NORWICH – The prosecution put its final witness on the stand, displayed a portion of the movie "Manchester by the Sea," and showed a two-hour long interrogation video to the jury in the Franklin murder trial Wednesday.
Ernest Franklin II, 36, is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree arson, and tampering with physical evidence.
Prosecutors say at around midnight on March 1, 2017 Ernest Franklin and Heather Franklin worked together to kill their 16-year-old disabled son, Jeffrey Franklin, and burned the evidence at their home at 457 State Route 8 in the Town of Guilford.
Chenango County Sheriff's Office Detective Sergeant Gary A. Miller testified Wednesday and told jurors about his two-hour long interrogation of Franklin.
"After I was made aware of the results from Jeffrey's autopsy, the investigation turned from a tragic death investigation to a murder investigation," said Miller. "At that time we did another interview with the defendant."
He said during that interview Franklin gave a timeline that was at least an hour off, and he couldn't explain why his wife was out shopping for three hours and returned home around 2 a.m. He added that Franklin showed very little emotion or compassion towards the death of his adopted son.
"He was very cold and unsympathetic," said Miller. "Whenever a person loses a 16-year-old child I'd expect that they'd be at least somewhat emotional."