A mother’s agony: What Allyson Phillips has endured during the trial of the man accused of killing her daughter, Laken Riley
By Holly Yan, CNN
Athens, Georgia (CNN) — For Laken Riley’s mother, the anguish of losing a child in a gruesome attack is amplified by the horror of hearing details about the final minutes of her daughter’s life.
But a relentless pursuit of justice has brought Allyson Phillips to the front row of a Georgia courtroom’s cold, barren benches each day of suspect Jose Ibarra’s murder trial.
The prosecution rested Tuesday, and the defense will resume calling witnesses Wednesday. The case could go to the judge for a decision later in the day.
Phillips, her husband John, and Riley’s father, Jason Riley, have sat through hours of agonizing testimony and evidence.
The suspect, an undocumented migrant from Venezuela, has shown little emotion throughout the trial. A few yards away, Riley’s mother has openly wept numerous times – including when an officer testified about missed calls between Riley and her mother the morning Riley died.
These are some of the most intense revelations from the trial so far:
Surveillance video captures Riley’s final jog
Riley, a former cross-country runner, was last seen alive jogging near the University of Georgia’s Oconee Forest Park the morning of February 22.
She was a student at UGA until spring 2023, before switching to Augusta University’s College of Nursing in the same city of Athens.
UGA surveillance video shows Riley jogging with her phone in her left hand – a device that would play a key role in the trial.
Phillips sobbed as she watched footage of her daughter the day she died.
Hours after Riley left for her run, the surveiilance footage shows two of her roommates and their dog searching for their missing friend near a trailhead. They leave about 20 minutes later, with Riley nowhere to be found.
Riley fought her attacker, prosecution says
Forensic evidence shows Riley “fought for her life” and “fought for her dignity,” before she died, the prosecution said.
Genetic testing of fingernail clippings from Riley revealed a link to the genetic profile of Ibarra, Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab scientist Ashley Hinkle testified Tuesday.
For someone to get another person’s DNA under their fingernails, it generally “either has to have some sort of scratching or contact with the inside of the nail,” Hinkle said.
In separate testimony Monday, UGA police Sgt. Joshua Epps said he encountered Ibarra the day after Riley’s killing and noticed what “looked like fingernail scratches.”
“While speaking to him, I noticed on his right arm, his bicep, there was a scratch,” Epps said. “On his left arm, he had a forearm scratch that was very similar – which in my mind, looked like fingernail scratches to me.”
“I also noticed on his left wrist, just below the palm, he had a puncture – maybe half an inch wide – that, through my experiences playing sports in high school, and receiving the same injury from fingernails in football, I could see, like, wet flesh, like almost like it was fresh,” Epps said. “It wasn’t very old.”
As Epps described the injuries he saw on Ibarra’s arms, Riley’s mother cried and wiped away tears.
Missed texts and frantic calls
Perhaps the most poignant testimony came Tuesday when UGA police Sgt. Sophie Raboud recounted Riley’s last communications on her cell phone.
Minutes before her death, Riley called and texted her mother to see if she wanted to catch up. The missed call would be the last time Riley reached out to a loved one.
Phillips sobbed in court as she listened to the police sergeant, who also sounded emotional when describing the following timeline:
8:55 a.m.: Riley sent her final text to her mother: “Good morning,” she wrote. “About to go for a run if you’re free to talk.”
9:03 a.m.: Riley called her mother, but she did not answer.
9:11 a.m.: Riley called 911.
9:12 a.m.: The 911 operator called Riley back twice within one minute.
9:24 a.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter back, but Riley didn’t answer.
9:37 a.m.: Riley’s mother texted her daughter: “Call me when you can.”
9:51 a.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter again.
9:53 a.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter again.
9:58 a.m.: Riley’s mother texted her daughter: “You’re making me nervous not answering while you’re out running. Are you OK?”
11:04 a.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter again.
11:12 a.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter again.
11:15 a.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter again.
11:19 a.m.: Riley’s sister tried to call.
11:47 a.m.: Riley’s mother texted her daughter: “Please call me, I’m worried sick about you.”
12:07 p.m.: Riley’s mother called her daughter again.
12:20 p.m.: Riley’s stepfather tried to call.
At 12:38 p.m., police found Riley’s body in a wooded area near Lake Herrick.
Medical examiner says Riley was asphyxiated and had blunt-force head trauma
Riley’s father, mother and stepfather left the courtroom before a medical examiner testified about their daughter’s injuries and cause of death.
The 22-year-old died from the combined effects of blunt-force head trauma and asphyxia, said Dr. Michelle DiMarco, an associate medical examiner with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Asphyxia relates to a lack of oxygen and can be caused by hanging, manual strangulation or physical compression. DiMarco said she was not able to pinpoint the type of asphyxia Riley suffered.
Riley also had injuries to her face and a skull fracture – injuries that “could be consistent with a rock,” DiMarco said.
CNN’s Maxime Tamsett, Dawn Sawyer, Rebekah Riess, Eric Levenson and Sara Smart contributed to this report.
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