Miles defense portrays him as protector not predator
AUSTIN,Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - Defense attorneys wasted no time in trying to portray their client Terry Miles as a protector and not a predator.
Monday the jury was shown notes from therapy sessions with the teenager, who Miles allegedly sexually abused.
In the notes she spoke about a troubled life in her Round Rock duplex before being taken to Colorado. The teenager lived in the home near La Frontera with her mother and sister along with Miles acting as a nanny.
After being found in January of last year and returned to Texas the teen told counselors she left for Colorado willingly with Miles, that she was not afraid of him, and expressed doubt he killed her mother Tanya Bates.
The comments were made several times by the teen in the days and months after she was found with Terry Miles in Colorado They’re in stark contrast to what she said here in court when the trial started. When on the witness stand, last month, the teen testified she had been repeatedly abused by Miles. She also told the jury that in late December she even witnessed the start of a fight he had with her mother. Prosecutors alleged that fight resulted in the death of Bates.
Monday, attorneys for Miles submitted cellphone records from enemies of Bates indicating they were close to her home around the time she was last seen alive. The testimony was opportunity to support what Miles told authorities after being taken into custody.
Miles claims after discovering the body of Bates he took her daughters to Colorado in order to protect them.
To address the kidnapping charge, an investigator for the defense testified that Bates had Miles on her auto insurance policy. That information could be used to argue that Miles had permission to travel with the girls.
The quick exit from the murder scene may also be a way to explain how blood linked to Bates got on his shoe.
But the main challenge for defense attorneys remains explaining how DNA from their client ended up on clothing belonging to the teenager.
The defense rested without addressing the blood evidence. The defense did ask the judge to dismiss the case claiming prosecutors had failed to prove the charges against Miles.
The request was denied. Closing arguments will begin Tuesday morning.