Opinion ID: 4568309
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Leaving the hotel

Text: About 45 minutes after leaving the hotel, Valentino experienced foot pain. When he took his shoe off, Valentino saw that his “whole foot was bloody.” J.A. 287. He then found a bullet in his shoe and “just put it away.” J.A. 287. The defense admitted Valentino’s bloody sock and boots into evidence. And while an image of the boots was projected before the jury, Valentino identified the hole “where the bullet entered [his] foot.” J.A. 290. The defense also displayed a picture of Valentino’s foot, and Valentino pointed to where he claimed to have been injured. Still on the stand for cross examination, Valentino described the circumstances of his arrest. He acknowledged that he tried to call Islam’s parents “a couple times.” J.A. 309. According to Valentino, he wanted to give the gun back and get his green card back, which he claimed to have left in the hotel room. Valentino also explained that he sent a text message to Islam’s father claiming to be the police “because [he] wanted to initiate a conversation” after his phone calls went unanswered. J.A. 310. Valentino then claimed to have been arrested after eating at a Waffle House and going to the motel to use the bathroom. When asked why he had a suitcase with him if he was just using the bathroom, Valentino replied that he had “met a person and [] loaned them [his] suitcase,” and that the person in return “gave [him a] suitcase.” J.A. 319. Valentino first testified that he could not remember the person’s name. When pressed, he claimed that he could not pronounce it. Valentino also discussed his recorded interview with detectives. He claimed that, while he was telling his story, the detectives “were showing signals behind [his] back so 11 [he] lost trust” in them. J.A. 306. Valentino also asserted that, because he has a “broken accent” and “speak[s] fast,” he was misinterpreted and misquoted. J.A. 312. Similarly, Valentino claimed that he never told the officers that he was in a room to have sex with a girl. Nor did he tell the officers that he was taking the suitcase to “negotiations.” J.A. 319.