Criminal contempt charges against Michelle Troconis — filed after she was seen showing a sealed custody report during her trial last year in connection with the murder of Jennifer Farber Dulos — have been dismissed by a judge.
Troconis, 50, appeared Wednesday in Stamford Superior Court where a state prosecutor agreed to nolle two counts of criminal contempt of court — which would have allowed prosecutors to reopen the case within 13 months before the charges were dismissed.
Troconis’ attorney, Stamford-based lawyer Darnell D. Crosland, asked that the charges be dismissed during the hearing, and a judge agreed.
“Today’s dismissal of the contempt charges against Michelle Troconis is a welcome and just outcome,” Crosland said in a statement following the hearing. “These charges never should have been brought, as they lacked any showing of willful disobedience — a fundamental requirement under Connecticut law. The state’s decision to drop the case affirms what we have maintained from the beginning: that Ms. Troconis did nothing wrong.”
“While this chapter is now behind us, Michelle’s legal battle is not over,” Crosland said. “Her criminal appeal is ongoing, and like so many who believe in her innocence, I am hopeful that justice will ultimately prevail. I continue to stand firmly in support of Michelle and pray that her conviction will be overturned.”
Troconis was charged with contempt of court after authorities said she showed a sealed custody report on a computer screen while she stood trial on charges related to the killing of Farber Dulos, a mother of five who disappeared on May 24, 2019. Carrie Luft, a friend of Farber Dulos and spokesperson for the family, reportedly saw the sealed report and notified prosecutors.
In his motion to dismiss the contempt charges filed earlier this year, Crosland argued that Troconis’ actions were not deliberate, calling them inadvertent “at best.” He also argued that media members taking photos and video during the trial were warned about capturing certain things. Crosland said a cameraman zoomed in closely on the defense table at one point, which showed the report on Troconis’ computer screen.
Authorities believe Troconis then-boyfriend, Fotis Dulos, waited for Farber Dulos at her New Canaan home and viciously attacked her the day she disappeared. At the time, the two were in the midst of contentious divorce proceedings and a custody battle.
Farber Dulos was declared legally dead in 2023. Her body has not been found.
Dulos died at a New York hospital in January 2020 following what police said was a suicide attempt using carbon monoxide in the garage of his Farmington home.
At her trial, prosecutors accused Troconis of lying to authorities during two separate interviews with law enforcement investigating the disappearance of Farber Dulos. They said she tried to provide a false alibi for Dulos during the killing, and that she was with him later in the day when he was seen on video dumping bags in trash cans in the north end of Hartford. The bags were later recovered and found to contain items with Farber Dulos’ blood on them.
Troconis in May 2024 was sentenced 14 ½ years in prison following a trial that ended with a jury finding her guilty on charges of conspiracy to commit murder, tampering with evidence, hindering prosecution and additional conspiracy charges.
The dismissal on the contempt charges come after Dulos’ former friend and attorney, Kent Mawhinney, took a plea deal last Friday, pleading guilty under the Alford doctrine to one count of interfering with an officer during the investigation into Farber Dulos’ killing. An Alford plea means he disputes some of the allegations but acknowledges that prosecutors likely had enough evidence to convict him of the charge.
According to court documents, Mawhinney denied being in contact with Dulos leading up to Farber Dulos’ disappearance, though detectives believe he spoke to Dulos while the latter was dumping evidence in Hartford. Mawhinney was also believed to be at Dulos’ office the day Farber Dulos went missing, court documents said. His name was reportedly found by investigators in what was referred to as the “Alibi Scripts” that authorities believe Dulos and Troconis put together to help align their stories, court papers said.
Investigators also tried tying Mawhinney to what appeared to be a shallow grave found at a gun club he helped establish in East Granby, but when authorities searched the property they did not find any remains.
Mawhinney was sentenced to 11 months in prison, which equated to time he had already served while held on bond after his arrest in January 2020 on a conspiracy to commit murder charge — which was dropped under the terms of the plea deal.
Luft, who has served as a spokesperson for Farber Dulos’ family and friends, issued a statement following last week’s plea deal in which they pleaded with anyone who has information to come forward to help answer the “many questions” they still have about the killing, including the location of her body. The statement also thanked the numerous investigators who have worked tirelessly on the case.