David Tronnes murder trial: Neighbor, nanny, DNA tester called as witnesses

ORLANDO, Fla.  - Three days into his trial, David Tronnes has watched several witnesses take the stand as the prosecution tries to convince a jury he killed his wife, Shanti Cooper-Tronnes, five years ago.

The couple was in the middle of renovating their Delaney Park home. Several witnesses have said there were disagreements about the process. One of the witnesses on Monday was a neighbor and a friend of Shanti.

"Now, as a couple, how often did you have an opportunity to observe the two of them together?" asked the prosecutor. "Well, whenever we had them over, or my kid's pool party, or I guess at the Super Bowl, they came over to our house, just the two of them," said Shanti’s friend. 

"Did they appear to be affectionate towards each other?" asked the prosecutor. "No, I never saw them hold hands, touch, it was a little strange," Shanti’s friend replied.

Next was Shanti’s nanny and personal assistant. 

"Did you ever see David or Shanti argue or bicker?" asked the prosecution. "I saw them bicker on occasion," the former nanny and personal assistant explained. 

"Did they ever bicker about the home renovation, things of that nature?"  "Yes," she said.

She was then asked about Shanti’s ring, which police did not find on her when she died. They did find the ring with David weeks later. 

"Was there ever a time that you recall seeing her, that she was not wearing the engagement ring?" asked the prosecution. "I never saw her not wear the engagement ring," said Shanti’s former nanny and personal assistant. "The only time that she ever took off was the wedding band because one day I reported to work and one of the diamonds had fallen out. So, she had me take it to the jewelers. But she was still wearing the engagement ring." 

In addition to the former deputy chief medical examiner for Orange County, Dr. Gary Utz, the prosecution also brought in a DNA tester with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. He told the jury he tested samples of blood found at the scene.  

"And did you presumptively test that to be blood or not?" the prosecution asked. "Yes, it was positive," said the DNA Tester. "It gave chemical indications of the presence of blood."

"And were you able to develop a DNA profile from this item?" "Yes," said the DNA tester.

"And were you able to compare that to any known samples in this case?" "Yes," said the DNA tester. "It matched DNA profile from Shanti Cooper Tronnes," 

Dr. Utz said in court that he was confident the cause of death was strangulation and blunt force head trauma. The defense argued that his job was to determine the cause of death, not who did it. 

The trial continues on Tuesday.