EASTPOINTE, Mich. – Prosecutors provided a detailed timeline Tuesday that show the movement of Zion Foster’s cousin around the time of her death.
Tuesday is the first day of the trial for Jaylin Brazier, and assistant Wayne County Prosecutor Ryan Elsey provided a glimpse of the prosecution’s strategy during his opening statement.
Brazier is facing second-degree murder and tampering with evidence charges in relation to his step-cousin’s death.
Foster, 17, was reported missing by her family on Jan. 10, 2022 -- six days after she was last seen being picked up by Brazier at her Eastpointe home.
Brazier initially told police that he hadn’t seen his missing cousin. He was charged with lying to police after he changed his story and told officials that he had been smoking marijuana with Foster when she suddenly stopped breathing.
Brazier said he panicked and threw Foster’s body in a dumpster.
Prosecutors question whether Foster was actually dead when she was thrown into a dumpster. A weeks-long search for her body at a Lenox Township landfill came up empty in October 2022.
Timeline of Brazier’s movement
Elsey spent much of his opening statement Tuesday outlining what happened from Jan. 4-6, 2022, when Foster was last seen.
Here’s what was shared in court:
Jan. 4, 2022:
- 10-10:20 p.m.: Brazier’s phone was at his Detroit home and Foster’s phone was at her Eastpointe home.
- 10:42 p.m.: Brazier picks up Foster in Eastpointe.
- 11:15 p.m.: Brazier brings Foster to his Detroit home.
- 11:24 p.m.: Foster’s location was shared from Brazier’s home.
Jan. 5, 2022:
- 12:59 a.m.: Foster sent her last outgoing text message.
- 1:15 a.m.: Foster’s phone dropped from the network.
- 1:41 a.m.: Brazier backs into his driveway, then pulls away.
- 1:48 a.m.-2:15 a.m.: Brazier goes to a parking lot with dumpsters in Highland Park, then drives straight home.
Jan. 6, 2022:
- Brazier tells officers from the Detroit Police Department that he hadn’t seen Foster since May 2021.