Emotional day in court: David Murdock's murder trial starts with photos, 911 calls
There were visible swings of contrasting emotions during the start of testimony at the first-degree murder trial of David Marshall Murdock on Monday in Bartow.
Emotions ranged from the love and happiness Murdock shared with his slain ex-girlfriend at the start of their romance, to tears from the defendant and others in the courtroom as crime scene photos and a 911 call were presented to the jury by the prosecution.
Murdock, 65, of Lake Wales is accused of killing Lisa Lorraine Bunce, 56, on Jan. 5, 2019, while she was in Haines City visiting her friend Sanda Andrews, 71, according to an account in a Polk County Sheriff’s Office charging affidavit.
The prosecution is seeking the death penalty if Murdock is found guilty of the murder charge. He was also indicted on charges of attempted first-degree murder, armed burglary of a dwelling and shooting into a building.
The prosecution said Murdock shot and killed his ex-girlfriend after wounding her best friend as the women sat in the Florida room of Andrews’ home.
During the first day of his trial, the jury saw graphic autopsy photos, including bullet wounds to Bunce’s hand, pants, underwear and bra. A photo also showed a bullet hole inside her chest cavity that damaged her internal organs.
An emotional recording of a 911 call was played in the courtroom. It contained pleas for help from Andrews, who had been shot in her face.
Despite injuries to her mouth, she told a 911 call taker about 1:12 a.m. the day of the homicide that “David Murdock” had shot her.
“I’ve been shot ... please help me. Please help me,” were phrases Andrews repeated dozens of times throughout the 12-minute call and without losing consciousness.
At the trial, Andrews pointed her finger at Murdock as the person who shot her in the face. She spent weeks recovering in the intensive care unit after being transported to Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center and then endured multiple surgeries to repair her wounds, she said.
The 9-mm bullet had entered and exited her mouth, shattered bones in her jaw and face into 37 pieces and knocked out her teeth, she said on the witness stand. The heat from the bullet also burnt a groove across her tongue before exiting her head, she added.
As the 911 recording played for the jury, Andrews could be seen with her head down, wiping her eyes with a tissue and shielding her eyes from the view of others in the courtroom.
Murdock also hid his tearful eyes from the jury and hid his face behind the lapel of his jacket.
Circuit Judge J. Kevin Abdoney allowed a 10-minute break for the defendant to regain his composure following the emotional display.
Days before the shooting
Andrews also testified about the days leading up to the shooting. She and Bunce drove together from Ohio on Dec. 30, 2018, and arrived at Andrews’ home on New Year’s Eve.
That night they went to the Out-and-About Bar and Music Lounge where Murdock stared across the room at Bunce while seated on the other side of the lounge with another group, including a new girlfriend.
She said Murdock also walked at least a dozen times across the lounge and past Bunce’s group of friends seated at two tables near the restrooms as the music and drinks flowed.
Bunce also received texts from Murdock that night. Andrews knew about the multiple texts, she said. In them, he said he still loved her. In other texts, he said he hated her. In another, he wanted her to sign over the house they had deeded in both their names.
There were also statements at the trial about the time they met, which was about three years before the shootings. In stark contrast to the tearful emotions, Murdock’s defense characterized him as “smitten” with Bunce.
Defense attorney Debra Tuomey said they bought a house together with Andrews’ help as a real estate broker.
The couple were engaged not long after meeting in 2016 over drinks at the Cherry Pocket restaurant at a fish camp in Lake Wales. Murdock was there with a group of guy friends and Bunce with Andrews and their other girlfriends.
This and other establishments are popular spots with many of the women’s friends at the Sweetwater Golf and Tennis Community. Bunce was staying with Andrews at her home at 373 Melbourn Drive in Haines City in the Sweetwater community during the early morning shootings.
Andrews had acquired a license to carry a concealed weapon and an instruction book for her gun ownership training was found in her home. But the day of the shooting, she did not have her gun with her.
Details from the scene
On Tuesday, crime scene technicians continued to take the witness stand to explain photos of blood trails inside the home. Other evidence collected included shell casings, blood, swabs for gun powder residue and DNA samples, and portions of the residence, including a section of a wall containing a bullet hole.
Medical Examiner Stephen Nelson took the stand Tuesday. He said incisions to Bunce's legs in autopsy photos were for long bone harvesting for donation at the request of her family. Long bone donation can help save a living person at risk of a leg amputation.
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He also gave further details about the trajectory of the bullets, including the fatal shot, that entered Bunce’s chest cavity and damaged the blood pumping chambers of her heart and her lungs.
Other bullet wounds were to the back of her hand — exiting the palm of her right hand, he said. Another bullet grazed her right thigh and tore her jeans.
Nelson said the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds and the manner of death was homicide at the hands of another.
He also added that Bunce had a blood alcohol level just slightly above 0.07, which is near but still below the level that could lead to an individual being arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, which is 0.08 or above. In another body fluid analysis, he found her above the legal limit.
Two versions of the defendant
The jury also heard opening statements on Monday from the defense that characterized Murdock as a jilted lover while the prosecution described him as the one responsible for a premeditated murder.
Assistant State Attorney Bonde Johnson said that in 2016, Andrews and Bunce were best friends and had worked together in Toledo, Ohio, where Bunce lived. Andrews lived just across the state border in Blissfield, Michigan, about 29 minutes from Toledo.
Andrews, a delivery driver for an optical lab, hired Bunce for a job at the company in Ohio, and they went on vacation together and became best friends.
Andrews and Bunce then became snowbirds staying at the Sweetwater community for part of the year during the three years before the shootings.
To demonstrate premeditation, Johnson said Murdock had to drive 30 minutes, stopping at every red light to get to the home. He entered a gate code to get inside the gated community.
Murdock then parked his grey pickup truck at the house and carried a 9-mm Glock handgun to the residence and started shooting the women, Johnson said.
Before deputies had responded to the shootings, Murdock dialed 911 at 1:12 a.m. and told the call taker he had “to get rid of the devil,” court records show.
On arrival, deputies combed the scene and saw Murdock standing in front of the home with his hands in the air. They placed him in the backseat of a marked patrol car.
He was then taken to the Polk County Jail and has been held there without bond since the homicide.
If convicted of first-degree felony murder by a unanimous jury verdict, the jurors would also be asked during a penalty phase of the trial to deliberate on a death sentence.
The jury can recommend a death sentence by a vote of at least 8-4. The judge then weighs the jury finding with other factors before imposing the sentence.
Correction
An earlier version of this story misstated the blood-alcohol level of the shooting victim, as stated by the medical examiner during his testimony. It also misstated the legal limit for operating a motor vehicle. Those numbers have been corrected above.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Photos, tapes and high emotions: David Murdock's murder trial begins