The Brian Walshe Trial Day 8: The Prosecution Rests Its Case

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Brian Walshe Trial Day 8 – The Prosecution Rests Its Case

Podcast: Amy Robach & T.J. Holmes Present
Host: iHeartPodcasts
Date: December 10, 2025
Episode: The Brian Walshe Trial Day 8: The Prosecution Rests Its Case

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Main Theme / Purpose

Day 8 of the Brian Walshe murder trial marked the prosecution’s final day to present its case. The day largely revolved around the testimony of Jem Mutlu, a close friend and former boss of Anna Walshe who was with the family the night Anna disappeared. The episode provides a blow-by-blow analysis of the day’s most pivotal courtroom moments, emphasizing the challenges the prosecution faced with their key witness, and examining the implications of the final testimonies for the case.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Marquee Witness: Jem Mutlu’s Challenging Testimony

• Importance of Witness: Mutlu was with Anna and Brian on New Year’s Eve, the night Anna vanished ([00:36] Amy).
• Pre-Trial Anticipation: His testimony was highly anticipated as he was seen as critical to establishing the events of that night ([00:54] TJ).
• Testimony Difficulties: Mutlu struggled to recall specific details, particularly about phone conversations with Anna regarding her marriage. This inability frustrated attorneys and the judge, leading to repeated objections and unclear testimony ([02:26] Amy; [03:07] TJ).
  • "He just couldn’t do it. He kept saying, she told me about their marital problems... No, what did she say?" ([02:26] Amy)
• Courtroom Atmosphere: The hosts describe the courtroom as chaotic, likening it to "trying to get a child to follow instructions" ([04:12] TJ).
• Prosecution’s Struggles: Ultimately, Mutlu was unable to directly quote any statements by Anna indicating marital strife, often resorting to feelings rather than facts, which does not hold in court ([03:46] Amy).
• Notable Quote: "This witness was a mess from jump street... It was a shit show trying to get him to answer questions." ([01:39] TJ)

Mutlu’s Actual Contributions

• Establishing the Evening: Mutlu confirmed that New Year’s Eve appeared festive, pleasant, and devoid of overt conflict between Anna and Brian ([05:01] Amy).
• New Information: He saw Anna send a text to Will Fastow, potentially significant for establishing her last known activities ([05:01] Amy).
• Brian’s Post-Disappearance Call: Mutlu testified that Brian reached out on January 4, claiming not to have seen Anna since January 1, and seemed very calm or unemotional—described as “robotic”—when discussing his missing wife ([06:20] Amy; [06:33] Amy).
  • "It was a strange response... he was so even keeled, so not panicked, that he was immediately thrown off by Brian’s demeanor." ([06:20] Amy)

Emotional Moments and Jury Perception

• Mutlu’s Emotion: He became visibly emotional while discussing Anna and their friendship, especially when mentioning her signing the champagne box—a poignant last memento ([07:36] Amy).
• Jury’s Takeaway: Despite sustained objections, Mutlu’s repeated mention that Anna said “there were cracks in the marriage” may still resonate with jurors ([07:36] Amy).
  • "The jury still hears that. They're hearing him say that. And that still has an impact." ([07:36] Amy)

The Prosecution’s Broader Challenges

• Lack of Narrative Flow: Both hosts note that the prosecution struggled to weave together a coherent story, making it hard for the jury to connect the dots ([08:38] TJ; [09:09] Amy).
  • "It was hard to find a flow, it was hard to find a story... nobody put a good story together today." ([08:38] TJ)
• House Arrest Complications: Testimony about Brian's movements during the period of Anna’s disappearance was confusing, leaving listeners (and likely the jury) unclear about the intended implications ([09:09] Amy).

Final Witness: Alyssa Kirby, Anna’s Close Friend

• Who is Alyssa Kirby?: Anna’s best friend, providing new perspective on Anna's state of mind before her disappearance ([11:04] Amy).
• Personal Insights: Alyssa described Anna as being at a breaking point, with her life described as “a mess” and her marriage troubled on December 29 ([12:47] Amy).
• Relationship Dynamics:
  • Alyssa testified that Anna and Brian "didn’t keep secrets"; Anna even "almost wished he was more jealous," but he wasn’t ([12:47] Amy).
  • She revealed Brian allegedly knew about Anna’s crush/affair due to a message from his mother’s psychic ([14:14] Amy).
• Notable Quote: "Anna Walsh's basically saying her life is a mess, that she's at a breaking point. So we had not heard that before, that she was not in a good place in her marriage and she was spilling this all out..." ([12:47] Amy)

The Psychic Angle

• Unexpected Testimony: Alyssa stated Brian's mother’s psychic advised that Anna was having an affair—an unusual detail raising questions about potential knowledge or suspicion on Brian’s part ([14:14] Amy).
  • "Brian's mother's psychic told Brian's mother that Anna was having an affair." ([14:14] Amy)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Mutlu’s Testimony Chaos:
  • TJ Holmes: "This witness was a mess from jump street... It was a shit show trying to get him to answer questions." ([01:39])
• On Courtroom Tension:
  • Amy Robach: "You can't say, it made me feel like they had marital problems. So that was a whole, whole mess." ([03:46])
• On Brian’s Strange Demeanor:
  • Amy Robach: "Just seemed so robotic about it all, so calm. Not like someone desperate to find out what happened to his wife." ([06:33])
• On the Jury Hearing Objections Anyway:
  • Amy Robach: "The jury still hears that. They're hearing him say that. And that still has an impact." ([07:36])
• On Prosecution’s Narrative Struggles:
  • TJ Holmes: "Nobody put a good story together today." ([08:38])
• On Anna’s Mindset Before Disappearance:
  • Amy Robach: "Anna Walsh is basically saying her life is a mess, that she's at a breaking point... she was not in a good place in her marriage..." ([12:47])
• On the Psychic Revelation:
  • Amy Robach: "Brian's mother's psychic told Brian's mother that Anna was having an affair." ([14:14])

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Important Timestamps

• 00:36 – Introduction of Jem Mutlu as key witness
• 02:26 – Mutlu struggles to recall details of his conversation with Anna
• 05:01 – Mutlu provides (limited) details about the night before Anna’s disappearance
• 06:20-06:33 – Mutlu describes Brian’s calmness about Anna’s disappearance
• 07:36 – Mutlu’s emotional moments and mention of “cracks” in the marriage
• 08:38 – Commentary on lack of narrative flow from the prosecution
• 09:09 – Confusing testimony about Brian’s house arrest/alibi
• 11:04 – Introduction of Alyssa Kirby as final prosecution witness
• 12:47 – Insights into Anna’s mental state and marriage issues
• 14:14 – The “psychic” testimony enters the record

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Conclusion

The prosecution’s final day in the Brian Walshe trial was packed with drama but lacked clarity and cohesion. Jem Mutlu’s anticipated testimony turned chaotic, often helping little with proving the prosecution’s central narrative and at times confusing both jury and observers. The final witness, Alyssa Kirby, was more helpful, providing poignant insights into Anna Walshe’s troubled marriage and state of mind, and raising intriguing new angles, including the psychic’s revelation.

While emotional and revealing at moments, the day’s proceedings left both hosts questioning whether the prosecution did enough to persuade the jury, setting the stage for the defense’s case to begin on Day 9.

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Transcript

[Amy Robach]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.

[TJ Holmes]

Hey there folks. It is Wednesday, December 10th, and the prosecution has rested its case against Brian Walsh. But not before giving us one hell of a day in court. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ Robes. This, this day was all about one witness. Is that fair to say? A highly anticipated witness, yes.

[Amy]

Jem.

Mootloo. I was trying to say his name correct.

[TJ Holmes]

They were as well in court. It's Mutlu, right?

[Amy]

Jem Mutlu, Yes. He was Anna Walsh's former boss and a friend to both Anna and Brian. And most notably, he was with them the night that everything went down on New Year's Eve. He was with them until one thing, 30 in the morning.

[TJ Holmes]

Okay, that's the setup, right? That's the setup we got. This is the night we've been hearing about. This is very, very important to hear from this witness what he saw. You would could argue he is as key to this story as anybody, is he not? Besides William Fastile, Maybe true, because.

[Amy]

And I even think perhaps more than that, because he had had an hour and a half, two hour conver phone conversation with.

His wife with Anna, and I guess a 45 minute one the day before where she was, according to him, venting and talking about her marriage. And then he got to witness the couple together that night. Did they fight, did they drink too much? What were they like? He's the only person who could actually give insight into that.

[TJ Holmes]

So this sounds like it should be simple. Get on the stand, we'll ask you what you saw. And there you have it, folks. This was a mess of a day in court. I don't know how the prosecution is going to think this was a winning final day for them. This witness was a mess from jump street. And the reason? Robes. We got off to a slow start or a late start, I should say. The jury didn't even come until 10 o'. Clock. She told them yesterday, don't come until then because they wanted to get this witness on the stand and give some testimony so that they could question him outside the jury. It was a shit show trying to get him to answer questions.

[Amy]

Right, because he said it was three years ago. I don't remember exactly what the conversation was that I had with Ana. That 45 minute one, I believe it was on December 29th and since it was three years ago, I can't remember the exact words. And the judge said, that's fine, you don't have to know the exact words, paraphrase what she said. He just Couldn't do it. He kept saying, she told me about their marital problems. And then every time there would be an objection because that was him basically categorizing it or characterizing what it was. She said, no, what did she say?

[TJ Holmes]

But we went round and round him characterizing it as marital issues. He said, I walked away from the conversation with the feeling. I think he kept saying the feeling that there were marital issues. That doesn't work in court. So we're going round and round, attorneys and the judge, everybody is almost scolding him, trying to get him to understand he can't do it. So now he freezes up even more, I would argue. And he, though robes never was able to give any testimony about something she said that suggested she had a problem with her marriage.

[Amy]

Yes. It was almost after. And we were all thankful. A certain point, the prosecution just said, never mind, because they couldn't get him to answer. And he just kept saying, well, I don't remember the exact words. And that was really frustrating because it's like, okay, well, that's fine, but you have to give an example of what she said. You can't. You can't say. It made me feel like they had marital problems. So that was a whole, whole mess.

[TJ Holmes]

Rose, didn't it feel like he was trying to fill in some holes and some blanks? Didn't it like he was trying to fill in with what it almost felt at times that he was. He wanted to help the prosecution as best he could. This was a close friend of his. It just. He wasn't a good witness for the prosecution. And even if there was information in there that was helpful, but the way it was presented, the mess that it was, when the jury finally came in and he did give testimony, it was still a bunch of objections and stopping. And even the judge had to jump in at some point. And no, you can only. It. It seemed like it did. It seemed like a child you were trying to get something out of or to follow instructions. I'm not trying to be offensive to him by saying he's a childlike. I'm trying to give an impression of what it felt like in court today.

[Amy]

It was messy. It was very, very, very messy. And what Jem did and what he was able to. At least he was able to establish a couple of things. First of all, he said that it was a festive, fun night, and they appeared to be happy. Even that went around and around a bit. But he did admit that and then asked. This was really interesting when he talked about, well, first of all he also said that he saw Ana send a text to Will Fastow earlier in the night. So he said they took a picture of themselves and sent it. She's like, let's send it to Will. So he did establish that he saw that text take place. But then what I thought was the most interesting part about his testimony for the prosecution was when he said that Brian called him on January 4, several days later, and said that he had not seen Ana since January 1. And he said, my immediate response was, did you have an argument? Did you have a fight? And he said it was a strange response because he said Brian said, no. Did it look like we had an argument? You were there. But he just said he was so even keeled, he was so not panicked that he was immediately thrown off by Brian's demeanor.

[TJ Holmes]

Yeah. I mean, hasn't everyone described him and everything we've seen, even though the police, video, audio and video, we, I. We haven't seen him worked up or anybody testified to him having a temper of any kind, have we?

[Amy]

No. And. But also unemotional when it comes to his missing wife. That, that was also of note. Just seemed so robotic about it all, so calm. Not like someone desperate to find out what happened to his wife. That was something that has been very eerie to watch and to hear in real time.

[TJ Holmes]

He confirmed what was. And again, I felt at times he was even begrudgingly admitting that they were a loving couple. He had to admit, yes, she loved and was in love with her husband. He was admitting a lot of things. And the night sounded really fun. Yeah, the son came and hung out for a little while. The witness today, the friend who was there, said he considered the kids his own. Yes, like they were that kind of close. That night sounded fun. They showed the box, the champagne box that they all signed and had these nice beautiful messages looking forward to the future he described. Now this gives you insight into the evening. Nothing was wrong before that dude left.

[Amy]

That is exactly what Mutlu testified to. And yes, reading what Ana wrote on the champagne box, basically saying, you know, we made it, we're still here and together. And it just that think that that was her last night, the last message she would ever write on a New Year's Eve. And he got emotional a couple of times too, like, you know, actually got choked up when he was testifying about Ana and about their relationship. But he. The last little bit he tried to get in for the prosecution when they tried a final time to discuss how Ana talked to him during that phone call about the Marriage. He said, she said there were cracks in the marriage. Immediate objection and overruled. I wonder still, even though. And he said that many different ways. Each time there was an objection, each time it was sustained. Excuse me, not overruled. The jury still hears it. And that's what. I leaned over and looked at you and I said, the jury still hears that. They're hearing him say that. And that still has an impact.

[TJ Holmes]

And there was a lot of that today, to the point it was hard to keep up. It was hard to find a flow, it was hard to find a story. Even the attorneys on the prosecution side at least struggled to build sentences or questions the right way that wouldn't get an objection. It was just a lot of that today that didn't necessarily tell much of a story. You know what? If you're on the jury, yes, it's there, but you had to find it for yourself. Nobody put a good story together today.

[Amy]

I guess that is exactly true. I remember just thinking, why can't we button this up and explain? Even when the prosecution had Brian Walsh's and I don't know what the term was, it's not obviously a parole officer, but it was someone who was in charge of making sure he stayed on house arrest with. I don't know if he had a monitor. I believe he must have had some sort of ankle monitor on him, but he wasn't allowed to leave the house. But even going through what he was allowed to do and what he wasn't allowed to do, I don't, I didn't understand what she was getting at. Are you saying that he planned a fake six hour window that he claims he was driving his mother back home from surgery when clearly we all know now during that period of time he was going to Lowe's and he was going to Walgreens and he was getting equipment and things to clean up and to actually dismember his wife. So was the implication that he had premeditated that so made up an excuse for his ability to leave his house. But they never brought it home. They never made it make sense. And I just didn't understand what the point of any of that testimony was.

[TJ Holmes]

And we listened to every single second of that. We were paying close attention and we couldn't figure that out. Look, maybe we're just not good listeners and maybe the jury's putting this together just fine. But it was a. It was a mess of a day. It was the biggest day in a lot of ways, and it was their final day. The prosecution has now Put on its case. What's next we do not know. But some of the things we've already described. A couple of things we've left out so far, including the final witness of the day who was a friend of Anna Walsh. And she put into testimony some things we have not heard yet in this trial. We'll explain what that was about. And also, how did a psychic come into play today in testimony? Stay here.

[Amy]

Welcome back, everyone. As we Talk about Day 8 in the Brian Walsh trial. And this was a huge day. It turned out to be the final day for the prosecutor, starting off with the man who was with the Walshes until 1:30 in the morning, the night that Anna Walsh died and ultimately disappeared forever. So we had his testimony, but another big name and the final witness was Anna Walsh's close friend. Her name was, it's her last name's Kirby. What was her first name? I just completely lost her first name. But her, one of her best friends testified and I thought what she had to say was very, very eye openening. And certainly this was a, a win for the prosecution with this particular witness.

[TJ Holmes]

Well, I, I guess, yes. It depends on how you or how they hope the jury is going to interpret this. I was surprised to hear. Right. They talked plenty. That the defense is saying that he didn't know about the affair, first of all, and also saying that he's not a jealous man. And they made that point with the previous.

[Amy]

That's true.

[TJ Holmes]

Who was the guy who was there with him that night was a guy that she was very close with and spent a lot of time with. And they asked, hey, did, did Brian ever express jealousy or anything that you two spent more time? So much time. No, we were all very close friends. So they've been setting this up is what I am saying, that he is not a jealous person, but I didn't see it coming. That he was aware that his wife had a crush on. On the guy that she was ultimately having an affair with. And then who actually told him about the crush.

[Amy]

Yes. So that was really interesting. It's Alyssa Kirby, by the way. I did find her first name, but that Alyssa said that Ana told her that she and Brian didn't keep secrets, that they told each other everything and that she almost wished he was more jealous. The defense attorney got her to admit that, which I thought was really, really interesting. She's like, well, you know, the way a girl wants a guy to maybe, you know, put her first or whatever. But that definitely stuck with me that she said that. But she also gave us some insight into where Anna Walsh's head was in the days right before she died on December 29th. They hung out. She's saying that Anna Walsh is basically saying her life is a mess, that she's at a breaking point. So we had not heard that before, that she was not in a good place in her marriage and she was spilling this all out to her on December 29th.

[TJ Holmes]

Yeah. So again, I don't know how the prosecution felt about how they finished up their day, if they felt they finished up strong, but that is it. As of now, we don't know the list or what the defense is possibly going to put on starting tomorrow, but they are anticipating to be back at it starting at 9:00am in the Brian Walsh trial. It will be day nine of testimony tomorrow. Folks. Will keep a close eye on. Go ahead.

[Amy]

Well, we have the psychic to tell you about too, because that was the other thing you teased. I wanted to make sure. Basically Alyssa Kirby said that Anna Walsh told her that Brian's mother went to a psychic. Are you following me? I know that's confusing, but that Brian's mother's psychic told Brian's mother that Anna was having an affair. So the implication would be that Brian might have asked her about it. Ha ha ha. Are you having an affair? My mom psychic said you were. So there was some implication that there was a conversation at least about something Brian's mom's psychic told her about Anna. So that was another little interesting part of her testimony.

[TJ Holmes]

We'll see how much more interesting things will get tomorrow. We'll keep an eye on it. Back to the trial, 9am for now, I'm TJ Holmes on behalf of my dear Amy Robach. We'll talk to you all soon.

[Amy Robach]

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