N.Y. v. Paul Cortez: Excerpts from his personal journals

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N.Y. v. Paul Cortez
•March 23, 2007:
Former yoga instructor sentenced in slashing death of girlfriend
•Feb. 15, 2007:
Jury hands down guilty verdict to man accused of slashing stripper's throat
•Feb. 13, 2007:
Lawyers deliver closings in trial of man accused in NYC stripper's stabbing death
•Feb. 9, 2007:
Man accused of killing girlfriend says bloody fingerprint was from sex
•Feb. 6, 2007:
In journal entries, accused killer expressed anxiety, anger over failing relationship
•Feb. 2, 2007:
Roommate recalls grisly crime scene where ex-girlfriend had her throat slashed
•Feb. 1, 2007:
Records show accused killer called his stripper ex-girlfriend 30 minutes before she was slain
•Jan. 31, 2007:
Murder trial opens for ex-boyfriend accused of slashing stripper's throat

KEY DOCUMENTS:
Excerpts from
Paul Cortez's journals

'I saved her from rape'
In this excerpt, Cortez writes about picking up Woods from the strip club where she worked after she was allegedly drugged and raped by a customer.
'I will wait for you'
In a letter to Woods, Cortez expresses his devotion and pleads with Woods to give up stripping.
'The Killin Machine'
In an entry written one month before Woods' slaying during a rocky period in the relationship, Cortez's writings express themes of murder and death.

Updated Feb. 7, 2007, 1:49 p.m. ET

N.Y. v. Paul Cortez: Excerpts from his personal journals

Prosecutors in the second-degree murder trial of Paul Cortez introduced excerpts from his personal journals to prove that he had an unhealthy preoccupation with his ex-girlfriend, Catherine Woods, who was stabbed to death in her apartment on Nov. 27, 2005. In this excerpt, Cortez expresses his devotion and pleads with Woods to give up stripping.

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