Michelle Troconis, who's currently serving a 14 ½ -year sentence in the disappearance and presumed death of Jennifer Dulos, returned to Rockville Superior Court on Friday to continue her bid to get her conviction tossed. Day 2 of Troconis' habeas trial, in which she's seeking to be released from prison on claims her initial attorney provided ineffective counsel, featured testimony from an expert who called Andrew Bowman's representation "not reasonably competent" and "below the standard of care."

Bowman was not Troconis' attorney at her criminal trial, but he was for eight months, including when he advised her to speak with police on three separate occasions as they investigated the disappearance of Jennifer Dulos, the estranged wife of Troconis' boyfriend at the time, Fotis Dulos.

Bowman rehashed why he allowed Troconis to speak to police three times without an immunity agreement in place. He testified prosecutors don't offer protections without knowing what someone will say.

"They want to know if they can believe this person before they start making promises and giving them, you know, protections," Bowman continued, adding even if Troconis had a deal, it would've been voided.

"There's a carrot and a stick here. And the carrot is we go to bat for you—it could be the amelioration of the punishment, it could be dropping charges, it could be not bringing charges—but in return you've got to tell the truth," Bowman testified.

"And she did not do so in this case?" said Senior Assistant State's Attorney Russell Zentner.

"She did not," Bowman responded.

Troconis' story changed during those interviews, which were played when she stood trial in 2024 on charges of conspiracy to commit murder, evidence tampering, conspiracy to commit evidence tampering and hindering prosecution. Initially, Troconis initially gave Fotis Dulos a false alibi, telling police he was home with her in Farmington when Jennifer Dulos vanished.

"The biggest problem is she was untruthful about the biggest issue in the case," Bowman stated.

"Which was what?" Zenter questioned.

"Which was where was Fotis Dulos was on the morning of May 24, 2019," Bowman replied.

Former Stamford State's Attorney Richard Colangelo took the stand next and corroborated Bowman's testimony from Monday, the first day of the habeas proceedings, that he told Bowman if Troconis didn't cooperate, he'd charge her with accessory to murder once police found the body.

"I remember saying now's her time to either get on the bus or get run over by the bus," Colangelo recalled.

Michael Brown, who represents Troconis in the habeas case, asked Colangelo whether Bowman asked for any protections for Troconis before her first interview.

"I would never do something like that without knowing what someone is going to say," Colangelo answered. "It was never part of my thinking at that time."

Colangelo's testimony ended with him agreeing with Bowman's prior statements that Fotis Dulos' suicide in January 2020 changed Troconis' legal position.

"It was always my idea up until the time Mr. Dulos passed away, I was trying to figure out a way to use her as a witness against him," Colangelo stated.

Fotis Dulos faced several charges before his death including murder and kidnapping. Police believe Fotis Dulos was lying in wait for Jennifer Dulos when she returned to her home in New Canaan after dropping their five kids off at school. Jennifeer Dulos has never been found but is believed have sustained unsurvivable injuries and was legally declared dead.

On Friday, attorney Michael Fitzpatrick was the next person called to the stand. Fitzpatrick was retained by Troconis' legal team as an expert witness and said he'd testified in multiple habeas cases including Michael Skakel's.

Fitzpatrick criticized Bowman's actions as Troconis' lawyer and said he failed to prepare her before the police interviews. Fitzpatrick said the initial sit-down on June 2 should've never taken place.

"I have four reasons. First of all, she was emotionally distraught, second of all she was exhausted, third it was anticipated that the interview was going to take place in English which is not her primary language, and fourth she was not a good candidate for a police interview," Fitzpatrick testified. "A lawyer's number one duty is to protect the client's legal rights."

Fitzpatrick said he reviewed the interviews and thought each one went poorly for Troconis. Fitzpatrick testified that in his opinion, Bowman should've cut the first interview short and never agreed to a second one.

"The recommendation in each of the three instances did not meet the prevailing professional norms," Fitzpatrick stated.

Fitzpatrick will be back on the stand when Troconis' trial resumes Tuesday. It was initially slated for three days, but testimony has gone longer than expected. The case is also down for Friday, Jan. 16.

Following that, Judge Carl Schuman will have 120 days to issue a ruling on whether Bowman provided ineffective counsel and if so, whether that led to evidence that affected the criminal trial outcome. Remedies could include vacating Troconis' convictions and releasing her from prison. If that occurs, the prosecution would have to decide whether to seek a new trial.

The habeas case is separate from Troconis' recent appeal of her convictions. In that, she's challenging decisions made by the trial judge on what evidence was and wasn't allowed in.