Hidden True Crime - Samuel Bateman Takes the Stand on Day 2 of Trial

Episode Date: June 27, 2026

*This episode was originally recorded live and post verdict. There was minimal editing done to it. * Samuel Bateman took the stand in his own defense, giving testimony that left many in the courtroom stunned. In this full Day 2 recap, we break down Bateman's claims, the prosecution's cross-examination, and key moments the jury heard. Sponsor: Goodr-Head to https://goodr.com/HIDDEN to claim $10 off your first order. About Hidden True Crime What started as a simple conversation at their dinner table became a captivating podcast. Join the dynamic duo of Dr. John Matthias, a criminal psychologist, and Lauren Matthias, an investigative journalist, as they delve into the psychological facets of unthinkable crimes every week. Their unique perspectives and in-depth analysis offer a fresh take on true crime storytelling. Thank you for your support through sponsorships, subscribing, listening, and becoming a Patreon member at⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/HiddenTrueCrime⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Summers always make me rethink what I'm reaching for every day to wear. I want clothes that feel effortless, lightweight, comfortable, timeless. That's a word I love, especially during busy filming days or running around with family. And that is why I keep going back to quince. I have especially been loving their dresses lately as the weather gets warmer. I have this beautiful yellow V-neck middy dress from them that I recently wore with their Italian leather sandals. and it has become one of those outfits I keep reaching for because it feels polished without trying too hard.

The quality honestly surprised me. Quince uses really beautiful materials like European linen and organic cotton, but without the huge luxury markup, they're made so well these clothes. I also love that they've expanded beyond clothing and they are now into home, bedding, and other elevated everyday essentials too. Elevate your summer wardrobe. head to quince.com slash hidden true crime for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. They're now available in Canada too because we know that mini jams have been asking, yes, Canada too.

That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash hidden true crime for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com slash hidden true crime. Hello, hidden gems. We have a lot to talk about. Put on your pink too, because we have learned through this trial that convicted cult leader and child abuser Sam Bateman hates the color pink. So thank you, Flagstaff Target, for my new t-shirt and sweatshirt thanks to Grayson. He hates pink. And something else, by the way, that I have learned about the fake fundy profit.

Yeah, I have also learned that Sam, Sam, Sam Bainman prefers to be called Sandman. not Sam. So Sam, it is. Yeah, no, listen to this, actually. He gives all of his child bride's nicknames. Even on the stand, he was giving them nicknames. The ones who had to be witnesses in this trial and face their abuser, the ones that he left locked in a hot trailer while traveling hours on the Arizona freeway, he would not call them their proper first full. names. Even in court, he would only call them by pet names. Yet, I've learned he wants us to refer to him as Samuel, not Sam. Yeah, Sammy. Sam Sam, Sam, Sammy, Sam, which, not going to happen. So we're going to talk about Sammy today, Sam, Sam, Sam. So with that, out of the way, let's jump in to the beginning of day two in court,

starting right on time at 9 a.m. Thursday morning, the judge started with a quick housekeeping thing, so the state had filed a pleading about Sam's character witnesses. They were pretty vague when talking about it, but essentially they were saying that while Sam filed a witness list, he did not give notice about specifics on character that the character witnesses would testify for. So in other words, the prosecution has to be notified what character traits? your character witnesses are going to be testifying about. So the judge clarified that to Sam, and Sam said that the two people he planned to call were directly involved in the incident,

and he could ask them questions about the incident. And if it led into his character, he said, quote, really can't stop that. Yeah. So they expanded a bit and what his witnesses were filed as. Brenda Barlow was a witness of his. And Brenda Barlow was listed as an eyewitness. and character witness, Pamela was a character witness only, and then Galilee, like the Sea of

Galilee, Galilee was listed as a material and character witness. And so for a quick background on Samuel's witnesses, because I think this is important. Who does Sam, I just called him Samuel, didn't I? Who does Sammy boy have to testify for him, right, for his defense? So let's do some quick background on Sammy's witnesses. Brenda Barlow is one of Sam's wives, actually. She testified today, but we'll get to that. She was arrested, and she spent time in prison, got out, and what did she do after she got out? She returned to Sam's cult, which is essentially frustrating because she was actually given a hell of a deal. She was initially charged with 11 counts, including transporting a minor for sexual activity and transferring obscene materials to minors.

However, she pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit tampering with an official proceeding in exchange for the rest of her charges being dropped. It was a great deal. According to the website, Courthouse News, during Brenda's sentencing, the judge in her case actually stated that she, quote, regularly watched and often engaged with Sam Bateman as he had sex with his underage wives or forced them to watch him, have sex with his adult wives. One girl was as young, I mean, I hate to even say this, but one girl was as young as nine when she was taken as a wife and was, according to the court documents, forced to strip and forced to watch Sam Bateman do things with Barlow, with Brenda Barlow.

So, yeah, and she returned. She also, children were forced to watch Sam and Brenda and others over video. chat. One girl was only 10. So that's according to courthouse, courthouse news. So there you go. Heartbreaking. So essentially, Brenda narrowly evades being a child predator on paper for the rest of her life because of a pleadial, spent some time in a prison in West Virginia, and then ends up back in Colorado City living with the other Sam followers. Yeah. Yeah. So Pamela, Pamela is Brenda's mother, and she is also a Sam follower. And finally, Galilee Biceline is a CM follower. Galilee is married to Lidelle Johnson. So remember

Lidell Johnson? Lidl Johnson. She has actually two children with Lidl Johnson. Lidl gave up his young girls, his daughters to be under Sam's control and to marry Sam. And Liddell is also currently serving a life sentence, life sentence, yeah. After being convicted of receipt of C-SAM, one count of transfer of obscene material to a minor, two counts of persuading or coercing travel to engage in sexual activity, two counts of using a means of interstate commerce to persuade or coercing minor to engage in sexual activity and two counts of transportation of a minor for criminal sexual activity yeah so before opening statements sam asked to remove galilee from the witness list based on her request so that she could sit in the trial long story short the judge said that there could not be character witness testimony of any

kind because the disclosures of characteristic traits for testimony had not been disclosed and as you remember lorry The moment Lori Vallow, same state, Arizona, right, different county, same state. The moment that Lori Vallow stood up in her opening statements and talked about what a wonderful person she was, the prosecution is quick to say, look, you're skating on thin ice. If you go there, then we get to argue whether or not you really are a good person by bringing up, you know, your past murder convictions. you know, if he starts, so it makes sense. If Sam Beaman wants to rest his entire argument on what a wonderful person he is, you know, it doesn't really work because then, you know, it seems like his conviction should be able to come in at that moment.

But with that, after explaining that, the jury was brought in yesterday, Thursday morning, and the first witness on the stand was Virginia by sign. So now we're back to still the prosecution. So that was Thursday morning. It was sort of a discussion to prep for the defense, Sam's defense. But we're still, the state still has not rested yesterday morning. They're still bringing in witnesses for the prosecution, the state's case. And it was a good day, Thursday, yesterday for the state.

I'll say that. The witnesses did a tremendous job. The prosecutor did a tremendous job. And the first witness on the stand was Virginia Biceline. And while not disclosed to the jury, Virginia is a former wife of Sam Bateman. She is currently 19 years old. Back in August of 2022, she was 15 years old. She identified Sam for the record, and then the testimony was underway.

So she testified that in those days, Sam was in charge, and he did what he told her to do. When they traveled, he was in charge, had the decision-making power, had the travel agenda. It was Sam who knew who was traveling when and made decisions on who would sit where. So then moving into the August 14th event, which to clarify August 14th is when the three same girls were sitting on the ATV and Sam was pulled over and given a warning. It was two weeks before the August 28th event, which got him arrested. So the August 14th event, Virginia, remembered being in the white Yukon that was carrying the trailer with the ATV that the girls were sitting on, she said that was something that they would do

regularly. On that day, she said they loaded up in the greenhouse, the greenhouse. So there's a little bit of inside baseball going here too that I think the witnesses were picky, or the jury was picking up on, you know, the greenhouse, right? We know what the greenhouse is. We've seen the Netflix documentary, trust me, false profit, but the jury does it. And so when you're saying, you know, yeah, we were all loaded up in the greenhouse, it does certainly sound. like sort of a compound the way I see it, which was great. It was great that the prosecution was sort of getting all of this information from Virginia and that she was relaying this. So they loaded up in the greenhouse in Colorado City. She testified that GD and S, those were the

first witnesses, the three that were inside the trailer. GD&S got on the ATV on the back of the trailer. She says she thought the ATV was strapped down. She testified there were seatbelts on the ATV, and they were headed to the sand dunes. Virginia said they went to the sand dunes a lot for camping and driving the ATVs around. She remembered the traffic stop happening. She could not remember the specific events that much, but she thought that she remembered people getting off of the ATV. Next, the prosecution moved into the August 28th event.

She said they loaded up in the greenhouse, and in the truck was her Virginia, Moretta, Gnomes, and Rachel, and then D, S, and G got in the trailer. She thought Moretta was around 18 at the time. Nomes was over 18. She was 15.

Again, Virginia. Rachel was 13. And she thought the S was 11. G was around the same age and D was maybe 14. So Virginia thought they were headed to Tucson and she said they stopped

at some gas stations a few times on the way. She said that at one stop, someone went and got something out of the trailer and then forgot to latch it all the way and then what happened, they got pulled over.

So the prosecution backed up a bit more to get more of an idea of the trip. Virginia said she thought they were going to a Grant Cardone mentor meeting, which I thought was just fascinating. They're going to a mentor meeting. And she said the first stop she remembered was when they stopped and some people went in to go to the bathroom and get snacks. It was a gas station near Flagstaff that was small. The prosecution asked her if she remembered. a Ruth Johnson. Virginia said, yes, she did,

and that during a stop, Ruth, went back to the trailer to get some snacks and forgot to latch the trailer properly. Virginia could not remember what happened to Ruth after that. If she got in the trailer or the other car, Virginia then testified that after that, D

called Sam from the trailer, from inside the trailer, to say that the trailer was not shut properly. And Sam said that he would find a spot to stop and fix it. She said that before Sam was able to find a place, he

was actually stopped. But the prosecution honed in on the fact that he could have stopped along the way at other parts. And Virginia agreed that yes, he could have stopped at other places and other parts. Next, Virginia was asked about

the actual stop, the August 28th stop. She said she didn't remember lights in the beginning. But once the officers noticed the group was trying to get away from them. That was an interesting moment too. The group was trying to get away from the police. They then turned on the lights and Virginia

testified that yes, D was holding the door of the trailer. Virginia testified that usually on travel days there were phone calls happening and they would all merge the calls together and be on the phone throughout, which I also think is fascinating. Does anybody else remember

Maroni Johnson in the documentary and he was always wearing a Bluetooth the whole time? Like he just never took it off and that so many people have mentioned that, I'm like starting to understand why when they're saying that essentially everybody would merge the calls together on their phones, then they would be on mute and just all be on the phone throughout. So it makes sense now, right? Like everybody's just kind of on their Bluetooth all the time. It's like, Roger, you know, it's just like they're all keeping track. So although Virginia did not remember being in contact with the girls in the trailer that day via phone until the door was left open.

The prosecution asked if Sam gave any instruction. She said when the cops were surrounding them, he said that they didn't have to say anything and shouldn't and that they didn't have to give their names either. She testified that he was paranoid about the police. Sam was paranoid about the police. And he was paranoid that day. That was another great moment of Virginia's testimony. I've always loved.

sunglasses. And actually, I can't live without them. But not only can I not survive without my glasses outside, they're also one of those accessories, let's be honest, that can completely pull an outfit together. I wear them on my morning runs at my son's soccer games and even while sitting outside the courthouse going over my notes before lunch live streams. My recent go-to are absolutely gooder glasses. For every single occasion, the thing that I am most obsessed with is that they are super lightweight and they don't slip when I'm running. They don't bounce around. I love them. I will not now go running without them. And every pair has polarized lenses with UV-400 protection. And then there's the fact that they have so many fun colors and styles like so many. Get ready to

upgrade your eyewear to something functional, lightweight, fashionable, fun, and best of all, affordable. Head to gooder.com slash hidden to claim $10 off your first order. Now that's g-o-od-d-r.com slash hidden. No e-there. G-O-O-D-R dot com slash hidden. When asked about what was in the trailer, she said some camping things, a stroller, a curtain, and a makeshift toilet, the infamous makeshift toilet. She thought that maybe some food was also there, but was unsure, the prosecution honed in on the toilet. Virginia said the toilet was mostly used during camping trips, and she thought that was the first time it had been used on the road.

And maybe another girl R had also possibly used it. And after that, the prosecution showed Virginia a series of photos. And these photos included a photo of Virginia in a purple prairie dress standing in front of the trailer. And to paint the picture, it was almost like a full, body mugshot. All of these witnesses on the stand, these photos that were taken outside of the trailer, yeah, they're like full body mugshots, individual photos of them in front of the trailer. You could see the trauma on her face in that photo and most of their faces. It's really sad.

Next, you know, because a lot of the body cam, as you recall, it's blurred, right? It's been really kind of hard and difficult in eye-opening to see their faces finally and yes, trauma is painted on their faces also just sort of distant

stairs anyway next they showed her a photo of the seven girls including her they were all together so it was her it was Maretta Rachel

Gnome's GD and S So Moretta and Nome's were both holding phones in that picture. And at that time, she thought they were videoing because Sam had instructed them to film whenever there was police around. And so all of their phones are up, recording police. And then the next two photos were of the inside, back of the truck. And the truck was where Virginia had been sitting. She said that her and Rachel and Nome's were in the back, and Maretta was up front next to Sam. And when asked to describe what was in the car, the cab of the truck, she pointed out some bags in the car.

And then there were a sermon book on the seed. Of course, there's a sermon book. One bag was Sam's backpack where he kept his tablet and other items. She testified that there would not be room for the three girls in the truck. The three girls that were in the trailer, there would not be room for them in the truck, clearly. we see it ourselves in these photos. Then they showed a photo, they showed her a photo of the driver's seat of the truck. She confirmed that Sam was in that seat, that he was in charge, she emphasized. And what he said went, it was such a good moment when this came out in testimony. He was in charge

and what he said went. On the seat was a pillow that she said Sam would drive with because of his back hurting and that in the cup holder was an energy drink and binoculars. Yeah, binoculars. Because, you know, he liked, this is quotes. There were binoculars because, quote, he liked to spy on people with them, and quote. Oh, Sammy. Sam, Sam, Sam. She then said the girls live with Sam, Sam, I am, which was the first time the jury had heard that thus far. It was really interesting. So, yeah, see everything coming out finally on Thursday? Yes, the girls lived with Sam. Boom, probably in the greenhouse, right? This was the first time the jury heard this. They then showed a few more photos of the truck and then asked more about the trip. She said that GS&D had asked Sam in Colorado City

if they could ride back there and he gave them permission. They asked her if she ever thought about the safety of this, but she said no, not really. I mean, I don't think that these girls girls were worried about a trailer with everything they were going through, right? Around their town, also though, she explained it was somewhat normal to ride in the back of a truck. But this was the first time anyone had been in a trailer for a long trip. Upon reflection now, she said it seems very unsafe, very dangerous to put girls back there with no seats or restraints. Sam decided not to cross-examine this witness.

Thank goodness. He did not cross-examine his victims. and the jurors had no questions, which was also interesting because the first day they had so many questions. The second day, not so many. Well, later in the day they did, let's keep going. The next witness was our bysline. She is currently 17 years old. And just by the softness of her voice, you could tell that she is clearly traumatized from her time in Sam's group. This is really sad. On August 28, 2022, R said that she was riding in the truck with Moretta, Virginia,

Nomes, and Sam. She confirmed that Sam was in charge of the trip and everyone on it. She remembered the girls being in the trailer. She said that there were no seatbelts and a bunch of stuff packed inside. At this point, the prosecution said they were going to show her some photos, but the prosecutor stopped to talk to each other for a couple of minutes. And I could tell it seemed like they were making. decisions on how long they wanted to keep questioning our. In my opinion, this is just my personal

opinion, I think that this was likely based on simply how traumatized she truly seemed to be and how she was coming across. Yeah. So I believe they realized that and they wanted to probably get her off the stand sooner than later for her sake. Next, a photo of R in a long blue prairie dress standing in front of the trailer was shown to the jury, and after that, the prosecution had no further questions. Sam said he was not going to cross-examine, and the prosecution said she was not subject to recall, meaning she was completely done. The third witness on the stand was Moreta Johnson. Meretta was born in 2003, and is currently 23 years old. In August of 2022, she was 19 years old. She identified Sam for the record, and then the questioning began.

Moretta confirmed that Sam was the leader of her in 2022. Leader, in quotes. So we're going from Sam's in charge, what Sam says goes, to now confirming that he's a leader. That was also another great moment from Thursday. He is a leader. I mean, there's one thing to be in charge, right? A mom can be in charge.

A teacher can be in charge. when you've got a man over like a lot of girls and he's a leader now we're we're talking colt right so he was a leader of of her and meretta confirmed that sam was a leader of her in 22 not like a leader of like you know teaching her things just of her of herself of who she is of of everything right a leader of her in 22 he was always in charge including when they traveled She said that she would do what he told her in those days. And the prosecutor began asking her about the first traffic stop on August 14th, 2022. Moretta discussed getting ready at what they referred to as the greenhouse.

The greenhouse keeps coming up. And they all loaded up to go to the coral pink sandings. She said on that trip, quite a few people were in the vehicle. She could not recall everyone. But she does remember that three girls in the seats of the ATV, and she remembered that they asked if they could ride in there and Sam told them they could. And as they were leaving Colorado City, an officer saw the girls in the ATV and pulled them over. She said that Sam talked to the police during the stop and that the officer very clearly stated it was a criminal investigation.

He ultimately told the girls to get out of the ATV while the other girls stayed in the vehicle. And back then, she testified that she didn't understand that it was an unsafe situation to have girls on an ATV while driving. Makes sense. She's a child. The prosecution then moved on to the August 28th incident, the main incident where the charges stem from in this trial. So the trailer incident, August 28th incident, she said, in fact, and Gray, if you want to like kind of throw some of the body can be roll up again, I don't know, just to remind people what this incident is as we talk about August 28th. Might be more interesting than my face. We can watch this. for visuals. So the prosecution then moved

onto the August 28th incident. She said they loaded up at the greenhouse in Colorado City and she thought they were going again to this seminar in the Phoenix area. And she said that Sam had someone get an Airbnb. So they were headed down there to Tucson and there was an Airbnb. And I just want to point out this to Sammy, Sam, Sam, Sam, Sam, I am, with a trailer and truck and vehicles full of underage girls, driving hours, and getting an Airbnb in the Tucson area, essentially to me, means these girls are being trafficked, right?

What's going to happen in that Airbnb? So I just want to point that out that the jury's never explained this. But we know from Sam's prior conviction and other convictions, including Liddles and Moronize, what happened oftentimes on these trips and in an Airbnb. So I just want to point that out. So they had an Airbnb set. And the girls didn't really, not all of them understood

why they were even going down there. She explained that Sam's truck was hauling the white cargo trailer. They often used a trailer for camping supplies. and that day there were camping supplies along with G, S, and D loaded up in the trailer. She could not remember their exact ages at the time, but said that they were between 10 and 14 years old. Moretta said that Sam had assigned her to ride in the passenger seat. This was a great moment as Moretta explained her seating assignment. So, Maretta said Sam assigned her.

that was the word she used to ride in the passenger seat, essentially next to him. And she knew that she had to be exactly where she was supposed to be or else she would be in trouble. That was such a good moment for the prosecution and well done, Maretta explaining this. Moretta said that she gathered up everything as quickly as possible and wasn't there for an exact conversation about the girls getting into the trailer. she just knew that she had been assigned passenger seat and she better be there and be there on time. And in the truck cab with Maratta was Nome's, Virginia, and Rachel. She said the trailer did not have seatbelt and was not designed to carry people. And in the trailer, she described the bucket with a toilet seat lid that they had used for camping.

And most everyone explained it as a bucket with a toilet seat lid. and there were also two recliner seats in the trailer. Moretta thought that was why the girls wanted to be back there because they could lounge while riding. She said the trip went as expected and they made a bathroom stop in Flagstaff. She got out to go back to the trailer where there were snacks. Moretta said she was going to get some snacks, but she could feel that there was tension after a few minutes.

So she ran back up to the front. The doors were still open when she left. She said that since another girl had been standing there, she thought that she was going to close the trailer. She explained that when she got back in the truck, Sam was pretty upset about people seeing the girls back there. So Moretta said that before leaving, the stop, R got out of the trailer and went into another vehicle in the caravan.

So after they began traveling again, there was a group signal call going on. Yeah, group signal call. Nothing to see here. D, who was in the trailer, was on the call telling Sam that the doors weren't shut and they did not feel safe. Sam told her to hold them shut and he would find somewhere to pull off. But then after that, he's like, okay, hold the door shut. I'm going to find a place to pull off, girls.

And then what did you do after that? After that, he got on the freeway and began going 70 to 80 miles per hour. Moretta said he was very much so paranoid about law enforcement that day. He had pulled off the highway because there was a vehicle with lights on it behind them. Sam, and this is a quote, Sam didn't like the spirit that man had, which is why he wanted to pull off. Moretta said that the driver had an evil spirit and he wanted to get him off of his tail. Moretta said that that's what Sam thought, that the driver had an evil spirit and he wanted to get him off of his tail. So when asked about the trailer, Maretta said that it did not have ventilation, it did not have air conditioning, nor did it have windows.

At that time, she didn't know about safety. But now she knows it is very unsafe to carry children in a trailer with no seatbelts. She said that a lot of the roads on their route were very bumpy, uneven, and the past, zones were very tight. The prosecution then showed Moretta one photo, which was a photo of her in front of the trailer in a blue traditional FLDS dress. And after that, the state had no further questions. Sam decided not to cross-examine, and the jurors had no further questions. She was excused, subject to recall. And I also want to point out to that both of these women came in also in clothes that were not their traditional FLDS dress. Again, showing that a lot had changed for these

young girls. It was a stark difference in comparison, I'm sure, for the jury to see. Moretta was actually wearing brown slacks and a cream silk blouse looking very put together with long, blonde hair that was straight and down. The next witness, again, is Naomi, vice line who goes by the nickname Nome's and she was again another one of Sam Bateman's former wives. So right away, Nomes describes Sam as the leader of the group. According to her, he was the one making the decisions. Again, letting people know Sam, Sammy Boy is in charge. He's the one making the decisions. He's the leader. He decided where they traveled. Who went on each trip and who rode in which vehicle. And generally,

how everything was organized. Sounds like he's the one in charge, not the three little girls making the decision to go in the back of the trailer. So gnomes described the caravan as, I love this. Well done, well played gnomes. She described it as his little group, or in her words, the people who followed him. Zing, the people who followed him. I mean, tell me you're a cult leader without saying this guy is a cult leader. The state first asked gnomes about the incident, again, that happened on August 14th, 2022, two weeks before the trail trailer incident that essentially put Sam Bateman in handcuffs. So starting with the August 14th incident where he just got a warning in Colorado City,

that was the earlier traffic stop involving the side-by-side ATV being hauled behind one of the SUVs. And the prosecutors only touched on it briefly. before shifting to the trip that became the focus of this trial. So two weeks later, the group left Colorado City for Flagstaff, according to NOMS. And the entire trip was whose idea? Sam's idea. The plan was to travel to an event featuring a motivational speaker named Grant Cardone. And NOMS explained that the three vehicles traveled together in a caravan with Sam driving the lead truck and pulling a white enclosed box trailer behind him. Nomes explained that the box trailer was not

designed to carry passengers, you think? Yeah, exactly. But it had been turned into a makeshift storage area with a few modifications. Inside were two couch-style seats, a homemade bathroom that consisted of a bucket with a toilet seat attached and various other supplies and furniture. None of this was secured. There were no seatbelts, no air conditioning, no windows. And according to NOMS, there really was not any ventilation either. Nome's testified that everything inside shifted while the trailer was moving. And if you guys are thinking, what I'm thinking, yeah, I'm just picturing that bucket shifting around in the trailer.

But let's keep going. The furniture moved around a lot. She said the supplies bounced around. By the way, there was a giant metal shovel in there. There was gasoline in there. It's terrible. So the supplies were bouncing around. The people riding inside bounced around two, Noames explained.

The prosecution then identified the three girls who were riding in the trailer that day. And that was G, S, and D. All three were minors at the time. Nomes explained that for most of the trip, they traveled on two-lane highways before eventually reaching the interstate. And even though the girls were riding inside the enclosed trailer, they stayed in contact with the people in the truck by cell phone. Yeah.

The state specifically asked how NOMS knew that Sam was aware that the girls were riding back in the trailer. Because Sam wants to tell us he doesn't know. Nomes is going to tell us exactly how he knows they were riding back there. And her answer was, because he was talking to them on the phone. Yeah, he knew they were back there. And one of the most important parts of her testimony involved the trailer door. She explained that after one of the stops, another girl named R had originally been riding in the trailer,

but she climbed out during the stop to get into another vehicle. When everyone got back on the road, the trailer door apparently was not latched completely. According to Nome's, D called Sam and told him very clearly, Yo, Sam, the door's not secured properly. And Nomes testified that D was physically holding the door closed from the inside to keep it from flying open while they were driving. Despite knowing there was a problem, Gnome said that Sam did not immediately stop. Instead, around that same time, another vehicle began following them.

So rather than Sam slowing down, Nome's testified that Sam actually sped up. And as they continued driving, D told Sam that it was becoming harder and harder to hold the trailer door shut. Nomes remembered one particularly sharp turn that frightened everyone inside. She testified that Sam was driving fast enough that the girls in the trailer became scared. And so looking back now, Nomes told the jury that she realizes just how dangerous that situation really was. At the time, though, she said she had become numb to many things happening within the group and did not fully process how serious it was. Now, she believes that if anything had gone wrong, those girls absolutely could have lost their lives. And I completely agree.

Picture this, too, by the way. They didn't really get into this, but like, think of the heat in the trailer. We all know about hot cars that kill children. The most heartbreaking stories I did were every summer when I had to cover hot car deaths for children. And they are in a trailer, no ventilation. Flagstaff's more elevated, right? It's going to be not so bad. They're driving to Tucson in August, guys. Anyone that knows Tucson and going through Phoenix knows, I mean, if they didn't lose their lives falling out of this trailer,

they could have in just the heat alone. Anyway, NOMS made it clear in her testimony that she believed that the girls could have lost their lives, and she also made it clear that their safety was absolutely Sam's responsibility. Nome's acknowledged that cell phone service was not perfect during the drive and that calls did occasionally drop. Even so, she testified there was no misunderstanding about the trailer door. Everyone knew what was going on with the trailer door. She said the girl successfully told Sam that the door wasn't secured. and that they were struggling to keep it shut.

The state then displayed a series of photographs from the investigation, and NOMS identified various people, various vehicles, and items shown in those exhibits. And P.S, I'm going to break for a second and explain to you guys, when I asked Grayson to maybe show some B-roll of the trailer, we are struggling with our Wi-Fi. Our Wi-Fi is fragile right now in our hotel room. So we opted not to show the video because we're playing. staying safe. So we have a lot of things we wanted to show and we're just kind of slowing down.

So we also had some of these images. I don't know if we can show some of these right now. We just want to make sure our live stays up. So that's what's going on. But there were various people, vehicles, and items shown in those exhibits. If we can't get them up now, we'll share them later. And when it came, time for cross examination. Sam declined to ask Nolmes any questions at all. So again, which I was grateful for. Thank you, Sammy, Sam. He did not cross-examine his victims. The jurors also chose not to submit any questions for her.

So all three of these witnesses, the jurors are like, we're good, no questions. To me, I was starting to realize they had made up their mind. They had questions for everyone the day before yesterday. They're like, they, you know, it was like they understood what was going on. They're like, we're good. No questions needed for these three women. The next witness was Sergeant. Jason, how do you say his last name?

Is it Chacon? I just don't want to butcher his name. Yeah, I thought that was what is. I just second guessed myself. We'll call him Sergeant. He's with the Arizona Department of Public Safety Highway Patrol. He had responded to the scene on August 28th, 2022. And this sergeant testified that when he arrived, he approached the passenger side of Sam's truck,

recorded the license plate information, and related to dispatch. And then he then made contact with the people inside the truck before eventually helping to open the trailer, which we saw a video of. So when he opened the trailer doors, he initially did not see anyone. And we saw this on body camera footage. He opens the doors, he doesn't see anyone. And then he notices a purple curtain. And above that, curtain, he saw fingers reaching up. And only after the girls were instructed to come out, did he realize that there were three children inside? It was actually quite a moment to see three little girls with their hands up in these little conservative dresses walking out. And Sergeant described it, as Sergeant Shikon described what he saw in the trailer. There was a couch, two recliners, plastic benches or tables,

generators, boxes of supplies, and a plastic bucket with a toilet seat attached that was being used as a makeshift bathroom. And none of these items were secured. Everything inside was loose

and capable of sliding or shifting while the trailer was moving. The sergeant also was wearing body camera during this stop. The footage is played for the jury and for those of us in the gallery and it is admitted into evidence. Do we have that?

I think we're going to wait on that footage. And we're still working. This pool footage is always a little slow. Yeah, it's hard to get. So do we do have Soundboys full testimony, though. I improved the sound and the lighting after we went live yesterday. So that is up if you guys want to say. see that. It is much better. Anyway, after the three girls climbed out, the sergeant wanted to make

sure nobody else was still inside because he noticed a baby stroller among the items in the trailer. So he tried accessing the trailer through a side door, but found it locked. And as the jury watched the body camera footage, the sergeant emphasized that this was not a trailer designed to transport people. Obvi, clearly, you can tell as you look at the footage. And, you know, the photos. It's simply metal and plywood. It's a metal and plywood cargo trailer. It even says cargo on the front. The brand is Wells Cargo. Very clever. Wells Cargo. It had none of the features someone would expect in a passenger compartment, no windows, no ventilation, no safety restraints, no modifications that would make it appropriate for carrying children, let alone animals,

let alone anything alive. During cross-examination, Sam began by thanking the Sergeant for service. This was such, he did this every time. It was such an eye roll. So he gets up to cross-examine and the first thing he does is thank Sergeant Chacon for his service and telling him that he appreciated what he did as a law enforcement officer. It's so, it was exhausting to listen. And then Sam focused on one detail from the body camera footage. He pointed out that the sergeant had opened the trailer door from the outside and that the locking mechanism appeared to be tightly latched. And Sergeant Chaconne agreed. Now, two things here.

A, I thought that was interesting too because I was expecting the latch to be loose and it seemed to be tightly latched. But then my second thought, B, was, I don't know what's scarier. The idea that the door could fling open on the freeway or the fact that these girls are locked inside a black box with gasoline and no way out and no ventilation you know what's scarier this both the both scenarios are horrifying so but we're going to argue over which scenario might be more horrifying and and sam really wanted to bring this point to cross-exam that it did look to be tightly latched in sergeant the sergeant agreed sam asked whether

it would have been possible for the girls to latch the door from the inside. And the Sergeant Chacon was like, nope, wouldn't have been able to. Sam also confirmed that officers had not actually pulled him over with lights and sirens. Instead, by the time that Chaconne arrived, Sam's truck was already parked in the parking lot. The jurors had one question for Sergeant Chacon. So finally, there was a jury question for the sergeant. So they asked if the trailer door looked loose. how could it also appear to be latched?

And the sergeant explained that while the locking mechanism itself was engaged tightly, the door still wasn't sitting securely in the frame. So in other words, the latch could be locked while the door itself still had noticeable movement and the door itself could be the problem. Sam followed up with one question of his own. He again asked how the door could be considered insecure if it was latched. And the sergeant repeated his explanation just because the lock was engaged. It didn't mean the trailer door itself is properly secured.

And then the state's next witness was another sergeant. Sergeant Michael, I should have practiced these names before I jumped on Negretti, I think. Sounds good. Sergeant Negretti with the Arizona Department of Public Safety. He is now assigned to the Gang Task Force and Flagstaff. But back in August 22, he was working as a highway patrol trooper. His regular duties included traffic enforcement, commercial vehicle inspections, and investigating unsafe loads. Now, Negretti testified that around noon on August 28th, the dispatch issued an attempt to locate bulletin for a pickup truck pulling a white-enclosed trailer.

The report said someone had seen fingers sticking out of the trailer. Negretti immediately began looking for the vehicle because, whoa, well, what? What a report, right? A short time later, a roadside motorist, a sister employee named Gary Crosby. So Gary Crosby radioed that he had located a truck matching the description near the Butler Avenue exit. So Negretti responded there and arrived on Huntington Drive

at approximately 1227 p.m. And by then, he said multiple agencies had already arrived on the scene. He explained that this kind of multi-agency response is generally reserved for more serious situations, and the report of children trapped inside a trailer elevated everyone's level of concern. He described the entire situation as unique. Like Chaconne, Negretti was also wearing a body camera,

and his footage was admitted into evidence. And as the jury watched the video, Negretti described what officers found inside the trailer. First off, what does he remember? He remembers it was dark, very dark, and there were no windows. and there was no ventilation. Inside was a brown couch, again, more like two kind of smaller recliners. There was a chair, cases of bottled water, snack totes, camping chairs, generators, a baby stroller,

and a purple curtain. Behind that curtain sat the makeshift bathroom consisting of a blue bucket with a toilet seat attached and a black trash bag lining the bucket. DeGretti testified that he was genuinely surprised by what he saw. Yeah, I would be too. Not only because of everything packed into the trailer, but because three young girls have been writing inside this thing under those conditions. Yeah, you know, who else thought it was wild? The entire world, when that body cam footage came out, everyone was like W-T-F. So it's not just this witness. But anyway, I'll keep going. The jury then, watched this body camera footage showing exactly what the officers encountered when they opened the trailer again what a moment when they they see that there's a curtain with someone's hand and all of a sudden three little girls and these conservative colored dresses come out during cross-examination sam again focused on the trailer door he asked sergeant negretti whether when he first approached the trailer it looked like the back door was hanging open loose

or about to fall off negrady answered no from where he was standing the the door appeared to be secured. Sam also asked him to explain then what he meant earlier when he described this case as unique. And that when he asked that actually made me giggle. Can you explain again why this case is unique? I wanted him to be like, well, you know, usually it's only about once a month when I find a trailer full of young girls, you know, it's just not on, it's not an everyday thing. It's just kind of like maybe every couple weeks, every other day. You find little girls locked inside dark trailers with no ventilation. No, you know, but anyway, Sam wanted to know.

Sam wanted to know, why do you think this case is unique? And Negretti said in all of his time working Highway Patrol, this was the first time he had ever responded to a situation involving children riding inside a cargo trailer with fingers sticking out of the back. I mean, Sam was probably like, really? You know, you've never seen this before. I do it all the time. Anyway, he told the jury that this is not something officers normally encounter.

Yeah, clearly. Sam then switched gears and asked about speed. He wanted to know whether there was a meaningful difference in danger between traveling 55 miles per hour versus 75 miles per hour if there happened to be a crash. Oh, my gosh. Yeah. This is where he's going. Sam is like, let's do some math on speed. What would the impact be?

you know, with the gasoline in the back and no seatbelts and just stuff between 55 and 75. In a while. So Negretti said he really couldn't answer that, you know. He wasn't really his like expertise. He wasn't an accident reconstruction expert. In other words, he couldn't really quantify how much more dangerous one speed would be than the other. The state then followed up on that answer during redirect. So the prosecutor pointed out that speed isn't the only thing that determines how dangerous a situation is, clearly.

Bigretti agreed. He explained that there are a lot of factors that increase risk, right? Including whether passengers are restrained, how much traffic is on the roadway, weather conditions, and how crowded the road is. All of those things have to be considered together. The jurors also had several questions for him at this moment. And I want to point out this, too. So how about the fact that three little girls in a cargo like this sitting in a driveway is dangerous? Never mind the difference between 55 and 75.

But anyway, the jurors had questions. I love it when the jurors have questions. It's always my favorite. I always like perk right up on the hard bench where we're sitting. Okay, jurors have questions. Let's hear. So one juror asked about one of the items found inside the trailer. How dangerous would it be?

if there exactly was where a gas can was a gas can inside with children riding in an enclosed trailer and Negretti said that well if the gas can actually contained fuel the fumes alone

could become a problem especially inside a confined space that had a little to know ventilation and I'll throw in especially if you know Sam is using the toilet he says he says he wasn't You know, you decide if he's lying or not, you know, because he's so honest. Anyway, another juror asked whether other officers had examined the trailer door more closely than he had.

And they gritty answered yes. He explained that another officer actually handled opening the trailer and took a closer look at the locking mechanism. Sam then asked another follow-up question. He wanted to know whether the people inside the trailer would have had a better idea of whether the door was securely lashed than someone standing outside. Negretti admitted they probably would. Sam also asked who was actually the very first officer to arrive at his truck stopped in the parking lot. Negretti said he was not sure. And after the lunch break, the state called another witness, Gary Crosby.

So, Crosby worked for the Arizona Department of Public Safety as a roadside motorist assist technician. His job was not to write tickets or make arrests. Instead, he spent his days driving the highways, helping stranded motorists, changing tires, assisting with disabled vehicles, and helping at crash scenes. And on the day of his incident, Crosby happened to be sitting in the median when a call came over the radio requesting a welfare check of a truck pulling a trailer leaving the silver saddle. He responded to see what was going on. And while heading that direction, he spotted a dark pickup truck pulling a white, enclosed box trailer that matched the description from the call. He pulled behind it and radioed dispatch with the license plate number.

And as he continued following the truck, he could see fingers sticking out in the back of the enclosed trailer. Crosby testified that seeing fingers sticking out of a cargo trailer was extremely unusual. Yeah, I would have had a heart attack if I was driving behind a cargo trailer and saw fingers sticking out of the back. As a truck eventually pulled into a parking lot, Crosby followed it in. inside and waited there for law enforcement officers to arrive. And while he watched, he never saw anyone get out of any of the vehicles before officers showed up. During his testimony, Crosby identified the truck and trailer shown in several evidence photographs. And after officers arrived, his role was pretty limited. He was not involved in the criminal investigation itself. He simply

stayed at the scene in case a tow truck was needed. Sam chose not to cross-examine Crosby. And then the state's next witness was Detective Joseph Anderson with the Arizona Department of Public Safety. And I would like to thank Detective Joseph Anderson for having a name I know how to pronounce. Thank you. And although he is now assigned to the gang task force back in 2022, he was working in Highway Patrol. And over the years, he'd handled plenty of crashes involving trailers, unsafe loads, and commercial vehicles. and he also had plenty of personal experience towing trailers himself. And in this case, Anderson served as what's called the case agent.

So basically, that means he became the person responsible for helping organize the investigation from start to finish. So he worked alongside the prosecutor, reviewed the reports, reviewed witnesses, gathered body camera and dashed camera footage, and made sure all of the evidence was collected and organized for trial. So a pretty important job. And I'm going to take a quick drink of water. Joe, don't be mad.

I am drinking out of plastic. I know I need to change my ways. It's hard when traveling. I love you. Okay. And we are working on some footage that would be pretty good. We're working on it. Okay.

There's some good stuff. So, although... So Anderson, very important gathering all the evidence to be organized for trial. And then although he wasn't one of the officers who responded that day, he became heavily involved after the fact. And he reviewed all of the reports, watched the body camera videos, interviewed witnesses, and even attempted to contact the original 911 caller who reported seeing the trailer. Unfortunately, there was a mystery surrounding the 911 caller because Sam Bateman sort of made it known in his opening statements that he thinks the 911

caller is a bit of a conspiracy, which definitely like made me curious because Sam Bateman and sort of implied, where's the 911 caller? Right? Like, where is this person? I don't know if there was one. It was, I was like, okay. But, you know, it definitely made me curious. So we learn now.

And it's an unfortunate thing. Unfortunately, the 911 caller was a woman who has since passed away. So he wasn't able to interview her himself and as a witness and see what she saw. However, he did review the recording of her 911 call, which ultimately led officers to issue the attempt to locate bulletin for Sam's truck. And next, Anderson walked the jury through the route that Bateman had taken that day. He explained that portions of highways 89 and 89A typically have speed limits of around 65 miles per hour. He described those roads as rough and uneven. In fact, he said one stretch was commonly nicknamed the rapids.

because the pavement is so bumpy that pulling a trailer through it can be especially difficult. And I want to point out that I know these roads in particular. They pass a place. They kept mentioning Chayabab way where they go. And it goes past a place called Jacob Lake, Arizona, where I actually, as a 19-year-old, girl, no, woman, it feels like I was a girl, but as a 19-year-old, I worked at Jacob Lake, Arizona. It's near the north rim of the Grand Canyon. I actually was a waitress and then cleaned the cabins and the inns in the morning. So this is indeed some really rocky, curvy terrain. It is on the way

to the north rim of the Grand Canyon. And deer and wildlife in the roadway, it's not like, oh, watch for them just in case. It's when wildlife does come, when the deer do cross the road, because there are so many, you need to stop and be very aware. I've never actually even driven that road without having to stop and slam on breaks for deer and other wildlife. It is twisty, turning. and full of unexpected things.

So I just want to say, I know this area. And yeah, I can imagine, I'll just say this, I cannot imagine riding in the back of a cargo trailer while going through this sort of terrain, I guess you could say. And because the pavement is so bumpy, pulling this trailer through it, yeah, can be especially difficult, clearly, as I just pointed out.

And I guess I'm just reemphasizing this. Yes, I know this terrain. It is indeed that. And as drivers approach flagstaff, the speed limits gradually decrease from 65 miles per hour down to 55 and then eventually 45. The route also included interstate 40, which Anderson described as a busy interstate with heavy traffic, potholes, and constantly changing road conditions. Can you imagine a pothole sitting back there?

It's like my worst nightmare. I mean, this is just, this is like, yeah, drive, you know, from hell. So to help the jury understand exactly where all of this happened, prosecutors then displayed several maps tracing the route, the caravan traveled that day. The discussion then went into Anderson's review of the body camera footage and the photographs taken after the stop. He explained that these photographs were taken after the girls had already been removed

from the trailer and after officers had opened everything up. And because of that, those pictures did not necessarily show the trailer in the same condition. It was in, well, it was traveling down the road. road, the jury then listened, as Anderson explained, how the trailer's locking mechanism worked, and why investigators believed it had not been properly secured while the trailer was in motion. The state wanted to show that although parts of the latch may have appeared engaged, the trailer door itself was not fully secured during the drive, was not. Finally, Anderson explained why, in his opinion, this cargo trailer in particular should have

never, ever been used to transport people, let alone little girls. He testified that enclosed cargo trailers are designed to be as lightweight as possible. They are built from thin metal, aluminum, and plywood on purpose, on purpose protecting cargo from the weather, but they are not built to protect human beings. Unlike passenger vehicles, they do not have airbags or crumple zones. or reinforced frames or other safety features designed to absorb the force of the collision. He also pointed out that the girls had no way to get out on their own, and he described it that they were essentially locked inside a metal box. He went even further saying that in his opinion, because there was so little ventilation,

he wouldn't even consider the trailer suitable for transporting livestock. again, he walked the jury through all of the loose objects, investigators found inside. Here they are, again, generators, gas cans, water, jugs, shovels, shovel, can you imagine? Camping gear, furniture. He explained that in any collision, those objects would become projectiles. He relative, even relatively, low-speed crashes can be fatal for people who are not wearing seatbelts, let alone someone inside a cargo trailer where both people and heavy equipment are just like free, To move around, Anderson said, the danger increases dramatically. His description was blunt.

Even if the trailer had been completely empty, the passengers would have been thrown around violently. But with all of those loose objects mixed in, he told the jury it would become essentially a blender during a crash, a blender. And he said, that wasn't speculation. It was basic physics, common sense. And exactly why trailers like this are not designed to carry passengers. So during cross-exam, Sam is up for his cross-exam. Sammy Boy, Sam once again tried to steer the conversation

toward the condition of the trailer itself rather than the decision to have people riding inside it. He first pointed out that Detective Anderson had experienced hauling trailers and asked whether a tandem axle trailer generally toes better than a single axle trailer. Anderson agreed that generally speaking it does. Sam then asked whether there are many different styles in types of types of trailers. Again, Anderson agreed. Sam followed that up by asking whether the trailer involved in this case looked like a fairly normal enclosed cargo trailer. Anderson agreed that it was a fairly typical cargo trailer. And from there, Sam started asking more technical

questions about the trailer itself, including how the latches worked and the condition of the doors. At one point, Anderson explained that he never personally inspected Sam's trailer before the traffic stop. Based on what he observed in the investigation, however, it appeared the trailer was generally in poor condition. It looked like it was in poor condition. He said several components did not appear to fit together properly. And then Sam then displayed a photograph, though, showing a piece of black plastic hanging near one of the trailer doors. He asked Anderson if he knew exactly what that piece of plastic was. Anderson explained it appeared to be part of the trailer's weather seal. Sam also wanted to establish exactly when the crime scene photographs had been taken. He repeatedly asked

whether those pictures reflected the trailer before or after officers had opened it. What was his point? This point was that he wanted the jury to understand the photographs didn't necessarily show the trailer in the same condition it had been while it was actually traveling down the highway. And Sam also asked whether the damaged weather seal could have allowed at least some airflow into the trailer. Anderson acknowledged that there may have been some air entering through the damaged seal, but that didn't change his overall opinion that the trailer lacked proper ventilation for transporting people. The jurors only had one question for Anderson, but it went straight to the heart of the case. Even if every latch on the trailer had been working perfectly, it would still be safe to

transport any living person. Would it still be safe to transport any living person? To transport any living person inside the trailer at highway speeds. Yeah, he asked him that. That was his cross-exam question. Sam was like, I know what to ask him. Good. It still be safe to transport any living person. And Anderson's answer was like, yeah, no, no. After that, the state arrested. Yeah, arrested its case. I thought there maybe would be some cell phone, text or some things, or GPS, but no, they felt good. The state rested their case. The jury was then excused from the courtroom

so the attorneys and judge could discuss a legal issue outside of their presence. Sam asked the judge to acquit him, which is, I will say, I mean, even though it makes you cringe to hear Sam ask for, to be acquitted in this, it is pretty common. It seldom works, but it is a common thing asked

in criminal trials. Essentially, Sam argued that the prosecution had not presented enough evidence for a reasonable juror to convict him, even though, in my opinion, watching three little girls walk out of that trailer was enough evidence. Sam didn't think so. He wanted an acquittal. Sam argued that the state's entire case was based on hypothetical dangers instead of actual harm. He pointed out that no one had proven the girls were physically injured. He argued there was no evidence showing the loose items inside the trailer had actually shifted around or struck anyone. According to Sam, the state had only presented possibilities about what could have happened if there had been a crash. He also argued that prosecutors failed to prove the required mental state for the

charges. So in other words, he claimed there was no evidence showing that he knowingly or intentionally placed the girls in danger. Okay. I mean, as I always say, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take. The prosecutor strongly disagreed. He reminded the judge that Sam himself had admitted during the trial that the situation was dangerous. He also argued there was overwhelming evidence showing that the girls were placed in a situation likely to cause injury. Yes, multiple witnesses testified they were scared. The girls themselves reported being frightened. Former members of the group testified the situation was dangerous.

And several law enforcement officers independently reached the same conclusion after seeing the condition. inside the trailer. The prosecutor argued that was more than enough evidence for the jury to decide whether Sam was guilty. And after hearing both sides, the judge denied Bateman's motion. He ruled that the state had presented substantial evidence on every element of the charges. In the judge's view, there was enough evidence that, I'm trying to fix my mic, there was enough evidence that a reasonable jury could find Sam guilty if they believe the state's witnesses that meant the trial would continue and the case will ultimately be decided by the jury.

And next, the judge asked Bateman, Sam, Sam Bateman, if he had decided whether or not to testify. And we were like, okay, this is the question we were waiting for. Yeah, Sam, are you, have you decided to testify? We were all ears. So what's going to happen? And he said that he did wish to testify. And since he had chosen to represent himself, this is so good, his advisory attorney was going to read a list of questions that he had prepared ahead of time. We could see them.

It was on lined, college-ruled paper, a lot of questions, all the questions were labeled. It was almost immediately, though, the prosecution objected over and over again. And I was like, why? Why are you objecting? Let's hear it. I want to hear his questions. But the first several questions never even made it to the jury because Sam wanted to ask things like whether he was a religious person, whether he believed he'd been targeted by law enforcement

and why members of the FLDS church often appear secretive. And every single one of those questions was met within objection. And the judge sustained them, meaning the jury, The jury never got to hear those answers, but the jury did get to hear the questions, which was fascinating. That's all you needed. There were some really wild questions Sam was asking himself. I mean, we have the full testimony. Again, like I said, we put it up early this morning with improved audio, improved visual, go watch it. I mean, he does mumble. Sam is painful to listen to, let's be honest. It's like, Chad Daybell, but worse. Like, Chad Daybill enunciates. I mean, he's soft-spoken and quiet, but, like, he at least says the whole word

where Sam is like, you know, I don't even know. Let's see if I can even do it. Like, Sam, you know, Sam's like, you know, do, you know, our police maybe, you know, I don't know. Are they trying to target me, maybe, but I don't know. I mean, it's just so hard to hear

him. And when he felt, when he did ask if he had been targeted in this case, he managed to answer, I do, before the objection was sustained. So he did say that I do. I do feel that I've been targeted. The judge instructed, though, the jury to disregard both the question and the answer. And so this sort of pattern of his questions continued for quite a while. The questions were fascinating. actually loved it. It was like the best case scenario with this testimony. You get the question he's asking and then an objection comes. And so nobody, he can't answer it, but the question already said enough. Like questions about his religion, how he was raised, how he raised his own children, whether he considered himself a prophet, right? Whether you consider yourself a prophet,

And then there's an objection. I mean, that's good stuff, man. You're like, oh, my gosh, you went there. I mean, clearly the jury is picking up who Sam thinks he is and how he thinks of himself. Questions about whether he was sympathetic toward children. This was a great one. Whether he had been in a fight while incarcerated. So he wrote down, asked me whether I have been in a fight while incarcerated.

Like he thought that was a good idea. Think about that, guys. this jury doesn't know about his previous federal conviction. It's like, Lori, that's not part of this case. And he's literally thinking, he's like writing questions down to be asked. And he's like, oh, this is going to be a good one. I know what I'm going to ask myself. I know what I'm going to have them ask me on the stand.

Let's ask if I've ever been in a fight while incarcerated. I mean, you can't make this up. Yeah, go ahead. That's what I'm saying. That's what I'm saying. I know. I know. Grayson's over here saying, like, can we talk about how, like, he wrote these questions to prepare his answers, but he thought they were all a good idea. Like, this wasn't like, oops, I accidentally said something. No, like, Lori Valo, like, slipped sometimes. Oh, I know. No, I know. I don't want to give her credit for anything. But, like, Lori Valo slipped sometimes, like on accident. But she wasn't like, I know I'm going to write down a question for myself about being incarcerated in my previous convictions. Like, like, oh my gosh. Like, like, oh my gosh. You know, a lot of people kind of told me he's low IQ or like he had that traumatic brain injury. Like I'm, I'm believing it.

I'm like, okay. I'm saying it. I'm like, that is true. When he, not just when he said the bathroom thing, when he ended on it. Like he was like, this is my moment. This is my final grand finale. I'm going to let them know I did not poop in the bathroom. Grayson had to like bend over because you can't make faces in court.

And she like had to go on like she had to lean way down because you started to laugh. Okay. this has been a tangent. But no, I know these questions, let's talk about this, though, because they were mind-blowing. We were all talking as a group at lunch about it, too, and after. And even with the jury, some of the jurors that we were talking to today, they were talking about the questions, too, like how the questions answered everything they needed to know about Sam Bateman. What were some of the other questions? There was, the incarcerated one was fascinating. And then he asked whether he thought he was charismatic or persuasive.

That was a question too. And then it was shut down. So he couldn't answer it. But again, all you need is like the question. You're like, wow, okay. So he was like, ask me. Ask me if I'm charismatic or persuasive. The judge just kept objecting before he could answer.

I kind of wanted him to not object as many. I was like, no, let him answer. I want to hear what he says. So Sam, are you charismatic? I can persuasive? I'm listening. I want to hear. Tell me. Tell me about your persuasive nature. Alas, a lot of objections. There was another one I really wanted him to answer, but it was objected to before any of these questions could go over. There were a few questions, though, that were allowed. So here's some of the questions that the judge allowed. Sam asked whether

he considered himself an experienced and careful driver, and he answered yes. No, I'm, you know, also, you know, he's not grandiose at all. He, oh, he asked, he asked himself, ask if I, um, meditated before this trip. Did I meditate before this trip? What? Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Thank you, Carol.

That one was, that one was a delight. He asked, he asked, why aren't, why don't you have a lot of friends in the courtroom? And also, let's point this out, the courtroom was pretty full. The jury doesn't know who his friends are or who his friends are. Like, they don't know who these people are. So he's like, ask me why I have no friends here. Yeah, thank you, Carol, for that reminder. Anybody else was there?

Yeah, he asked himself why his friends weren't there. Question 36. What are your feelings about the laws of Arizona? Section of almost sustained. Do you think that is possible that an individual or organization may have some prejudice against you or the fundamentalist Church of Latter-day Saints? Objection, speculation. What-w-w-w-w-w-w.

Have you become aware of a point of a so-called vendetta against you from any law enforcement agency or other organizations. Objection notes. Sistine. WON-WON-W-W. 39. What are a few of the core teachings of the fundamentalist church, Flander Day Saints?

Objection notes. Sistine. Question 40. Did any of the officers who were seen during the August 28th stop at issue come across as indicative to you? Objection notes. We reread the question.

Mr. Harpott's from this or did any of the officers were seen during the August 28th the stop seemed indicted towards you and the addiction developments yes for we all allowed to answer yes there are the same really decent every problem but like to say I have nothing as was also I really appreciate what they do from our country of the recent but I don't know I don't want to mention his name, but I asked him, we should have a question, and he would yell at me right in the car. I almost like he'd had a pretty kind of pre-conceived decision

of what he was going to do. I appreciate him, but he yelled at me. Question 42. How was it that the fingers of the alleged victims were sticking out of the door, yet the body camp footage viewed at trial shows officers unlatched the door. work from the outside. I like this is my belief is that you can't but the vertical high up the trailer door I don't know if you've had experience with trainers but you

can latch the bottom door excuse me the bottom latch and you have to be pretty tough you bet to stretch that one-inch mind to band and get it to close on the top I'm sure that may you have that experience So I just there's just a discrepan between the testimony and the radio cam the body cam stuff. It just is just no match. I mean, I'm sure that they're thinking out. I don't know that. I was on the phone with them.

I have a knowledge of that. But I'm just, no way they're not going to believe all the video cam stuff. And yeah, I'll just say that. During the August 14th stop that occurred in Mohamed. that occurred in Mohamed County involving the alleged victim was riding as passengers in a UTV. Why did you appear to be confused when you were contacted by law enforcement?

That's because I was confused. I had no idea those girls were back there. They said they asked me in my head on my district out. And I'm so busy organizing everything. Because I haven't. Did you have the one where we asked about friends or was that earlier? Yeah, when he said that, can you fit them in the front? I was just like, I was completely in total shock.

Like, because I thought he was talking about two to two motorbikes on the back. You were strapping on the back. And so I was like, why on earth what you say is motorbikes from the front? Anyway, I turned into the gnomes and she said, She said those those girls are They're going to know me or gnomes right now. Do you have any additional thoughts or feelings about that stop? Yes, I did.

I'm kidding. I decided to my question. Question 37. Why would you knowingly drive off? wait the door to the trailer was open. Because I didn't know was open when I hit the other back there because I thought I saw him

the other vehicle just like that way. On the highway, I got me in the highway the freeway. Question 10. Do you consider yourself a profit? Objection and relevance for your emotions, sustained? What, well.

How do you feel about people describing your character? Objection and relevance, sustained. Their judge is great. Question 12. Under what form of belief were you raised? Objection in your audience?

Your Alderman's patience. Question 13. Do you consider yourself to be kind in invasion? Objection in character. Which are all? Questions? All along. All 11.

All 11. Yes, I have an extremely caring person. And I'm very patient and I don't work. I don't do anything. Question 14. Why are there very few of your friends at your hearings? Judge Reynolds. Sustained.

Question 15. Under what mindset do you raise your children? Rejection Reynolds. System. Question 16. Question 16. Do you care about your friends and family? about the people who are with you on this trip.

I'm excited with all my heart. I love them more than my own life. That's, I can't even laugh at that. I love them more than my own life. Sick. Prior to being charging this case, had you heard of a child abuse case before and what were your beliefs on child abuse?

Objection. What were your beliefs on child abuse? What were your beliefs? What were your beliefs? What? Are you sympathetic towards children or the under privilege? Objection relevance, kids are sustained. I was thinking the kids are underpilic, mom.

While incarcerated, have you been in a fight or an argument? Projection relevance, sustained. Question 20. Would you describe yourself as a strong will person, or are you gullible? Objection of your own system. Go above and. Question. Do you believe in letting others make their own choices?

Objection your own. All about. Yes, that's the basis of all that I believe is for agency that I don't choose. Teach them correctness when they come together themselves. Okay. Do you consider yourself a charismatic or persuasive person? in person. Objection, relevance, sustained. What one?

From three, are you a deceitful person? Objection, relevance, and the court's rules. So there you go. We'll let you guys continue on your own. My favorite also, I'll have to point out is like how each question was numbered. They're like, number 15, number 67, let's keep going. Let's keep going. So, in other words, he tells the jury that he was actually very careful

and said he tried to calculate everything he did to avoid to avoid unnecessary danger. He also claimed to have extensive experience driving trucks and trailers, which makes all the difference. It's not the fact that they're trapped in a trailer prison. It doesn't matter because he is just like,

you know, the best driver ever, right? He meditated before this. you know he he's a prophet thus thus you know uh just it has a gift for driving you know uh another question the judge allowed was whether uh sam considered himself kind and patient you guys heard that and he responded and honestly this part i couldn't even laugh at it was despicable to me he he responded he was an extremely a caring person adding that he was patient kind and that he didn't force anyone to do anything. Thus, victim blaming, right? It's the 11-year-old's fault that she was trapped inside a dark hot trailer. Nobody else is. He was also asked whether he cared about the people

traveling with him that day. Sam answered, yes, I do with all my heart. I love them more than my own life. Oh, and that's some insider info if you think about this. Sam has told people he thinks the girls are coming back. To if you think of it through that context, he's literally saying, I love them more than my own life, which is disgusting, but he's saying that, but he's telling some people I've heard this is insider info that he thinks they're all going to come back, you know, classic. So, and I can tell you, I've spoke to several of them. They ain't going back.

So it's interesting to look at it from that perspective, too. Another question that made it through was whether he believed people should be free to make their own choices. Again, you heard that there. He referred to free agency, seeing that people should be taught correct principles and allowed to govern themselves. Next, his counsel asked him whether, when he left the last gas station before the traffic stop,

did he know the girls were inside? And Sam answered that he did not know the girls were inside. That was the base of his argument. He just simply did not know. He then immediately tried to clarify what he meant. He admitted that he knew the girls had been riding in the trailer during the trip. That he knew.

But claimed his plan had always been for the girls to move into the vehicles before getting onto the interstate because of the 75 mile per hour speed limit. So in the dark, non-ventilated, hot, filthy, dangerous trailer while going

55, tot's okay. You know, around the windy, you know, road. That's okay. Because it wasn't 75 miles per hour. He was going to unlock their little trailer prison door before the 75 mile per hour speed limit hit. That's

That's, I mean, please, jury, don't you realize, I am so generous. I was going to let them out before I hit 75 mile per hour. According to Sam, he saw one of the girls are get out of the trailer and walk toward another vehicle. And because of that, Sam claims that he assumed everyone else had gotten out as well. He just assumed it. He just, oh, they're all out. He told the jury that if he had known anyone was still inside this trailer, he would have latched

the trailer door before leaving, also admitting that there was a latch problem. There indeed was from his own mouth. Sam then gave some lengthy version of what he says happened in the minutes leading up to this traffic stop. He testified that they were driving south toward Tucson to attend the Grant Cardone conference. And then during a bathroom stop, he said a man approached the group and questioned them in what Sam described as an angry manner. He claimed that this interaction had him feeling nervous. He testified that he left believing all of the girls had moved into the other vehicles before they entered the freeway.

And then shortly after getting onto the interstate, he received a phone call from D telling him that the trailer door was open. And then Sam said that he immediately thought, oh my goodness, because he wasn't sure how far the door had opened. That was like the stupidest thing. I know, that was such a, oh, oh, you like my impersonation of him? he well that's the only word he ended up to you oh my goodness oh my goodness um well i don't know how to say it's a very unique voice oh my goodness um but then i mean but like this was also just like a hilarious

answer so he's like admitting to all of the things he's like yeah so anyway i thought they weren't in there but then d called and said she was in there and the door was um not latch and his first thought wasn't like, oh, let me pull over right now. It was, oh, my goodness, because he didn't know how far the door had opened or exactly what happened. But then he noticed Officer Crosby pulling behind him. And then Sam admitted that from the outside, his driving probably looks suspicious. He exited the freeway, turned into a parking lot.

He said his goal was to just simply close the trailer door and, and move the girls into the vehicles, you know. But then this has been his test. when he took a very strange turn, Sam told the jury that before the traffic stop, he believed he, I don't know. This was really a great moment. We've been talking about this.

So, Sam, maybe we should play this. I can't believe we'd play this. It's okay. It's okay. We'll just talk about it. You guys can go watch it after. Sam tells the jury that before the traffic stop, He believes, oh, you found it, that he had experienced telepathy.

Do you say, tell, is that he pronounced it? During an earlier encounter with law enforcement. And by the way, this did have an impact with the jurors a little, I want you to know, while speaking to a couple of the jurors today outside of the courtroom. One of them mentioned this moment. So it really stuck with the jurors. They said that they wanted and asked a question. They said they wanted to ask a juror question.

What am I thinking right now to test his skills? You have it? Let's play. I saw Crosby, right behind me on the corner of the trailer. So I was already just kind of a little edge. And I also had, I know people may not believe,

tell the theater, whatever you want to call it. But I already had some tailpathic experiences when Mr. Horshry pulls me over, but showed me that this is actually coming. Anyway, I may not believe that there's a very scientific principles. So I just really on the edge. And he pulled over, we were pulled right behind me,

and so I pulled off on the side of the road. And he pulled the end around just like you described it. And I pulled off on that first road, first exit off the freeway again. I think it's like one mile I'm in between. So yeah, there you go. Joe was asking how do we not both get kicked out of court for laughing? There were moments where, like I said, we were on the front row.

We were right behind CM and I, we just, I would start and I would just get a straight face or look down and then, but it was today. Grayson had to like completely go down. You had to go down. It was, it was the poop moment, right? I was like, you're going there. And that also made an impact on the juror, too. I asked. I was like, what did you think of that last, you know, mic drop moment, the finale,

the last thing you wanted you to know about using the makeshift toilet? And he was like, why did that even matter? Yeah. Anyway, super scientific, guys, don't laugh. Well, I also like he said, I also like how he said, I had a telepathic experience. Okay, you guys might not believe it, but it's super scientific. I mean, which one is it? Like, okay, let's keep going.

Let's keep going. he claimed that those experiences had somehow warned him that this stop was coming. He acknowledged that people might not believe him, insisted these were very scientific principles. And then Sam explained that those beliefs left him feeling extremely nervous by the time Officer Crosby was following behind him. So that explains his paranoia. Everyone was worried. Why was he so nervous?

Guys, he was having a telepathic experience. Now we know. We have the answers that we've all been wondering after watching this body camera footage. Because remember, he walks up super nervous and we're all like, he must be worried he's in trouble. No. He just had a telepathic experience and he knew that he was in trouble. Not that he thought he did anything wrong, but tele-tapathic experience. The answers were finally getting this body camera footage in new light. Okay. Anyway, he testified. He testified. that after pulling into the parking lot, he waited there for several minutes

before additional officers arrived and the rest of the encounter unfolded. And finally, Sam was asked whether the girls inside the trailer had phones. And he said they did. According to Sam, they had three devices between them. He's like, yeah, you want their numbers, you want their social security numbers,

I don't know it all. You want their birth certificates? You want their passwords? You want their phones? I got it. So I even have binoculars in the middle console of the truck because I like to spy on people. What did you say?

Oh, Esther said his dad was a science teacher. Yeah. Well, I heard some interesting things about his father. That's for another episode. So interesting. Anyway, he believed that one of the girls in the trailer may have actually had an iPod rather than a phone. And then he went on to testify that.

they had those devices with them the entire time because that was how they normally traveled and because he wanted to make sure they would be able to communicate if they needed to um like you know if the the latch is open for example um which he would then ignore and be like okay let's go on to the freeway so as his like testimony continues the same pattern keeps repeating like his his attorney would ask a question the prosecutor would object and then more often than not the judge sustained the objection, as you saw there, before he could say much of anything. There was another question that was asked, that he asked himself. That's what's so funny, too, as he realized, he's asking himself these questions. He asked whether he had been under

increased mental pressure during this trip. The prosecution immediately objected, and the judge sustained that one, too. So the jury never heard that answer. But then he was allowed to describe that mental state when police finally pulled him over. He explains he was anxious. Now we know it was because of the telepathic experience. He said several witnesses had testified that he always seemed nervous around law enforcement, though. So you can't blame the telepathic experience anymore because all the other witnesses are actually saying, no, he was just always nervous around law enforcement. But according to Sam, people in his community, though, so then he switched gears.

He's like, well, no, first it was telepathic. Now he's like, well, yeah, I'm always nervous around police because. People in this community had experienced multiple police raids over the years. So encounters with law enforcement naturally made many of them uneasy. At the same time, he insisted he had nothing against police officers personally. He was like, back the blue. No, he didn't say that. But it is always funny to me when people talk about how paranoid they are for police officers

and then do things that are quite disrespectful and then say that they have nothing against them and they love them. you know um anyway um he told the jury that he appreciated what they do and believed the country wouldn't be safe without them so that's good that's true so yeah he probably means that he described his anxiety though around police as one of his personal weaknesses that was such a weird like response a personal weakness his anxiety around him i if you want my personal thoughts on this he has a lot of shame aren't around that body camera footage. He has a lot of shame around the fact that he is nervous and intimidated over police officers.

Because he's sure not intimidated by the little girls he throws into the back of a trailer. And he is certainly not intimidated by all of the people he abused. Somehow police officers are his kryptonite. And it sounds like he has a lot of shame over it. It makes him probably feel less of a man as it should. because they're like, we see you and we see what you're doing. You, and we're going to handcuff you now. Anyway, the questioning then went into whether the group had stopped to use the restroom on the drive to Flagstaff.

And Sam said he did not remember using the toilet and the trailer. He disputed the testimony from another witness who had claimed he had. This really bothered him. Again, this is not the time I talked about. This is yesterday. So he's really upset by this. though. He just disputes this. He then added, he had asked family members about it the night before. They didn't remember him using the trailer toilet either. This just really stuck with him.

He was like, how dare someone suggest that I use a toilet? The prosecutor immediately objected because Sam was repeating what other people had told them outside the court. Essentially, the judge instructed the jury to disregard the statements and only consider Sam's own personal recollection. Several more questions made it through objections, objections, as you heard. The jury never heard Sam explain whether anything during the trial had surprised him, what he thought about Arizona's laws, whether he believed people were prejudiced against him or the FLDS, whether law enforcement had a vendetta against him or what the core teachings of his religious group were, which at one point he did explain that his religion wasn't what people thought. He believes

and he has a deep belief in the law of attraction and science. He explained that too. So when he's like, do you guys want to know what I believe? It was sort of this mesh of the law of attraction and science put together and then telepathy. So every one of those questions was shut down by the judge. One question did get through. It involved the officers in the August 28th traffic stop. It came across as vindictive.

Sam gave like this mixed answer. right. He complimented most of the officers. He likes to do that. But also, I'm just going to point this out, that is abuse. That is coercive control and it is manipulation. When you compliment and flatter people and then coercively control them and are abusive to them, that is so manipulative. And so I think that's what would make me cringe every time he would talk to the police and compliment them. It was, I could just see what he does. it bothers me so much. So he's complimenting the officers repeatedly, calling them decent people,

again saying he appreciates law enforcement. And then he claims one of the officers yelled at him, poor guy during the stop. And he said he felt like the officer had already made up his mind about what was going to happen before speaking with him. Want, won't, bring out the tiny violin. So he admires them so much. He respects police officers so much.

But one of them yelled at him. One of them yelled at him. So, Sam was also asked about what he viewed as an inconsistency in the evidence. He specifically, again, that witnesses had testified that there were girls' fingers sticking out through the trailer door, while body camera footage showed officers unlatching the trailer from the outside. So Sam suggested that there was a discrepancy. He explained that the trailer doors can be difficult to latch properly because of the vertical locking. and argued, in his opinion, the testimony and the body camera footage didn't completely line up.

So he's throwing out some conspiracies. He said that he knows that the girl's fingers were sticking out of the trailer because he had been talking to them on the phone. But he questioned whether the video told the whole story. And this was just where I was like, you are missing the point. I mean, none of these charges have to do with whether the girls' fingers were actually sticking out or not. Like the charges remained the same.

But nonetheless, the defense then revisited the earlier traffic stop in Mojave County involving a side-by-side AHEB. Sam was asked why he appeared confused when law enforcement contacted him that day. His answer was because he was confused. Poor guy. I definitely think he's confused. Not an excuse, but he certainly seems confused all the time. According to Sam, he had forgotten the girls were writing. in the back. And when an officer asked if they could fit in the front, Sam said he thought the

officer was referring to the motorbike strapped in the trailer. And it wasn't until Nome's pointed out, which is what we heard, that the girls were actually in the back, that he realized what the officer meant. And when asked whether he had any additional thoughts about the earlier stop, he paused. Before saying, he decided he had decided not to answer. And then it was the August 28th traffic stop. He asked him, he was asked why he drove away if the trailer door was open. And then he again said that he didn't know the door was open. And he believed the girls had already moved into the other vehicles before they got onto the freeway. And let's pause there. Because if your mind is about to explode with the contradictions, join the club. This is called like word salad gas lighting at its finest. Which one is it? So he's just said that he got. a call from D learning the door was open and that's when he realized the girls were in the vehicle

and he knew the girls were in the vehicle and he was talking to the girls in the vehicle and he knew the door was open, right? Did you guys hear that? I heard that. I heard that multiple times. But now he's saying that he didn't know the door was open and he believed the girls had already moved into the other vehicles before they got onto the freeway.

So now he's saying no, they weren't there. I didn't know they were there and I didn't know the door was open. I mean, he's so frustrating. The defense also asked what all of the equipment inside the trailer was for. This was good. This was good. They're like, so tell us about the equipment. Why do you even have these things?

Why are you even traveling with the random equipment in this trailer? I had the same question. I was like, yeah, I want to know. Hit me up. Tell me, Sam, why do you have a shovel and I think of gasoline, gasoline and a generator and a stroller and all this stuff? So Sam says it was for camping and picnic gear. And I was like, but then I was like, wait a second.

I sat there thinking, but you guys have an Airbnb. You just said you had an Airbnb. So, okay, camping and picnic gear, huh. And then he explains that the group regularly went on hikes, camping trips, and weekly picnics, because those activities were things they enjoyed doing together. Okay. Even though you're going to a motivational speech and have an Airbnb set up, great. When asked whether the girls knew they had a choice about where they rode during the trip,

Sam admitted he never specifically told them they could choose. Oh, okay. Okay, so you say they have a choice, but they don't. You didn't tell them they could choose. Instead, he just simply believed they already understood his personality so well, they just knew him so well in his personality that they knew they could reject any suggestion he made okay yeah and you know what i guess i bet they did know you so well that they knew that they could not reject any suggestion you ever made he said that they may have personally believed that they didn't have a

choice but then insisted they absolutely did this is called coercive control at its finest it's disgusting The jury also learned that the mothers of the three girls riding in the trailer were living with Sam at the time. And then later Sam was asked, whether he shared his teachings with people outside of his family. He said yes. And he described himself as someone who believed in combining the law of attraction with science and said he enjoyed mentoring other people. I also just want to point out his belief system of the law of attraction in science for those that have seen the trust me documentary. Remember that beautiful vision board he had done up where he said he had like ginormous mansion house that he was going to build and he was going to meet the queen of England.

I mean, my first thought when I saw that was like somebody's watching the law of attraction. Somebody's, you know, watching the secret and he is making his vision board. How'd that work out for you, Sam? How's the house? How's the queen? She say hi? No, you're behind bars. How's that science? How's that science? How's your telepathic experiences? Anyway, according to Sam, he spent thousands of dollars over the years being mentored himself, particularly in business and personal mindset, and he tried to pass those lessons onto others.

He said that anyone was free to reject what he taught and claimed that he would never become angry if they did. That made me angry just hearing that because that is not true. I'm just going to pause and let you guys know that we have been going over four weeks now, months. We have a big show, if not a couple, a few shows of some court docs that nobody's heard before that aren't in the trust me documentary. And I'm just going to say this, they are sick. It's worse than you guys even know. Not all of you. I know there's a lot of you in chat right now,

and I'm grateful you're here that have been affected by Sam and his teachings, and you know exactly what he did. I don't think the whole world knows exactly the horrific things he did. But yes, he would become very, very angry. And he was very scary. And he did horrible things. The defense also asked about the frequent phone calls between Sam and members of the caravan during this trip. And Sam testified that most of those calls were simply conversations and mentoring sessions.

And in this particular case, though, he said the calls also served another purpose. And that was to make sure the girls riding in the trailer were safe. Oh, guy, what a sweetheart. Those calls served another purpose. While he was on the phone with them while muted on that whole trip, they were to make sure they were safe. That's so sweet. So sweet. That's why he stopped when he learned that it was unlatched. What a guy. Bateman insisted that his family members were always free to ignore his instructions. And according to Sam, he regularly told people that if they didn't want to be there,

if they didn't want to travel with him or didn't want to follow his plans, they were free to leave at any time. And finally, Sam asked why previous witnesses had described him as paranoid or unusually nervous around law enforcement. And again, he started talking about the history of police raids involving his community and even referenced a large raid in Texas. That is about Warren Jeff's, the raid in Texas. And before he could continue about that raid in Texas, however, the prosecutor objected once again and the judge sustained the objection, striking that testimony from the record before the jury could consider it. And near the end of Bateman's direct testimony, he returned to something he had mentioned earlier about why he was so nervous around law enforcement.

He testified that during an earlier traffic stop was an officer Horsley. Again, more telepathy. Is that how you pronounce it? Why am I feeling like this not I'm pronouncing it wrong? Yes. Well, I know it's telepathic, but is it, is it telepathy or telepathy? Telepathy. That's what I'm wondering.

I'm like, am I telepathy? Okay. I think Sam said it both ways. Sam, maybe. I think he's just shooting his shop. Well, I don't know either. But I'm not the one that experiences it. So he should know.

I've never experienced it, never planned to. So not my, not my jam. So you're not going to experience it. Yeah, I don't know what it thinks. Yeah, only Sam experiences it. Sam told the jury that he believed his subconscious somehow communicated with the officer's subconscious. Oh, they connected.

He admitted that he wasn't sure exactly how it worked. even though late earlier he said it was scientific. He didn't understand how it worked, but those experiences convinced him that authorities were trying to build additional charges against him so they could eventually send him to prison. You think, or maybe you just thought that maybe it wasn't, maybe it wasn't a telepathic experience, maybe you just realized you were breaking the law and hurting people and harming people and that that could maybe land you in prison. I don't know.

But he then tied that belief to another encounter at the Silver Saddle, where he said a man approached the group and described. an angry manner that this man had and started questioning them about where they were from. Sam said that that interaction made him think that someone was going to call law enforcement, and that left him on edge before the traffic stop. The defense then established that there was plenty of room for the other vehicles traveling in the caravan. Sam testified that every one of the girls could have fit inside another vehicle if they wanted to. Oh, really, because I'm also hearing a variety of things there.

he also asked whether people in the caravan generally followed his directions. And then Sam said, yes, they usually do follow my directions. But then insisted it was not because he demanded obedience. It wasn't because he had trained them to follow whatever he said. It was just because he's clearly just special. He claimed they just loved and respected him. Yeah, you can't make this up. He's claiming that they just loved and respected him.

And he said he's never threatened people with damnation or hell. if they disagree with them that's so sweet because you know what you know if if someone disagrees with you do you um you know someone if someone threatens me i'm like i'm gonna send i'm gonna send you i'm gonna send you i hope for damnation in hell i mean it's such a strange thing to say uh tell me what you do uh he said that they just love and respect him and that he had never threatened people with damnation or hell if they disagreed with him yeah i i hope not i don't do that either That's good. Good Sam. Good boy. Don't do that. Also, I'm sure he did that every day. Anyway, once again, he talked about his extensive driving experience telling the jury,

he had driven hundreds of thousands of miles and had a lot of experience hauling heavy trailers with pickup trucks. And when his counsel asked why he believed he was the only adult arrested, the prosecution objected, and the judge sustained it before Sam could answer. And then the defense addressed another issue raised throughout the trial. Several witnesses had testified that Sam did not immediately pull over after learning people were inside the trailer and that the trailer door was open. Sam disputed that version of events. He testified that he was pulled over as quickly as he believed it was safe to do.

Sam says that he didn't want to stop on the shoulder because he saw an exit just ahead. Again, he also admitted that he was nervous because he believed Officer Krook. Crosby was following him. He explained that he exited the freeway, saw Officer Crosby, continued past exit, got back into the highway, took the next exit where the officer backed up and followed him. He didn't want to crossover traffic. This is called TMI. You know, clearly you're really trying to make excuses.

He couldn't easily make a right turn. Finally, his counsel was like, just answer, just answer it directly. you know and then and then it just it just sort of continued like that he also testified that family members

suggested places to visit and activities to do together describing decisions within the group as collaborative rather than one-sided and I think what the jury got out of that was that this was a group this was a group

the defense then turned to one of the photographs introduced by the prosecution it showed black material hanging from the trailer door. He explained that was part of the rubber door seal. He explained and admitted that it did not have great ventilation, but claimed there was enough airflow and it wasn't terrible. You know, and again, it kind of reiterated everything, but the girls had phones. I could have pulled over, and I'm like, but then, but you didn't. Then it was the prosecution's turn. Prosecutor focused on

Sam's own opening statement. So this is good. This is great. I mean, even the juror we talked to after court today said that it was his opening statement that's still the deal for him. So the prosecutor asks if Sam stood by his opening statement and what he had told the jury earlier in the trial. Sam hesitated. He said he had probably worded it wrong.

Sam's getting nervous. When asked whether he still stood by the claims he made, he again avoided giving a direct answer. Instead, he told the jury that he never wanted to hurt anyone and didn't even like harming animals or bugs. What a sweetheart. The prosecutor then started walking

him through his own prior statements one by one. He reminded Sam that during opening statements, he had said, I shouldn't have done it. I shouldn't have done it. This time, however, Sam refused to agree with that statement. Next, he pointed out that Sam had previously described having the girls ride in the trailer as dangerous. That is true. He did. He did. At one point, he said, you know, it was probably dangerous. Sam claimed you could remember saying that and seemed reluctant to agree. I heard it with my own ears. When asked whether he had described his own actions as dumb, he did admit that he acknowledged it wasn't smart. Prosecutor asked whether the girls had wanted to ride in the trailer. Sam answered, they had begged to ride back there, and he gave them

permission, although he said that he did not mean he approved of it. Okay. The prosecutor followed up asking whether the girls were in his care. At this moment, he tries to like shift response. responsibility, said someone could argue that they were actually in their mother's care because the mothers were traveling in vehicles directly behind them. The prosecutor continued pressing him. He confirmed that Sam had been on the phone with the girls most of the trip. They were inside his trailer. He agreed. He established the girls had written in the trailer before. Sam acknowledged they had and clarified that those rides had taken place around their property in what he described as the backwoods and not on the interstate. And then, the prosecutor confronted him with another statement he had made when he again referred to this situation is extremely dangerous. Sam claims he could not remember saying that. He does not remember saying those words. And the prosecutor then started talking about responsibility. He asked Sam to be a straightforward question. As a driver playing the trailer, wasn't everything happening inside that trailer, ultimately your responsibility? And then he says,

yeah. I'm like, okay. And then the prosecutor continued. He pointed out that he knew the girls had been writing in the trailer for hours during the trip. Sam agreed. But then try to clarify what he meant that once they reached Flagstaff, you know, he insisted by that time they'd entered the Flagstaff area, he just believed the girls had already climbed into the other vehicles like he had planned. He repeated his explanation that he saw one of the girls move to another vehicle and just assumed it had happened to everyone. But the prosecutor was not. not letting him move past this point. He reminded him the girls were inside the trailer while driving on Interstate 40 through Flagstaff. Sam acknowledged they were, but again insisted that he didn't know

that they were back there. It's just like it didn't stop. He walked through his version of timelines. It was painful because like even the jurors told us later like, does it really matter where he drove, how he drove, why he drove. It was just like painful to kind of keep hearing it over and over and over again, just continuing how long it took and why he pulled over. The prosecutor asked if it was his responsibility to know who was riding inside the truck. Yes, he agreed it was his responsibility.

It was his responsibility to know who was inside the trailer he was telling. Sam said it was. He asked if it was his responsibility on August 28th. Sam admitted it was. So then he asks, well, if you knew the trailer was unsafe, why'd you let the girls ride back there in the first place? And Sam said he didn't think it was very dangerous.

He said it was probably a little warm because there was no ventilation, but I just trusted his driving ability. Really, he would just miraculously make sure they were safe and have, you know, just thousands of, he has thousands of accident-free miles on him and that he actually, no one needed to worry. no one needed to worry because he prayed. He prayed before driving,

and he asks God to bless him every time he drives. So we're good, guys. He's got God on his side, so the girls are safe. They talked about the items inside the trailer again. Remember how Sam said that they were for camping and picnic, yet there was like a giant recliner and other furniture? So then Sam kind of backtracks, and he's like, well, I don't know why those items.

items were in there. Someone must have put that recliner inside the trailer. Prosecutor's like, okay, well, you know, you put a full-size recliner inside the trailer and you didn't notice. And Sam responded that the trailer stayed parked at the property in Colorado City. Nearly 40 people lived together. So the jury's like, okay, we get what this is. Nearly 40 people are living together. He said there were just too many people and too many things happening for him to keep track of everything that went into the trailer with 40 people living together. Again, tell me you're in a lot. a cult without telling me you're in a cult. Forty of you are living in a house. Okay. Prosecutor

pointed out that he seemed to know about all the camping gear in the trailer, right? Somehow he didn't notice the recliner. Yeah, it just escaped his attention. And he said, well, what about your claim that you'd written in that trailer before? Where had he sat? He said that he believed he had been standing. He asked, you know, what it was like standing in a moving

trailer. He said it wasn't a great idea, but it didn't happen on the highway. So it was okay. He said he just wanted to experience what it felt like riding in the trailer. And then the prosecutor, what I thought made, a very important distinction. He suggested that whatever risks Sam was willing to take as an adult were very different from exposing young girls to those same risks. And Sam then responded that it depended on who the driver was.

Yeah, he said that. If it was someone he trusted, he didn't see the same concerns. In other words, he's like this godlike figure with this perfect driving record. So he doesn't have to worry about their safety if they're under his care. And then it led to the prosecutors what I thought was one of their strongest questions. He asked if he cared so much about the girls. Why would he allow them to be placed in a dangerous situation? And Sam replied because they asked.

Yeah. So then the prosecutor. reminded him he was the adult he's in charge it had been his decision so sam was like okay yeah you're right oh yeah right okay um he confirmed the the calls occasionally dropped but he agreed that he was on the phone call with him and would always be on the phone and he knew it was going on the prosecutor ended his cross-examination with one final question had bateman instructed the girls to not get out of the trailer when police stopped them Sam answered that he probably had. His explanation was that he just didn't want them getting out while officers were present because he didn't want to create what he called a big scene. And it certainly was a big scene. And the prosecution concluded its cross exam. After both sides finished questioning Bateman. I love that. After both sides, after Sam finished questioning Sam, the judge had questions, the jurors, excuse me, the jurors had questions of their own several questions. Guys,

a lot of questions. Several of them focused on one issue that had come up repeatedly. Why didn't Bateman stop sooner? One juror asked, why? Why? After exiting the freeway, did you not simply pull over into a nearby gas station? Sam said that there weren't any gas stations between where he exited and stopped, and that he just made a series of right turns before pulling into a parking lot. And another juror questioned Sam, about his claim that he was a highly experienced driver. If children were riding inside the trailer, did he really believe they weren't being placed in an unsafe situation?

Sam answered that he trusted his own driving abilities. I mean, you can't make this stuff up. He's so grandiose. He trusts his own driving ability so much he personally did not think they were in significant danger. He explained he would naturally slow down if he saw anything hazardous. The jurors also picked up on something the prosecutor had highlighted. if Sam truly didn't know there was a recliner inside the trailer, where did he think that the girls were supposed to sit?

I had the same question. I was like, thank you for asking that. If you really didn't know the recliner was in there, where the hell were these girls supposed to sit? And Sam admitted he hadn't really thought about that. He said he was just a busy person and assumed they would probably sit on chairs because chairs were normally kept inside the trailer.

Yeah. He's just so busy, so important. And another juror asked if he had inspected the trailer or secured any of the items inside before allowing the girls ride there. He said he didn't think he did. And they wanted to know why the group needed to bring a trailer to a conference. That's my question too. Unless if it wasn't for the girls riding the trailer, why bring this trailer? He said it was for extra storage to carry luggage in a generator, gasoline, and a portable toilet.

But then they questioned, well, and then another juror question asked again why he didn't just pull over on the freeway once he learned the trailer door was open. He said he was overwhelmed. That's why he'd become panicked. And rather than stopping, he chose to continue with what he believed was the first available exit. And then someone asked if he considered himself responsible for all the children traveling with them. He said, yeah, I do consider myself responsible. After the jurors finished, the prosecutor followed to ask a few follow-up questions. So he brought up again, this was so good.

This was so good. Okay, the items in the trailer. Why are you carrying a generator? Why are you carrying gasoline? Why are you carrying a recliner? If you knew there was gasoline inside the fuel tank while children were riding the trailer, then he says he had no idea because he had a check. So the prosecutor was like,

asked whether this sounds irresponsible. He's admitted, yeah, might. But then he questioned why the group even needed the generator at all. Especially, again, they had rented an Airbnb. What are you talking about? You used this trailer for camping. You got an Airbnb, bro. So then Sam explains that they like stopping in remote areas to eat lunch

and use a generator during the stops. This is so good. And then, you know, then he just said, So you're going to just stop and picnic with all this stuff? I don't think you need a generator for a picnic. He was like, oh, that's a good point. You know, he wasn't sure. He just kept pushing him.

It was so funny. He's like, yeah, I really don't know why I need all of this stuff. I really, really, really don't. It was so funny as they kept pushing him. Why do you need this trailer? Why do you need all these items? And finally, he was like, I don't know why. We just take a generator wherever we go. I don't know why though. We just we just bring

this stuff. And then finally one question, final question, they asked in Sam's view, if he hadn't done anything wrong, then why was he so paranoid in the first place? And this is, I love this. If he hadn't done anything wrong, why was he so paranoid in the first place? And Sam goes, well, this is an interesting question. And then he described the encounter at Silver saddle where a man approached asking where they were from and what they were doing. And Sam said that interaction is what made him start to get nervous. And then he started to tell the jury that he had researched Arizona law online. This is good. Okay. So he had researched Arizona law online beforehand. This is so good. Because he wanted to know whether it was legal for people to ride inside a trailer.

Before he could answer, the prosecutor objected. And the judge. And the judge, judge sustained the objection and struck that portion from the testimony, which I was kind of bummed about because I was like, oh, wait, hold up. You researched Arizona law online before because you wanted to know it was legal for people to ride inside a trailer? You were such a busy man. You can't even like know what's in the trailer. But you researched law. So I was like, let's just pull this up. What does Arizona law say about riding in a trailer? We did a quick Google search. thing that popped up. It was so funny. You can't even put animals in a trailer. It was like, absolutely not. It was the funniest thing. I was like, why? They should have, they should have,

it was crazy. So if you do a little Google search, you can ask, can you put people inside a trailer? They'll tell you no. You can't even put animals. No. Anyway, he then was allowed to briefly explain that based on his own understanding. He believed that Arizona law permitted people the write in trailers. Don't know how he got that. It's about as clear as day. And then brought up this mystery man again. I was like, can the mystery man please stand up? I'd love to talk to that mystery man. The prosecutor just suggested the man may have simply been concerned about the girls, but he disagreed. He was like, no, no, no one's, no one's concerned about the girls. This mystery man, it was something else, man. That wrapped up testimony for the day.

It was wild. At that moment, by the end of this day, I'll just say this, I've never seen jurors look angrier at a trial. The men looked like they wanted to jump out of their seats. There was one gentleman that stared at Sam more than they ever did the witnesses, just like you, you could just see he was angry. The women looked so concerned and so sad. Five men. five women. And the judge recessed court on Thursday with that.