Friday, April 19, 2024

Witnesses summoned to testify in death of MSU student Olivia Pryor

August 19, 2012
Detroit resident Dishon Tyran Ambrose, 19, appears in East Lansing’s 54B District Court, 101 Linden St., on Friday Aug. 17, 2012. Ambrose faces a felony charge of selling or furnishing to a minor causing death relating to the death of MSU freshman Olivia Pryor. Julia Nagy/The State News
Detroit resident Dishon Tyran Ambrose, 19, appears in East Lansing’s 54B District Court, 101 Linden St., on Friday Aug. 17, 2012. Ambrose faces a felony charge of selling or furnishing to a minor causing death relating to the death of MSU freshman Olivia Pryor. Julia Nagy/The State News —
Photo by Natalie Kolb | and Natalie Kolb The State News

The story behind the death of MSU freshman Olivia Pryor unfolded Friday morning in East Lansing’s 54B District Court during a preliminary examination to review witness testimony.

Both the prosecution and the defense questioned witnesses and presented evidence relating to the details of Sunday, March 18 — the day before Pryor was found dead in what police determined to be an alcohol-related death in her dorm room.

Two men, Detroit resident Dishon Tyran Ambrose, 19, and Eastepointe, Mich., resident Marquez Dominique Cannon, 17, neither of whom are MSU students, are being tried together and face charges related to the death of Pryor.

Ambrose faces a felony charge of selling or furnishing to a minor causing death.

Cannon faces the same charge in addition to charges of criminal sexual conduct, injury to an incapacitated victim, criminal sexual conduct in the first degree causing physical injury and criminal sexual conduct in the third degree to Pryor’s roommate using force and coercion without personal injury.

Following the preliminary examination, Judge David Jordan will determine whether or not the case should be bound over to circuit court.

As witnesses took the stand, the prosecution attempted to piece together the events surrounding Pryor’s death and the sexual assault of Pryor’s roommate, an MSU student, by summoning police officers, a paramedic, a forensics scientist and Pryor’s roommate herself.

She testified Friday that on the night of March 18, she, Cannon, Ambrose, Pryor participated in a drinking contest held in her dorm room in South Hubbard Hall, drinking tequila provided by Cannon.

Ambrose, she said, was friends with both her and Pryor from high school, but the girls had only met Cannon maybe once before that night.

She said later in the evening, after going to the bathroom, she came out and saw Pryor pantless on the floor and unconscious with a fully clothed Cannon standing over her.

A forensic scientist for the Michigan State Police crime lab Cassandra Campbell also testified Friday that after testing boxer shorts included in the prosecution’s evidence, she determined the shorts were worn by Cannon, and the cut around the boxers had a blood stain that tested positive as belonging to Pryor.

Campbell said she also tested an anal swab from Pryor’s body, and at least two donors were present. She said there was one major male donor, and the male donor matched the DNA of Cannon.

Pryor’s roommate tearfully testified she also was sexually assaulted by Cannon in the shower of her bathroom.

“I felt really uncomfortable because I was trying to cover up and after a while, he was pressing against me,” she said, choking up on the stand. “I was trying to push him away, and I kept saying, ‘No, don’t, we can’t.’”

The roommate testified after being sexually assaulted, she later had consensual sex with Ambrose on Pryor’s futon while Cannon slept in her bed. Pryor was still on the floor, unconscious.

Ambrose then borrowed the roommate’s MSU ID and left with Cannon to dispose of trash, including Pryor’s pants and towels marked with Pryor’s blood, the roommate testified.

After returning the ID, the men left the girls’ dorm to drive back to Detroit with friends, the roommate said. When the roommate woke up on the morning of March 19, Pryor was dead.

Cena White, Cannon’s attorney, disputed the roommate’s claims about being sexually assaulted by Cannon as she did not initially report being assaulted. The roommate reported the incident three days after Pryor’s death, White said.

The preliminary examination will reconvene 9 a.m. Tuesday morning in East Lansing’s 54B District Court where more witnesses are expected to be called to the stand.

Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.

Discussion

Share and discuss “Witnesses summoned to testify in death of MSU student Olivia Pryor” on social media.