Jennifer Dulos Case: Troconis To Face Contempt Charge In Trial

STAMFORD, CT — The prosecution in the trial of Michelle Troconis is seeking a contempt order against her for allegedly displaying text from a sealed court report on her laptop, as she sat in the courtroom, reported the New Haven Register.

Troconis is standing trial in connection with the disappearance and death of Jennifer Farber Dulos, the 50-year-old New Canaan mother-of-five, who vanished from her home on May 24, 2019. Jennifer Dulos has been declared dead by a probate court, but her body has not been found.

Jennifer and her estranged husband, the late Fotis Dulos, were in the midst of a bitter divorce and child custody fight at the time of her disappearance, and prosecutors have painted a picture during the trial that she met a violent end. Troconis was Fotis' girlfriend at the time of Jennifer Dulos' disappearance; Fotis Dulos died in January 2020 after a suicide attempt.

On Thursday, prosecutors said that Troconis defied a court order by displaying text from a sealed report on the Duloses' custody case; the font of the text reportedly was large enough that the gallery in the court could view portions of it.

Troconis' mother, Marisela Arreaza, who was seated in the gallery, reportedly tapped Troconis on the shoulder to warn her to turn off the laptop, and the prosecution asked Superior Court Judge Kevin Randolph to have her removed from the proceedings.

On Friday, Randolph denied that request, but warned the gallery and the defense that such actions will not be tolerated in the future. The judge also said that after the defense rests its case, he will take up the prosecution's request of the contempt order against Troconis.

Also on Friday, Randolph said that the defense had until midnight to provide the prosecution with reports of what some of its upcoming expert witnesses will testify to in court. Prosecutors argued they did not have enough time to prepare for a cross-examination of the experts.

Friday's hearing also featured a lengthy screening of more videos of the state police interrogation of Troconis, where prosecutors argued she had contradicted earlier statements she had made to authorities.

The prosecution said Friday that it may be able to rest its case next week, at which time Troconis' legal team, led by attorney Jon Schoenhorn, will present its defense.

Read the New Haven Register story.

The Dulos case:

• Jennifer Farber Dulos' Family: Seeing Bloody Evidence Was 'Brutal'
• Jennifer Dulos Case: Jury Hears Authorities Feared For Troconis' Life
• Jennifer Dulos Case: New Updates As Mystery Remains Unsolved
• New DNA Evidence Disclosed In Jennifer Dulos Disappearance
• New Documentary Explores Jennifer Dulos Murder Mystery
• Troconis Wants Evidence Thrown Out In Dulos Disappearance Case
• Mystery Continues 3 Years After Jennifer Farber Dulos' Disappearance
• New Details On How Jennifer Dulos May Have Died: Warrant
• Jennifer Dulos Case: Examination Of Forensic Evidence Continues
• Fotis Dulos Pressed Witness To Destroy Evidence: Court Testimony