Prosecution Imari Rodriguez

1. Good evening sir, please state your name and occupation for the record.

Hello, my name is Imari Rodriguez and I'm the first assistant director for the show Recipe for Success. I’ve held this position for about 5 seasons at this point.

1. When did you come to know the defendant, Haley Fromholz? 

I met Haley during cast auditions for the show

1. Also, how familiar are you with the celebrity chef, Morgan Sears?

1. I’ve known Chef Sears for my entire duration on the show, although we weren’t super close. 

1. Mr. Rodriguez, I want to direct your attention to the morning of April 7th. What were you doing on set that morning?

I was setting up for filming in the kitchen, when Chef Sears came up to me looking furious. He wanted me to talk to the other judges.

1. What did Chef Sears say when he approached you?

He told me that “Haley should’ve never made it this far.” and that if she made it through, he was walking from the show

1. How did you react when Chef Sears said this? 

1. I was mortified that he would say such a thing, especially since Haley was only about 15 feet away, which I definitely think was within earshot. I was really worried that Chef Sears would cancel their contract with the show because they were our main talent and we were set to film the next day. 

1. Thank you, Mr Rodriguez. Did anything happen with Chef Sears when filming a segment for the show the next day, on April 8th? 

1. Yes, it was intense. Chef Sears screamed that Haley’s ideas were stale and that the only unique recipes came from her grandmother. He also swatted a piece of parsley across Haley’s face. I was really shocked by Chef Sear’s sheer vitriol towards Haley. 

What did you observe about Haley Fromholz’s physical reaction?

1. After Chef Sear’s comments, I could tell that Haley was seething. Her face was bright red and I heard her say, “I’ll give you fresh, alright… that’s the last time you insult my cooking.” I was really freaked out because Haley’s eyes were stormy and their voice was in a low growl. (hearsay)

1. A short time later, but before the semi-final challenge began, did Haley approach you? 

1. Yes, mere minutes before our final checks, Haley ran up holding their forehead and complained about a migraine. They asked to go and grab an aspirin pill from their jacket which was stored in their personal cubby. I agreed since I was worried it was a serious medical emergency. 

What did you observe as she went into the contestant cubby room

1. After I agreed, I personally followed Haley into the cubby room while they grabbed the pills. I saw Haley put their hand into a jacket pocket. I saw her take out a green plastic baggie and put it in her pants pocket.

1. After she returned, how would you describe her demeanor? 

1. I noticed that they were fidgety and couldn’t quite meet my gaze. I also noticed that their left hand was clenched into a fist, although I didn’t think anything about it at the time.