By Josh Siatkowski | Staff Writer, Kaity Kempf | Managing Editor
Since Tuesday, the trial of Tammy Renee Blankenship has been slowed down by multiple debates between the two legal teams. With defense testimony wrapping up Wednesday afternoon, Judge Susan Kelly of the 54th District Court recessed the court until Thursday, when closing arguments will proceed and a verdict may be reached.
David Grotberg was a sophomore philosophy major from Fergus Falls, Minn. Grotberg, along with his then-girlfriend, was riding his bike on the 3200 block of Franklin Avenue on the evening of Oct. 6, 2016. At around 10 p.m., what witnesses described as a fast-moving white SUV collided with Grotberg on his bike, not stopping after sending him into the air. Grotberg was pronounced dead as soon as he arrived at Baylor Scott and White’s Hillcrest Medical Center.
Blankenship was not suspected in Grotberg’s death until two years later, when Waco PD received an anonymous letter accusing her of driving the car that killed him. Blankenship was arrested in summer 2020 — two years after the letter was received — and is facing charges of manslaughter and failure to stop and render aid.
Although defense attorney Shane Phelps rested his case Wednesday after testimony from the two defense witnesses, state prosecutors Will Hix and Tara Avants unexpectedly requested to call a rebuttal witness to the stand Thursday morning. This testimony is not expected to push closing arguments back to Friday, but it is not the only delay Blankenship’s trial has experienced in the last two days.
Following testimony from state witnesses, defense witnesses were expected to testify Tuesday once Phelps had concluded his cross-examination of Waco PD detective John Clark, who was the lead detective assigned to investigate Grotberg’s death. However, defense witnesses were not called to the stand until Wednesday, as debate over Phelps’ cross-examination took up most of Tuesday.
This debate centered around the extent to which Phelps could interrogate Clark on a citation he received over 20 years ago. While interviewing an old man, Clark handcuffed him to a hospital bed and hit him across the head so hard that his dentures fell out of his mouth. Clark later lied about the incident to his supervisors, who gave him a 30-day suspension in lieu of being fired.
Hix and Avants argued that Clark could not be questioned on this incident, as it was not relevant to the case. By the time Judge Susan Kelly ruled that Phelps could bring it up during his cross-examination, it was already the afternoon.
As a result, the two defense witnesses testified Wednesday. The first was Kyle Walton, the owner of the apartment that Blankenship lived in at the time of Grotberg’s death.
Walton said he saw Blankenship’s car on the morning of Oct. 7 — the day after Grotberg’s death. Although he said most of the damage was consistent with the photos taken a few weeks later, Walton noted one difference: The windshield, though cracked, was not caved in. This was contrary to what Blankenship’s coworker, Hannah Ashley, said last week in her testimony.
The second defense witness was Tim Lovett, a retired Hurst PD officer who is an expert in accident reconstruction.
Lovett said because the windshield was not caved in the next morning, the damage to Blankenship’s car was not consistent with a collision with a human. Under cross-examination by Hix, Lovett said he did not know that Ashley previously testified that the windshield was caved in.
Lovett also said the damage on Grotberg’s bike’s wheel was not consistent with the position of Blankenship’s Hyundai Accent’s bumper, saying the bike must have been hit by a car with a higher bumper.
Under cross-examination, the prosecution did not comment on this, electing to recess for the day and begin Thursday with a rebuttal witness. It will be followed by closing arguments and, potentially, a verdict.
