odd part of his testimony was that he was only supplied with records of Ariel's phone after 12:01 PM on the day Kate went missing.  One would think that Ariel, being one of only two witnesses to seeing Kate alive on June 29,2011, would have her phone traced back even further to alleviate any possibility that she may have went somewhere with Baby Kate herself earlier that day. 

This may have gotten us closer to the truth, but using it would not further the prosecution's case against Sean, at least at first look.  However, if that data was looked at by other investigators, and it showed no odd use or movement by that phone, why wasn't that data provided to enhance the somewhat shaky credibility of Ariel Courtland?    

 

 

 

NEXT UP:  An up close and personal look at Sean's shoes before we hear the testimony of three experts on conclusions fostered by those shoes he may have been wearing that day. 

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Two of the phone numbers being called were Alaina Campbell (the 690 number), and Dan Ruba (the 843 number) which had been established in prior testimony.