5.Paula Musgrove — Direct/Cross/Redirect/Recross

MS. SPRAGUE: No objection.

MS. SPRAGUE: Objection. It's already in evidence.

MS. SPRAGUE: Yes.

MS. SPRAGUE: Thank you, Your Honor. Good afternoon.

MS. SPRAGUE: Now, you testified in direct examination about the statements that Lindsay made in December about having thoughts about harming the children. When in December was that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay. And when she made the statement that she had thoughts of harming the children, did either you or Patrick ask her what she meant by that?

MS. SPRAGUE: And after she made those statements, did you have any thoughts about committing her?

MS. SPRAGUE: Did you have any thoughts about having her come stay with you in Connecticut away from the children?

MS. SPRAGUE: Were you concerned for the children's safety at that point in time?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay. And you were asked about some text messages in October, and those are now in Exhibit, I believe—

MS. SPRAGUE: Exhibit 276. And so you talked about the text on the 20th when she asked you to come and she was having a hard time, right?

MS. SPRAGUE: A day before, on October 19th, she had sent you a different text message stating, "Hi, Mom. Would you ever consider coming to stay with us for a couple days at a time to help with childcare so I can work? In talking to a therapist and doing a lot of thinking, I actually think going to work will help me, but it's really hard with nurse's hours to get childcare that we need. I'm thinking if you could come, like, Sunday to mid-Tuesday, it would really— it'd be really helpful. Just a thought." Do you remember that text the day before?

MS. SPRAGUE: And did you agree in a text message that you could... You said, "I can come and help out"?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then after that, that next day is when she said she was having trouble and wanted you there then, and you went that day, correct? But you said you were there for about a week, but there's a text on October 20th that's not included in this exhibit, where on October 24th at 2:36 PM, you send a text to her saying, "How are things today?" And she responds, "Good." You remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: So were you already home at that point when you were asking her how she was doing on the 24th?

MS. SPRAGUE: And so you would go and help out when they asked you to, and then you would go home when things were calmed down a little bit. With... Is that right?

MS. SPRAGUE: No? And she did say on the 24th that she was doing good that day, correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: Here you go. If you can come look at it.

MS. SPRAGUE: So she told you at that point on the 24th she was doing good, right?

MS. SPRAGUE: You can have this page marked as the next exhibit.

MS. SPRAGUE: Now, you talked about a time when you went to her home, and you actually ended up sleeping with her because she didn't wanna be alone. Was that that October 20th visit?

MS. SPRAGUE: When was that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Did she tell you why she was afraid to be alone?

MS. SPRAGUE: And at that point in time, did you consider having her committed to a psychiatric facility?

MS. SPRAGUE: And did you feel the need to call 911 that day or get her immediate assistance?

MS. SPRAGUE: You mentioned that in January, you saw her, and she'd lost weight. She seemed paranoid about things, seemed to be going through the motions of each day. How often did you see her in January of 2023?

MS. SPRAGUE: So we have Exhibit 238, which have all of your text messages with Lindsay in January of 2023, and I just wanna go through some of them with you.

MS. SPRAGUE: So on page 17 of the exhibit, this is on January 4th, 2023, so the day before she was discharged from McLean, and she sent you a text stating, "Think I'm coming home tomorrow evening!" Exclamation point. "I talked to the doctor, and I made up a follow-up appointment with my other psychiatrist besides Rebecca for Friday morning, so she said she'd be okay with me leaving Thursday around 5:00." Do you remember getting those messages?

MS. SPRAGUE: And were you staying at the home helping out with the kids at that point?

MS. SPRAGUE: And did you go to Corey's birthday party on the 7th?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay.

MS. SPRAGUE: And do you recall when you went home?

MS. SPRAGUE: I'm looking at page 28, and there's a text from Lindsay on January 7th, 2023, at 7:02 PM to you where it says, "Make it home okay," and you said, "Yep." Does that make sense that you would have gone home on the 7th after the birthday party?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then on the 20... On page 29, we have text messages between yourself and Lindsay on January 8th, where you ask how things are going today, and she says, "Good. Going to the Science Museum." You say, "Great. That will be fun. Sleep good last night?" And she said, "I actually did with less Ativan, so that was good." Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Do you recall her texting you about going to the Science Museum?

MS. SPRAGUE: Do you think looking at them might help?

MS. SPRAGUE: I'm gonna show you page 29 and then page 30.

MS. SPRAGUE: Does that refresh your memory?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then on...

MS. SPRAGUE: Page 34, you ask how the museum was today, and Lindsay sent you some photographs and said, "It was fun. The kids really liked it." Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay.

MS. SPRAGUE: Then on page 39, this is January 10th. You say at 9:48 AM, "Good morning. How are you doing today?" And Lindsay responded, "Good. At the gym with the kids." You said, "Nice. Still sleeping good?" And she responded, "Pretty good, yeah. Not perfect, but enough." And you said, "Are you feeling any better during the day?" And she said, "So far, a little bit. They said a week off the Seroquel should make more of a difference, so a couple more days till that, but I do think it's helping being off." And you responded, "Okay. A little at a time." Do you remember that conversation?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay.

MS. SPRAGUE: And then there were further text messages that day,

MS. SPRAGUE: Where you say, "How was your day?" later on in the day, and she said, "It was good. Played with the kids a lot. We're able to go outside. Kingsbury Club and gymnastics kept them busy and me too." So do you remember her talking to you during that time about going to gymnastics and going to the Kingsbury Club and things like that with the children?

MS. SPRAGUE: Then on January 11th, the following day, you sent a text, excuse me, "How are you feeling today?" And she responded with a photo of Callan drinking out of a Mary Lou's cup saying, "We have another Mary Lou's fan." And you said, "Decaf. Looks like he's enjoying it." And then later on you asked again, "How are you doing today?" And she said, "Hi, Mom. Doing all right. Nothing new really, just taking it day by day." You said, "Still feeling a little better?" And she said, "A little bit." You said, "Sleeping okay?" She said, "Not great last night because Cora was up with a bellyache." Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay.

MS. SPRAGUE: Right. And do you remember her, Lindsay, talking to you about Cora having stomach issues during the month of January?

MS. SPRAGUE: And bellyaches off and on?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then January 13th, again, you're checking in with her. "Hi, Lindsay. How are you today?" She said, "Hi, Mom. Pretty good today. How about you?" And you asked about the little ones, and she said, "All good. Went to the gym this morning, just hanging out, and now they have no school today." And then the following day, again, you're checking in. "Hi, Lindsay. How's your Saturday going?" She said, "Hi, Mom. It's going well. Just hanging out. It's yucky here." So these are, like, daily check-ins that you're doing, checking in on her, seeing if she's okay, seeing if she's feeling better, seeing if she's sleeping well, things like that, right?

MS. SPRAGUE: You also ask her that day on the 14th, "Do you feel any different since being off the Seroquel?"

MS. SPRAGUE: She says, "Not as much as I was hoping. Going to talk to my psychiatrist about it on Monday." You say, "But some." She says, "A little, but I still don't feel like you," but then she corrects it to me. And you ask her if she's gonna be able to get outside with the kids today, and she said she's gonna try. So similar conversations to that, where you're talking about medication and how she's doing on the medication?

MS. SPRAGUE: Then the following day, on the 15th of January, you say, "Good morning. Is it a good morning for you today?" She says, "Good morning. It's pretty good. Going to an indoor water park." And she tells you that it's at the Cape Codder. Do you remember them going to the Cape Codder Water Park?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then on the following day, on the 16th, you actually texted her, "How was the water park yesterday?" She said, "It was fun. Cora and Dawson enjoyed. Callan didn't know what to think of it. Couldn't get any pics because it was too hectic keeping track of them in the water and stuff, and it was busy, but it was a good time." Does that sound familiar, that they had a good time that day?

MS. SPRAGUE: And you asked her that day if she had anything planned, and she said, "Pat took Cora skiing," so she was hanging with the boys. Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: She, that same day, sent you some photographs of Dawson doing a drawing of a firefighter and Callan. Do you remember those, receiving those?

MS. SPRAGUE: Then the following day, again, you're checking in every day. You say, "You feeling better?" She says, "A little bit." You said, "Still taking the same medication?" She said, "Yes, about to have an appointment with her psychiatrist." You said, "Let me know how it goes," and she said, "Okay." And then she responds back after her appointment: "She recommended another antidepressant since my mood is still very low off the Seroquel." You asked her how she felt about it, and she told you she just wants to feel like herself again, but she's up for trying it, and she just wants to get back to who she was, right?

MS. SPRAGUE: And she told you it was amitriptyline. Is that right? Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay.

MS. SPRAGUE: Then on the 18th, January 18th, again, you're reaching out, and she says, "Hi, Mom. I'm doing all right. How about you?" And you say you're good. You're thinking about visiting that weekend. And she says, "That sounds good." And you ask her about being able to get out and exercise, and she says she's been walking on the treadmill at the gym for exercise. And you ask her if she's started a new medication, and if she's feeling better. And she says, "Feel okay, just not great. I did start it two nights ago." You said, "Is that the one that takes a while to feel the effects?" She said, "Yep, weeks." And you said, "Is the 'okay' that you're feeling now better than what you were feeling a few weeks ago?" And she said, "Yes." Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Right. And so on the 19th of January, again, you're checking in and say, "How are you feeling today? Can you tell if anything's different with the new medication?" She says, "I'm feeling all right. Nothing new really yet because it takes weeks to really work, but I'm okay." You ask if she's still sleeping well, and she says, "Decently," and the kids get up a lot. So again, more of the same check-ins daily, seeing how she's doing, seeing how she's sleeping, right?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then on the 20th, you reach out, "Is it pizza and movie night?" She says, "Just pizza and playing." And you tell her you're leaving at 9:00, bringing dessert for the kids. And she says, "Sounds great." So you're talking about your visit that weekend. Is that right?

MS. SPRAGUE: And in these texts prior to the visit, you say that it's been a while since you've seen them. So it sounds like from these texts, you're checking in with her every day from January 7th, 2023, all the way up to your visit on January 21st, 2023. You're checking in with her. So you're at home in Connecticut from the 7th until the 21st?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then on the 22nd, that Sunday, Lindsay, Pat, and the older kids, they go to the Carney's house for that bonfire and get-together, and you stayed home with Callan, right?

MS. SPRAGUE: And then after they get home, you and your husband left. Is that correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: And on the way home, you texted on January 22nd, 2023, at 7:55 PM, "Enjoyed seeing everyone this weekend. Nice to see you doing better." Is that correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: So from your text, not saying she was doing great. But she was doing better than she was, according to your text, or appeared to be?

MS. SPRAGUE: But that weekend she was able to go to a friend's house with the older kids and Pat and spend a few hours there, correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: And she was able to do activities and hang out with you and your husband. There's a photograph in evidence of the two of you sitting on the couch smiling and hanging out together. So you were able to interact with her, correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: Well, you didn't say, "I hope you feel better," or, "You're gonna get there," or, "You're doing it." You actually said, "Nice to see you doing better," correct? That's what you wrote?

MS. SPRAGUE: And from January 7th through, up through January 22nd, Lindsay repeatedly told you she was doing okay. She was feeling a little bit better. Not completely better, not 100%, but she kept telling you, “I feel a little bit better. I feel a little bit better.” You even asked her, “Is the better you're feeling now better than a few weeks ago?” And she said yes, correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: And what she was responding to you in texts, correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: You also spoke to the police on January 25th, 2023. Do you remember that?

MS. SPRAGUE: Do you remember telling the police that Lindsay seemed to be improving since leaving McLean?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay. So do you remember telling them that she seemed brighter lately?

MS. SPRAGUE: Okay. Thank you.

MS. SPRAGUE: Objection.

MS. SPRAGUE: And when you were asked about Exhibit 271 and the text messages on October 23rd and October 24th, that was to establish when you left the home that week of the 20th, correct? Because you said, "Power bates today," and she said, "Good," implying that you were no longer with them, correct?

MS. SPRAGUE: Thank you.