Jurors in Brian Walshe’s murder trial were shown items covered in possible blood – and other takeaways from Day 3

By Lauren del Valle, CNN

(CNN) — The Massachusetts jury weighing the case of Brian Walshe saw a collection of evidence on Wednesday, including photos of items covered in what looked like blood, as prosecutors work to prove he murdered his wife around New Year’s 2023.

The evidence capped the third day of witness testimony in Walshe’s murder trial, which also featured witnesses who prosecutors called to establish Ana Walshe did not travel after returning home to Massachusetts from Washington, DC, where she lived and worked – despite her husband’s initial claims that she had left early on January 1, 2023.

Meanwhile, Walshe’s defense worked to undercut any suggestion he might have been motivated to kill his wife because of the more than $1 million in life insurance policies she had purchased.

Walshe has already pleaded guilty to misleading police and improperly disposing of his wife’s body. But he maintains he did not kill the corporate real estate manager and mother of three. He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.

The trial in Dedham, Massachusetts, will continue Thursday. Prosecutors previously said they planned to call key witnesses later this week, like the man Ana Walshe was having an affair with before her death.

Here are the takeaways:

Jurors see photos of evidence covered in possible blood stains

A forensic scientist from the Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory walked the jury through photos of evidence recovered from dumpsters near an apartment complex where Brian Walshe’s mother lived.

Prosecutors have alleged Walshe tossed several bags at the location in an effort to cover his tracks, throwing away items that they previously said belonged to Ana Walshe, including a pair of Hunter boots and her Covid-19 vaccination card.

On Wednesday afternoon, the jury saw photos of several items recovered during the January 9, 2023, dumpster search, and prosecutors brought several into the courtroom to admit them into evidence. One by one, Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Greg Connor carried evidence bags to forensic scientist Davis Gould, who confirmed the contents of each bag without removing them for jurors to see.

Judge Diane Freniere told the jury they would have access to the physical evidence during deliberations.

Several items recovered from the trash search were covered in what appeared to be blood, according to photos shown in court – though Gould only referred to “red-brown stains.”

The jury saw photos of a black jacket, white towels and a white robe that were covered in these stains. A pair of gray slippers showed similar smears and a clump of what appeared to be hair on the bottom of one shoe. Another evidence photo showed several tools recovered from the trash, including a hatchet with similar “red-brown stains” and a hacksaw.

Prosecutors did not make a connection between the items and Brian and Ana Walshe in court Wednesday. But they’ve previously said investigators determined that items recovered from those dumpsters were covered in blood and the couple’s DNA. They will likely make that link explicit through a later witness.

Gould also said he processed Walshe’s Volvo at the family’s home and tested several locations for blood. He did not testify to the results of that testing, but again, prosecutors have previously said Ana Walshe’s blood was recovered in the car.

Witnesses testify Ana Walshe did not travel despite husband’s claim

Prosecutors called a series of record keepers whose brief testimony bolstered their claim that there is no evidence Ana Walshe left on her own from the family’s Massachusetts home after January 1, 2023, when she was last seen alive celebrating the New Year.

In the immediate aftermath of his wife’s disappearance, Brian Walshe told police she had left early that morning for Washington, DC, to address an emergency at work. She typically used an Uber, Lyft or taxi to go to the airport, he told them at the time. At trial, Walshe’s defense has acknowledged this was a lie, claiming instead that he found her dead in bed.

However, records custodians for Uber and Lyft confirmed she didn’t use either ridesharing app between December 30, 2022, after arriving in Massachusetts, and January 8, 2023, when Brian Walshe was arrested.

A records custodian for JetBlue testified Ana Walshe was considered a “no show” for a flight from Boston to DC that she had booked for January 3, 2023. She was also a “no show” for a flight on January 13, from DC back to Boston, the witness said.

A representative from the US Customs and Border Patrol similarly testified there were no records of Ana Walshe leaving the country after she returned in early December 2022 from a trip abroad.

A Massachusetts state trooper testified she searched Ana Walshe’s townhome in Washington, DC, on January 7, after she had been reported missing. The property was “neat and tidy,” the trooper said, and showed no signs that Ana had recently been there.

Ana Walshe bought over $1 million in life insurance policies only after her husband was denied

Jurors also heard from an insurance agent who had sold Ana Walshe a $1 million term life insurance policy and a $250,000 whole life insurance policy in 2021 – though defense attorneys on cross-examination worked to defuse the life insurance as a potential motive.

Brian Walshe was the beneficiary of both policies, Mark Selvaggi, the insurance agent, testified under direct questioning. The Walshe family also had whole life insurance policies on all three of their children, with Ana Walshe as the sole beneficiary, he said.

When Ana Walshe bought the policies, Selvaggi said, she had to undergo a health assessment – and received the highest health rating by the insurance company. Ana Walshe also submitted to blood and urine tests as part of that health designation process.

On cross-examination, Selvaggi testified it’s common for married couples to name each other as beneficiaries of life insurance policies when they have minor children: The surviving spouse can use the insurance to continue to care for their children.

The defense also had Selvaggi acknowledge that, before Ana Walshe bought her policies, Brian Walshe had first tried to purchase life insurance policies on himself. But he was repeatedly denied because of a pending federal case in which he pleaded guilty to charges connected to selling forged Andy Warhol artwork.

“It was probably your recommendation that Ana applied because Mr. Walshe was getting denied?” defense attorney Kelli Porges asked.

“Correct,” Selvaggi said.

Selvaggi said he wasn’t aware of a follow-up screening with Ana Walshe after she bought the policy in 2021. He also said he wasn’t sure if there were any evaluations for pulmonary, cardiac or neurological health included in her original assessment.

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