Prosecutors in the Brittany Norwood homicide trial argued successfully Friday that Norwood’s statements to police after her co-worker was found dead in a Bethesda yoga shop should be heard in court.

Norwood is accused of killing her coworker Jayna Murray, 30, on March 11 at Bethesda’s lululemon athletica store.

On Aug. 19, the same day Norwood’s attorneys asked for a delay in the trial to prepare a defense of not criminally responsible — or insanity — they asked the judge to suppress five statements she made to police during their investigation. Judge Robert A. Greenberg denied the request for postponement and set a Monday deadline for entering the not criminally responsible plea.

In arguing to keep or suppress the statements, attorneys on both sides illuminated how the investigation into Murray’s killing unfolded and how Norwood turned from survivor to suspect.

At 8:10 a.m. March 12, Murray was found beaten and stabbed to death in the Bethesda Row store.

Norwood, 29, of Washington, D.C., was found bound at the wrists and ankles and had wounds and blood covering her face. She was moaning and appeared to be lapsing in and out of consciousness, according to court records. She was treated at Suburban Hospital for sexual assault and injuries to her face, hands and torso.

Norwood told detectives two masked men attacked her and Murray. During the investigation, prosecutors came to believe Norwood killed Murray after a confrontation about shoplifting at the store. They believed Norwood hurt herself to cover up the crime.

At 10:25 a.m., Detective Deana Mackie, who was called in to work on her day off, arrived at the hospital to take a statement from Norwood. Norwood was laying in bed, covered by a hospital blanket, but she was responsive, coherent, lucid and never complained of pain. Norwood and Mackie both can be heard sniffling on the audio tape of the interview.

Another interview by the same detective started at 3:22 p.m. that day. Norwood was “offering information and conversing calmly,” with the detective, according to the state’s response to the motion to suppress. The response was signed by State’s Attorney John McCarthy and the other prosecutor on the case, Assistant State’s Attorney Marybeth Ayres.

The other statements Norwood’s attorneys argued to have suppressed are:

ŸA March 14 interview with the lead detectives on the case, which took place at Norwood’s apartment in Washington, D.C. It was on that day Norwood offered new details of the crime, including that the attackers had called her racial slurs and apparently found her name and home address on bills she had left in her purse. The lead detectives on the case, Dimitry Ruvin and James Drewry, encouraged Norwood to tell her family that her identity might be known, encouraged everyone to look out for strangers and left the home.

ŸA March 16 interview at the Montgomery County police headquarters, where Norwood reported to give fingerprint and hair samples for “elimination purposes.” At the Friday hearing, Drewry said he started to doubt Norwood’s accounts of victimization the day before when Norwood’s blood was found in Murray’s car. Still, on that day, Norwood volunteered statements, including that she never had been in Murray’s car.

ŸAn interview March 18, which was scheduled by Norwood’s sister, who said Norwood had additional information about the attack that she wanted to share with police, including that Norwood had been in Murrray’s car — when the attackers forced her to move it during the attack. The interview lasted from 10:52 a.m. to 11:44 a.m. Then they took an eight-minute break.

McCarthy conceded Norwood should have been read her Miranda rights before the questions resumed at 11:52 a.m., so statements made after that time will not be used during trial.

Norwood's attorneys argued a reasonable person in her situation would have felt as if they had no choice but to answer police questions, so police should have read her a Miranda warning. Prosecutors stressed in all of the statements before the break March 18, Norwood was free to leave and, in fact, did on the first four occasions.

Judge Greenberg agreed with prosecutors and ruled that all of the statements — save for an additional eight minutes of conversation before the break on March 18 that will be suppressed — were voluntary and can be introduced at trial.

Greenberg said the case was one that captured the attention of “all of us who live in Montgomery County,” and it was cynical to think police should have suspected Norwood of killing Murray immediately after she was found. He noted Norwood was calm and collected during her interactions with police.

“This was a young woman who was totally facile, totally with it, knew what she was doing,” Greenberg said.

The next hearing in the case is set for Oct. 14, when the defense will argue to suppress some evidence and expert witness testimonies.

dgaines@gazette.net