Joseph Hanson, a 24-year-old Cheyenne resident on trial for first-degree murder in the death of his 4-month-old son, told detectives in an April interrogation that he felt “ashamed” he never informed authorities that his wife killed their child.
The videotaped interview, played Tuesday in Laramie County District Court, reveals a grim timeline of concealed guilt, marital strife, and fatal injuries. As the trial moves toward closing arguments, the courtroom is left weighing the profound cost of silence in a case where a father admits he chose his spouse over his infant son.
Detective Used Ruse Technique During Police Interviews
The state’s case centers heavily on marathon police interviews conducted after detectives pulled over Hanson and his wife, Juliette Martinez, 23, on April 8 in a planned traffic stop for an improperly registered vehicle. Separated at the police station, Hanson sat through three hours of questioning that night and four hours the following day.
Cheyenne Police Detective James Eddy walked the jury through those recordings, detailing how he employed a “ruse” technique. Eddy told Hanson he had been aggressive with his children—which wasn’t true—and positioned himself as an advocate against fellow detectives who already believed the suspect was guilty. Eddy warned Hanson that Martinez would use his past threats against him, urging him to wear a “white hat with maybe a little dust on it” by telling the truth.
Near the end of that questioning, Hanson leaned forward, complained that it was hard to eat, and whispered his regret. “I hate that I chose my wife over my kids,” Hanson said on the April 9 tape. He admitted he learned sometime in September 2025 that Martinez had confessed to their pastor’s wife that she was responsible for their baby, referred to in court documents as “TH,” not breathing on August 8, 2025. Yet, he stayed silent.
Forensic Pathologist Rules Infant Death a Homicide
Dr. Stephen Cina, the forensic pathologist who performed the infant’s autopsy, offered definitive testimony regarding the child’s final weeks. Cina ruled the death a homicide by unspecified means, pointing to a probable abusive head injury. “This kid died because of the action of another person,” Cina told the court.
The medical timeline shows that on August 8, 2025, Hanson and Martinez were the only people caring for TH before bringing him to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center following an apparent seizure. Hanson admitted he found the baby struggling to breathe at 11 a.m. that day after returning from work. He called his mother, Jessica Edgington, in Sun City, Arizona, who instructed him to send a video. Edgington watched the infant making guttural sounds and breathing irregularly and immediately told them to drive to the hospital.
Police noted that during the 45-minute drive, phone examinations revealed Martinez spent time deleting text messages and internet searches concerning “shaken baby syndrome” and infant mortality. TH spent a month in the intensive care unit at Children’s Hospital Colorado, sustaining multiple partially healed fractures to his arms and legs alongside a nonsurvivable diffuse hypoxic injury. By September 8, 2025, when his parents authorized the removal of life support, the infant’s brain had suffered severe cerebral edema from oxygen deprivation, becoming so soft it was “almost falling apart,” according to Cina.
The Road to the Verdict
The courtroom drama hinges on whether Hanson will take the stand in his own defense. Judge Peter Froelicher noted that Hanson expressed a desire to testify Wednesday, though he retains the right to change his mind. Meanwhile, defense attorney Marty Scott received permission to call Martinez as a defense witness, though counsel indicated she is expected to invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
Scott plans to present his final witnesses when court reconvenes Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. Following that testimony, Laramie County Assistant District Attorney William Edelman and the defense will deliver closing arguments, handing the case over to a 10-woman, four-man jury by Wednesday afternoon. Two alternate jurors will then be dismissed. If convicted of first-degree murder, both Hanson and Martinez face potential sentences of life imprisonment.
