"Four or five diamond rings."

3:45pm: Officer Vito Sparace, of the Kirkland PD, is now on the witness stand. His testimony began with a review of the activity at the Byrne Dairy.

-Was moving in the direction of Officer Corr when he heard a single gunshot. Purposely fell on the ground once he heard it. Crawled (hands and knees) back to his police vehicle. At one point he got up, then slipped and fell. Hameline: "Head over tea kettle?" Sparace: "Yes". That got a smile from David & Kathy Corr.


-Officer Sparace testified that he had a grip on the suspect being handcuffed by Officer Cania. Leaned him up against a patrol vehicle. Started to search him.

UPDATE:

-Hameline: "Do you see the person that you had in your custody? Sparace: "Yes I do." Hameline: "Can you tell me where he is?" Sparace: "Sitting at the defense table."

-Sparace further testified that he found several diamond rings in the suspect's right pants pocket. Hameline produces diamond rings that Sparace identifies from the night of the robbery.

Friday's testimony concluded with Kirkland Police Chief Daniel English, who similarly linked Healy to the Byrne Dairy scene, and to the jewelry store robbery.

Major Development

3:09pm: Officer Peter Cania identified John Healy, the suspect sitting in this courtroom, as the man he was attempting to handcuff at the Byrne Dairy.

He is the first, and only, person to identify Healy so far.

UPDATE:

-On cross-examination, Wittman asked if Cania saw anyone get out of a vehicle at the Byrne Dairy. Cania: "No."

-In doing the CPR chest compressions, Cania testified that he could feel Officer Corr was not wearing a bullet-proof vest.

-Wittman asks for just a moment, consults with John Healy, then says, "I have nothing further." They continue to chat. Wittman smiles to Healy about something.

Cania is off the stand at 3:30pm. Back after a ten minute break.

"He did not appear to be breathing."

2:42pm: Kirkland PD Officer Peter Cania, wearing his uniform, is on the witness stand. Earlier, we heard testimony that he was on the scene at the Kirkland Byrne Dairy.

-Officer Cania testified that he saw a black male running around the Byrne Dairy. Man raced toward nearby dumpster. Cania "in a dead sprint." Ordered suspect to stop at least twice. Suspect fell, got up, continued to run, fell a second time face-forward.

-Testified that NHPD Officer Ronald Fontaine was on the scene. Suspect down on the ground. Officer Cania pulled his gun, and ordered the suspect to show his hands. Cania holstered his weapon to attempt to handcuff the suspect. Suspect had on a thick winter jacket which delayed the process.

-Officer Cania (after some prompting by ADA Kurt Hameline) testified that he heard a gunshot. Realized another police officer had been shot.

-Testified that he saw Officer Corr grab his chest and fall. Cania's suspect was struggling and still not fully handcuffed. Hameline produces the jacket that Cania's suspect wore that night. Healy is paying close attention.

-Officer Cania testified that he felt no pulse on Officer Corr. He loosened Corr's tie. Unbuttoned his shirt. "He did not appear to be breathing." CPR was administered. He did the chest compressions.

Corr Family Walks Out

**The following descriptions of testimony may be considered upsetting to some readers**

2:22pm: Prosecutors announce that the medical examiner, Dr. Michael Sikirica, will take the stand. Suddenly and quietly, the Corr family leaves. They do not wish to be present for what is expected to be graphic testimony.

-Dr. Sikirica points to an x-ray of Officer Corr's chest, and points out the metal fragments from the gunshot wound.

-Internal examination revealed the track of the bullet: Into the body along the right upper chest. Right clavicle was fractured. First rib was fractured. Wound extended to right chest cavity, downward into lung. Exiting the lung, then perforating behind the heart, into the aorta. Projectile was found in the area around the left lung. The "H" of Officer Corr's N.H.P.D. uniform pin was discovered within the wound.

-We see ONE photograph of Officer Corr taken during the autopsy. We see the fallen officer's face and chest. We see the wound. Judge Dwyer indicates that this must be seen to make the record complete.

Dr. Sikirica is finished by 2:40pm. The Corr family returns to the courtroom.

"You knew that was Joe Corr."

2:04pm. We are back. Testimony continues with Richard Mosher, an EMT.

-Mosher's testimony lasted all of five minutes. He described the ambulance response after Officer Corr was shot.

-Joseph Jennings, a paramedic with Edwards Ambulance, followed. Testified that he actually spoke with David Corr before the shooting on February 27.

-CPR was continued in the ambulance. Officer Corr was placed on a heart monitor. Jennings was in the ambulance. He knew Joe Corr personally. Hernon: "You knew that was Joe Corr." Jennings: "Yes."

UPDATE:

-Jennings identified a picture of a gravely wounded Officer Corr (taken in the ambulance) with a tracheal tube. The picture is about to be shown publicly. A family member whispers to relatives, "Anybody want to leave?" No one does. BUT...following a judge's conference, we do not see the photograph after all. There is relief from the Corr family.

-Jennings is off the stand at 2:21pm.

Alone In The Courtroom

Some thoughts while waiting out the 75-minute lunch break...

-I keep thinking about how much I admire the Corr family. They are re-living, moment by excruciating moment, the horrible events that led to Joe's death. They plan on being here for two weeks. Every single day.

-This courtroom is furnished with what have to be the most uncomfortable flat wooden benches in the history of America's criminal justice system. This isn't a complaint, merely an observation. I can't sit for five minutes without squirming (and nearly letting slip the WKTV laptop). But the Corr family remains still, and wholly engaged in the testimony. Another reason I admire them.

-This could end up being a very tough afternoon session. Prosecutors plan to call the medical examiner to the stand. It is highly likely that autopsy pictures will have to be shown.

"A big scruffy beard on him."

-Kyle Bostic testified that he was sitting in a car while his brother Jeff used the Byrne Dairy ATM. He saw fire from the car crash (into gas pump).

-Kyle got out of the car. Black male (ten feet away) ran right by him. Did not see where he came from. This man was wearing an olive-colored jacket, jeans, black boots, jeans tucked into boots. Winter hat. He was not wearing a hooded sweatshirt.

-This black male had a "big scruffy beard on him."

No cross-examination.

Back from lunch at 2:00pm...

Scroll down for the rest of the day's developments.

"Did you see the person?"

Jeff Bostic testimony, direct examination:

-Was using an ATM at the Kirkland Byrne Dairy. Saw a man running across the front of the store. Had a hooded sweatshirt on. Couldn't get a clear look.

-After seeing explosion, moved outside to watch.

Cross-examination:

-Never saw individual actually open the door of the crashed car and get out.

-Wittman: "When you peeked around the corner, did you see the person with the hooded sweatshirt behind the Byrne Dairy?" Bostic: "No." Wittmann: "No further questions."

Jeff's older brother Kyle is up next (12:30pm).

"I'm sure there was one shot."

Defense attorney Rebecca Wittman is now questioning Officer Ronald Fontaine.

UPDATE:

-Wittman: "Is there any possibility you heard more than one shot?" Fontaine: "No I only heard one shot. I'm sure there was one shot."

RE-DIRECT EXAMINATION:

-Hameline: "You never saw two perpetrators?" Fontaine: "No."

Judge Dwyer then jumped in with some questions of his own...

Does NHPD have its own radio frequency? Did you know [Kirkland PD] Officer Cania was going to be there? (Earlier testimony established Cania as the one instructed to cuff the fallen suspect and assist with CPR on Officer Corr)

-Fontaine's testimony concluded at 12:11pm.

Next up: Jeff Bostic. ADA Paul Hernon has taken over direct examination.

-Noteworthy observations: NHPD officers are wearing their police uniforms on the witness stand. In addition to the three guards surrounding Healy, three additional guards are standing by each of the three courtroom exits. High security.

"I was pretty shaken up."

A soft-spoken Officer Fontaine has guided us through the most emotional testimony thus far.

-He did not go to the hospital following the shooting, but later learned that Joe had died.

-During testimony, Fontaine could not identify the person he caught on the ground. Did not see his face.

((Testimony took a 15 minute break and resumed at 11:39pm))

The Foot Pursuit - Joe's Last Steps

Officer Fontaine is standing in front of an enlarged photograph placed on a stand. With a marker, he is tracing the foot pursuit once the getaway car crashed.

-According to Fontaine, Officer Corr stopped his car. Stepped out. Squinted. Then sprinted into the field behind the Byrne Dairy. He was chasing a suspect.

UPDATE:

-Fontaine (during the foot pursuit) yelled to a suspect. "Stop, police! Stop, police!" Suspect slipped twice. The suspect was then held face down.

-Moments later, "I heard a gunshot went off." It was coming from the woodline where Officer Corr's pursuit was taking place.

-Fontaine moved toward Officer Corr. "I could see that he was down." On his back. Did not see who fired the shot. Other suspect was secured before Fontaine moved closer.

-Fontaine saw nothing initially on Corr's body. Called his name several times. "Joe, Joe". Joe's eyes were open staring straight up. He began to sit up only a few inches. He made a grunting sound. He fell back down to the ground.

Kathy Corr is crying. So are family members.

Fontaine pulled Joe's jacket away to reveal bullet wound. Collar area. Saw a steady flow of blood from the wound. Applied pressure. Faint pulse. CPR. Fontaine administered mouth-to-mouth while another officer did chest compressions.

"There was an explosion. A fireball."

Kurt Hameline is conducting the direct examination, (Began at 10:24am).

-NHPD Officer Ronald Fontaine, also en route to Lennon's, testified that Officer Corr was responding to a vehicle "failing to comply" following the robbery. Officer Corr and apparent getaway vehicle were "weaving in and out of traffic."

-Testified that Officer Corr called out the vehicle's license plate. GBH-8305.

-Fontaine detailed parts of the chase route: N/S arterial, to Rte. 5 West (Seneca Turnpike) past the Yahnundasis and Jay-K Lumber. All the way out to the Kirkland Byrne Dairy. Speeds approached 100mph.

-From his vehicle, Fontaine witnessed the getaway vehicle crash into a Kirkland Byrne Dairy gas pump. Explosion ensued. He and Officer Corr (in another car) slowed down.

Testimony is moving toward the final moments of Officer Corr's life.

Yoxall Cross-Examination

Wittman began her cross-examination at 10:06am. It finished 15 minutes later.

-Yoxall learned four to five black males had robbed Lennon's.

-Later learned that Officer Corr was not wearing his bullet-proof vest.

Yoxall's testimony concluded at 10:22am. Officer Ronald Fontaine is next.

Visual Evidence...And A Smile

While conducting the direct examination of NHPD officer Shane Yoxall, prosecutor Kurt Hameline displayed pictures of a blue vehicle smashed in front. Yoxall testified that they showed the vehicle that got around him as he responded to the Lennon's robbery. Proscutors will later link this vehicle to the crash at the Kirkland Byrne Dairy.

Instead of pursuing the vehicle, Yoxall testified that another officer instructed him to secure the scene. Yoxall then went into Lennon's-Wilcox Jewelers. He yelled "New Hartford Police!" and saw handcuffed Lennon's employees stand up from behind a counter.

UPDATE:

-While there, Yoxall was advised that there were shots fired, and an officer was down.

-Could not identify the driver of the blue vehicle.

-Hameline reviewed that, earlier in the evening, Yoxall spoke on the phone with Officer Corr and a 911 dispatcher. Apparently, Joe was "complaining" about a printer. In court, that brought a smile to David Corr, Joe's father.

Random Observations

Defense attorney Rebecca Wittman was setting up her desk at 9:15am. She had one large, cardboard box titled "Joe Corr Homicide, 2 of 6". The box was filled with manila folders of material.

Attorneys Kurt Hameline and Paul Hernon arrived shortly thereafter. Hernon joked, "Oh, I thought he [Judge Dwyer] would be in here yelling at us." Actually, though, everyone was set up in plenty of time.

Officer Yoxall's testimony is expected to be followed by that of NHPD officer Ronald Fontaine, who tended to Officer Corr the night of the shooting.

Healy walked into court again wearing casual clothes. We learned his family (not present) is allowed to provide just two sets of clothing for his trial appearances. He is again surrounded by three guards.

NHPD personnel are seated in front. Members of the Corr family are also present.

Friday, 9:00am. Empty Courtroom So Far

We'll call this "Day Two" of the trial (though it's Day Four if you include jury selection). Testimony is expected to begin at 9:30 with NHPD officer Shane Yoxall, whose appearance on the witness stand began late Thursday afternoon.

If you're just joining us, please keep checking back. Updates are posted "live" as developments occur. Just hit "refresh" to follow the trial all day long.

Check www.wktv.com for video clips from Thursday's opening statements.