1.0The News Journalhttps://qa.thenewsjournal.netrich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="BsGWtoPodq"><a href="https://qa.thenewsjournal.net/moore-takes-stand-defense-wednesday/">Moore takes stand in own defense Wednesday</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="https://qa.thenewsjournal.net/moore-takes-stand-defense-wednesday/embed/#?secret=BsGWtoPodq" width="600" height="338" title="“Moore takes stand in own defense Wednesday” — The News Journal" data-secret="BsGWtoPodq" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ /*! This file is auto-generated */ !function(d,l){"use strict";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&"undefined"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),c=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display="none";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute("style"),"height"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):"link"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute("src")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener("message",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll("iframe.wp-embedded-content"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute("data-secret"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+="#?secret="+t,e.setAttribute("data-secret",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:"ready",secret:t},"*")},!1)))}(window,document); /* ]]> */ </script> https://qa.thenewsjournal.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/court-teaser.jpg480258Eddie Moore gave police a more than one-hour long interview the day after a teenage female relative accused him of molesting her in 2014. During the interview with police, which prosecutors have labeled as a “confession,” Moore admitted to touching the breasts of the girl, who was 13 years old the first time it happened, and of making her strip naked in front of him among other allegations. Moore, 41, is charged with first-degree sexual abuse and use of a minor in a sexual performance, and his trial on the charges started Monday morning. Given that Moore is asking a jury to find him not guilty of the offenses, he had a lot of explaining to do as he testified for over 90 minutes Wednesday afternoon. The girl was 13 years old when the alleged abuse started, and was living with Moore and his now ex-wife, Heather Moore, when the abuse allegations surfaced in 2014. By all accounts, the girl has a well-documented history of lying and cutting her self that predated the alleged abuse. Since she has come forward with the allegations, she has been hospitalized several times for emotional or psychological issues. On Oct. 1, 2014, the day the allegations first surfaced, Moore said that his family was going through turmoil because his father-in-law had recently died. His headstone was going to be set that day. “She (Heather) was an emotional wreck,” Eddie Moore testified. He said Heather called him at work a few times that day. Once she broke down crying over their son getting a ‘D’ on his progress report. Eddie Moore said that later Heather called him saying the female relative claimed he touched her breast while they were on a trip to Wisconsin that the two of them took right after she turned 13 years old. When he said yes, Heather started yelling at him calling him a child molester and hung up the phone, Eddie Moore testified. He then called back and Heather told him that girl claimed he touched her another time. Heather freaked out again over his response and hung up, he testified. “I couldn’t get a word in edgewise,” Eddie Moore told jurors. He later called Heather a third time, and she refused to put the girl on the phone, but eventually put the phone on speaker mode. Eddie Moore said the girl was scared and he told her it wasn’t her fault. Eddie Moore told jurors what he meant by that was the girl couldn’t help her various psychological and behavioral issues. “At that point I thought Heather was over reacting,” Eddie Moore testified. Eddie Moore said that he didn’t go home that evening, and spent the night at his office getting very little sleep. “At that point I was completely shattered. I didn’t know where else to go,” he testified. He did research online typing in things related to touching a young female relative’s breast and the consequences for committing a crime because he touched the girl “in those places.” “I know I didn’t do anything sexual,” Eddie Moore testified. When asked why he was in such an emotional state if he didn’t molest anyone, Moore replied, “Heather told me I destroyed my family.” The next day, Eddie Moore said that he initially tried to contact the victim’s advocate office in Williamsburg to seek advice, but couldn’t get a hold of anyone. When asked why he went to the London Police Department, Eddie Moore said that he thought he was going to the victim’s advocate office there to seek advice. Heather Moore testified Tuesday that she gave Eddie an ultimatum that morning that either he turn himself in, or she would do it for him. Eddie Moore said that he tried to call an attorney before he got to London, but the attorney was out of the office and he couldn’t speak with him. Moore said that given his state of mind, he should have never gone to the police station, and he is surprised that he made it there. “I shouldn’t have been there at all,” Moore testified. Moore said he was crying when he talked to London Police Detective Staci Anderkin because “honestly, I was looking for advice. I was trying to find a way of saving my family.” Moore said that he didn’t go there to confess or get arrested. “Honestly I didn’t know who I was talking too,” Eddie Moore testified Wednesday. Anderkin testified Monday that Moore initially called her on the phone he told her he had touched the breasts of a young teenage relative. “He said it happened on several occasions,” Anderkin testified. At the start of Moore’s approximately one-hour statement to police, Moore agreed to sign a waiver of his Miranda rights before speaking to police. According to testimony and Eddie Moore’s statement to police, the first incident where he touched the victim’s breast was during a trip to Wisconsin shortly after she turned 13 years old. They were in a hotel room at the time. “I was just laying there with her watching TV. I was trying to comfort her rubbing her stomach,” Eddie Moore testified. Eddie Moore said he could tell by feeling the girl’s stomach that she had an abnormal heartbeat at the time. “It wasn’t normal by any means,” Eddie Moore testified. This is when he put his hand on her chest trying to better check her heart rate and touched her breast. “I asked is that your boob?” Eddie testified. He said the girl seemed to be immediately offended and he told her he was “sorry” for asking if that was “her boob.” At the time both of them were clothed, and Eddie Moore said he didn’t touch her for his or her sexual desire. Eddie Moore also said that he never told the girl he sexually abused her.   Other touching incident Eddie Moore disagreed with the girl’s description of another incident. Eddie Moore said they were sitting on a bed talking about her cutting and lying […]