Sade Robinson homicide; Maxwell Anderson trial begins May 27
Maxwell Anderson trial begins May 27
It's been more than a year since body parts surfaced throughout Milwaukee, which prompted a massive search for missing teenager Sade Robinson, and now her accused killer is going to trial.
MILWAUKEE - More than a year after Sade Robinson's death, the man accused of killing her is set to stand trial this week.
What we know:
Prosecutors say 19-year-old Robinson was last seen alive on a first date with 34-year-old Maxwell Anderson, who is accused of killing and dismembering her.
Maxwell Anderson in court
The trial is slated to start on Tuesday, May 27, with jury selection.
Robinson went missing in April 2024 after a first date, and soon after her body parts surfaced, from Milwaukee to Illinois. Prosecutors say Anderson dismembered Robinson, disposed of her body parts and torched her car.
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Legal expert and criminal defense attorney Jonathan LaVoy said the trial will likely answer a lot of questions.
What they're saying:
"The issue in this case is what happened and why did it happen," LaVoy said.
Maxwell Anderson in court
He also noted it will be tough to find 12 jurors that don't know a lot about the case.
"The parties are going to be focusing on jurors that are going to be fair and impartial," he said.
Sade Robinson homicide; the psychology behind the murder
Forensics, phone analysis and real-time tracking technology all played a major role in solving Sade Robinson's murder.
LaVoy expects jury selection to take a day or two. Then it is the state's turn.
"I expect the state is going to present their case in a chronological order. Starting from the beginning of the date and probably talking about witnesses and video evidence showing where they met for dinner and then went for drinks," he said. "And they will probably go through the timeline from start to finish."
LaVoy said the state lists 250 witnesses. He expects the state to take a week and a half to present its case.
Then, it's the defense's turn.
Dig deeper:
"The jury is going to want to know – if you didn’t do this, where were you at," he said.
Maxwell Anderson in court; Sade Robinson
LaVoy said Anderson did not file an alibi notice. That is a formal statement where a defendant intends to claim they were somewhere else.
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The evidence paints a different picture, from photos and GPS phone pings to surveillance video.
Sade Robinson homicide; Timeline of events leading to criminal charges
It's been more than a year since body parts surfaced throughout Milwaukee, which prompted a massive search for a missing teenager, Sade Robinson.
"They have a lot of very detailed, scientific evidence to present, including lengthy phone GPS data, which I think is going to be key to this case," he said. "We’re expecting this is going to be more about attacking what the police did or didn’t do, and I think it’s unlikely we are going to hear from Mr. Anderson."
With so many questions unanswered, LaVoy thinks some closure will come out of the courtroom this week.
The Source: The information in this post was collected and produced by FOX6 News.