Elizabeth Johnson 'Baby Gabriel' trial could go to jury weeks earlier than expected

PHOENIX - The trial of Elizabeth Johnson could end weeks earlier than expected.

On Wednesday, attorneys predicted closing arguments could begin as early as next week.

The trial had been expected to last until early November because the jury had two weeks off in August due to scheduling conflicts.

However, the trial is moving along faster than anticipated partly because Johnson’s attorney, Marc Victor, is doing very little, if any, cross examining of the prosecution’s witnesses.

The jury has the week of October 8th off, which poses a problem for both sides because attorneys do not want to send the case to the jury as jurors begin a week-long break.

The judge said he would take the scheduling issue under advisement.

Meanwhile, the jury on Wednesday saw the last known photo taken of Baby Gabriel.

Johnson sat emotionless in court as she looked at several pictures of Gabriel, including the last one she took of him the day after Christmas in 2009.

Logan McQueary, Gabriel’s father, had previously testified that the following day, December 27, was when Johnson called him saying she had killed their son and thrown him into a dumpster.

On Wednesday, jurors heard from Tempe police officers who showed up to Johnson’s home looking for the boy, assuming the worst.

“The main purpose of it was to search cabinets, crawl spaces, a storage shed that was attached to it that we went through. I went underneath the trailer to check the crawl space beneath the trailer to make sure there's no disturbances in the dirt, checked flower beds, and trash receptacles in the area,” testified Detective David Larson.

But police did not find anything, because Johnson had taken Gabriel out of state days earlier.

During testimony, Tempe police officers showed the jury data from a GPS device Johnson used in her car, which prosecutors said tied her to Texas and Florida where police eventually arrested Johnson.