GALLATIN, Tenn. – The defense team in the Lindsey Lowe murder trial rested its case without getting any of its many motions granted. They also decided to keep Lowe off the witness stand, while letting her family serve as character witnesses.
Lowe did take the stand briefly Monday to explain she was waiving her right to testify, and understood what it meant.
"I just don't feel like I can emotionally handle it," Lindsey Lowe said Monday afternoon.
It was the first time anyone had heard Lowe speak outside of her police interview shown to the court last week.
On Monday morning, the jury saw photos of Lowe only days before she gave birth. They also heard testimony from her father and sister.
During questioning of Lindsey Lowe's younger sister, Lacey, the defense presented photos of Lowe that were taken when she was a bridesmaid during a wedding in Lebanon, Kentucky, on September 10, 2011. That was two days before she gave birth to newborn twins inside her parents' Hendersonville home.
Lacey Lowe said Lindsey's weight always fluctuated, and that she did not think anything about it when Lindsey started gaining weight.
Lacey Lowe testified that her sister changed clothes in front of other women at the wedding, and no one ever suspected she was pregnant. She said she found out about her sister's pregnancy from a police chaplain.
Lacey also said Lindsey told her she had an upset stomach the morning after she gave birth.
Judge Dee Gay also ruled against another mistrial motion filed by the defense, and also ruled against allowing jail phone calls between Lowe and her family in the days after her arrest. The defense wanted them to be allowed to show her mental state after her arrest.
Earlier, Lindsey Lowe's father, Mark, testified that "any parent would be fortunate to have a daughter like Lindsey." He also said he was in such shock after finding a dead baby inside his home that he waited 15 minutes to call for help.
He first gave some background on Lindsey, saying she shares a birthday with her younger sister, who is 23. He said she graduated from Western Kentucky University with a degree in interior design, but moved back home and got a job at a dental office because she couldn't find a job in her field. She was a member of Alpha Delta Pi at WKU, as a legacy to her mother at Middle Tennessee State University.
Mark Lowe also said Lindsey met her former fiance, Jonathan Brooks, at WKU, saying they grew apart during their years long engagement. He also said he had no idea she had an affair with Jeremy Smith, the father of the twins, but called his daughter and Brooks' relationship "dysfunctional."
He also corroborated an earlier statement by the defense that Lowe had shared a bed with a sorority sister the night before she delivered, and that no one knew she was pregnant.
Mark Lowe went on to say that Lowe slept on an upstairs den couch, instead of her bedroom, the day following the delivery of the twins, saying she was ill.
He said he and his wife were in shock when they found the body of one of the babies inside a laundry basket on September 14, 2011. He said he called a family friend, a pastor, before calling police. When he did call police, he recalled "finding newborn that didn't appear to survive birth."
Mark Lowe said that he asked for daughter to be taken to the hospital before questioning, and to have a lawyer present when she talked to police, but he claims he was told no.
His 26-year-old daughter, Lindsey Lowe, is being tried in Gallatin on two counts of premeditated murder.
Prosecutors have said that she told police that she smothered the twins so her parents would not hear their cries.
On Friday, testimony for the day ended early after Judge Dee Gay revealed that Lowe's defense attorney John Pellegrin had a death in the family.
Last week, prosecutors showed pictures of Lowe's home after the babies were discovered. Details of the autopsies of her babies were also released, which the Medical Examiner said were both healthy and alive when they were born.
On Thursday and Friday, Lowe's defense tried to show the jury that she was in such bad shape after giving birth that there was no way she could have premeditated their murder.
The defense had two different doctors testify. They told the jury that Lowe suffers from major depression and other mental issues which prevented her from fully understanding what was going on during and after her pregnancy.
They said she is a sweet, loving person incapable of intentionally killing her own children. But prosecutors jumped very quickly on this one to prove otherwise, and they revealed Google searches found on Lowe's iPhone were for topics such as "how to make yourself go into labor", "free videos of pregnant sex" and more.
Jurors were ordered to avoid all news coverage of the trial during the weekend. They also weren't supposed to watch TV crime shows.
Lowe told police that she gave birth to the twins in the toilet of the bathroom she shared with her sister at their parents' Hendersonville home on September 12, 2011.
During an interview with police two days after the birth that was earlier shown to jurors, she said she suffocated the babies after their birth and put them in a laundry basket next to her bed. Her mother found one of the babies two days later, and her father called police.
Last Monday, a jury of seven men and five women was seated. Three male alternates are also listened to arguments.
Jurors are not sequestered, meaning they are able to go home every night, as long as they abide by the rules. The trial will not continue on the weekend.
Watch our gavel-to-gavel coverage from inside the courtroom live on NewsChannel 5+, NewsChannel5.com, and on our mobile app. During recesses, reporter Nick Beres and legal analyst Nick Leonardo will take questions from viewers. Call 615-737-PLUS or email your questions to plus@newschannel5.com.
Past Stories:
- March 15, 2013: Testimony: Lowe Searched For Pregnancy Info Days Before Giving Birth
- March 14, 2013: Lowe Scolded For Outburst; Defense Accuses Father Of Rape
- March 13, 2013: Dramatic Day In Court For Mother Accused Of Killing Twin Newborns
- March 12, 2013: Jurors To Watch Videotaped Questioning Of Lowe On Day 2 of Trial
- March 12, 2013: Trial Underway For Woman Accused Of Killing Newborns
- March 11, 2013: Jury Seated For Woman Accused Of Killing Twins
- March 7, 2013: Lindsey Lowe Appears In Court Ahead Of Murder Trial
- Feb. 27, 2013: NewsChannel 5 Obtains Copy Of Lindsey Lowe's Entire Confession
- Feb. 26, 2013: Judge Rules Confession Will Be Allowed At Lowe Murder Trial
- Feb. 25, 2013: Legal Strategy For Woman Accused Of Killing Newborn Twins
- Dec. 11, 2012: Judge Again Rules Lindsey Lowe's Confession Admissible
- Nov. 30, 2012: Lindsey Lowe's Attorneys Ask For Change Of Venue For Trial
- May 17, 2012: Trial Date Set For Woman Accused Of Killing Twins
- Nov. 18, 2011: Attorney For Lindsey Lowe Enters Not Guilty Plea
- Nov. 10, 2011: State Will Not Seek Death Penalty Against Lindsey Lowe
- Nov. 4, 2011: Lindsey Lowe Remains On Bond After Valium Use
- Oct. 25, 2011: Lindsey Lowe Case Bound Over For Grand Jury
- Sep. 27, 2011: Private Funeral Held Sunday For Newborn Twins
- Sep. 22, 2011: Vigil For Family Of Mom Accused Of Killing Newborns
- Sep. 21, 2011: Help Sought For Woman Charged With Killing Twins
- Sep. 20, 2011: Woman Accused Of Killing Twins Released On Bond
- Sep. 19, 2011: Bond Set For Mother Accused Of Killing Infant Twins
- Sep. 17, 2011: DA Fights to Keep Mother of Dead Twins in Jail
- Sep. 15, 2011: Police: Mother Admitted To Killing Twin Newborn Boys
- Sep. 14, 2011: Mother Charged After Newborn Twins Found Dead In Home
(The Associated Press Contributed To This Report.)
Picture shows Lindsey Lowe as a bridesmaid during a friend's wedding in Lebanon, Ky., on September 10, 2011. Lowe gave birth to twins on September 12, 2011.
Picture shows Lindsey Lowe as a bridesmaid during a friend's wedding in Lebanon, Ky., on September 10, 2011. Lowe gave birth to twins on September 12, 2011.
Lacey Lowe
