CHULA VISTA (KGTV) — NOTE: This page will be updated throughout the day.
3:20 p.m. — The jury is now deliberating in the murder case against Larry Millete. The jury is made up of seven women and five men.
2:45 p.m. — The prosecution gave a passionate rebuttal to Larry Millete's attorney's closing arguments.
Deputy District Attorney Christy Bowles told jurors that much of what they heard in the defense's closing was not based on facts or evidence.
Bowles reminded the jurors that they must follow the law, arguing that "the facts speak for themselves, his statements speak for themselves," referring to Larry's communications.
The prosecutor reiterated some of her points made in her closing arguments; that the law doesn't require her to prove to the jurors a cause of death, and that they do not have to agree on a theory.
Bowles told jurors they would have to believe a long series of coincidences to believe that Larry is not guilty of his crime.
"He's either the unluckiest person in the world, or he's guilty of murder," Bowles said.
"May Millete found her voice, finally. By January of 2021, she had found her voice, and the defendant silenced it," Bowles said.
"The only reasonable conclusion is that May Millete is dead and that the defendant killed her," Bowles said.
The judge then gave the jurors their final jury instructions, and they will begin deliberations after an afternoon 15-minute break.
12:45 p.m. — The defense has concluded its closing arguments in the murder trial against Larry Millete.
Defense attorney Liann Sabatini told jurors it's tempting to want answers but argued that the prosecution did not prove its case. In closing, she told the jury it's now their turn to sort it out.
"A trial is the search for the truth, not a conviction," Sabatini said.
She asked them to remember that Millete is a human being, that he's presumed innocent, and that he deserves the same humanity as everybody else.
Sabatini said jurors should not let the prosecution "shift their burden to you," reminding them repeatedly that the state is responsible for proving its case.
"The only thing they've proven is that Millete is a human being," she said.
After lunch, the prosecution will have a chance to make a rebuttal closing argument, and then the judge will give his final jury instructions before the case is turned over to the jurors for deliberation.
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11:15 a.m.— Sabatini said that Larry was not a controlling husband, as the prosecution made him out to be.
Regarding allegations of financial abuse and that Maya didn’t have access to their money, she said there’s no evidence of that. “That is more spaghetti at the wall,” Sabatini said.
“She was never ever stopped from spending anything,” Sabatini said. She pointed to the fact that Maya had purchased a jeep.
She also touched upon the messages he sent to spellcasters, saying that “he never wanted to wish death on May.” She agreed that he requested some “not so great things” but that it’s a leap from that to murder.
Sabatini said Larry was using the spellcaster messages as a venue to vent. “This was his diary,” she told the jury.
“This is not somebody who’s capable of murdering the love of his life, hiding her body without a trace and moving on,” Sabatini said.
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10:30 a.m. — Sabatini told the jury that while it may be a hard pill to swallow, “He was also being abused.”
There is a separate overflow courtroom, where news media and members of the public can listen to closing statements. Several of Maya’s supporters groaned, sighed and shook their heads when Sabatini said that.
Sabatini said Larry was suffering from “psychological and emotional abuse," as he was being gaslit about his wife’s affair.
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9:45 a.m. — The defense started their closing arguments by thanking the jury and reminding them that Larry Millete has a presumption of innocence.
“His humanity matters too,” said his defense attorney, Liann Sabatini.
Sabatini painted a picture of a man who was caught off guard by discovering his wife’s affair.
Larry, who was born in the Philippines and raised in Hawaii, met May in high school. Larry and May—also known as Maya—were married for 20 years. He served in the Navy and moved to Chula Vista, where they were raising their three children.
Sabatini reminded the jury that 2020 was a tough year for everybody, with the COVID-19 pandemic essentially shutting down the world.
“A couple with young kids during COVID, that’s a lot,” Sabatini said.
Sabatini said the jury needed to “contextualize” what was happening during that year with the pandemic and their marital issues combined.
“What we do know is he was experience heartbreak and betrayal,” Sabatini said, referring to Maya’s affair. “Any normal human being is going to deteriorate when their heart is involved.”
