Accused killer Starbuck takes the stand

UPDATE: Starbuck takes the stand

Watch Clay Starbuck testify live via KHQ.com.

ORIGINAL STORY

Clay Starbuck is expected this afternoon to take the witness stand in an attempt to refute allegations that he strangled his wife in 2011 in her Deer Park home. Starbuck, 48, has maintained his innocence and voluntarily gave investigators his cell phone, DNA samples and statements after 42-year-old Chanin Starbuck was found slain on Dec. 3, 2011. Defense attorneys Derek Reid and Jill Gannon-Nagle informed Superior Court Judge Greg Sypolt of their intention to call Starbuck today. He faces aggravated first-degree murder and sexually violating human remains in connection with his ex-wife’s death. Tests on DNA samples taken from her fingernails and neck show a partial match to Starbuck and his eldest sons, but defense attorneys believe that DNA could have come from the bed, which he and the victim previously shared. Testing revealed DNA from three other unidentified males on her neck, a vaginal swab and from Chanin’s cell phone, which investigators believe was used after her death. Deputy Prosecutor Larry Steinmetz called detectives who testified they believe Chanin Starbuck was killed sometime around a 9:18 a.m. 911 call on Dec. 1, 2011. But defense attorneys have argued that investigators have not tested all the evidence from the scene and have not established a time of death. Clay Starbuck has no criminal record but he faces life without the possibility of parole if convicted.