Creato is accused of killing his son, Brendan, 3, and leaving his body in a creek near his home.
CAMDEN -- Instead of witness testimony, jurors in the murder trial of David "D.J." Creato Jr. on Tuesday afternoon watched as a man and woman read argumentative text message exchanges Creato had with a 17-year-old girl he was seeing at the time his son was found dead.
Brendan Creato, 3, was found in a creek in Cooper River Park Oct. 13, 2015, about three hours after his father called 911 saying his son was missing.
Creato, 23, of Haddon Township, has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors allege he killed Brendan because the boy was causing conflict in his relationship with Julia Stensky.
Assistant Prosecutor Christine Shah warned jurors in her opening statements that they would see more than 2,000 of the nearly 10,000 text messages Creato and Stensky exchanged in their "rocky" relationship. Shah also said that Creato was crazed with jealousy regarding Stensky and stressing about money when he killed his son.
Stensky is not a suspect because her alibi -- that she was at school at Pace University in New York City -- was confirmed by witnesses and surveillance footage, according to testimony.
Assistant Prosecutors Kevin Moran and Marian Galietta read the text messages, which were shown on a television screen so jurors could follow along.
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When they met on the dating app Tinder in June 2015, the texts were pleasantries. But by July, they were fighting about how Creato had to have contact with his ex-girlfriend because the two shared custody of Brendan.
By August, Stensky accused him of lying about paying a parking ticket for her.
"I don't want to hear more of your lies," she texted. "This relationship is over."
Their fights via text message over the next few months included arguments over whether Stensky left without saying a proper goodbye and about how his phone died while he was working, so he couldn't reply to her texts fast enough. Stensky repeatedly threatened not to visit him in Haddon Township and said she was done with the relationship, while Creato begged her to stay and spend time with him.
One exchange when Stensky apparently walked out, saying she was leaving, started when Creato asked her if she wanted to go to Wawa, according to his side of the conversation. Several jurors smiled and one laughed at the exchange of insults.
At other times, they would proclaim their love for one another and even talked of marriage. Stensky was jealous of Brendan's mother, Denoto, and Creato was furious that Stensky wanted to go to lunch with a male classmate, according to some texts.
Starting in September, according to the texts the prosecution chose to show, they began to fight more and more about what Stensky called Creato's "situation." She didn't like that he shared custody with Denoto and had Brendan every other weekend.
She wrote a blog post around that time that was read into evidence earlier in the trial. In it she described Brendan as a "mistake" and said she didn't want to be tied down in her future because of Creato's child.
"He's your number one priority, right?" she texted Creato. "You are too," he replied.
"I'm number two in your life. Don't spin it any other way," she said.
Creato told her that he won't leave his child and she had to accept it. If she can't, he texted, "then don't be with me."
Later she said that her dislike of Brendan wasn't personal. "I don't want to spend my precious time with your kid or any kid," she said in one text.
On Oct. 6, a week before Brendan's death, Stensky again threatened not to visit and said she probably wouldn't for a month or more because every other weekend is "tainted" by his son's presence.
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Creato's responses were at times angry and frustrated, and at other times pleading. He said he couldn't afford to pay child support -- the alternative to sharing custody -- but then said he'd go to court if she wanted.
"You make me so happy. You're the one thing going right for me now." he says. "I'm willing to do anything or change anything for you."
Jurors read and heard an exchange then that Shah had mentioned in her opening statement. Stensky said they couldn't both get what they wanted, and Creato disagreed.
"Well I want you to not have a kid in your life," she texted.
"You can always get what you want in the future not in the past," he replied.
Creato was begging her to come visit that weekend -- a few days before Brendan died -- and she eventually said she'd come to the area but would camp by herself in Wharton State Forest Friday night to "get away from" Brendan.
Later that week, Creato told her he was worried that he was going to leave him. "I'm really scared and I can't stop thinking about it," he texted her.
When he said he couldn't pick her up from the train because he had to work late, she told him they were done and he should "delete this number." She eventually agreed to come hear him out, as she put it
"Please don't do this," he texted her. "We have so many happy times."
Prosecutors told Judge John T. Kelley that they would have another witness read the remaining text messages -- the ones from the weekend the pair spent together and the day before and after Brendan was found dead.
That witness was not available Tuesday so court adjourned early. Kelley told jurors he has a seminar for the next two days, so court will resume again May 16.
Stensky testified earlier in the trial that she continued to have contact with Creato after his son's death, and last spoke to him on the day he was indicted in January 2016.
Rebecca Everett may be reached at reverett@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.