Michelle Lodzinski was charged with the murder of her son, Timothy Wiltsey, 5, 22 years after his remains were found.
NEW BRUNSWICK -- Timothy Wiltsey was 5 years old when his mother, Michelle Lodzinski, reported him missing from a carnival in Sayreville on the evening of May 25, 1991.
His remains were found 11 months later, in April 1992, in a swampy area of Raritan Center in Edison, about 10 miles away from where he disappeared, according to authorities.
Lodzinski was indicted in August 2014 for her son's murder. After more than a month of jury selection, the trial began with opening statements Wednesday before Superior Court Judge Dennis Nieves. The trial will resume on Tuesday.
Here are five things we've learned from the trial so far:
- How Timmy Wiltsey was identified: Timothy Wiltsey was identified through the remaining four teeth in his skull, found in Red Root Creek in Raritan Center in Edison in April 1992. He needed extensive dental work, including root canal on upper right and upper left baby molars that had stainless steel caps, according to testimony. The remaining teeth in the skull were those with the caps.
- Blanket at center of state's evidence linked to Timmy's home: Danielle Gerding, Timmy Wiltsey's aunt's best friend, identified the blue and white blanket found several yards from the skull as one she saw in Michelle Lodzinski's living room in the winter of 1991, before the boy's disappearance. That is being used by the state to link Lodzinski to the scene where Timmy's body was found. She used to accompany his aunt, Jennifer Blair, when Blair babysat for Timmy.
- Lodzinski "calm and almost shocked" after initial report of Timmy missing: Gerding also told the jury she and Blair were to meet Michelle at the carnival the evening of May 25, 1991, but when they got there, Timmy wasn't there. They found Michelle, standing "calm and almost shocked." Gerding said she found a DJ who announced a boy was missing and what he was wearing--a red T-shirt and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle sneakers. They searched Kennedy Park, where the carnival was held, but the little boy wasn't found.
- A job never mentioned: Michelle Lodzinski never told police that she worked for a company located in Edison at Raritan Center. One of her former co-workers, Brian Beusse, at Florida Fulfillment, a direct mail business, called police after seeing a map of where the boy's remains were found, and told detectives Lodzinski worked two blocks from the site. They didn't believe him until he went down and gave a statement, he testified.
- Frequent school absences shed light on childhood: Maryellen Quirk, who was the nurse at St. Marys Elementary School in South Amboy, where Timothy Wiltsey went to kindergarten, testified he was absent 25 days and late 63 days before he disappeared--a week before graduation. She said he was a healthy little boy, very quiet, but friendly. She said she didn't know why he missed so much school.