Crime Scene Detective Returns 8 Months Later to Find Wife Erased in Au Pair Trial

Eight months after Christine Banfield was stabbed to death, police returned to the home. What they found in the master bedroom tells you everything. Sgt. Kenner Fortner documented the crime scene on February 24, 2023, photographing the vehicles, the layout, and a detail the prosecution wants you to notice: Christine's cell phone, powered off and hidden in a kitchen drawer. When he returned in October for a follow-up search warrant, the house had changed. Juliana's bedroom was empty. Her clothes, including red lingerie and a yellow Brazilian shirt, had been moved into the master bedroom closet. The photos of Brendan and Christine? Gone. Replaced with photos of Brendan and Juliana. The defense argues this proves nothing about what happened that morning. But the jury saw those photos. They saw who was erased and who took her place. ⏰ KEY MOMENTS 00:00 - Sgt. Fortner takes the stand 02:27 - Vehicles at the scene identified 06:33 - Christine's phone found hidden in drawer 07:51 - Juliana's bedroom photographed (February 2023) 09:07 - Detective returns 8 months later 10:21 - Wife's photos replaced with au pair's photos 📖 From The Desk of Justice: https://www.justiceisaprocess.com/des... CASE BACKGROUND REPORT: https://www.justiceisaprocess.com/va-... 📖 CASE BACKGROUND On February 24, 2023, Christine Banfield was stabbed to death in her Herndon, Virginia home. Joseph Ryan was found shot dead beside her. Brendan Banfield and au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães initially claimed self-defense, saying they discovered Ryan attacking Christine and fired to stop him. That story held for 570 days. Police found no forced entry. They found communications on FetLife between Ryan and an account in Christine's name, planning a sexual encounter involving a knife for the morning she was killed. They found a framed photo of Brendan and the au pair on his nightstand eight months later. Magalhães was arrested in October 2023. She pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in October 2024. Under her deal, she gets time served if she testifies against Banfield, then deportation to Brazil. She's the State's star witness. Banfield was indicted in September 2024 after an investigation marked by internal conflict. The digital forensics examiner concluded Christine controlled her own accounts and was transferred out of the unit. The lead detective testified he was pressured to support the catfishing theory and was moved after the arrest. Christine Banfield was 37, a forensic nurse who spent her career helping sexual assault survivors. She left behind a four-year-old daughter who was in the house when her mother was killed. 📂 PLAYLISTS & RESOURCES 🌐 Website: https://justiceisaprocess.com ► Live Broadcasts:    • LIVE BROADCAST: VA v. Brendan Banfield   ► No Breaks Edition:    • NO BREAKS EDITION: VA v. Brendan Banfield   ► Trial Podcast:    • TRIAL PODCAST: VA v. Brendan Banfield   ► Key Moments:    • Key Moments and Testimony: VA v. Brendan B...   ► Subscribe:    / @justiceisaprocess   ⚖️ ABOUT JUSTICE IS A PROCESS This channel continues the work of Steven M. Askin, a criminal defense attorney disbarred in 1998 for refusing to violate attorney-client privilege, then criminally convicted in 2010 for teaching people their constitutional rights from a coffee shop in West Virginia. He passed away in February 2024, but not before we started this channel together. I am Steven M. Askin II. I am not an attorney. I am a watchdog. I cover trials to educate the public about due process, presumption of innocence, and constitutional protections. Every video is part of building the machine the system feared my father would create: a public trained to watch, question, and demand accountability. ⚖️ FAIR USE & EDUCATIONAL PURPOSE This content is produced under Fair Use (17 U.S.C. § 107) for news reporting, criticism, and educational purposes. We provide transformative commentary on public court proceedings with timestamps, analysis, and educational context. #JusticeIsAProcess #BanfieldTrial #BrendanBanfield #VirginiaTrials #TrueCrime #CourtroomCoverage #CriminalJustice #LegalAnalysis