Kristen Arno

So that was really game-changing and surprising in a lot of senses to us.

So that was really game-changing and surprising in a lot of senses to us.

Once he pled self-defense, we knew he'd have to take the stand. If he took the stand, whatever he was going to say was going to be brand new to all of us. We did not know how things were going to go. It was a lot of surprises.

Once he pled self-defense, we knew he'd have to take the stand. If he took the stand, whatever he was going to say was going to be brand new to all of us. We did not know how things were going to go. It was a lot of surprises.

None of this is normal. Like most prosecutors go through their whole career and never have any case that makes national news.

None of this is normal. Like most prosecutors go through their whole career and never have any case that makes national news.

What happens in the courtroom can't be kept private. The public has the right to know. And so given the COVID concerns at the time, that was the answer that was come up with, was just to put it on Zoom so that everyone could have access to it.

What happens in the courtroom can't be kept private. The public has the right to know. And so given the COVID concerns at the time, that was the answer that was come up with, was just to put it on Zoom so that everyone could have access to it.

We had no idea what he was going to say under what circumstances. I haven't never had a trial, I think, outside of this where there was so many question marks and unknowns as to what the defense could possibly say had happened.

We had no idea what he was going to say under what circumstances. I haven't never had a trial, I think, outside of this where there was so many question marks and unknowns as to what the defense could possibly say had happened.

The medical examiner was saying it would take minutes to actually end someone's life strangling them. I think they got her down to maybe a couple minutes. His version of events just wasn't jiving with strangling someone for two minutes. You didn't need to continue to strangle someone for at least two minutes, likely much longer, and tie this cord around her neck.

The medical examiner was saying it would take minutes to actually end someone's life strangling them. I think they got her down to maybe a couple minutes. His version of events just wasn't jiving with strangling someone for two minutes. You didn't need to continue to strangle someone for at least two minutes, likely much longer, and tie this cord around her neck.

So he tried to say he didn't tie the cord, and nothing he was saying made sense with the version that we had. So we were going to paint this as the picture of him finding out Nikki was transgender after having been sexually intimate with her and then basically just losing it.

So he tried to say he didn't tie the cord, and nothing he was saying made sense with the version that we had. So we were going to paint this as the picture of him finding out Nikki was transgender after having been sexually intimate with her and then basically just losing it.

The whole thing was kind of from a very self-centered, like how this is affecting me, how I'm going to have to deal with it, like why this is bad for me, not realizing, obviously, the whole other side of it. And so it was pretty striking.

The whole thing was kind of from a very self-centered, like how this is affecting me, how I'm going to have to deal with it, like why this is bad for me, not realizing, obviously, the whole other side of it. And so it was pretty striking.

Guilty on everything, which was a huge relief, and the family was overjoyed at that outcome.

Guilty on everything, which was a huge relief, and the family was overjoyed at that outcome.

not what he deserves, but given the evidence, we ended up getting the most amount of time we could have possibly gotten.

not what he deserves, but given the evidence, we ended up getting the most amount of time we could have possibly gotten.