Orange County judge expects murder trial of David Tronnes to wrap in coming days

Tronnes accused of beating, strangling wife in 2018

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Testimony will pick up Monday in the trial of a man accused of beating and strangling his wife in 2018.

Orange County Judge Jenifer Harris said she expects the trial could wrap up sometime this coming week.

Prosecutors will continue building their case, trying to convince the jury that David Tronnes should pay. They said he killed his wife, Shanti Tronnes, at their home in Delaney Park in April of 2018 as their house was undergoing major renovations.

Prosecutors previously told the jury that at one point, Tronnes wanted their home to go on a home renovation reality TV series

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“This home show, this zombie house flipping, was the lifeline out of this mess that they dug themselves into, and (Shanti Tronnes) at that point, a week before her murder, was not into it.,” prosecutors said in court.

The state also called on a producer on the house flipping show, claiming that getting on the show would help David Tronnes climb out of the money pit he’d dug himself into with their home.

Prosecutors also showed pictures in court last week of what appeared to be blood on the bathtub.

David Tronnes claimed he found his wife unresponsive in the bathroom.

During cross-examination, the defense tried to poke holes in the prosecution’s case, calling the blood into question, while questioning an Orlando crime scene investigator who was on the scene in 2018. Their claim was that any blood found on the scene that may have adhered to amino acid protein sources couldn’t be identified.

Prosecutors said they plan to call around 25 people to testify.

The defense will get a chance to call its witnesses once the state rests its case.

There is no word whether David Tronnes himself will take the stand and testify in his own defense. David Tronnes, who claims he’s innocent, is charged with first-degree murder.

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About the Author

Jerry Askin is an Atlanta native who came to News 6 in March 2018 with an extensive background in breaking news.

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