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Watch: Witness testimony so far at trial of Samantha Woll’s alleged killer

Trial not resuming Friday, June 14

Samantha Woll, 40, was found stabbed to death outside her home in Detroit on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023. Woll was the president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue. (WDIV)

DETROIT – The man accused of stabbing a well-known Detroit woman to death in 2023 was standing trial for murder in June.

Witnesses began testifying on Wednesday, June 12 at the trial of Michael Jackson-Bolanos, a man in his late 20s. Jackson-Bolanos is accused of stabbing Woll, 40, to death at her Detroit apartment on Oct. 21, 2023.

He is standing trial on charges of first-degree murder, felony murder, home invasion, and lying to a peace officer.

After two days of witness testimony, the trial was not resuming on Friday, June 14. The trial was instead set to resume next week.

All of the witness testimony provided in court so far can be found below:

Day 1 - June 11, 2024

Opening statements were made on Tuesday afternoon. No witness testimony was offered on June 11.

Prosecution’s opening statement

Defense’s opening statement

Day 2 - June 12, 2024

Witness 1 - Kevin Mull, neighbor

The first witness testimony came from Kevin Mull, a neighbor who lives in a townhome across from Woll’s home. Mull discovered Woll’s body lying outside on the sidewalk while taking a dog outside.

Witness 2 - Jessica Robinson, neighbor

Robinson is married to Mull and also lives in the home across from Woll’s. Robinson called 911 after her husband found Woll’s body outside.

Witness 3 - Preston Kue, police officer

Former Detroit police officer Preston Kue was one of the officers dispatched to Woll’s home after the 911 call was placed. Kue, now a police officer in Clinton Township, provided testimony about what he saw and reported from that morning.

Witness 4 - Derrik Doad, police officer

Derrik Doad was a Detroit police officer dispatched to Woll’s home after her neighbors called 911 on Oct. 21, 2023. Doad was asked about what he saw and reported from that morning.

Witness 5 - Carrington Sheridan, forensic technician

Forensic technician Carrington Sheridan, with the Detroit Police Department, was at Woll’s townhome after she was killed. Sheridan observed the scene and helped log and photograph evidence.

Witness 6 - Daron Zhou, police sgt.

Detroit police Sgt. Detective Daron Zhou works within the homicide division and was called to the scene of Woll’s home the day she was found. He collected a cellphone from the crime scene.

Witness 7 - Eli Bowers, FBI agent

FBI special agent Eli Bowers was working with the evidence response team at the time of Woll’s killing, working as a crime scene photographer. The evidence response team is made up of specially-trained in responding to various crime scenes and collecting evidence.

Part one

Day 3 - June 13, 2024

Witness 7 (again) - Eli Bowers, FBI agent

Part two

Witness 8 - Guy Nutter, forensic scientist

Guy Nutter is the technical leader for crime scene and blood stain pattern analysis with the Michigan State Police department’s forensic science division. Nutter oversaw forensic staff who collected and documented evidence at Woll’s home.

Witness 9 - Sherri Berger, longtime friend of Woll

Sherri Burger describes herself as a lifelong friend of Woll, having first met when they were in their early teens. Berger, who lives out of town, visited Detroit and stayed with Woll the week before she was killed.

Witness 10 - James England, evidence lab supervisor

James England is a supervisor of the latent print unit at a Michigan State Police laboratory, where they process evidence. England’s unit was responsible for processing evidence related to Woll’s killing.

Witness 11 - James Griffioen, neighbor

James Griffioen is a resident of the Lafayette Park community in which Woll lived. Griffioen was woken up in the middle of the night by his sick puppy and went outside with the dog early in the morning on the day Woll was killed.

Witness 12 - Nicole Croom, assistant medical examiner

Nicole Croom is an assistant medical examiner at the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office in Detroit. She works to determine the cause and manner of death of cases assigned to her.


About the case

Samantha Woll, who also went by Sam, was found stabbed to death the morning of Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023, outside her Detroit apartment. A witness found Woll lying on the ground unresponsive at about 6:30 a.m. that day.

First responders arrived at the scene and saw Woll had been stabbed several times. She was declared dead at the scene. Officials later said she was stabbed eight times, including several times in the neck.

Police said a “trail of blood” led from where Woll’s body was found back to her home. Police believe the woman was attacked in her home sometime after 12:30 a.m., when she arrived home from a wedding, and that she stumbled outside after the attack.

Investigators confirmed that there were no signs of forced entry at Woll’s home. She was found with her wallet and phone on her. Sources have said there were no defensive wounds on Woll, but police hadn’t confirmed that detail.

Throughout the investigation, authorities repeatedly affirmed that there is no evidence to indicate Woll’s killing was a hate crime.

Woll served as president of the board of directors for Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue near Capitol Park in Detroit, and was well known in the community. She was also a campaign staffer for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, and a former aide to Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin.

Woll was remembered as someone who supported people and people-centered movements, and was credited for her interfaith work, including by Muslim advocacy groups.

Jackson-Bolanos arrested

Police arrested Jackson-Bolanos in Utica in December 2023. Law enforcement had been surveilling the man and located him driving his car -- a 2007 Dodge Charger -- in Macomb County on the day of his arrest.

The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced charges against Jackson-Bolanos on Dec. 13, 2023. In addition to being charged with felony murder and now first-degree murder, the man has also been charged with with home invasion and lying to a peace officer.

A felony murder charge is when someone accused of committing a violent felony is charged with murder if the commission of that felony results in someone’s death.

Brian Brown, defense attorney for Jackson-Bolanos, has said his client is denying all allegations against him. Brown said he believes Jackson-Bolanos “may be a victim of circumstance,” particularly following a previous arrest made in November that resulted in zero charges.

A man was arrested in western Michigan in November 2023, and was released a few days later without being charged. That person’s identity was not revealed, but the Wayne County prosecutor confirmed the person was not Jackson-Bolanos.

Brown said he believes police have once again arrested the wrong person.

Click here to see a thorough timeline of Jackson-Bolanos’ whereabouts surrounding the stabbing, according to prosecutors.


About the Author
Cassidy Johncox headshot

Cassidy Johncox is a senior digital news editor covering stories across the spectrum, with a special focus on politics and community issues.

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