Day 4 of the Sabrina Limon murder trial continues today.
UPDATE (September 14, 2017 4:31 p.m.): Attorneys are now reading a card Sabrina Limon wrote and sent to Jonathan Hearn. The letter says Sabrina wants to live together with Hearn in God's will.
Hearn is being asked about their intent to live in God's will.
He's being asked about the two of them having a chance together once Robert Limon was gone.
In early 2014, they discussed marriage, following a potential divorce. She expressed reasons why divorce was not an option for her, which he says solidified their plans for Robert Limon's eventual demise.
He said their discussions progressed leading to conversations about Robert's death.
Jonathan Hearn is being asked about a "rainbow promise" that was discussed between him and Sabrina Limon.
In a letter in February of 2014 Jonathan wrote to Sabrina about their future together. That future, he said, involved the death of Robert Limon.
Hearn is now discussing the methods of killing Robert Limon.
His initial method was poisoning. He said he briefly considered some others.
He said they were in conjunction with Sabrina.
He said he doesn't remember how the initial discussion came up, but they briefly discussed how he thought it would be best. They discussed car accident and fire then skipped over those and settled on poisoning.
On the topic of a car accident, he said he personally considered it, but thought it would be futile. He said he had a number of reasons. He said there would be a lot of financial burden, and investigation that would follow.
He said he mentioned to Sabrina that he was leaning away from it.
He also considered fire, "like an arson".
Hearn said he and Sabrina settled on poisoning.
He said he did plan the poisoning of Robert with some necessary assistance from Sabrina.
In talking about the information Sabrina gave Hearn, he said she told him that he had a rare medical condition that presented with some symptoms would mimic in a poisoning attempt. She also mentioned that he had been having some stomach issues and that was a good thing because it would mask some symptoms. She mentioned those symptoms to some of their friends, so it would be less suspicious if he died from those symptoms.
He said her involvement also included what kind of food he would eat, location, specifically Tehachapi. They agreed that the medical care there wouldn't be up to par as some of the metro areas.
She expressed all those things as some others.
Sabrina Limon recommended poisoning him on the job, in Tehachapi.
The food items she suggested that Robert Limon would be sure to eat were some sort of sandwich or wrap that could be purchased at Costco or also banana pudding with Nilla wafers.
Hearn says arsenic was purchased. He purchased it.
He used a pre-paid card to put finances on a Pay-Pal account. He tried to purchase it from a couple of places, but could not due to sensitivity of product, but he was able to purchase it under an alias.
He sent it to his grandparent's commercial art studio.
Hearn is now looking at receipts where he attempted to buy arsenic.
He's talking about the alias he used. That alias he used in one instance was "Terrance".
He said the arsenic was sent to a fictitious business in Hesperia.
Hearn is now talking about looking up recipes for pudding with Nilla wafers. He talked about buying Jell-O banana pudding for the use of mixing it with arsenic.
Hearn is talking about mixing and putting together the arsenic.
During online searches he looked up "arsenic homicide". He said the searches were done at a time when they discussed committing the homicide in Kern County.
He said he did some research on Tehachapi.
He's now being asked if he and Sabrina Limon ever discussed harming Robert Limon at work.
He said he doesn't remember conversations about it being more beneficial to hurt him at work. He said Sabrina had discussed not wanting him to suffer at home.
He's now being asked if he spoke to anyone else about killing Robert Limon. He said he didn't.
He said after receiving the arsenic trioxide, on one of the days he was off work and had free time, he examined it and looked for the toxic loading dose of arsenic and dose by weight ratio.
He said he tested it on a neighbor dog that had caused him issues in the past. He said he put it on some meat.
He then put together a batch for Robert, knowing he was going to be at work in Tehachapi.
He said he researched dose by weight ratio pretty extensively.
He said he made a pretty large batch of banana pudding with Nilla wafers that was enough for a family size. He also made a smaller batch that Robert could take for lunch.
He said he put the pudding in Tupperware first then stirred in the arsenic. He said he made it in the garage next to the room he was renting.
He said once Sabrina received the pudding she then placed it in her refrigerator. She put the smaller portion in his lunch for the next day. He said he did not see any of this, but it's what she told him.
Once he mixed the arsenic with the pudding, he put the arsenic container, utensils and whatever he was using and was going to creatively dispose of them later. For the time being he bagged them up and stored them away.
He said the idea of him dying at a hospital was preferable because a medical professional would oversee the situation. If a medical professional gave their opinion, it might not be so suspicious.
He said he told Sabrina that he was worried about the idea of being tracked by cell phones.
The day the arsenic was to have been sent, they talked about their concerns and the idea of Robert Limon's possible death being investigated as a homicide.
Sabrina Limon then said she told Robert not to eat the pudding because the bananas had gone bad.
After the fact, Hearn then went to purchase a pre-paid phone.
Hearn said after Robert Limon found out about their shared gmail account Hearn then bought pre-paid phones for he and Sabrina Limon to use to communicate.
He said those phones were the same ones they used to communicate up to the day he was arrested.
He said their romantic relationship continued, but the two agreed upon a pause that would last three or four months. That planned pause was to help in the event of a homicide investigation.
He said during that time he continued to call her and they continued to discuss Robert Limon.
He said Robert Limon's being unconcerned and unwilling to fix their marriage helped justify their decisions.
Hearn says Robert Limon was spoken of pretty poorly at the time.
The judge is now bringing the day to a close.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 3:25 p.m.): After a brief recess, questioning of Jonathan Hearn resumes.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 2:08 p.m.): Jonathan Hearn is being asked about the charges he pleaded to. He's being asked about which high school he attended. He went to a private, home school in Hesperia. After he graduated he says he was going toward fire department arson investigation.
He says he attended community college for a number of years, taking a number of certificate classes geared toward achieving his career goals.
After completing fire training he worked for San Bernardino Fire Department.
While working there he says he met Jason Bernatene. He said he first met Bernatene when he was 16 years old while in the Explorer program.
He's being asked about Sabrina Limon, the first time he met her and if he can point her out in the courtroom.
He said when he became a member at Costco he ran into her a number of times.
After a few visits to Costco, he got her number. He said he noticed she had no wedding ring and she never mentioned being married.
He says she called him to "set the record straight" letting him know she was married.
He said at the point when he met Sabrina Limon he did not have a girlfriend.
He said on paper, she was not a match he would typically go for. But, her personality is what stood out. She was a very loving, attentive and caring type of person, he said.
He said he was working on a book, gathering stories from firefighters throughout the country. The book was in pre-production.
He's now looking at a story he wrote. On a firefighters website that had stories, he wrote one that he dedicated to Sabrina Limon.
In October of 2012, he says he and Sabrina were friends and were flirting.
In November of that year he says they met up and spent a little bit of time together and ended up making out. Shortly after when he was able to recollect his thoughts he asked if they could meet up and discuss the nature of their relationship. He said it probably wasn't the wisest decision.
He said when they met, she bought some coffee for him. She hugged him and teared up a little. He says it made an impression on him that he perhaps was a little more meaningful to her than he realized.
He said he's trying to look into the future of this and didn't see that it was anything good. He said they should back off. She said they should still keep in contact.
By the end of December of 2012 he said they carried on a full on affair. He said they began having sex.
He said by that time they were texting, sending messages and photos.
He's being asked about specific pictures he received from Sabrina Limon. He said he can't give an approximation on when he specifically received photos.
In December of 2012, he said he received nude pictures of Sabrina Limon. He said he had many.
He said he took photos of her as well. Some photos were taken at her work as well.
He said early in 2013 they began expressing their love for each other.
He said within two weeks of getting her phone number and talking to her that he found out she was married.
He said he went to a private school and went to church.
He's being asked about his religious upbringing and how it affected his decisions with Sabrina Limon.
He said he would re-think getting involved with Sabrina Limon.
He said he obviously enjoyed spending time with her, but he also had the guilt of doing something that was a moral dilemma.
He said she's a "very, very friendly person".
He said around the time he met her he had a number of relationships that were "sub-par".
He said in early 2013 it was primarily an "emotional relationship".
He's now being shown a photograph. He said it appears to be Jason Bernatene, another person along with himself.
He's now talking about going to a restaurant where Robert Limon would be present.
He said he told Sabrina that Robert seemed like a nice guy and that he cared about her.
He said they didn't have sex regularly, that it was based around their schedules, but they did text daily. If not daily, regularly and for long periods of time.
He's being asked about Robert Limon finding out about the affair. He said it was in March or April of 2013. He said after receiving a call from Robert, he contacted Jason Bernatene, who was a mutual friend, he asked for Robert's number. Bernatene then confronted him about messing around with Sabrina. He said he lied and that he wasn't. Instead of getting Robert's number, Robert called him.
He said he didn't confess to a full on affair, but he didn't have a serious "emotional affair" and apologized for that.
He's now being asked about talking to his mother or writing about this in a journal. He said he doesn't recall.
He's now looking at a check that he wrote a personal note on. It was a payment of grace from God and the forgiveness of Robert Limon.
He's now looking at a journal entry from April 22, 2013. In reference to the affair being discovered, he wrote about his emotions, how he hurt Robert Limon and in spite of his attraction to Sabrina Limon, ultimately he had to go through missing her in order to undo what he had done.
Attorneys are now reading a passage from a letter Jonathan Hearn wrote.
Hearn admits the language in the letter shows that he was conflicted by his actions.
In April of 2013, he said he had very serious conversations with Sabrina Limon, expressing his conflict and desires not to disrespect Robert. As far as a concerted effort to distance himself from her he says he failed.
He's now being shown a check with a message to Jesus Christ and Robert Limon. Hearn says he had hoped to have a conversation with Robert seeking forgiveness.
He said he talked to Sabrina Limon about the conflict of that resolution. She expressed an eagerness to carry on as friends.
He said carrying on as friends did not last long. It lasted a few conversations. That was in April of 2013. Within a month, he was back to having a physical affair with Sabrina Limon.
Jonathan Hearn is now being shown photographs.
He said the photos were sent to him by Sabrina Limon.
Hearn is now talking about Robert Limon and conversations he had with Sabrina about him.
He said because of their "emotional affair" that most of their early conversations were about each other. As time went on they started talking about Robert Limon.
He said most of the negative things they would talk about in regards to Robert were to justify their affair. He said they were meant to alleviate the guilt they had for their affair.
He said the negative things said about Robert Limon came from Sabrina Limon.
He said by early 2014, Robert Limon was a regularly discussed topic, all of which was negative.
They discussed his shortcomings personally, their marriage, his parenting, as expressed by Sabrina Limon.
Jonathan Hearn was 24 in 2014.
He said he listened to Sabrina, he believed everything she said about Robert Limon.
He said in conversations with Sabrina, they began taking about how it would be easier if he was gone.
They're now discussing the transition from just talking about Robert being out of picture to actually formulating a plot to kill him.
He said he would do whatever it would take to make her happy.
He said they went from texting to emailing through a mutually shared gmail account.
He said that was around the time that the plan started.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 1:48 p.m.): Jonathan Hearn has taken the stand.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 1:45 p.m. ): Meyer is being questioned about the arrest of Sabrina Limon on November 18, her subsequent release and charges being filed in January.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 1:42 p.m. ): On the stand now is Kern County Sheriff's Office detective Robert Meyer.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 10:30 a.m.):
Dr. Whitmore examined Robert Limon's postmortem examination. He describes Robert's gunshot wounds. He says Robert sustained two gunshot wounds, one bullet to the chin and another the the right chest. Whitmore is unsure which bullet struck him first.
Whitmore says more wounds contained soot, which indicates "very close range" gunshot wounds.
Whitmore testifies that one gunshot was within inches of Robert's body while the other wound shows signs that the gun barrel was touching his skin.
Whitmore is excused from the witness stand.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 10:10 a.m.):
Detective Miller is excused from the witness stand. The prosecution calls Dr. Robert Whitmore, Kern County Sheriff's Officer Coroner's Office, is called to the stand.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 10 a.m.):
Detective Miller is cross examined by defense attorney Richard Terry. Terry asks Miller how the information for the search warrant of Jonathan Hearn's Google accounts was obtained. Miller says search warrant derived from information Jonathan Hearn gave to KCSO Detective Miller. Miller is the lead detective in the Robert Limon murder case.
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 9:45 a.m.):
Prosecutor Eric Smith cross examines Detective Miller. Smith asks Miller about the search warrant issued for Jonathan Hearn's Google account.
Warrant revealed that between March 2014 and April 2014, Hearn's "JonHearn27@gmail" Google account searched easy banana pudding recipes, arsenic trioxide poisoning, a CNN arsenic murder article, and arsenic homicide. According to the search warrant, Hearn also searched the Kern County Coroner's website and "how soon after a person dies does a life insurance pay out?".
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UPDATE (September 14, 2017 9:31 a.m.):
Defense attorney, Richard Terry, cross-examines Detective Miller who authored and executed search warrant of Jonathan Hearn's home and chicken shed. The search warrant was issued after Hearn confessed to killing Robert Limon in January 2017.
Hearn told detectives they would find a receipt for ammo that was purchased on August 17, 2014, the day Robert was murdered. He also told detectives they would find a gun barrel, a sound suppressor for a firearm, and memory flash drives that were hidden inside of a plug-in air freshener.
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KCSO Detective Tanner Miller is back on the witness stand. He is being cross-examined by defense attorney, Richard Terry.
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