KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Matthew Longenecker's future now rests in the hands of the jury. He’s on trial for the death of his fiance’s 4-year-old daughter, Desaray Thompson. His jury reached a verdict Tuesday in his case, but the judge chose to seal it until a verdict is reached in Kelly Ballinger’s case, his fiancé and co-defendant.
“The defendant knowingly or intentionally caused serious physical harm,” said assistant prosecutor Michael Stein during closing arguments in Longenecker’s case. “Those injuries caused serious physical harm. He knew it. He did it on purpose.”
Both Longenecker and Ballinger were being tried separately, each with their own jury.
Before closing arguments began, one last witness was brought to the stand to testify about Desaray’s bruises. Linda Root, Ballinger’s stepmother, said that if Kelly told her she needed help, she would’ve helped, especially if Longenecker was physically abusing the girl.
“I’d went over there and beat him up,” said Root bursting into tears. “For God’s sake, I feel guilty that I didn’t do something.”
After a brief recess for lunch, the closing arguments in Longenecker’s case began. The prosecution immediately told Longenecker's jury — the only jury in the room at the time — that what Lonenecker did was "reckless."
Stein referred to a picture on a monitor of the blanket that police found after Desaray died. Police said Longenecker and Ballinger wrapped Desaray in a blanket, using duct tape, for weeks prior to her death.
“They taped her head,” Stein said. “There’s tape on it. No other blankets were found with tape on it.”
Desaray died July 9, 2017, due to asphyxiation, while her mom and fiance smoked methamphetamine.
“I would submit to you that’s more than a blanket over the face,’” said Longenecker's defense attorney Ronald Pichlik. “What’s probably more reasonably inferred is that when he went to bed, having assisted Miss Ballinger in taping Desaray’s legs and arms, Miss Ballinger went back in and applied tape to her mouth and applied more tape to her.”
Pichlik stated that Ballinger was more culpable than Longedecker. He asked the jury to convict Longedecker on possession of methamphetamine, child abuse and involuntary manslaughter.
“How can a reckless act be planned,” prosecutor Stein argued. “One party wraps, one party tapes. They knew how much wrapping had to be done.”
Stein grabbed duct tape off of the prosecutor’s table, tore it into two pieces and stuck them to the podium in a “T” formation. He did the same during Ballinger’s closing arguments.
“After the defendant wrapped her, immobilized her, the co-defendant would take and intertwine them on her body,” said Stein to Ballinger's jury. “How do we know that that’s accurate? Because for some reason they’re proud of that work, they put it into evidence that they do that on a 1-month-old.”
The prosecution earlier in the day showed the jury a picture of couple’s infant wrapped up. Ballinger's defense attorney Eusebio Solis argued that Kelly could’ve done more to help Desaray. But Longenecker is the one to blame for the bruises.
“Who was alone with Desaray at 2, 3, 4 in the morning when she ended up with that gash on her head that according to Matt, she hit herself on the bed frame,” said Solis to Ballinger’s jury. “Matthew was. Where was Kelly? At work.”
Solis said their relationship was unhealthy and that Longenecker was manipulative. He pointed to messages Longenecker sent to Ballinger about choosing Desaray over their relationship as a tactic to ‘guilt-trip her.’
“As you look at the progression of that relationship, as you look at the progression of all the Facebook messaging, texts that occurred, it did seem to be progressively worse and worse,” said Solis. “He became fixated on Desaray.”
Solis asked her jury to either find Ballinger not-guilty or to convict of her involuntary manslaughter and child abuse in the 2nd degree.
The prosecution said that’s not enough.
“Maybe just maybe Kelly was the one who was stoking up Matt,” said Stein looking at the text messages. “She is the one ‘yup Des has to be wrapped everyday.’ She is telling Matt ‘make sure she’s wrapped everyday. I’m going to kill her.’”
A verdict was reached in Longenecker’s case after the jury deliberated for just under two hours. Judge Paul Bridenstine is sealing it until a verdict is determined in Ballinger’s case.
Trial resumes Wednesday.
