| Trial Testimony - Day 2 |
| Written by Mike Mayleben |
| Saturday, 12 September 2009 19:27 |
|
Prosecution witnesses: Hamilton Township police Lt. Jeff Braley, Sgt. Lisa Elliott, Detective Paul Bailey and officers Quinlan Short, Mark Bedwell and Tim Rector - all people involved in the crime investigation. Hamilton Township Fire and Rescue Lt. Brian Dapper, Jason Stevens, Jeff Teague, Max Smith, Tim Tolliver - medics who were involved. Dr. David Marcus; nurses Amy Costello and Lila Gibbs - medical personnel at Bethesda Arrow Springs, where Sarah Widmer was pronounced dead. Warren County Coroner Russell Uptegrove - performed an autopsy on Sarah Widmer. Dr. John Becker - the Fort Thomas dentist who employed Sarah Widmer. Stephanie and Jeremy Mitchell - neighbors of the Widmers. Mike Steward of Washington, D.C. -- Brother of Sarah Widmer. Defense witnesses Dr. Werner U. Spitz - an expert on death investigations who has testified in high-profile death cases worldwide. He also conducted an autopsy on Sarah Widmer. Benjamin Messmer of Newport and Patty Kroger of Alexandria - co-workers of Sarah Widmer Ben Huffman, Shirley Bonekemper, Linda Smith and Carol Monnin - co-workers of Ryan Widmer. Mandy Antonczak - the Widmers' next-door neighbor. Many of the same Hamilton Township medics listed by prosecutors. First Day jury was picked. Testimony begins with Day 2 ----------------------------------------------------- Tuesday March 24th FIRST WITNESS: 911 Dispatcher He discusses his training, credentials and the procedure for taking emergency calls. ...All calls are automatically and digitally logged, the dispatcher testifies. Attorneys look at the call log, which is admitted as evidence. ...He explains that the digital recorder will sometimes cut out to save computer RAM when the audio level drops below a certain level. It's essentially voice-activated, dispatcher says. 911 Call is played: www.911dispatch.com/reference/lebanon_drowning_911.mp3 (Be sure to turn volume up to hear background sounds when no one is talking.) Sarah Widmer had been in the tub for as long as a half hour, Ryan tells the dispatcher. "She falls asleep in the tub all the time," he says. You hear him give a low wail and then cry, and he tells the dispatcher he'll have to set down the phone to remove her from the tub. Dispatcher tells him to place her on a flat surface. (You hear the sounds of Ryan groaning and breathing heavily, along with some bumping sounds.) You can hear sirens faintly in the background, and Ryan tells the dispatcher he's upstairs. You can hear Ryan breathing heavily as he runs down to open the door for emergency crews. Then it cuts out due to sound level. Screaming, yelling now. Not sure who. Dog barking, Ryan apparently calls to it. As the taped call ends, dispatcher says it matches his recollection of it. Dispatcher says he's taken many accidental death calls prior to this one, and he says Widmer calmer than most. Most callers unable to even give address, other info. "Seems that he was rather calm, I would say," dispatcher says. Everyone has different reactions, he says, but he thought Widmer rather calm, which he found odd. Defense objects when prosecutor Vieux asks if he's taken accidental death calls from a hospice place, and the judge sustains it. Dispatcher thought breaths given rather fast during Widmer's attempts to perform CPR, based on what he heard. Can't say whether it was performed incorrectly or just breathing into the phone. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: ...Dispatcher says he never met Ryan, so can't judge his reaction. ...Dispatcher says he was unaware Widmer house had two bathrooms upstairs, and cross exam ends. ============================================================================= ============================================================================= NEXT WITNESS: Officer Steve Bishop - First officer to arrive at scene ...goes over his training as a law enforcement officer and in life-saving procedures. ...says he arrived at 10:49 p.m. Bishop explains route he took to home, and he says it took him about 3 min from time of dispatch call to arrival. Mailboxes in subdivision have two boxes per post, so not sure which house for sure. Pounded on door, opened it and yelled "sheriff's office." No reply, so shut door and asked cadet ride-along to check next door. Second time he opens door, a man yells "Up here." ...Maybe 20 seconds elapsed between first and second time opening door. ...Saw Ryan standing at top of stairs..IDs Ryan in courtroom. ...Bishop went upstairs, and dog started barking when he got to second floor. Ryan says the dog won't hurt him and they go upstairs to master bedroom. ...Saw victim laying on floor on back, feet on carpet but just outside bathroom door. Unresponsive and nude, head pointed back toward bed. ...Immediately stepped around her, grabbed her arm and shook her, no response, checked pulse, but found none. Lowered head to check for breathing, but none detected. "I saw the victim lying on the ground face down, she was unresponsive and nude," Bishop tells the jury. "Her feet were on the carpet, right at the threshold of the master bedroom." ...didn't detect any breathing. ...began to perform CPR on Sarah. "I got in a position on her left side and started to do chest compressions, I observed a pink discharge coming from her mouth and her nose." "I noticed that her hair was damp, her eyes appeared to be matted closed, almost like there was Vaseline around her eyes. Her body was dry," Arnold then asks Bishop to explain what happens next. He says he was the only first responder until about this moment, when someone comes upstairs. Hamilton Twp firefighter or EMT meets him at the doorway. The Hamilton Twp. guy begins CPR, asks for items from his bag. ...Bishop not sure what he's referring to, so Bishop begins to do CPR. "I know how to do chest compressions, but I don't know what's in the bag," he says. EMT is retrieving items from his medic bag, while the sheriff's deputy performs chest compressions. ..Bishop says he performed CPR but stopped whenever EMT needed him to stop to hook her up to some device, which he can't ID for certain, and would resume compressions. Was there TV in master bedroom? Yes, Bishop says. Bengals game on, he says. Prosecutor John Arnold sets up some foam-core mounted diagrams of Widmer home. Entered as evidence. Bishop identifies stairs, master bed/bath on floor plan. ...Bishop shows how Sarah's body was positioned, in relation to the diagram. ...Bishop touched body to check for life signs, not wearing gloves. Wearing gloves during chest compressions. ...Bishop assisted in efforts until Sarah Was removed from the bedroom. "That's when I relinquished my participation," he testifies. A paramedic took over. Prosecutor John Arnold then places a picture of Sarah on the projection screen. He asks, "Is this the woman that you saw?" "Yes," he confirms. Bishop then started to walk around looking at rooms. ...checked out the bathroom. "Curious by nature," he says. "I walked into the bathroom to just look around to see if I could find something to make sense of a 24-year-old non-breather lying on the floor." Young people's deaths often drug-related, so he was looking around for evidence of drugs or overdose. Looking for evidence to explain 24-year-old nonbreather on floor. ...Talked with another deputy about what they observed at the scene. Walked around house, looked in bedroom for anything out of the ordinary. No evidence of forced entry or struggle. None found for either, Bishop says. ...Bishop and other officers decided to treat scene as possible crime scene, so secured it with crime scene tape. "You can always take it down if you don't need it," he says. ...A sgt suggests writing down names of anyone who'd gone inside the home. He stood on the porch and began such a list. ...Bishop IDs photos of Widmer house taken in the dark with crime scene tape strung up. Photos entered as evidence. Photo of bedroom shown, with television directly to right of bathroom with graphic from BoSox-ChiSox game shown on screen. ...Widmer told Bishop he was downstairs watching Bengals game, went upstairs, found wife in tub and began attempt to perform CPR. Ryan told him she may have been in tub between 15-30 minutes. ...Bishop walked around the home before he left with other investigators, to visually collect evidence. ...Some bloodstains found on bedroom carpet, which appeared dry. Bathroom floor had magazine, towel or rug, clothes. Floor also dry, Bishops says. ...TV off downstairs, and channel it had been on was an issue. None of the deputies were sure at the time which channel the Bengals game was on, but thinks it's documented in notes. -------------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: Rittgers turns on photo projection program. ...Shows photos of some carpet samples cut from rug by investigators. Bishop says he noted ionic breeze knocked over near site of bloody carpet. More photos of master bedroom are shown with Baseball game on TV, which is on dresser 2 or 3 feet from bathroom door. ...Bishop says nothing else unusual detected in bedroom. IDs bathtub, sinks in master bath. ...Photo of floor of master bath. Magazines laying on floor, an apparent hair straightener cord hanging from counter to floor. ...Bishop had been looking for drug evidence, but found none. Rittgers asks if another visible cord may be a cell phone cord, but Bishop isn't sure. ...Bishop continues to ID photos taken upstairs. Rittgers asks if there were signs of a struggle. None identified, he replies. Prosecutor Arnold objects to looking at slideshow, saying that photos should be named for record, but judge seems to side with defense. Rittgers is speaking in slow, measured, tones, showing slide after slide. But now he's identifying the photos, including exhibit numbers. ...Bishop says he spoke to Ryan for a very short time before crews began CPR. Ryan was wearing boxer shorts, there was no blood or other marks visible on him. ------------------------------------------------------------- REDIRECT: ...Bishop says Ryan was wearing boxer briefs. Sarah nonbreathing, no response to any efforts to revive. ...Bishop says he did not perform compressions on Sarah's throat, only her chest. ================================================================ ================================================================ NEXT WITNESS: Jason Stevens -- Hamilton Township Firefighter/Paramedic ...He gives his credentials, provides definition of paramedic. ...He arrived at 10:53 p.m., or four minutes after called ...describes route they took to house. ...He and firefighter Jeff Teague arrived together, grabbed equipment (EKG, defibrulator, etc.) opened front door and checked for dog. ...He says he had no contact with Ryan during the time he was inside the home, but he was one of the people who saw Sarah immediately after her death. "First thing I noticed, she was naked and she had a small bit of red substance coming out of her mouth," he says. "Her hair was damp and it was slicked back." It wasn't dripping wet." ...but no signs of trauma. Stevens did not see two red areas on carpet when he was there. The photos were taken after Sarah's body moved. One larger spot (softball-sized?) near where head had been, another spot about half that size a foot or two closer to feet. Assistant prosecutor Travis Vieux asks, what about her skin and body? "No it was not wet," Stevens tells the jury. The witness shows a demonstration of the CPR rescue attempt to the jury. He explains the details of the scene. "The first problem was the fluid in her mouth." ...made two unsuccessful attempts at CPR, he tells the courtroom. ...Stevens continues demonstration, but tells prosecutors that he was unable to successfully intubate Sarah due to vomit inside her throat. ...Stevens shows them, using a medical model of the esophogus, where he was hoping to insert the intubation ..."When I was trying to put Sarah's head in stiffening, there was some sort of retraction. I couldn't keep her chin in a stiffening position." ...A diagram of a throat is shown to the jury. Stevens explains what he did to Sarah's throat ...describes the difficulty of performing the CPR methods. "I was looking for two white cords - vocal cords, but I couldn't find them," he says. "I then went down stairs to get the medications ready." ...Sarah's hair was damp and appeared combed as if by a hair pick and not a comb. She was not dripping wet, Stevens testifies. ...Skin of her body not wet. Stevens and prosecutor Arnold are bringing a CPR dummy to the floor in front of the jury box. Stevens demonstrates chest compressions on the dummy. Stevens helped remove Sarah's body from the house on a backboard, and Prosecutor Vieux shows a photo of the stairway they went down. It has a landing and 180-degree turn, which he said makes such a transport difficult. ...shows the jury how Sarah was placed on the backboard, which was used to transfer Sarah to ambulance. Stevens can't remember if Sarah's head was secure when she was strapped to backboard. ...Doing so not necessarily standard procedure, if there was no head/neck trauma. ...Epinephrine administered, Stevens says, but no response. ...four people were handling the backboard at the crime scene. Stevens testifies that an EKG test indicated that Sarah was dead when she arrived at the ambulance. A copy of emergency crews' report is shown on the projector. --------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: ...Rittgers shows copy of paramedics' report, which shows Sarah's skin warm to hot, and hair was damp. Rittgers notes in his cross exam that paramedics try to perform CPR on a patient with no heartbeat. Prosecutors object that it was not phrased as question, but Rittgers says he simply hadn't finished before Vieux interrupted. ...Stevens is asked to demonstrate an intubation on the CPR dummy Stevens is explaining that he did not see the portions of Sarah's throat he needed to perform a successful intubation. Rittgers implies in his questions that maybe Stevens was distracted by other medics assisting him, but Stevens indicates that he was not. ...Rittgers is asking about particulars of when firefighter Teague assisted with one maneuver. ...Stevens says medics attempted suction multiple times throughout their transport of Sarah. ...Stevens says they used the ambulance's on-board suction to remove vomit from Sarah's throat, which they needed to do to intubate. Rittgers shows a medical tool used to shine light down the throat. ...Five attempts made to intubate, all unsuccessful, Stevens says Stevens testified previously that he has performed five intubations in his career. Rittgers is asking about attempts to insert medication into Sarah's jugular vein. She was unresponsive upon arrival, never showed signs of life, and an EKG test in the ambulance showed she was dead. Sarah was officially pronounced dead at the hospital. (approximately 11:40 p.m.) ---------------------------------------------------- REDIRECT: ...Stevens said damp in testimony but wet in report. But he says he was clarifying, because water was not dripping from her hair. Prosecution asks, "Were efforts frantic, as characterized by defense?" "We're always a little bit in a hurry to get up steps, but most time my demeanor is about what you see today," Stevens says. He's been repeatedly asked to speak up for the court reporter. ...Pressure was applied to throat 3 to 5 seconds while intubation efforts were made, Stevens says. ...Stevens says no additional pressure applied to place IV into jugular vein. He explains that skin is tightened to find and expose the vein. ================================================================ BREAK FOR LUNCH ================================================================ ================================================================ NEXT WITNESS: Jeff Teague -- Hamilton Twp. Firefighter and EMTB (he arrived with paramedic Stevens as testified to earlier) ...He goes over his certifications and other training. Teague also testifies about their route to the house. About a mile from the station, about 4 or 5 minutes from dispatch to arrival. Responding to bathtub drowning Dispatch alerted them en route that the patient was being removed from the tub. Teague says he grabbed a first-in bag (oxygen, other items needed for first contact with patient) and headed to door. They announced themselves and began to walk up steps. They had no direct contact with Ryan, but saw him in hallway. ...He IDs a photo of the Widmer bedroom, including two bloody spots on floor. ...He says Sarah's head was at the location of the larger bloody spot. There's a smaller one about halfway between head and feet. He says spots not noticed until later. ...Teague says he opened her airway, and he steps down to demonstrate on CPR dummy lying on the courtroom floor. Teague's continuing to demonstrate how he began to apply pads used with the defibrulator. Sarah's skin was dry, he says. The pads won't stick well to wet skin, and no drying was necessary. ...Jason Stevens was placing mask over Sarah's mouth at this point, he says. Teague and at least one other medic reached across her body to roll Sarah over. When they rolled her over, that's when medics noticed blood spot on floor near her pelvic area. The large spot is likely due to resuscitative efforts, Teague testifies. Teague is demonstrating light pressure he says would be used during attempts to intubate. Heavy pressure could harm trachea, he says. Teague says he did not apply pressure to sides of Sarah's neck or shoulders during intubation attempts, and he did not see Stevens apply pressure to Sarah's shoulders or the sides of her neck during his intubation attempts. Teague testifies, as did Stevens, that a very tall fireman was able to lift the bodyboard high over his head to move Sarah gently around a tight 180-degree turn in the stairs. Teague's demonstrating CPR technique on the dummy. ---------------------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: Teague says that crews continued their efforts to revive Sarah at the home until someone said they should take her to a hospital. Isn't sure if a Lt. Dapper made that call. ---------------------------------------------------------------- PROSECUTION REDIRECT: Teague says he can't recall exactly how wet or not Sarah's body was. Hair wet, but can't recall body. ---------------------------------------------------------------- DEFENSE REDIRECT: Rittgers questions about exact wording on statement about exact wetness of body. Talk gets a little snippy between witness and attorney but over quickly. ================================================================ ================================================================ NEXT WITNESS: Sgt. Lisa Elliott of Hamilton Twp. Police Deputy Bishop was performing chest compressions when she arrived, Elliott says. Compressions clean and proper, she says Elliott says she asked an Officer Bedwell to lead Ryan out of the room during life-saving efforts. She said she did so because the scene was dramatic, and perhaps family members should not be present while crews worked. ...She noticed that the body was dry when pads were applied for the defibrulator. Elliott said no pruning was present in feet or fingers, which she had helped move to assist emergency crews. She helped transport Sarah outside, saw Ryan outside on lawn, talking on cell phone. He was Wearing T-shirt, shorts out there, but had been in boxers previously. Noticed nothing unusual about his demeanor. Ryan said he would accompany wife to hospital. She noticed an odor of alcohol. Ryan said he had consumed about four beers. She got him a seat in the life squad. Elliott went inside to retrieve any equipment left behind. Says bathroom floor, bunched-up towel on floor were not wet. Elliott and another officer decided to call Lt. Braley, the township's investigator. "Things were not adding up," she said. ...Floor not wet, other items not wet, body not wet, fingers/feet not pruned, healthy individual slipped down into tub seemed odd to her. Elliott said there was no indication of drug/alcohol overdose. Officers placed dog into secure room, Elliott says. She had no further contact with Ryan that evening. -------------------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: Rittgers asks Elliot about Ryan's actions when she arrived at the house. ...asks Elliot if she ever witnessed Ryan crying or choking back tears while she was at the residence. "No he wasn't upset," Elliot says. Elliott saw Ryan twice, Rittgers says. Once in doorway, when she asked the officer to lead him away. He was wearing black shorts, white T-shirt, Elliott says. Next saw him outside on cell phone, but can't recall what he was wearing. He was dry. He was talking on the cell phone and I went up to him. I asked him if he had anything to drink. He said yes, about four beers." Rittgers asks if she learned in police academy to write down pertinent facts. She says she did. Rittgers notes that her report did not indicate Ryan's demeanor. She says she was never close enough to note tears or anything like that. He seemed upset on cell phone, but she can't remember if he was choking back tears or anything. He was upset as she escorted him to the ambulance, too. During Elliot’s testimony, she also explains the conditions of the bathroom and master bedroom in the Widmer’s home. "The floor in the bathroom was dry. There was a towel on the floor that was bunched up and a few magazines," Elliot says. "The carpet wasn't wet either. I touched it." Elliott demonstrates how she felt Sarah's skin. Basically, just knelt down, placed an open palm on her. No further questions. ==================================================================== ==================================================================== NEXT WITNESS: Officer Mark Bedwell -- Hamilton Twp. Police Officer He's providing credentials at the prosecutor's request Bedwell arrived at the scene to find Deputy Bishop was performing CPR on a nude female, who was lying with her feet in the bathroom doorway. He IDs the same photo as other witnesses. Bedwell says Ryan was squatting in the doorway in his underwear while crews performed CPR. He says Elliott asked him to get Ryan out of the doorway, because the room was crowded and he was blocking doorway. Bedwell sat Ryan down in a chair in a game room down the hall from the master bedroom, still clad in his boxers. Officer asked him Sarah's name, age, whether on meds/drugs. Bedwell says Ryan "emotionless." He said he'd been watching football downstairs and went up to check on wife, who he found face down in bathtub water. Bedwell went to tell medics this information. ...Bedwell says he did not find any wet areas in bedroom, noticed vaginal bleeding and bodily fluids on Sarah's mouth. ...Bedwell says he had no further contact with Ryan, who he says might have remained in chair near steps in game room. Bedwell helped transport Sarah down around the corner and down the steps. Board was never dropped or inverted, he says. ...Bedwell remembers he saw Ryan again outside, but no further contact inside house. Ryan said he would accompany wife to hospital in ambulance. No further contact with either Widmer. Made sure all police vehicles out of ambulance's way, went upstairs. ...Bedwell thought it was odd Sarah had drowned but could find no signs of water anywhere. ...Bedwell strung up crime scene tape with other officers and waited for Detective Jeff Braley to arrive. ...Went to a nearby Kroger to get brown bags to use for evidence collection, Bedwell says. He began to log all evidence into notebook. Bedwell is identifying photos of the Widmers' house. ...football game was on TV in the master bedroom when officers arrived, but he admits he's not a football fan and isn't sure if it was a Bengals game. ...On the television in the master bedroom, that is. ...He took a good look at the inside of the bathtub. Shampoo bottle and some clothing on edge of tub. At least two items, not identified, lying on bottom of the tub. Bedwell thought it was strange those items were on tub edge but doesn't say why. ...Towel, some clothing, some sort of carry-on bag, magazine lying on floor. Items had been dumped from trashcan near toilet. Bedwell says bathroom photographed in condition officers found it. ...he detected no dampness in the tub. "I couldn't find any sign of water anywhere," Bedwell says. ------------------------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: Bedwell goes over his training, some of which occured in the '70s, but he went through again in his 50s more recently. "I think they enjoyed trying to get an old man through the academy," he says. (He'd owned and operated his own chemical company after leaving the force decades ago.) Charlie Rittgers starts to ask Bedwell questions about his police report. "I didn't see anywhere in your report that Ryan was emotionless...pretty significant huh," Rittgers says. Bedwell shrugs. Bedwell noted no marks on Ryan's face, hands, fingers or anywhere. Looking at photo of tub, Bedwell guesses that inside of tub about 4 feet long. Shampoo bottle on one outside corner, other items on opposite outside corner. Bedwell admits that he's not saying Sarah could not be pulled from tub without disturbing those items. Notes no signs of struggle in photo of bathroom interior. Bedwell can't be sure if another officer had dumped out trash can to look for drug or other evidence. Photo of first-floor family room, no signs of struggle there or in other rooms shown. Close-up photo near bathtub drain shows bottle of soap and what Rittgers describes as water droplets on stopper. Bedwell admits that he can't tell. He assumes the photo was taken that evening, but he's not sure when. =================================================== =================================================== NEXT WITNESS: Lt. Brian Dapper, Hamilton Township fire department -- it would have been his call as to when to transport Sarah to hospital Dapper goes over his training as an EMT and paramedic. Front door was already open when Dapper arrived. Other medics told him they were upstairs. Dapper IDs the photo of the master bedroom that we've seen all day. Dapper describes where first responders were positioned in the master bedroom. He noted no water or dampness on Sarah, except for her hair. He helped log roll her onto the backboard. Still saw no dampness. He helped carry Sarah downstairs. Dapper says there was nothing unusual or improper about attempts to intubate Sarah. Using the trachea model, Dapper describes the Sellick maneuver, which is used to help intubate a patient. ---------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: Dapper testifies that he told a defense investigator that he watched and took part in some attempts to perform the Sellick maneuver and intubate Sarah. He says that chest compressions are intended to move the blood column inside chest, about 25 percent more pressure is used than usual. ...He did not accompany Sarah to the hospital. Took fire engine back to station, and returned to Widmer home while firefighters provided statements to police. ----------------------------------------------------- REDIRECT: Dapper again testifies that he helped with the Sellick maneuver (as Rittgers also asked), and he told the medic the tube he'd inserted was not in the proper position for intubation. ======================================================== NEXT WITNESS: Quinlan Short -- Hamilton Township patrolman Short arrived at the scene shortly after Bishop and a cadet, went upstairs to master bedroom. Found medics performing CPR on Sarah. Short looked around for evidence to explain why a healthy young person might have drowned. He saw Ryan and briefly spoke to him about what happened. Deputy Bishop told Short he'd dumped out the bathroom trash can looking for evidence, and Short continued looking around. Nothing in the bathroom appeared wet. "Things just didn't add up," Short said. He looked around the house, then went outside to meet Lt. Jeff Braley, who police decided to call to help investigate. The ambulance with Sarah was still outside at that point, he says. ...Short and Bedwell put up crime scene tape and secured the outside of the house, making sure no broken windows, etc. ...Short began photographing crime scene, starting with mailbox, photographing perimeter, then going inside, room by room. Short says he remembers that Bengals game was on television when he arrived. Monday night, ESPN. Bengals vs. Green Bay Packers. Television in living room was turned off, but had possibly last been tuned to WLWT. Can't remember for sure, but not ESPN, Short says. Closeup photo shown of magazine found on bathroom floor and woman's bag of personal items. ...Photo shown of laundry room. No damp clothing or other items found there. Photo shown of two Bud Lite cans on kitchen table. Short says he thinks they were empty. ...Photo of two more empty Bud Lite Cans found on a shelf in a utility room, and another one nearby. ...Photo shown of a laptop computer found on coffee table in living room. A damp Lysol wipe was found on edge of bathtub, Short says. Gray sports bra entered into evidence. It was found on edge of tub, no evidence of dampness when found. White Victoria's Secret underwear found on edge of tub, Short says, also dry. Gray shorts entered into evidence, found on edge of tub, also dry. Black sports bra, Victoria's Secret gray tank top, gray underwear also recovered from bathroom. All dry when found. Short unwraps brown bath towel found on floor from evidence packaging. Appeared to have been fresh towel, also dry. A People magazine is entered into evidence, and Short says he found no smearing, smudging or other water-related damage. Star magazine also recovered from bathroom, also dry. People, Parents, and InTouch magazine also discovered under clothing in bathroom, all dry. Dry when recovered. A letter marked "In case of marriage emergency" found in Ryan's bedside table. Entered into evidence. Green wedding card from Monica & Tim Peppard also found in bedside table. Also church-related brochure about marriage counseling. All entered into evidence. Another envelope, "In case of marriage emergency," addressed to Sarah and containing the same items as the one addressed to Ryan, found in his nighstand. Note from Sarah to Ryan. "I can't believe it's finally here, I love you so much ..." An apology to being "such a bitch," but no explanation. ------------------------------------------------------- CROSS EXAM: Short doesn't know if note from Sarah to Ryan was presented on wedding day. Short points our where Lysol wipe found, which is on outer corner of tub, near a partially full container of Lysol wipes. Magazines were found under clothes on other outer corner of tub. Short says time/date stamp feature is on the camera, but he's not sure if it had been activated when crime scene photos taken. Photos were taken right after written consent was given for search. Ryan gave consent, as far as Short knows, without any problem. Short says he doesn't know when beer in empty Bud Lite cans had been consumed. Maybe that night, maybe earlier. Prosecutors and defense come to an agreement that crime scene photos were taken Aug. 12 beginning at 12:36 a.m., a couple of hours after crews first responded to the house. Police took about 20-30 minutes shooting photos. Started on first floor, went upstairs, then to garage and basement. Officers obtained warrant to collect bathtub and plumbing. Short saw no marks of any kind on Ryan the night of Sarah's death. ------------------------------------------------------ REDIRECT: No dampness or water on Ryan, Short says. No sign of moisture or water in other bathroom on second floor. Jurors dismissed for the day. |