Murder trial for 2020 NoDa apartment killing goes to jury in Charlotte
A Charlotte jury began deliberating Friday on murder charges against Lavi Pham and James Salerno for the 2020 killing of Mary Collins in a NoDa apartment.
Charlotte jury weighs murder charges in 2020 NoDa apartment killing
A jury in Charlotte began deliberations on Friday afternoon to decide whether Lavi Pham and James Salerno are guilty of murdering Mary Collins, whose body was found in a NoDa apartment in 2020, wbtv.com reports.
Closing arguments lasted more than three hours on 9 October, with both prosecution and defence presenting final summaries of a trial that had run for three weeks. Jurors were shown graphic autopsy photographs of Collins' body as well as video footage recorded in the hours before her death.
According to the prosecution, Collins was raped, stabbed 130 times, and her body was subsequently concealed inside a mattress for several days before it was discovered. Pham and Salerno face charges including murder, kidnapping, and concealing a death.
Assistant District Attorney Monica Noble told the jury that text messages entered into evidence showed Pham and his then-girlfriend, Kelly Lavery, planning to drug Collins. Noble also highlighted inconsistencies between Pham's police interview and his later courtroom testimony.
"Each stab was a premeditated choice," Noble said. "Mary didn't do anything to provoke this. You can be the heroes that deliver justice for Mary."
Miranda Mills, one of Pham's defence attorneys, argued that Collins had made her own choices regarding drug use and sought to distance herself from a controlling grandmother. Mills acknowledged that Pham concealed Collins' body but drew a distinction between that act and murder.
"Lavi does not contest the fact that he concealed Mary's body, he is here taking responsibility for that," Mills said. "You can be guilty of concealing a body and not be guilty of murder."
Christopher McCartan, representing Salerno, told the jury that his client did not act in collaboration with Pham and that the evidence does not establish Salerno's direct involvement in the killing.
"This was a long, reckless, disgusting, and personal attack. Nothing about Jimmy Salerno shows he would be personally involved in something so disgusting," McCartan said.
Two additional suspects are connected to the case. Lavery accepted a plea deal and received a sentence of 25 to 32 years in prison. A second suspect, America Diehl, was charged with concealing a death and has not yet stood trial.
Jury deliberations began shortly after 3 p.m. on Friday.
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)