Jurors In Marathon Bombing Case See Second Note Left In Watertown Boat
BOSTON (CBS) - Until today, jurors in the Boston Marathon bombing case had only heard about a second so-called boat note, but on Tuesday they saw it for themselves. This one was carved into wooden slats inside the Watertown boat where Dzhokhar Tsarnaev hid from police for hours. It reads, in large letters,"STOP KILLING OUR...INNOCENT PEOPLE AND WE WILL...STOP"
It is a sentiment nearly identical to the other handwritten confessions of sorts found inside that boat. On Tuesday, the jury also saw photographs of the bloodied pencil that prosecutors say Tsarnaev used to write that message.
The boat's owner took the stand to testify that he'd left the pencil, along with his toolkit, inside the boat when he wrapped it up for winter.
That man, Watertown native David Henneberry, also told jurors how he found Tsarnaev that day.
"I noticed a lot of blood...on the deck of the boat, inside," he said. "That's when I saw a body in the boat."
"I could see his boots," Henneberry continued, "I could see his pants. No movement at all."
Henneberry called 911 and teams of law enforcement descended on his Franklin Street neighborhood, finding more evidence that was also offered in court Tuesday.
Just steps from the boat where Tsarnaev was hiding, FBI investigators found two smashed iPhones along with the ATM card belonging to carjack victim Dun Meng.
Most of the day, though, was spent with Tsarnaev's former best friend Stephen Silva who testified he loaned Tsarnaev the gun that would later be used to kill MIT police officer Sean Collier and used in the firefight with Watertown police.
Silva recalled being a high school class with Tsarnaev, when the teacher asked if terrorism was ever justified. Silva quoted Tsarnaev as saying, "American foreign policy tends to be a little hostile to the Middle East, persecuting Muslims."
Silva told the jury that although they were very close, Tsarnaev never introduced him to his older brother Tamerlan.
"He said his brother was very strict, very opinionated. And that, since I wasn't a Muslim he might give me a little (expletive) for that."
But Silva is also a troubled witness. He's currently locked up on other charges, and under cross examination, he admitted to lying to prosecutors. When asked by defense attorney Miriam Conrad why he was testifying, Silva admitted, "I'm hoping to get the best deal I can possibly get."
He continued: "My understanding is, if I give a truthful testimony, I stand the best chance at sentencing."
Silva's lawyer, Jonathan Shapiro, was also at court Tuesday. "During the many interviews, he may have shaded some things, he may have not told everything. But in the end he did," Shapiro told reporters. "In the end he told the truth."
It will be up to a jury decide how credible they find him to be.
