SANTA CLARA COUNTY (KRON) — Antolin Garcia-Torres’s lawyers are arguing that Sierra LaMar was a runaway during day 5 of the murder trial.
Morgan Hill teenager Sierra LaMar went missing on her way to school in 2012. Garcia-Torres was charged with the kidnapping and murder of the 15-year-old. Her body was never found.
Garcia-Torres was arrested after LaMar’s DNA was allegedly found in the trunk of his car.
The defense lawyers claim that LaMar ran away because she was unhappy with her recent move from Fremont to Morgan Hill.
LaMar’s best friend Shannah Foreman took the stand on Monday. She testified that LaMar was very attached to her phone. They texted each other a lot but had no contact after she vanished.
Foreman said LaMar was “angry” about the recent move.
She also testified that LaMar was excited to go to attend a part in Fremont the night she disappeared. She said marijuana would be available at the party.
The close friend told the courtroom that LaMar used to return to Fremont to “party and pop pills.”
A classmate of LaMar’s, Alejandra Kendrick, testified that they had planned to go to the movies the day LaMar vanished. She also said she had never heard LaMar mention the defendant.
The friend became emotional as she recalled how LaMar always tilted her head a certain way in photographs.
The afternoon session of the trial included LaMar’s friends recalling how their plans to get together did not happen after she went missing.
Her friends were also questioned about LaMar’s drug use and text messages relating to the theory that she ran away not that she was murdered.Stay with KRON4 News for updates
