Fingerprint expert, medical examiner testify at trial for teen charged in Ofr. Amy Caprio's death

Day three of the murder trial for 17-year-old Dawnta Harris saw 12 state witnesses called to the stand to testify. From a cab driver to a medical examiner and homicide detectives, the jury heard more evidence presented about the burglaries but the most interesting development came from the state’s fingerprint expert, the Baltimore County Police Department latent print examiner responsible for examining prints collected from the burglarized homes, stolen property and Jeep and compared those with prints from the 4 teens arrested for Officer Amy Caprio’s death. Police say Harris was the driver of the stolen Jeep that hit and killed Caprio on May 21, 2018. The fingerprint expert Denise Wallace testified that Harris’ prints were lifted from the Jeep driver’s side door as well as from the bottom of a LEGO racer game that was stolen from one of the homes. Prosecutors said in their opening statement that Harris was the getaway driver but up until this point, had only developed the connection between the other three arrested and the burglaries. Wallace confirmed their prints were lifted from spots in and/or around the homes burglarized, on stolen property and on the Jeep. Also on the Jeep, Wallace identified prints of three other males not charged. The men responsible for leaving those prints were confirmed through AFIS. Establishing that Harris knowingly played a part in the burglaries is essential for the state to prove him guilty of first degree murder because of Maryland’s felony murder statute. Harris’ defense maintains that he did not play a part in the burglaries, that he stayed in the car and only moved to the front seat to change the radio station and that’s when he was confronted by Officer Caprio. Thursday, the jury also heard from the owner of the black Jeep who said it was stolen from his home on May 18, 2018, along with 2 TVs, silverware and a chef’s hat with his name on it that was located in the back of the Jeep on May 21, according to a Baltimore County Police technician who testified Wednesday.