'I did not do this': Closing arguments set to begin in Samantha Woll murder trial

After two days of listening to the defendant profess 'I did not kill her,' the jury in the Samantha Woll murder trial will hear closing arguments Tuesday as both sides offer conflicting stories about how a beloved Detroit synagogue leader and political activist wound up dead outside her home in 2023.

Prosecutors allege 29-year-old Michael Jackson-Bolanos fatally stabbed Woll during a home invasion, and left her for dead on the sidewalk outside her Lafayette Park home, just east of downtown Detroit.

But Jackson-Bolanos, who took the rare step of testifying in his own defense, maintains police have the wrong man. And his lawyer has pointed to other potential suspects, like Woll's ex-boyfriend, who initially allegedly admitted to killing Woll during a panic attack, though prosecutors have said the admission was false and never charged him.

Jackson-Bolanos, meanwhile, says he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

'I did not do this'

Jackson-Bolanos is accused of fatally stabbing Woll eight times around her face and neck during an Oct. 21, 2023 home invasion in Detroit's Lafayette Park neighborhood.

While on the stand Monday, Jackson-Bolanos once again denied killing Woll, but admitted that he initially lied to police about not seeing or touching her body because he feared being blamed for her murder. He also admitted that he didn't call 911 after he found her on the ground and touched her neck to check for a pulse.

Amid a lengthy cross-examination, prosecutors asked him at one point if he was surprised to learn they counted 40 lies during one day of speaking with police.

"I'm not sure if it's surprising. I mean - you try being accused of going and killing somebody," Jackson-Bolanos said.

During his testimony, Jackson-Bolanos told jurors that after he found Woll's body, touched her cold neck and realized she was dead, he left the area because - he explained - he was worried what it would look like for a Black man to be found near a dead white woman.

It was the same thing he told jurors when he took the stand last week, saying: "I’m a Black guy in the middle of the night, breaking into cars and I found myself standing in front of a dead white woman. It doesn’t look good at all."

But on the issue of whether Jackson-Bolanos killed Woll, his answers remained consistent: no.

More:Defense: Police handled Samantha Woll's ex-boyfriend with 'kid gloves'

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"I kept telling (the police) the truth: that I did not do this, I did not kill Ms. Woll," Jackson-Bolanos testified, stressing:

"I'm here today, as sworn and affirmed, to tell the truth. I may have lied in the past, but today I'm telling the truth."

Closing arguments are set to begin at 8:45 a.m. in Wayne County Circuit Court, where jurors spent four weeks listening to testimony in the high-profile case that devastated metro Detroit's Jewish community and the upscale Detroit neighborhood where Woll lived and was presumably murdered.

Prosecution: Her blood was on his jacket

Prosecutors, meanwhile, told a different story, one they are likely to stress during closing arguments Tuesday, when they get the last word before the jury begins deliberations.

During trial, the prosecution portrayed Jackson-Bolanos as a liar who initially denied coming across Woll's body to both the police and his lawyer. It also presented the jury with DNA evidence - noting that blood that matched Woll's was found on the defendant's jacket - and cited surveillance video and cellphone tower data that placed Jackson-Bolanos at the scene of the crime.

According to trial testimony, a neighbor found Woll dead outside of her home. Inside, police observed a bloody scene and signs of a struggle.

The defense has argued that there wasn't enough time for Jackson-Bolanos to kill Woll based on the prosecution's time frame, and there's no evidence that links Jackson-Bolanos to the physical crime scene.

The defense also has pointed to other potential suspects, like Woll's ex-boyfriend, who was taken into custody in November 2023 after allegedly admitting to the crime during a panic attack. He testified during trial. The prosecution said his admission was false. He was never charged and later released.

Jackson-Bolanos is charged with first-degree murder, felony murder, home invasion and lying to police.

If convinced, he faces up to life in prison.

Free Press reporter Andrea May Sahouri contributed.

Tresa Baldas:tbaldas@freepress.com