T-R PHOTO BY LANA BRADSTREAM Trequan Cosgrove looks at people gathered in the courtroom of the Marshall County Courthouse on Wednesday after hearing he was found not guilty of first-degree murder. He was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, leaving the scene of an accident and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Trequan Cosgrove was found not guilty of first- and second-degree murder at the Wednesday verdict hearing in the Marshall County Courthouse. However, he was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Cosgrove waived the right to hear the entire reading, instead opting only for the verdict. Judge John Flynn acknowledged the number of people gathered in the courtroom, and added he understood some people might be upset about his verdict.

“This was the most challenging case [I have had] as a lawyer or a judge. That’s all I can say,” Flynn said.

Before ending the brief hearing, Flynn said sentencing will take place on June 13.

“I am proud of and thankful for the effort and dedication put into the investigation and prosecution by the Marshalltown Police Department, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Iowa Attorney General’s Office and our team at the Marshall County Attorney’s Office,” said Marshall County Attorney Jordan Gaffney in a statement released after the hearing.

Cosgrove, 26, of Marshalltown, was charged with killing Ezra Seymour, 23, on Aug. 31, 2024. During the trial, the prosecution said there was a party at Cosgrove’s residence, which he shared with girlfriend Jaimee Alcaraz-Gutierrez, and Seymour invited himself in. It was alleged Seymour urinated on the floor and refused to leave after Cosgrove told him to. After being escorted out of the house, the prosecution said Cosgrove felt he was made to look like a fool and used a white Cadillac to run Seymour over. Marshalltown Police Department (MPD) officers found Seymour’s body on North 12th Avenue.

Cosgrove then parked the vehicle in the garage on his property, with help from Alcaraz-Gutierrez. The MPD SWAT team conducted a search of Cosgrove’s residence and found Seymour’s hair in a crack of the Cadillac windshield and a 9mm pistol.

The verdict does not end the criminal charges Cosgrove is facing. On April 10, he was charged with second-degree sexual abuse from a separate case. According to the filed MPD criminal report, Cosgrove allegedly sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl. The victim admitted to drinking alcohol while in a hotel room with Cosgrove, and does not recall events that took place afterward. A sexual assault kit was performed by medical staff the following day, and a DNA sample found in the underwear was determined to be a match to Cosgrove.

Alcaraz-Gutierrez has been charged with accessory after the fact, and a jury trial is scheduled to begin on May 9.

Findings

The 58-page verdict, filed in Iowa Courts Online after the hearing, stated 18 witnesses were heard during the bench trial, including seven officers from the MPD and two criminalists from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

The verdict provides details about events leading up to Seymour’s death, including time Cosgrove spent at The Depot prior to going to his house for a party with 14 people. In the chain of events provided, Cosgrove encounters Seymour at The Depot. Seymour gets into another car to arrive at Cosgrove’s residence where some people drank alcohol.

Shortly after 5 a.m. the morning of Aug. 31 is when Seymour allegedly urinated on the kitchen floor of Cosgrove’s home. Alcaraz-Gutierrez and people present asked him to leave, but Seymour did not. A witness testified that Cosgrove calmly told Seymour to leave. Cosgrove was described as a little annoyed and slightly confrontational, but not angry.

Using video surveillance from a neighbor’s camera, shortly after 5:30 a.m., Seymour is seen walking in the street. Roughly five minutes later, Cosgrove backs the Cadillac out of his driveway. At 5:45 a.m., Alcaraz-Gutierrez receives a call from Cosgrove, goes outside to open the garage door and moves items out of the way to make room for the Cadillac to be parked inside, which arrives three minutes later.

Seymour’s body was found at roughly 5:45 a.m., three blocks away from Cosgrove’s residence, by a person going to work. The person called 911, and MPD Officer Adan Ortiz-Diaz arrived within three minutes and was unable to find a pulse. The medical examiner concluded Seymour died of massive head injuries causing a skull fracture and laceration of the brain.

A search warrant was executed on Cosgrove and Alcaraz-Gutierrez’s residence. Damage consistent with a person being hit was found on the Cadillac, along with hair, fibers and red stains. The firearm was found inside the house. Also found were Google searches on Alcaraz-Gutierrez’s phone of the Derick Bear vehicular homicide case in Marshalltown and whether or not police could open a person’s front door.

Explanation

The verdict says the prosecution had to prove four elements in order for Cosgrove to be found guilty of first-degree murder:

That Cosgrove struck Seymour with the car. It was proven Cosgrove was the driver, based off of testimony and video surveillance, as well as phone calls made between him and Alcaraz-Gutierrez after Seymour was struck, her going to the garage to make space to hide the Cadillac in the garage and Google searches. There was also DNA evidence belonging to Seymour found on the Cadillac;

Seymour died as a result. This was proven based off of the injuries which were caused by severe blunt force;

That Cosgrove acted with malice and forethought. Flynn wrote if there was malice, Cosgrove would not have called Alcaraz-Gutierrez and she would have been waiting outside. While it is possible there was a plan to kill Seymour, the state did not provide evidence of it;

Cosgrove acted willfully, deliberately, premeditatedly and with specific intent to kill Seymour. Flynn wrote the state did not prove Cosgrove showed hostility or ill will toward Seymour. There was no evidence provided that Cosgrove grabbed or punched or indicated intention to harm Seymour.

“In sum, prior to leaving the residence, the state did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Cosgrove was hostile toward Ezra or that he wanted to commit an evil or unlawful act on Ezra because, when looking at how Cosgrove reacted based on the evidence presented by the state, it is very difficult for this court to conclude that.”

Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.