Police Testimony To Continue in Vo Trial

Wednesday will mark the second day of testimony in the trial of Thuy Van “Tony” Vo. 

Vo, 32, of Philadelphia, is

On Tuesday, the jury heard the as well as testimony from police who took part in the initial investigation into Huynh’s death. 

The first officer to take the stand yesterday was also the first officer on the scene that Monday morning, Nov. 8, 2010.

Upper Southampton Police Officer Ryan Hand told the court he was only on the job a mere four months when he was dispatched for what was thought to be a well-being check at .

Hand said when he arrived at Pike’s Place Shopping Center on Second Street Pike, there were several people out front of the salon and they were frantic. 

He said the employees began to tell him how they couldn’t locate their boss, Annie Huynh, despite several signs that she had been to the salon that morning: her Silver SUV was parked in the fire lane out front, the iced coffee she typically drank every morning was sitting next to the cash register with fresh ice cubes floating inside, and her coat was hanging on the back of her chair. 

He testified that the employees directed him to a locked bathroom in the rear of the salon. 

“I attempted to kick open the door, but my foot went right through the bottom,” he said.  

Hand said he could see legs on the ground inside the bathroom. He said he radioed for help and then ushered all of the ladies outside of the store to wait for the ambulance.

Hand said he then retrieved a medical bag from his squad car, grabbed a pair of clear latex gloves from a pedicure station, and reached through the hole he had created in the door to unlock the handle and gain access to the dark bathroom. 

Hand told the court that once inside he saw an unresponsive Huynh lying on the ground. He said he attempted to use the defibrillator, but he could not find a pulse, so he began chest compressions while he waited for medics to arrive. 

Larger-than-life pictures of Huynh’s body, splayed out on the ceramic tile floor in the salon's modest bathroom, were projected on the wall of the courtroom. 

The jurors examined the crime scene photos as Hand used a laser pointer to draw attention to certain areas pertenent to his testimony. 

Vo stared at the pictures with the same stoicism he exhibited through most of the day’s proceedings.

Upper Southampton Police Detective James Schirmer said that the few photos shown were only a small sampling of the many pictures taken of the crime scene that day. 

“I was taking pictures like a tourist,” he told the court.  “I wanted to be sure I was documenting as much as possible from the moment I walked in the door.” 

Shirmer said it became immediately apparent they were not dealing with a natural death.

He said besides there being no prior history of illness, Huynh’s hair appeared “more than tossled” and one of her earrings was torn from her ear.

He said this was in stark contrast to the video he viewed from earlier that same day, taken as Huynh walked her son into school.  

“In the video she was put together, her hair was combed, she was smiling,” he said.

Schirmer also noted bite marks on Huynh's lip and an inch-long vertical dent in her forehead, halfway between her eyebrows and her hairline. 

He testified that while Huynh’s purse, two cell phones, some cash and a few checks were missing, there were no signs of forced entry nor any signs of a struggle in the salon. 

Upper Southampton Police Detetive Craig Rudisill also took the stand on Tuesday.

Rudisill testified that he first interviewed Vo in the vestibule of the salon, about an hour after Huynh’s body was discovered.

Rudisill said that during this interview Vo was calm and relaxed and did not seem the least bit upset. 

“As I interviewed him he never asked what happened,” Rudisill said. “There was just no reaction.” 

Rudisill said Vo’s affect struck him as odd, enough so that it prompted him to ask the other officers on scene if anyone had already told him what had happened.

“It was just very strange to me that he didn’t know and he didn’t ask,” he said. 

Rudisill said Vo also reacted strangely when he was with the employees of the salon as they were given the news that Huynh had died.

“The girls all fell to the ground crying,” said Rudisill. “And then I looked at him, and he just kind of looked at me and then reached over an patted one of the girls on the back.”

Rudisill is expected to continue his testimony this morning, when court resumes at 9 a.m.