Prosecutors Seek to Introduce Secret Graveside Tapes of Murder Suspect
Prosecutors in Michigan are seeking to introduce secret tapes made at the gravesite of a slain New Baltimore couple to show the murder suspect—their son—did not appear to be grieving.
Ronald Jabalee Jr. is accused of fatally stabbing his parents, Ronald and Christine Jabalee, because of money and an addiction to the prescription painkiller Vicodin, the Detroit Free Press reports. His defense lawyer claims police arrested the wrong man.
Jabalee Jr. does not sound distraught on the tapes, while his brother, Ryan, is heard sobbing, the story says.
The lawyer for Jabalee Jr., Stephen Rabaut, says the recording device was installed without a warrant and the recording should be excluded from the trial. Assistant prosecutor Steven Kaplan says the taping was permissible because “there’s no privacy in public.”
Judge Richard Caretti of Macomb County has asked for briefs on the issue.
