8.Michael Daniel Halbach — Direct/Cross
324 linesCOURT CLERK: Please raise your right hand.
MICHAEL D. HALBACH, called as a witness herein, having been first duly sworn, was examined and testified as follows:
COURT CLERK: Please be seated. Please state your name and spell your last name for the record.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Michael Daniel Halbach, H-a-l-b-a-c-h.
DIRECT EXAMINATION BY ATTORNEY KRATZ:
MR. KRATZ: Mr. Halbach, did you know a young woman by the name of Teresa Halbach?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I did.
MR. KRATZ: Describe, who was Teresa, please.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Teresa was -- or is my sister. She was born on March 22nd, 1980. Grew up with my family on a dairy farm near Hilbert.
She loved travel; she had been to Spain, Mexico, New Zealand, Australia.
She had many friends. She loved doing things with her friends. She was a good friend of mine, as well.
She was my big sister, someone I could go to talk to about any problems I would have. We would go to lunch, talk about her business which she ran, called Photography by Teresa.
And in August of 2005, she coached her sister's 7th grade volleyball team to second place in their league. So I know that that's something she really loved doing, was working with those kids. That was the main focus of her photography business as well.
And she graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay, in 2002, major in photography and she graduated summa cum laude.
MR. KRATZ: I'm going to hand you a couple of exhibits. First exhibit is that which is marked as Exhibit No. 1. Could you tell us what that is, please.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It's a photo of Teresa.
MR. KRATZ: Do you know when that photo was taken?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Not exactly, but by the looks of it, it was fairly recent. I would say 2005.
MR. KRATZ: Does that particular photo accurately depict your sister, Teresa, and as it did the last time that you saw her?
MR. KRATZ: By the way, when was the last time that you saw her; do you recall?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: The last time I saw my sister was October 30th, 2005, the day before she went missing. We were at my grandparents house. It was my grandpa's -- Halloween was my grandpa's birthday. And the day before we went to their house, the entire family was there, aunts, uncles.
MR. KRATZ: Mr. Halbach, I'm sure we'll get better at this with the jury, but I'm going to direct your attention to the large screen in the courtroom, is that another version or a larger version of what's been marked as Exhibit No. 1?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, it is.
MR. KRATZ: You mentioned that Teresa was part of your family, can you tell us who else was involved in your immediate family, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I have an older brother, Tim; and then Teresa would be the second oldest; myself; and two younger sisters, Katie and Kelly; parents, Tom and Karen.
MR. KRATZ: Directing your attention to Exhibit No. 2, I'm also putting that on the screen for the jury; can you tell us what that is, please.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It's a photo we took outside my parents farm. I believe it was in 2004, that summer, early fall. It's a photo we used for our Christmas cards that year. And it's a photo of my family.
MR. KRATZ: And as you are pointing to Exhibit No. 2, please, could you tell us, or tell the jury, who all is in that photo?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Tom, Teresa's, I guess legally would be her step dad, standing in the back with the jean shirt; to his left is, Katie, younger sister; and to her left is Kelly, the youngest of the family. In front from left to right is the oldest brother, Tim; and then my mom, Karen; then myself holding our dog, Eddy; and Teresa is on the end.
MR. KRATZ: All right. How often would you get to see Teresa; how often would you interact with her?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Every few days I would probably talk to her either on the phone, or if it was a weekend, we would probably see each other, if I was at my parent's house if she would stop over during the week, or over the weekend. So I would see her -- see her or at least talk to her every three days or so.
MR. KRATZ: Are you familiar with Teresa's electronic devices that she owned?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, I am.
MR. KRATZ: Could you tell us about those, please.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: She owned a cell phone, a Motorola RAZR, and I know this because she talked on it a lot. She also had a palm pilot. I believe it was -- the brand was Palm 1, I believe.
She had tons of photography equipment, obviously. Hasselblad is one camera; Canon is another; and through one of her jobs she had a little snapshot camera for the job. She worked through Auto Trader Magazine. She had this little snapshot camera to do that job.
MR. KRATZ: Do you know what kind of vehicle Teresa drove?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It was a Toyota RAV4. It was bluish-green in color.
MR. KRATZ: We're going to have the actual photo marked as an exhibit, but I'm going to direct your attention up to the large screen. Could you tell us what it is we're looking at there.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Could you repeat that.
MR. KRATZ: Sure, I'm about to have this photo made part of the -- or to complete the record, but could you tell us and can you look at the large screen and tell us what it is that we're looking at.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's Teresa holding one of her cameras she had with her professional photography business, standing outside the driver's side door of her Toyota RAV4.
MR. KRATZ: Mr. Halbach, could you -- regarding Teresa's RAV4, could you tell us how often you had contact with that vehicle?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I would say I have ridden in it a few times, but I would see it whenever I saw her. It was her only vehicle, so when she would drive it or when she would drive around, she would be in that vehicle. So I was very familiar with it and had ridden in it a few times.
MR. KRATZ: Teresa's license plate said -- as you sit here today, did you know or were you familiar with what Teresa's license plates were?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, I was.
MR. KRATZ: And how are you familiar with that?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: One of Teresa's jokes and how she remembered her license plate, her license plate numbers -- or letters and numbers were SWH-582. She remembered those letters because she would joke that it stood for single white Halbach.
(Exhibits No. 3 & 4 marked for identification.)
MR. KRATZ: Mr. Halbach, I provided you with two exhibits Exhibit No. 3 and Exhibit No. 4, can you tell us, though, what those are, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Pictures of Teresa's license plate.
MR. KRATZ: And which one of them has the sticker on it.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Exhibit No. 3.
MR. KRATZ: All right. Just so the jury is shown Exhibit No. 3, I'm going to direct your attention to the large screen, again; what is it that we're looking at?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Teresa's license plate?
MR. KRATZ: SWH-582, is that right?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's correct.
THE COURT: Excuse me, Mr. Kratz, just for the record, I think the photo of Teresa Halbach with the RAV4 was referred to as an exhibit, but we haven't marked it yet; are you still looking for the original?
MR. KRATZ: We are, Judge. Although we have the original, Judge, we'll be referring to it either with this witness or the next witness who also has familiarity with that.
THE COURT: Just, I think, to keep the record straight, it should be reflected that while it may have been referred to as an expected exhibit number, it has yet to be numbered.
MR. KRATZ: All right, judge.
THE COURT: You may proceed.
MR. KRATZ: (By Attorney Kratz)~ And the other vehicle, or what I guess would be considered the front license plate, you said that was Exhibit No. 4; is that right?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, that's correct.
MR. KRATZ: And I have now directed your attention to that on a large skween -- screen, excuse me, once again, Exhibit No. 4, the large screen photo here, accurately reflects Exhibit No. 4; is that correct?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, it does.
MR. KRATZ: All right. I have now handed you what's been marked for identification as Exhibit No. 5, tell us what that is, please.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It is the picture we looked at not too long ago with Teresa standing outside the driver side of her Toyota RAV4.
MR. KRATZ: Just for the record, Exhibit No. 5, then, would be the image that we're looking at on the screen now; is that correct?
MR. KRATZ: All right. By the way, Mr. Halbach, did you have an idea as to when this photo was taken? Did I ask you this?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: You didn't ask me that. I mean, I would guess sometime maybe 2004, maybe early 2005.
MR. KRATZ: I guess the question that the jury needs to know is, was this Toyota RAV4, the vehicle in which your sister is standing in front of, the same vehicle that she was driving at the end of October of 2005?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, it is.
MR. KRATZ: You mentioned that Teresa was involved in the photography business; can you tell us about that a little bit?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah, through college she developed a passion for photography and, hence, why she declared that as her major. I would say her sophomore and junior year she worked at Bay Park Square Mall in Green Bay at Picture People taking photos of children, mainly families.
After she got done doing that, during her last semester at Wisconsin, Green Bay, she started this internship with Tom Pearce of Pearce Photography in Green Bay, doing many of the same things, taking pictures of children, families, some, and also doing weddings on the weekends. So she continued working with him and then later on in 2002, she started her business, which she named Photography by Teresa, which continued up until Halloween of 2005.
MR. KRATZ: Now, you indicated that you are familiar that at least one of her clients was Auto Trader Magazine; is that what you told us?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, that's correct. She in, I think it was October of 2004, she started working for Auto Trader Magazine as a way to supplement her income for her professional business. Since she was just starting out with her own business, she wouldn't always have clients. So. Yeah, just as a way to have some steady income, she got this job with the Auto Trader Magazine to take pictures of vehicles in people's yards, that they were selling themselves.
MR. KRATZ: First photo I'm showing you has been marked as Exhibit No. 7, can you tell us what that is, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Exhibit No. 7 is Canon PowerShot A310; it's the box for the Canon camera. It's not the camera itself.
MR. KRATZ: And, once again, were you familiar that that was one of the cameras that Teresa had used in her employment?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, I am, in her employment with Auto Trader, yes.
MR. KRATZ: The other exhibit, I think it was Exhibit No. 6; is that correct?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's correct.
MR. KRATZ: Can you tell me what that is, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It's a box for a Palm 1 Zire 31 palm pilot.
MR. KRATZ: And, once again, the large screen, does that accurately depict the box, again, recovered from your sister's home, the box that she saved for her palm pilot?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, it does.
MR. KRATZ: Was your sister kind of a pack rat; did she save this kind of stuff?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Having gone through her stuff, yeah, she saved a lot of stuff, yes.
MR. KRATZ: Was your sister married?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: No, she's not.
MR. KRATZ: Who did she live with?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: She lived with a friend of hers from high school, named Scott Bloedorn. He lived in the upstairs of the apartment -- or of the house she was renting from my parents.
MR. KRATZ: How close was this to your parents' house?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Down the road a short ways, eighth mile, roughly quarter mile. Not too far.
MR. KRATZ: Okay. Mike, did you ever have an opportunity to see or talk with your sister as she either went to work for the Auto Trader Magazine or as she went to work at her own studio?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: As she went there?
MR. KRATZ: Yes. In other words, were you familiar with how she dressed to go to work?
MR. KRATZ: Can you tell us about that.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: She would always dress professionally, especially when she was going to her professional photography business, you know, black pants, a nice shirt. And if she happened to be doing Auto Trader that same day, she would go in those same clothes.
But if it was -- if she wasn't going to her job that day, she would dress comfortably, not necessarily in professional clothes, but nice clothes nonetheless. Might be a nice pair of jeans and a nice shirt or, you know, maybe khakis and a shirt, sweatshirt.
MR. KRATZ: Mike, as long as we have the photos, again, what we're looking at here, that's a picture -- which picture is that, No. 6?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That is Exhibit No. 6.
MR. KRATZ: We're going to have the actual exhibit marked so that we don't just have a photo of it?
MR. KRATZ: Janet, is that going to be No. 8?
COURT CLERK: Yes.
(Exhibit No. 8 marked for identification.)
MR. KRATZ: Mr. Wiegert, could you provide that to the witness.
MR. KRATZ: (By Attorney Kratz)~ Mr. Halbach, we're showing you what's marked for identification as Exhibit No. 8; can you show the jury and tell them what that is, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: This is the same box as in the Exhibit No. 6, it's the box for Teresa's Palm 1 Zire 31 palm pilot.
MR. KRATZ: And if I'm not mistaken, Exhibit No. 7, I think, was the box for the Canon PowerShot A310; is that right?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's correct.
MR. KRATZ: We're going to have that box, actually, marked for identification as Exhibit No. 9.
(Exhibit No. 9 marked for identification.)
MR. KRATZ: Once, again, Mr. Wiegert will be providing that to you. If you could show it to the jury and tell them what Exhibit No. 9 is, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Exhibit No. 9 is the box for the Canon PowerShot, the A310, that Teresa used for her Auto Trader job.
MR. KRATZ: Once again, after your sister's disappearance and after investigators began contacting you, specifically, and your family, these items were found in her personal effects and turned over; is that right?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's correct.
MR. KRATZ: Can you tell me who Pam Sturm is?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Pam Sturm, to me, would be my first cousin once removed. She would be my grandma's sister's daughter.
MR. KRATZ: Okay. The involvement of Pam and her daughter, Nikole, after your sister was missing, could you describe that for the jury?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: You said her involvement?
MR. KRATZ: Yes.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Pam Sturm was the person who ended up finding Teresa's vehicle on the Avery salvage yard. I recall coming home that day, after I had been with my brother driving, in her -- being inside my parents' house crying and my mom telling me that we found the vehicle -- or Pam found the vehicle, Pam and her daughter, Nikole. So, I guess that would be her involvement.
MR. KRATZ: All right. Let's go back just a little bit, Mike, if we can. After your mom reported your sister missing on the 3rd of November, how was it that you were informed of that?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: On Thursday, November 3rd, I was working. I got a call from my mom that afternoon at about 2:00 or 2:30 wondering if I knew where -- or if I had talked to my sister in the previous, you know, since Sunday. And I said that I hadn't.
And so I went on to call one of Teresa's good friends at her work and asked her if she had known where Teresa could be. Because it was completely unlike her to go somewhere without telling anyone, especially a family member, a good friend, her roommate, or her boss.
So, I guess after we made those calls it became very evident to me that something was seriously wrong and I expressed that to my mom. Then shortly after -- and she was, you know, she was in agreement, obviously; she knew something was wrong, just like everyone else did.
MR. KRATZ: Did the family ask for some assistance and did you receive it from some of Teresa's friends regarding searching for her?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: In searching for her we, you know, all we had to do was make a couple phone calls to some of Teresa's friends and they would call numerous other people. We needed help passing -- passing out posters on Friday, November 4th and also doing searches by car on Saturday, the 5th and doing searches by foot a few days following that. So, whenever we needed help, we had help from Teresa's friends, family members, community members. Anyone who wanted to help, who had time, would help us out in searching for Teresa.
MR. KRATZ: Who is Ryan Hillegas?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Ryan Hillegas is -- he was Teresa's ex-boyfriend. They were together a few years and then were off a few years once they went to college. And he, basically, organized most or probably all the search efforts that we did for Teresa. Him, along with Scott Bloedorn, did the majority of getting people together and telling people where to go to search for Teresa.
MR. KRATZ: I ask you to refer back to this photo, can you tell me what exhibit that is, again?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Exhibit No. 5.
MR. KRATZ: Okay. I can see by your sister's physical stature, but if you can just verify for us, was Teresa in good physical condition?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, she was. She had a -- she went to a gym. I don't know how regularly, but she had a membership at a gym and was -- seemed physically fit, yes.
MR. KRATZ: Mike, I think you talked about, on the 3rd, meeting with your family, and on the 4th, really, the citizen efforts for Teresa's search kind of ramped up; but can give you us any more details about that?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah, on the -- Well, the day we reported Teresa missing, that Thursday, we had got a call from a man named Jay Breyer who offered his services at Youth Educated in Safety, which is a missing persons organization. He offered to make copies and make up a missing persons poster.
So we took him up on that offer that night, finalized the poster and then the following afternoon we had got copies made. He had made the copies and around 2:00 or 2:30 in the afternoon was when we were meeting with whoever had the time and the vehicle to drive across all of northeast Wisconsin to put up these posters, which basically said, you know, missing person, Teresa Halbach, height, weight, what she was wearing that day. So that's what happened on Friday afternoon.
MR. KRATZ: Mike, Mr. Fallon is going to hand you what's been marked for identification as Exhibit No. 10. I'm going to put it up on the screen for the jurors. Can you tell us what we're looking at, please?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's the missing persons poster that Jay Breyer helped us make that we put up on the 3rd -- or the Friday, the 5th -- or, yeah -- the 4th, Friday, the 4th. That's right.
MR. KRATZ: Indicates that your sister was 5 feet 6 inches tall, 135 pounds; is that approximately accurate?
MR. KRATZ: Now, after -- First of all, let me ask you where -- where these posters distributed, if you recall?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It would have been a very large area of northeast Wisconsin including Appleton, Green Bay, Manitowoc, Chilton, south towards Milwaukee, east to the Lakeshore. And I recall semi-drivers wanting to, you know, stop at the house, pick up some fliers because they were concerned as well. And they were going to Madison, Milwaukee and further. So they had volunteered to put up posters for us on their routes.
MR. KRATZ: Mr. Halbach, let me ask you this, did you try to recreate, from the 31st of October, routes that Teresa may have taken?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes. Yeah, so those were our main areas we wanted to put up these posters, as well as to search by vehicle and by foot, because we could trace her whereabouts to, you know, a certain location. That's where you want to focus most of your efforts. So that's what we did.
MR. KRATZ: All right. Perhaps you answered this and I apologize if you did, but do you recall how many thousands of these posters you distributed?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I guess I can't recall specifically, but it would be, you know, probably a couple thousand.
MR. KRATZ: All right. Now, we're going to hear from Mr. Hillegas a little bit later in the trial regarding the specifics of the missing persons investigations, but did those search efforts include actually walking around or looking in roadways or ditches?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah, that Saturday morning, the 5th, that morning, it was about 7:00 a.m., a group of volunteers met at my sister's house and we set out by vehicle to -- to basically trace the routes that she may have taken that Monday.
And certain people were given different areas, not necessarily the places she definitely traveled, but perhaps she drove down to Milwaukee to meet with someone, or drove up to Door County, so we had people driving in those areas as well. But myself, specifically, I went with my brother to the places where we -- and the routes that we thought for sure she could have taken, you know. Since we were her brothers, we can get it in her mind better than anyone. So we drove over there.
I can recall specifically driving down Highway 147, getting out, looking down embankments where, if you would drive by casually, you wouldn't be able to see down there. So, we thought maybe she had gotten in an automobile accident, was trapped, you know, unconscious, whatever it may be. So we wanted to do what we could to eliminate that possibility.
So, you know, we looked wherever we could, drove around as many roads as we could, side roads, back roads, whatever, just looking for signs of her vehicle or Teresa herself.
MR. KRATZ: And until that call came, or until the news came on the 5th, that Teresa's vehicle had been found, was that your hope that there had been some accident or something?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah, I mean, from the start I think it's just the way my family is, is we're strong, optimistic, also, you know, realistic too. But, yeah, we hoped to find some sign and we hoped we would find Teresa alive.
So when we found her vehicle, it was good because we were getting closer to finding Teresa. So we were happy to find the vehicle, but we didn't find Teresa, so that half the goal was missing. We didn't accomplish half the goal when we found the vehicle.
MR. KRATZ: All right. Mike, I had mentioned at the early stages of the presentation of this case, in fact, to the jury, about meetings that you had with law enforcement, meetings you had with me, individually, throughout this case. Have you been kept informed as to the developments and the evidence, not just that was found, but the evidence that was going to be presented at this case?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, we had always -- were informed in advance of anything, whether it be a news conference, whether it be information that would be submitted to the courthouse and available to the media, shortly thereafter. We would always be aware of what was going to be said in the media or what not. And in advance of every court hearing, we have been kept informed of what we would hear that day, just so there were no surprises; so we could prepare ourselves emotionally for those events.
MR. KRATZ: That includes the physical evidence that is going to be presented at this trial?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, that's correct.
MR. KRATZ: The last question I have, Mike, and I'm going to apologize in advance as to the insensitivity of it, but at any time after the 31st of October, had you ever seen, spoken from, or heard from your sister, Teresa Halbach?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: No, I have not.
MR. KRATZ: I would move the admission of Exhibit 1 through 10.
THE COURT: Any objection?
MR. STRANG: No objection at all.
THE COURT: Those exhibits are admitted.
MR. KRATZ: No further questions.
THE COURT: Mr. Strang.
MR. STRANG: Is this working now?
THE COURT: Yes, it is.
MR. STRANG: All right.
CROSS-EXAMINATION BY ATTORNEY STRANG:
MR. STRANG: Thanks for coming. And I don't have a lot of questions. I don't want to make this any harder a day for you than it's already been. But, we have established that Teresa was 5 foot 6, about 135 pounds, back in October of 2005?
MR. STRANG: Give or take. You said she was fit. She was an athlete to some extent?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: To some extent, she played a little in high school, but I know she would exercise at our home as well.
MR. STRANG: Sure. Little volleyball, was that her sport, or basketball, or both?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Well, she coached her sister's 7th grade volleyball team, so there was definitely an interest there.
MR. STRANG: Was that her sport in high school?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: She played some. I don't think she played past her sophomore year, but ...
MR. STRANG: Okay. But, you know, I mean, somebody who was at least reasonably athletic and fit?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Right.
MR. STRANG: In addition to working out at home, she belonged to some private gym somewhere?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: Okay. You guys were all raised on a dairy farm; did you grow up there?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah, for the most part, yeah.
MR. STRANG: Working a dairy farm?
MR. STRANG: And when you say for the most part, is that not when you were a little bitty boy, or ...
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Up until I was eight years old on, I was on the dairy farm, yes.
MR. STRANG: Okay. Sure. And you, the kids, helped out with chores, I assume?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: Like all farm kids have to?
MR. STRANG: That included Teresa?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: She didn't help out in the barn as much as she helped out in the house, babysitting for our sisters and taking care of chores in the house.
MR. STRANG: She did get acquainted with milking, though, at some point, I assume?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Very seldomly.
MR. STRANG: Was that mostly the boys?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah. Yes.
MR. STRANG: She was someone who had a good sense of humor?
MR. STRANG: Also could stand up for herself, though?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Absolutely.
MR. STRANG: Little bit feisty in a good way?
MR. STRANG: Yeah, and I don't mean in a bad way, but I mean she was personable?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, independent.
MR. STRANG: And your family, I take -- I take it is tightknit, your immediate family?
MR. STRANG: By that, I mean Tom and Karen, your folks, or you and Tim, Katie and Kelly and Teresa?
MR. STRANG: But you guys also have a pretty good extended family in this area, as I understand it?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, we do.
MR. STRANG: Has the family been in Calumet County or this area for generations?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes. Yeah.
MR. STRANG: Okay. I mean, in other words, you know Pam Sturm, you were saying is a first cousin once removed?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: I couldn't possibly tell you how you got there but, I mean, you have got all kinds of cousins, aunts, uncles?
MR. STRANG: That kind of thing, in the area?
MR. STRANG: So, in addition to Teresa's friends, you had a lot of family to pull on when looking for her?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: This -- this effort to retrace her steps on October 31, did that -- did that get going, Mr. Halbach, pretty much right away, the evening that you all reported her missing.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yeah. Yeah, we had talked about where we knew Teresa was on the 31st; what appointments she had, where she was supposed to be before then, you know, where she was supposed to be after then and the days following, as well.
MR. STRANG: Okay. On the 31st, were you able to nail down appointments?
MR. STRANG: So, I mean, do you think it was that Thursday night that you figured out that Avery Auto Salvage was one of the appointments; if you remember?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't remember exactly if it was that night, or if it was the next day, or -- it was one of those two.
MR. STRANG: Either Thursday night or Friday morning, the 4th?
MR. STRANG: Okay. And at some point pretty quickly, the media all got interested in this; am I recalling that correctly?
MR. STRANG: Was it Friday, already on the TV they were talking about the Avery Auto Salvage or flying over it, that kind of thing?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't recall, specifically, myself, you know, seeing the media involvements saying Steven Avery, but I know that they reported on the missing persons case involving my sister, that Thursday night.
MR. STRANG: Oh, right away Thursday night?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: And then Friday and I know by Saturday, there was a lot of media coverage?
MR. STRANG: Not that you were watching but, I mean, you were out -- that you were just sort of aware of it?
MR. STRANG: Did you -- Did you have access to her computer passwords or account information for, like, her cell phone, for example, or bills, that kind of thing?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Cell phone, yes; computer password, yes.
MR. STRANG: She had shared that with you at some time earlier?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I did business work for her, website graphics, so --
MR. STRANG: Oh.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I, yeah, I just knew it through that.
MR. STRANG: So, you knew it through that --
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: -- because you would have a reason to get on to her computer to help her with her website?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Well, I didn't have to go on her computer, but I had to connect to a web host --
MR. STRANG: Sure.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: -- just to put stuff for her website, so.
MR. STRANG: Okay. I'm nodding like I know what you are talking about and I really don't. But the point is you had -- you had access to her password information so you could check her cell phone bill?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I never did. I don't know -- So since I never did, I wouldn't know if I had the right password for her cell phone bill. I knew --
MR. STRANG: Okay.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: -- her password for her voice mail.
MR. STRANG: And that's where I was going. I think -- I think on Thursday evening, November 3, somebody was able to get at her cell phone records on the computer, but that was not you?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't think on her computer, no.
MR. STRANG: Okay. And you didn't have her voice mail?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I said I did -- did have her voice mail password.
MR. STRANG: You did have her voice mail password. Okay. Did you check voice mails?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I did.
MR. STRANG: Do you remember when you did that?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It was probably Thursday evening, early evening.
MR. STRANG: After your mom --
MR. STRANG: -- had --
MR. STRANG: -- filed a missing persons report?
MR. STRANG: Okay. So I take it you were at work earlier that day?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: And the missing person report was sort of at the end of the day, 5:00 or something?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: Were you familiar enough with Teresa Halbach's everyday stuff to know what -- what she carried keys to?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I mean, yes, I think I would have an idea of what keys she would have, yes.
MR. STRANG: Okay. Let's just -- Let's start with the house that she and Scott Bloedorn were sharing, this was the older farmhouse?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: At one point it was a farmhouse.
MR. STRANG: Okay. Is it actually on the Halbach farm or just next door or ...
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It's next door, my parent's home, the house and the land.
MR. STRANG: Okay. But it --
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It's not -- It doesn't share a driveway at all.
MR. STRANG: Yeah.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: It has its own driveway.
MR. STRANG: Separate parcel, but next door.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: Can you see the two houses from one another?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: You have to look through a line of evergreens and there's a big shed a little further back, but you can see it through the trees, yes.
MR. STRANG: But they are next door neighbors, essentially; although it's a rural area?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: Okay. And I take it there was -- there was a house key to the house? Go ahead.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Yes, there was.
MR. STRANG: Do you know whether there was a separate garage key?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I believe that's correct.
MR. STRANG: Okay.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I would imagine there was.
MR. STRANG: And do you have -- do you have any way of knowing whether Teresa would also have had keys to your folk's house?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't think she did.
MR. STRANG: You told us the Toyota was the only car she was driving, so she didn't have keys to other cars, as far as you know?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct, she didn't, no other keys.
MR. STRANG: Swipe card for the gym?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I can't recall if she specifically had a swipe card. She must have had something to get into the gym. I forget what it would have been.
MR. STRANG: Okay. And if you know, was she someone with, like, a lot of people, I guess, who would have had some doodads, or charms, or that kind of thing on the key chain?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't ever recall her having any of that, a lot of fancy stuff on her key chain, no.
MR. STRANG: Okay. The gathering at -- was at grandpa's house on Sunday, October 30?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: That's correct.
MR. STRANG: For his -- for his birthday?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: And then, I think -- Were there, if you know, did she -- had she had plans to go to a Halloween party the Saturday night right before that?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I believe so. Earlier in the evening she was helping me with a wedding, shooting a wedding video. After that I think she would have went to a Halloween party. I believe that's correct.
MR. STRANG: Okay. Saturday night, October 29?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Right. Yeah, it would have been later on in the night.
MR. STRANG: Let's just sort of help the jury with that. You're -- You're a videographer. You're in the video business?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Correct.
MR. STRANG: So not only would she be a photographer for weddings, but you also videotape weddings as a business, or a side business at times.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Well, that was the only one that I had. That was my first time and I haven't done one since then.
MR. STRANG: Okay. But the two of you were helping each other out with that one?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Right.
MR. STRANG: I didn't notice one in the picture, whichever number it is, where Teresa is standing next to her Toyota when she has got her camera; I didn't notice there, but did she ordinarily carry a purse?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't recall her having a purse -- well -- I can't say for sure.
MR. STRANG: That's okay. That's all right. How about, I mean, did you -- did you notice, was she a jewelry person, bracelets, necklaces?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Not a whole lot of jewelry, really, at all. I don't -- maybe a couple of rings.
MR. STRANG: Not bracelets, though, or necklaces.
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: Probably not too often.
MR. STRANG: How about earrings?
MICHAEL DANIEL HALBACH: I don't recall her wearing earrings very often either.
MR. STRANG: That's all I have. Thank you.
THE COURT: Mr. Kratz, any redirect?
MR. KRATZ: Not for this witness, Judge. Thank you.
THE COURT: Very well, you are excused.
MR. KRATZ: Next witness, Judge?
THE COURT: You may call your next witness.
MR. KRATZ: Tom Pearce.