Boulder Reporting Lab is providing daily updates from the courtroom. Updates from the first week of the trial are here. Week 2 is here. Week 3 is here.
Last updated 9:00 p.m. on Sept. 18, 2024.
What to know from Week 4 (Sept. 16-20, 2024):
- Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa waived his right to testify, and the defense rested its case on Sept. 18, following testimony about a five-month delay in providing him medication after his arrest.
- After the murders, Alissa expressed a desire for the death penalty and wore suicide-risk clothing in jail, though he denied being suicidal. He was disappointed to learn Colorado no longer has the death penalty.
- The defense claims Alissa was insane at the time of the shooting, while the prosecution argues he was sane. The jury will decide his mental state.
- The defense highlighted Alissa’s fear of being followed by the FBI, which the jury must consider alongside his father’s history with law enforcement and Alissa’s potential schizophrenia-related delusions.
- A psychologist testified that Alissa appeared stable in jail but deteriorated over time, supporting the prosecution’s argument that his mental illness was exaggerated by his family, who testified this week.
- Closing statements are scheduled for Friday morning, Sept. 20, with jury deliberations to begin that afternoon.