Defense Rests in Trial of Man Accused of Killing JP Tedeschi Clerk

Lawyers for convicted killer Ed "Butchie" Corliss called only two witnesses before resting their defense in his trial for the 2009 murder of JP Tedeschi clerk Surendra Dangol.

In opening arguments, the defense said it would prove Corliss isn't the man seen in a surveillance video robbing a Monument convenience store and fatally wounding a clerk.

On Thursday, the defense called a video expert, Michael Garneau of in Watertown. Garneau spoke about how a security camera placed at a high angle, like one that captured the murderer entering and leaving the store, can make it harder to estimate how tall a person is.  Garneau had compared the original surveillance video to one he took last month with the help of the store's owner.

On cross-examination by the prosecution, Garneau said the store had been remodeled since the murder and that he couldn't confirm the camera he testified about is the same one in place on the night of the murder in December 2009.

The defense also called the parole officer of key prosecution witness John "Jack" Witt. Witt is important because he , including Corliss' own wife. Parole Officer Charles Howard testified that Witt has broken his parole twice by testing positive for cocaine.

The defense also put into evidence a doctor's notes about William "Billy" Corliss, a prosecution witness and the defendant's brother. Billy Corliss told his doctor his was feeling paranoid and sick after police questioned him three times in the wake of Dangol's murder.

"I'm being blamed for something I didn’t do," Billy Corliss told his physician, according to the documents.

Billy Corliss testified that his brother had come to him drunk and flush with cash the night Dangol was murdered.

"They were trying to get me as an accessory to murder since I saw my brother afterwards," Billy Corliss told his doctor, according to the documents.

Corliss did not testify on his own behalf. As is usual procedure, Judge Diane Kottmeyer made sure Corliss understood that he had a right to testify if he chose to.

“Yes, I understand, your honor,” Corliss told the judge in a scratchy voice.

Closing arguments are expected Monday, with the case going to jurors shortly afterward.

The Dec. 26, 2009 murder, at the , shocked JP. At the time, Corliss was on parole for killing a Salisbury convenience store clerk in 1971.

Prosecutors say a gun police found on Revere Beach fired the bullet that killed Dangol, an immigrant from Nepal.