By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-10-23 14:33:06 | Updated at 2024-10-23 17:50:24
3 hours ago
A Florida woman accused of killing her boyfriend by stuffing him into a suitcase and leaving him to die did so during a drunken game of hide-and-seek, a court has heard.
Sarah Boone, 47, faces a charge of second-degree murder over the death of her boyfriend Jorge Torres Jr., 42, who died of asphyxiation in 2020.
Taking to the stand on Tuesday during her Orlando trial, Boone recalled how the two had been started a game of hide and seek after a day of drinking, when he got into the suitcase.
She said: 'He tapped me on my knee and said, you're it. I ran upstairs and just waited on him to find me. I then went downstairs to find where he was.
'I looked over and saw him settling into the suitcase. I zipped him up. We thought it was funny and were joking about how he was small enough to fit inside the suitcase.'
Sarah Boone, seen here on Tuesday, faces a charge of second-degree murder over the death of her boyfriend Jorge Torres Jr ., 42, who died of asphyxiation in 2020
Taking to the stand on Tuesday during her Orlando trial, Boone recalled how the two had been playing a game of hide and seek when he got into the suitcase
Boone continued: 'From there, we were laughing about it, and it was just strange that he was small enough to fit in there, and then I kind of moved it around a little bit with him in the suitcase still.
A forensic pathologist testified earlier that Torres died as a result of positional asphyxia, with his death ruled a homicide
'It was still funny that he was still in the suitcase. I think he and I couldn't believe that he could fit in the suitcase.'
Boone, who has claimed Torres had been abusive to her, said the case fell over and she started videotaping it.
She told the court that she wanted to use the opportunity to talk to Torres, since he was 'not able to get out'.
Footage shows him thrashing around inside the suitcase, telling her 'I can't f***ing breathe' as she yells back at him.
She took two clips of her laughing at Torres as he begged for his life, she can be heard saying: 'For everything you've done to me, f**k you, stupid.'
Addressing the court, she continued: 'His hand started to come through, and so I shook the suitcase to try and get his hand to go back in. Telling him please stop doing this to me.'
When questioned, Boone said her boyfriend had been 'forcefully' trying to escape and that he was angry at her.
She then said that she was 'always in fear', adding: 'He used to tell me he would make me unrecognizable, or I would have lost my life.'
Boone continued: 'I grabbed the baseball bat to poke his hand to go back in. So I hit his hand.
Boone has claimed Torres had been abusive to her, he is seen here taking a baseball to a TV set before crashing out in a rampage
Boone told the court that she wanted to use the opportunity to talk to Torres, since he was 'not able to get out'
'I started with his hand and he was still trying to get out, so I started pushing on the suitcase hoping that his hand would retract and go back inside.
'Finally, he subsided and retracted his hand', she said, adding that her 'split second decision' prevented him from attacking her.
'There was no more of him trying to break through the suitcase so I felt safe enough to turn it back over.'
Boone said that she later went upstairs and fell asleep, waking up the next day and 'figured he was downstairs drinking or looking for jobs'.
After unzipping the case she said: 'I don't think I've experienced anything like that before. I was aghast and just can't describe the feeling of terror. He was purple.'
A forensic pathologist testified earlier that Torres died as a result of positional asphyxia, with his death ruled a homicide.
Prosecutors have argued that Boone showed no regard for his life, her attorneys have claimed that she was the victim of battered spouse syndrome.
Under cross examination, prosecutors pushed her on testimony from a neighbor who said they heard a loud thud on the night of the murder.
Suggesting Boone pushed the suitcase down the stars, she was questioned as to why she felt it necessary to teach him a lesson while in the case.
She said that 'was no lesson to be learned', but she wanted him to know how she felt abuse his alleged abuse.
Assistant State Attorney William Jay said: 'Did you do anything to help him escape from the predicament that you zipped him up in?', she replied: 'No'.
Boone had previously requested to have professional hair and makeup for her murder trial - but her audacious ask was denied
Prosecutors have argued that Boone showed no regard for his life, her attorneys have claimed that she was the victim of battered spouse syndrome
Boone had previously requested to have professional hair and makeup for her murder trial - but her audacious ask was denied.
Boone has represented herself for much of her court saga since her arrest, and is now being represented by her ninth attorney after eight others were removed or quit.
In June 2018, Boone was arrested on a charge of battery by strangulation targeting her boyfriend, and Jorge was charged with battery stemming from an alcohol-fueled altercation inside their home.
According to an affidavit, Torres told a deputy Boone wrapped her hands around his neck and attempted to strangle him as he was walking upstairs to get away from her after an argument, prompting him to kick her.
A year later, Torres was arrested twice in a span of two months on charges of battery - dating violence.
His obituary reveals that Torres was a father of three. His girlfriend has a son from a previous marriage.
