Phoning a friend from jail cost Patricia K. Larson one of the witnesses for her defense Monday.
The witness could not testify in the Hawley woman's murder trial because the conversation between Larson and the witness violated a court order, ruled Clay County District Judge John Pearson.
Larson, who faces second-degree murder charges in the Sept. 21 death of Gregory Bates, took the stand in her own defense.
She said she was scared to death the night of the shooting when her live-in boyfriend tried to smother her three times. The defense rested its case after Larson testified for three hours.
Defense attorney Steven Light planned to call Larson's friend, Dawn George, as his fifth witness.
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Court records say George took an AR-15 rifle away from Bates after he swung it and pointed it at Larson and George last June.
Clay County Attorney Lisa Borgen objected to George testifying because of a phone call Thursday evening, in which Larson told George what previous witnesses said.
Calls made from the Clay County Jail are recorded and often reviewed by investigators.
Light did not disagree with Borgen, and called Larson as his final witness.
Larson, in a blue pant suit with her long, brown hair in a braid, cried on the stand as she told jurors about the night of the shooting.
She and Bates argued that afternoon because she wanted her adult son, Cassidy, to live with them.
The couple went drinking that night at different bars.
When Larson returned home, she put a chair in front of the door so Bates couldn't get in, she testified.
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Larson went to bed after 2 a.m. and woke up when she heard Bates trying to get in the door.
She got up and removed the chair because she thought it would set him off even more, she testified.
She said her memory of what happened is spotty, but she recalled being smothered three times in her bedroom. The third time she was unconscious, Larson testified.
"I thought I was going to die," she said.
Bates prevented her from calling 911, she testified.
When Larson regained consciousness, she walked into the kitchen, saw the 12-gauge shotgun leaning against the table, and pulled the trigger, she testified.
Larson said she did not aim the gun. She did not see Bates standing in the kitchen until after the shot hit him, she testified.
In her two-hour cross-examination, Borgen questioned why Larson initially omitted some details when she spoke with police.
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Larson said she didn't recall certain things until one or two months later.
"The bits and pieces you remember, Miss Larson, are the ones that help your side of the story," Borgen asked.
Earlier Monday, a domestic violence expert for the defense testified that women who have been battered often have fragmented memories.
Another defense witness who performs independent forensic analysis, scientist Gaylan Warren, testified that Bates' blood spatter shows he was standing when Larson shot him.
Jurors will likely begin deliberating on Wednesday.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Amy Dalrymple at (701) 241-5590
