“That is correct.”
“And had the decedent met his death by burning?”
“As I’ve already stated, he had not.”
“And did you determine the actual cause of death?”
“Yes, I did. The cause of death was a bullet which had penetrated the back of the skull and lodged itself in the decedent’s brain.”
“A bullet?”
“That’s right.”
“And did you remove this bullet from the brain of the decedent?”
“Yes, I did.”
“I see. And tell me, Doctor, would you know this bullet if you saw it again?”
“Yes, I would.”
Dirkson strode back to the prosecution table, picked up a small evidence bag.
“Your Honor, I ask that this be marked for identification as People’s Exhibit Four.”
When the court reporter had marked the exhibit, Dirkson handed it to the witness.
“Doctor, I hand you a bullet and ask you if you have seen it before?”
The medical examiner took the plastic evidence bag in his hands. He turned it over, examining the bullet.
“Yes, I have.”
“Can you tell us when and where?”
“Yes, sir. That is the bullet I removed that night from the brain of the decedent.”
“And how do you identify the bullet, Doctor?”
The medical examiner held up the plastic bag and pointed. “By my initials, which I scratched on the base of the bullet with a small etching tool.”
Dirkson nodded his approval. “Very good, Doctor. Now then, you’ve stated that this bullet was the cause of death?”
“That’s right.”
“How do you know that? How do you know he died from the bullet wound rather than the burning? Or in other words, how do you know he was first shot and then the body burned, rather than the other way around?”
“I know that from my autopsy. An examination of the body showed that the man was dead before the body was set on fire.”
“Oh really? And how could you tell that?”
“There were several factors, easily recognized by a trained pathologist.” The medical examiner sniffed and said somewhat condescendingly. “I shall point out those most easily understood by a layman. For one thing, live flesh burns differently than dead flesh. Even more conclusive was the condition of the lungs.”
“What about them?”
“There was no smoke in them. And if the man were alive when he was set on fire, there would have to be. He would have inhaled, and smoke would have gotten in the lungs. But he didn’t inhale. Therefore he wasn’t breathing. Therefore he wasn’t alive.”
“I see. So the bullet wound had to come first?”
“That’s what I just said.”
“And was the bullet wound extensive enough to cause death?”
“Absolutely. There was severe trauma to the brain. The man simply could not have lived.”
“Not even for a little while? What I’m getting at, Doctor, is it possible that the bullet merely rendered the man unconscious, put him into a coma, and it was the fire that actually killed him?”
The doctor shook his head impatiently. “A comatose man still breathes. Smoke would have entered the lungs. That didn’t happen.” Dr. Abraham held up one finger. “There is no question. The bullet killed him. The body was dead when it was set on fire.”
Dirkson nodded gravely, as if attaching great weight to the doctor’s remarks. “I see, Doctor. Tell me, did you determine the time of death?”
“I did.”
“And what was the time of death?”
“The decedent met his death between the hours of ten and eleven P.M. on February 26th.”
Dirkson nodded. “Thank you, Doctor. No further questions.”
Judge Grimes looked at the defense table. “Mr. Winslow?”
Steve hesitated just long enough to let the doctor think he was going to get away. Then he rose to his feet. “I have one or two questions, Your Honor.”
Steve stepped out from behind the table and crossed to the witness stand.
The jurors watched with some interest. This was the first witness Steve Winslow had seen fit to cross- examine, which magnified its importance.
“Between the hours of ten and eleven, Doctor?”
“That’s right.”
“That’s a rather precise time frame, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is.”
“How were you able to be so accurate?”
“Because I saw the body so soon after death. I was on the scene at 11:02. I performed the autopsy shortly after midnight.”
“I see. And when did you determine the time of death? At 11:02 when you first saw the body, or shortly after midnight when you performed your autopsy?”
“When I performed my autopsy, of course.”
“You determined the time of death solely from medical factors?”
“Of course.”
“Well, Doctor, I’m just a layman, but as I recall, one of the factors in determining the time of death is post mortem lividity, is that right?”
“It is, but-”
“Just answer the question, Doctor. Post mortem lividity
“Yes.”
“Fine. Now, as I understand post mortem lividity, a dead body has no pulse, therefore after death, the blood stops circulating and tends to gravitate to the lower portions of the body, causing a reddish tinge to appear on the skin. Is that right?”
“Yes, but in this case-”
“In this case that would not be a factor, am I correct? Because it takes time for post mortem lividity to develop and sufficient time had not elapsed, and even if it had, the body was so badly charred the lividity would not have shown. Is that right?”
“Yes,” Dr. Abraham snapped. “That was what I was about to say before you interrupted me.”
“So,” Steve said, “in this case post mortem lividity told you nothing, and was not a factor used in determining the time of death?”
“No, it wasn’t.”
“Then there’s rigor mortis, also used in determining time of death. As I understand it, when the body has been dead for a sufficient time, rigor slowly sets in and the body becomes stiff. Then after sufficient time, rigor leaves the body, and it slowly relaxes again. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is. But-”
“But in this case sufficient time had not elapsed for rigor to even begin to set in, is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“So, rigor mortis was not a factor in determining the time of death?”
“No, it wasn’t.”
“I believe another means is by stomach contents. Since digestion ceases when a person is dead, by examining the contents of the stomach and determining how far digestion has progressed, one can determine fairly
