Former Haitian president Jovenel Moïse's daughter testifies on day 3 of his assassination trial in Miami
The daughter of Haiti's assassinated president, Jovenel Moïse, took the stand again on Thursday in the federal trial of four men accused of helping orchestrate the assassination of her father.
Jomarlie Moïse testified in federal court in Miami that she was inside the family's home on July 7, 2021, when gunmen stormed the residence and killed her father. She told jurors she hid in a bathroom with her brother and the family dog, Delilah. She was not hurt in the attack.
Moïse, who said she was born and raised in Haiti and had lived at the family home since 2015, described having as many as 30 to 50 guards around the home at all times. Something her mother also testified to. She also said there's a police station down the road, a guard shack, road checks, and surveillance cameras near, at, and around their home. She said the family would call ahead when arriving so security could prepare for their entrance.
The younger Moise also said there's a balcony in her parents' bedroom. When asked about a balcony on Wednesday, the older Moise said a window in the bedroom was not a balcony, instead saying it was just a window with bars on the outside.
On Wednesday, former First Lady Martine Moïse also implicated a former Haitian president and a former prime minister in her husband's killing. Martine Moïse also testified that she herself has been under investigation by Haitian authorities in connection with the assassination, which she said is because people involved in her husband's murder are now in power.
After Jomarlie Moïse and her mother left federal court Thursday. The older Moïse, who never made it inside the courtroom, wore a short-sleeved dress to the courthouse. Scars on her right arm from her injuries during the July 2021 attack were visible.
Prosecutors called additional witnesses, including a Jackson Memorial Hospital doctor who treated Martine Moïse after she was flown to Miami with serious injuries. The doctor explained how Moïse had to be listed under several aliases while being treated. When asked, he also said Moise spoke very good English and never needed a translator, despite the hospital having translators available if she ever needed. There were two translators in court on Tuesday and Thursday when Moise testified.
Jurors ended the day hearing detailed and graphic testimony from Dr. Jean Demorcy, the Haitian doctor who performed President Moïse's autopsy on July 10, 2021, three days after the assassination. Demorcy testified that Moïse suffered at least a dozen gunshot wounds and extensive trauma across his body, including fractures to his skull, pelvis, vertebrae, left arm, left leg, and other injuries to his limbs, thorax, and abdomen. X-rays shown in court revealed bullet fragments throughout the president's entire body.
According to Demorcy, the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the heart. He said another gunshot wound to the head came afterward. He also testified that one of the shots to the head appeared to have been fired from close range, less than a meter away, based on gunpowder markings near the left ear. Demorcy said some bullets and fragments remained in the slain president's body because removing all of them would have taken days and further damaged the remains. Prosecutors also showed jurors bullets and fragments that were removed from the president's body during the examination.
President Jovenel Moïse was killed at his private residence in Haiti in July 2021. Since his assassination, Haiti has not had another president. The federal trial will resume Friday at 9 am with Dr. Demorcy being cross-examined. Four South Florida men are accused of playing roles in the plot to kill the Haitian leader.