Community Corner

Lululemon Trial Enters Second Week

Closing statements could come as soon as Wednesday.

Follow Bethesda Patch on Twitter for live updates from the Lululemon trial at Montgomery County Circuit Court in Rockville.

Monday marks the beginning of the second week of the Lululemon trial. Scheduled to last eight to 10 days, closing statements could begin as early as this Wednesday.

Last week opened with and jurors were whittled down from a pool of 300. The jury was seated Wednesday, when opening statements began. During the statements, we learned that the prosecution will argue Brittany Norwood against her co-worker Jayna Murray the night of March 11 at Bethesda’s Lululemon store. Prosecutors are arguing Norwood used up to eight instruments – including a merchandise peg, a mannequin peg, a screwdriver, a wrench, a hammer, box cutters and a rope – against Murray, who was found with 322 distinct injuries. The majority of those injuries, the prosecution said, happened while Murray was still alive.

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We also learned that the defense will attempt to prove that Norwood “lost it” and killed Murray during “a horrific fight,” but, they argue, the attack was not pre-meditated.

If convicted of first-degree murder as charged, Norwood faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. By contrast, a second-degree murder conviction carries a maximum prison term of 30 years,  with possible release after 15, the Washington Post reports.

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The was Lululemon manager Rachel Oertli, who described coming across the crime scene March 12 and asking a bystander, Ryan Haugh, for help. Haugh, who was first to discover Murray’s body, also testified, along with an EMT, police officers and a who responded to the scene.

A police detective who was the first to interview Norwood at Suburban Hospital following the crime took the stand, and prosecutors played a  in court. On audio, Norwood recounts what prosecutors say is a fictitious account of an attack by two masked men – saying she “tried to help” Murray, and that she felt the attack was her fault.

Friday, the jury who worked with Murray and Norwood, and also from who heard screaming and cries for help from the adjacent Lululemon store the night of the murder.

Stay tuned to Patch for more from the trial, and follow us on Twitter for real-time updates. You can also visit our for more information on how the story unfolded from March 11 on through the trial. We'll be updating the timeline throughout the week.


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