DAY SIXTEEN: Trial Against David Castillo

Last update: May 15 at 8:13 am

Main Points of the Day

There was a very short session today of approximately 20 minutes. Just as the prosecutor’s expert witness Brenda Barahona was about to begin, Castillo’s defense attorneys argued that the witness should testify using the written submitted analysis and not a Powerpoint presentation. After arguments were heard, the judges ruled that the visual presentation will be allowed but that the defense has the right to review it before it is examined in court. The trial was suspended to allow for the defense to review it and the expert witness will begin testifying tomorrow at 9 am.

More Details

Facebook Live Broadcast Cut Out

The live broad cast on Facebook cut out and did not show Brenda Barahona’s initial statements (being sworn in, ratifying the written analysis) nor when she informed the court of approximately 133 corrections to her original written analysis. This was later reported by the Honduran media.

The fact that there are corrections to her analysis, is not unusual. In all the documents that have been ratified so far, experts have had the opportunity to indicate if there are any errors or incorrect information. It is likely the number of corrections and the fact that she’s a key witness for the prosecutor, caused the subsequent response from the defense.

Media Coverage About the Trial

Castillo’s defense attorneys and their allies, are landing articles in major Honduran newspapers that include evidence or key elements raised in the trial that appear to favor Castillo. For example, La Tribuna posted an article titled “An exchanges of messages with accused revealed in trial for crime against Berta Cáceres” which includes chat messages that the defense argues, favors Castillo’s argument that he and Berta were friends. They also discuss medical bills that Castillo allegedly covered for Berta’s mother, Austra Berta Flores, but does not include the specific chats that reference this (many of which are rather ambiguous and difficult to interpret).

Another example of detailed national media coverage is the article by El Tiempo titled “Berta Cáceres trial suspended: Expert recognizes 133 errors in the evidence.” It is clear from the information in this article that many of the details (the number of errors and that the analysis is presented by the Defense and Security Council) were passed to the media outlet. Any online trial observers were not present when these discussions occurred.

It is clear that Castillo’s defense has access to major newspapers and a well-developed media strategy intended to create public doubt about the accusations against him.