Marcus Wesson's wife testifies at murder trial

The Associated Press
Last Updated 8:30 am PDT Wednesday, April 6, 2005

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - The wife of a man accused of killing his nine children and sexually abusing his daughters and nieces testified that God talks to Marcus Wesson, and his religious beliefs are misunderstood.

Wesson, 58, is charged with killing his children March 12, 2004 during a custody dispute. He's pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Testimony during his trial, which began last month, has revealed Wesson was the father of eight slain children who ranged in age from 1 to 17. Their bodies were stacked in a pile along with the body of Wesson's 25-year-old daughter, Sebhrenah.

Elizabeth Wesson, 45, told a Fresno jury Tuesday that her husband "walks as Christ." She deflected a majority of the prosecutor's questions about her life with her husband and the events leading up to the slayings.

Often, she repeated the same phrases over and over in response to different questions, or said she did not remember that day. At one point, she became hysterical, begging bailiffs to "make it stop."

Paramedics rushed to the witness stand to give her first aid after she complained of dizziness and shortness of breath. They later gave her a clean bill of health.

Elizabeth Wesson's testimony is crucial to the prosecution's theory that Marcus Wesson formed a murder-suicide pact with his daughters and nieces to prevent authorities from splitting up the family.

Police have identified Elizabeth Wesson as a suspected coconspirator in the slayings, but gave her immunity from prosecution as long as she testifies truthfully.

Prosecutor Lisa Gamoian read transcripts from two taped interviews Wesson had with police. In the interviews, she said her husband's children are "God's children."

If outsiders came to split up the family, he preached "sending them to God," or "putting them to sleep," Elizabeth Wesson told police, according to the transcripts.