Courtney Clenney, an Instagram model accused of fatally stabbing her boyfriend, Christian Obumseli, is seeking to introduce evidence of alleged self-defense and domestic abuse ahead of her second-degree murder trial. The trial is scheduled to begin in Miami-Dade in the third week of August.
Clenney's legal team has filed a motion requesting to present medical records, text messages, eyewitness testimony, police bodycam footage, and security reports to support her claim that she acted in self-defense. The defense intends to present testimony from domestic violence experts and highlight text messages they claim demonstrate a pattern of alleged abuse by Obumseli. One message from April 2021 reportedly shows Clenney accusing Obumseli of striking her forcefully, to which he responded that he was only trying to move her hand.
Witnesses are also expected to testify about observed interactions between the couple and instances where Clenney allegedly sustained visible injuries. The motion states that the proposed evidence will illustrate that Clenney was in an abusive relationship.
Obumseli, a 27-year-old cryptocurrency trader, was found dead in their luxury Miami apartment on April 3, 2022. Clenney, 30, was charged with second-degree murder. She has pleaded not guilty and faces a minimum sentence of 16-and-a-half years to life in prison if convicted. She has been held in jail without bond.
Dramatic police bodycam footage captured a blood-covered Clenney at the scene. She was seen cradling Obumseli, crying and stating she was trying to save him. To responding officers, she expressed fear of Obumseli, stating, "I was so scared." She acknowledged killing Obumseli but maintained it was in self-defense, telling investigators that he had pushed and thrown her to the floor, prompting her to grab a knife and throw it from approximately ten feet away. However, the medical examiner's findings suggest the wound could not have been caused by a knife thrown from that distance.
Clenney's parents, Kim and Deborah Clenney, were previously arrested for allegedly breaking into Obumseli's apartment to retrieve his computer but were later released. State prosecutors had attempted to access Kim Clenney's iCloud account, which contained communications with defense attorneys regarding the computer's passwords. In June 2024, a judge ruled that prosecutors had violated attorney-client privilege by accessing these private conversations.
Attorneys for Obumseli's family have disputed Clenney's self-defense claim, asserting that Obumseli was the victim of domestic violence perpetrated by Clenney. The judge has not yet ruled on the defense's motion to present the proposed evidence.