State, defense rest in Lintz double murder trial

CASS COUNTY, Mich. -- Both the state and the prosecution rested in the double murder trial of Keith Lintz. He is accused of killing Carolyn and John Tarwacki in February 2010 at their Niles home.



In court, the judge denied the defense's motion for a mistrial.

The prosecution didn't call any witnesses and rested its case.

The defense called three witnesses, including Lintz's mother and brother.

Sherri Lintz testified she didn't see her son from the time she left for work the morning of the murder until later that evening.

She said she saw him close to 8 p.m. in the living room.

Brian Jacobs, Lintz's brother, testified his brother had been at a friend's house the day of the murders and only got home after someone went to pick him up.

The prosecution focused on the family's story that Lintz was not wearing a jacket in the middle of winter when he would have to walk everywhere because he didn't have a car.

Doug Baker, Prosecutor: What kind of coat was he wearing, when you picked him up? You said a polo shirt, but it's February, he must have had a coat.

His mother said she didn't think he had a coat.

His family also tried to explain why Lintz didn't go to work the day of the murders. His mother said she wanted him home because she was scared the killer had not been caught.

Sherri testified she had him call in to work to say he would not be in.

That contradicts earlier testimony that Lintz was a no-call no-show at work that day.

The third witness was a woman who saw a man walking near the Tarwacki home the morning of the murders. Police used her information to create a sketch of that man.

Karri Sterling testified for the defense that she was driving down the road and saw a man wearing a red jacket, blue jeans and hat.

She testified the man in the sketch did not perfectly match the picture she had in her head of the man she saw on the street.

"When they did the sketch I even told the guy, it doesn't look exactly like, it's hard to. I have this image in my head and it's hard to explain that image," said Sterling.

Sterling never said whether Lintz was the man she saw and non one asked her.

She admitted to the prosecutor that the man was also wearing a black hooded sweatshirt under the red coat.

Lintz did not testify on his own behalf.

After all three witnesses testified, the defense rested its case.

On Friday, both sides will present their closing arguments and the case will go to the jury.