Prosecution rests its case after witness testifies about Dabate's location the morning his wife was killed

May 5—VERNON — In the final day of the state's case in the trial of Richard Dabate, an FBI forensic examiner testified that he found no evidence to show Dabate left his property the morning of his wife's death.

Emanuel Hatzikostas made that statement based on GPS data from Dabate's cellphone, which consistently placed him in the area of his home on 7 Birch View Drive between 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on Dec. 23, 2015.

That contradicts what Dabate told state police in an interview later that day, when he stated that he drove partway to work before turning around and arriving back home around 9 a.m. to find an intruder in his bedroom closet. His wife Connie arrived home within a few minutes and ran into the basement to get Dabate's gun, and was shot by the intruder, Dabate told state police.

Hatzikostas said he reviewed about 60 GPS location points that Dabate's phone collected during that time frame and all were in the area of his home, with a certain degree of inaccuracy.

For example, an overall view of all the GPS points from the phone showed only 1 or 2 exactly in the location of the house. Others showed the location as in the yard, or within a couple hundred meters.

It would not be the case that a GPS point was inaccurate by miles, Hatzikostas said.

Hatzikostas had also examined Connie Dabate's cellphone location data, which recorded her traveling to the YMCA for a workout class that ultimately was cancelled. The data showed Connie left the house around 8:45 and arrived at the YMCA about 10 minutes later, then left again by 9:08 a.m. and got back home around 9:19.

Those times were corroborated by surveillance photos of Connie's car arriving and leaving the YMCA, and by the fact that her phone disconnected from her car around 9:19 as well, Hatzikostas said.

In addition to data about their locations, Hatzikostas's examination of the couple's phones collected information about text messages, emails, calls, internet activity and other data.

With that, Hatzikostas was able to testify that Connie and Richard Dabate were using their phones at various times during the morning to go on Facebook, make calls, and send messages. The records from Connie's phone showed that she had a phone call at 9:18 a.m., shared a video on Facebook at 9:42 a.m., and sent a message on Facebook at 9:46 a.m. She never read messages that she received at 9:50, according to Hatzikostas.

During that same morning, Dabate's phone was playing music through its speakers for about an hour, from 9:04 to 10:18, he said. The music likely paused at that point as Dabate called 911, Hatzikostas said.

The examination recorded all the data from the phones, meaning Hatzikostas was able to look back at past usage as well, and on Connie's phone, he located emails she had written about divorcing her husband.

In the summer of 2015, Connie Dabate sent an email to herself, addressed to her husband about how she no longer felt fulfilled by their relationship, laying out how they could handle the financial aspects of divorce and sharing time with their children.

Hatzikostas read aloud the email that Connie had sent to herself, in which it was evident that she had spent time thinking about the implications of a divorce.

Connie expressed regret for having to write such an email, but said she thought they both realized the connection they once had was gone. She hoped to find someone who would love and respect her, she said. She was truly sorry that things didn't work out, and wished him happiness in the future.

Connie also addressed how they would deal with the divorce, in terms of finances and custody of their two children. She suggested fixing up their home on Birch View Drive and selling it. She expected a profit of about $180,000 after paying off the mortgage and said they could split it evenly.

At first though, Connie suggested Dabate could continue living at the house while she moved in with her parents, and every four days they could switch having the kids. However, she wanted to spend the weekends at the house alone with the kids when it was her turn, so he would have to find somewhere else to stay on those days.

The couple also owned a rental property, and Connie said they could hold on to that until after settling the divorce. They could get another $140,000 from that sale as well, she wrote.

It wasn't the first email Connie wrote on the topic of divorce. The examination found another that she had written in November 2014 and sent to her husband. In that email she included a link to an article about mistakes to avoid when divorcing with children. She thought Dabate might be interested in the information, Connie wrote.

Prosecutor Matthew Gedansky concluded his case shortly before 4 p.m. Wednesday. His last witness was former state police Detective Jeffrey Payette, the lead investigator on the case, who had been called to testify several times.

Gedansky had originally planned to spend more time questioning Payette but was stymied by defense objections.

The judge ruled that he couldn't present observations Payette had made while at the crime scene, such as explanations for why he believed blood hadn't dripped a certain direction on Dabate's legs, or what he believed Dabate was doing at certain times.

Judge Corinne Klatt also ruled at the end of the day that Gedansky couldn't question Payette in a way that allowed him to summarize the facts in the case. Klatt said that would amount to him characterizing the testimony of other witnesses and would be improper.

In the end Gedansky asked a few questions about Dabate's arrest and processing, and whether he was right or left handed.

Gedansky's final question concerned the metal folding chair found resting on Dabate's back as he lay motionless face down on his kitchen floor. Carrying the chair over to his table, he lifted it up and asked Payette if the detective had weighed it. He had. It weighed nine pounds, Payette said.

After the state rested, defense lawyer Trent LaLima quickly motioned for an acquittal on all three charges of murder, tampering with evidence, and making a false statement, arguing that Gedansky had failed to meet the burden of proof. Klatt rejected the motion.

Gedansky said he proved that Dabate had a motive to murder his wife in the form of a pregnant girlfriend, money issues, and mounting pressure.

Dabate was a ticking time bomb, and he went off on Dec. 23, 2015, Gedansky said.

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