Opening statements in Bob Ward murder trial
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Opening statements in the State of Florida v. James Robert Ward took more about two hours Wednesday morning.
"Ladies and gentlemen, what the evidence is going to show in this case is, that on the night of September 21, 2009, the defendant, Mr. Ward, pointed a gun in the direction of his wife's face and pulled the 12-pound trigger on a .357 magnum and it went off," said prosecutor Will Jay.
Prosecutors are trying to convince a second jury that former Isleworth millionaire Bob Ward murdered his wife, Diane.
"'I killed my wife' he says it five times. He also says she's dead she's gone. He says she's dead with certainty," Jay told the jury.
Prosecutors say evidence shows that Diane Ward threw a glass of wine at Bob on their back patio earlier in the night.
"It was Mr. Ward pulled the trigger and shot and killed wife out of anger," Jay said.
Ward's defense team says their client is innocent. The defense referencing Diane's autopsy report, which showed she was drunk and and more than four times the maximum dosage of anti-depressants in her blood.
"It was an accident, a tragic tragic accident," said defense attorney Craig Gillen.
The defense told the jury that had the investigation been carried out properly, Bob Ward never would have been arrested. The defense says both Bob and Diane Ward's DNA was on Bob's gun, but that the crime scene investigators swabbed the trigger and the hand of the gun together instead of separately.
"They took a step that took away from the facts of this case to this jury to decide who pulled the trigger," said Gillen.
Prosecution will continue presenting their case Thursday morning at 9 a.m.