Never-before-seen interrogation video played in Orlando Halloween mass shooting trial
ORLANDO, Fla. —
The state has rested its case and the jury has been sent home for the weekend in the 2024 downtown Orlando Halloween mass shooting trial, where never-before-seen interrogation video was shown in court Friday.
Prosecutors say then-17-year-old Jaylen Edgar shot and killed 25-year-old tow truck driver Tyrek Hill and 19-year-old UCF student Timothy Schmidt Jr.
Edgar faces two counts of first-degree murder as well as seven counts of attempted first-degree murder for the other victims he’s accused of shooting.
After the takedown and arrest by Orlando Police on Orange Avenue, two homicide detectives question Edgar for more than an hour.
Prosecutors played that interrogation video in court for the jury Friday afternoon.
Numerous times, the detectives tried asking Edgar what was going through his mind, but he never provided a straight answer.
In the video, Edgar is seen identifying himself in photos from videos around the time of the shooting downtown.
“Every part of downtown was packed,” Edgar told the detectives. “You had to squeeze through people.”
Edgar did admit during the interview that he had the semi-automatic pistol that officers found concealed in his pants after Officer Michael Hernandez tackled him to the ground.
Detective Joshua McNutt informs Edgar near the end of the interview that they have him on video pulling out a gun and shooting someone.
The second day of the mass shooting trial began with testimony from two more victims.
“I felt something hit my shin and then me and my three friends, we all just went down to the floor,” Eitan Mailor said. “I was shot behind my shoulder and the bullet traveled through my jaw, shattering it in the process, and it got stuck there,” Gabriella Santiago-Sanchez said.
A crime scene investigator showed jurors the yellow shirt and jeans Edgar was wearing on Halloween night two years ago.
An FDLE firearms expert testified some of the shell casings matched the gun police recovered from Edgar, including one located near the downtown Taco Bell where Hill was shot in the head.
Another state’s witness on Friday was the FDLE DNA expert who said she identified a mixture of Edgar and Hill’s DNA from a blood stain on Edgar’s yellow shirt.
WESH 2 spoke with Hill’s mother, Teresa Clinton, before the trial resumed in the afternoon.
“Ooh, I miss the gentle giant, the kisses on my forehead and calling me ‘Mama dukes,'” she said of her son.
Clinton said she’s holding up the best she can as she sits through the trial and seeks justice for the murder of her son.
She said she’d like to see a conviction followed by a life sentence. Edgar isn’t eligible for the death penalty because of his age at the time of the shootings.
“I am a woman of God,” Clinton said. “I do forgive (Edgar), but I would say that he needs to take accountability. He needs to do the time because he did the crime. Also, he has left back victims that are still alive, that has to go through this, for the rest of their lives.”
After the jury was dismissed, the judge denied a request from Edgar’s attorney for an acquittal.
The judge also told Edgar it’s ultimately his decision whether he takes the stand in his own defense.
The Halloween mass shooting trial resumes at 9 a.m. Monday.