Cosgrove

On Friday, the defense submitted a response to the written closing statement from the state in the Trequan Cosgrove bench trial for first-degree murder.

The murder charge alleges Cosgrove killed Ezra Seymour, 23, on Aug. 31, 2024. During a party at his residence, which Cosgrove shared with girlfriend Jaimee Alcaraz-Gutierrez, Seymour invited himself in. It is alleged Seymour urinated on the floor of the home and refused to leave after Cosgrove, 26, told him to.

After being escorted out of the house, the prosecution said Cosgrove, 26, felt he was made to look like a fool and turned a white Cadillac into a dangerous weapon. Officers with the Marshalltown Police Department (MPD) found the body of Seymour, fatally injured and lying in a pool of blood, on North 12th Avenue.

Asking for Cosgrove to be found guilty of all charges, County Attorney Jordan Gaffney submitted a closing statement on March 7. He wrote that an MPD SWAT team conducted a search of Cosgrove’s residence and found a 9mm pistol and the freshly-damaged Cadillac inside the garage. Hair found in the windshield crack matched Seymour’s DNA.

They also obtained phone records between Cosgrove and his girlfriend shortly after Seymour was hit, and video surveillance showing Alcaraz-Gutierrez opening the door to the garage to give Cosgrove a place to hide the Cadillac.

Gaffney wrote that the state has proved Cosgrove willfully killed Seymour and acted with malice, both of which must be proven to secure a conviction.

In response, Defense Attorney Ted Fisher, in a submitted brief on Friday, wrote that the state has not proved malice as witnesses described Cosgrove as calm. However, he also concluded that the credibility of the witnesses are suspicious as they were drinking the night Seymour died.

Fisher called the incident a tragic accident, possibly due negligent or reckless behavior. He continued that the state said the lack of skid marks at the scene shows malice, but argued there was no accident reconstruction. Fisher also criticized the lack of further investigation of the Cadillac to determine whether or not the brakes were functioning properly or to assess the condition of the tires.

He also disputed alleged video surveillance of Seymour leaving Cosgrove’s property. In the video, a person is seen walking away with black shoes and light colored clothes. The clothes on Seymour’s body were black.

Cosgrove is also charged with leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death, a Class C felony which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $13,660 fine; and being a felon in possession of a firearm, a class D felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $7,500 fine. First-degree murder carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Fisher wrote that since the state has not proved, beyond any reasonable doubt, that Cosgrove was the driver, the only charge that could apply is a lesser version of leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death, a Class D felony. He also wrote that there is no proof the firearm found in Cosgrove’s and Alcaraz-Gutierrez shared bedroom belonged to Cosgrove, as no prints were taken and DNA evidence found on the gun did not match.

The Marshall County Courthouse procedures of the trial ended Feb. 27, and both parties must file closing statements supporting their cases. Judge John Flynn is overseeing Cosgrove’s bench trial.

Alcaraz-Gutierrez has been charged with accessory after the fact, and that jury trial is scheduled to begin on April 24.

——-

Contact Lana Bradstream

at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or

lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.