SALISBURY, Md. - Late Wednesday afternoon, defendant Austin Davidson's ex-girlfriend took the stand.
It was the first time a witness directly spoke to Davidson's possible motivation and pre-meditation in the death of Wicomico County Sheriff's Corporal Glenn Hilliard on June 12 of last year.
Damya Potts, who broke up with Davidson months before Hilliard's murder testified that in social media messages and at least one phone call, she urged Davidson to put down his weapons and turn himself in.
The exhibit showed Davidson told her "I shot a cop I was scared I love u bye" and "I killed him."
The state also showed a message Davidson sent to Potts about a week before Hilliard's death. It said "I will die B4 they put me in that cell again and any cop that trys to put me back in that cell gonna die with me."
In Tuesday's opening statements, the state argued statements like that speak directly to pre-meditation.
On the night of the shooting, Davidson asked Potts "You think God will forgive me?"
Potts is expected to continue her testimony on Thursday, with the defense cross-examining her.
Earlier in the day, five other witnesses took the stand including two expert witnesses. One, who performed the autopsy of Corporal Hilliard's body, and another who examined recovered weapons that allegedly belonged to Davidson.
Two moments led some in the courtroom to tears. The first, when Maryland State Police crime scene photographs of Hilliard's body in a TidalHealth hospital bed were shown to the jury.
Those images showed a gunshot entry wound just above Hilliard's right eye.
The second, when Hilliard's autopsy photos were displayed.
Those photos displayed a gunshot exit wound in the back of Hilliard's head.
At least one juror wiped away tears. Hilliard's wife Tashica, who has been present in the courtroom throughout the trial also wiped away tears, and at times looked away from the graphic images.
So far, roughly twenty witnesses have taken the stand as the state continues its case. The trial could last until Friday, May 12.