Chapter 19

The second day of the trial began with Dr. Tim Houston still on the stand. Wyatt Quinn had few questions he could ask, but he believed he still needed to take a run at the man. Otherwise the jury was likely to take every opinion the man stated as the Gospel.

He began small, questioning some of the word choices that Houston had used. But he soon worked his way up to the question he wanted a different answer to. The capital murder case hinged on special circumstances. In this instance, the circumstance was murder during the commission of another felony – the forcible rape of Mary Beth Brockleman. The state had to prove a rape occurred – without the benefit of direct testimony from the witness. It was akin to trying a murder case without a dead body.

"How can you be certain that the injuries were the results of forced insertion?" Quinn inquired.

"Well, first off all, the deceased are unable to grant consent," Houston answered. Allyson had warned him this question would come and he was prepared. He was glad when the defense attorney asked the question in the manner he had. "That means any sexual relations after death were, by definition, non-consensual."

Quinn blinked at the answer.

"Perhaps we can focus our attention on the charges my client faces," he suggested.

"It is my understanding that your client also faces an 'abuse of a corpse' charge," Houston shot back.

"Let me rephrase," Quinn said. "Let's focus on the charges that relate to when the victim was alive. How can you say with certainty the insertion was forcible?"

"Again, as I testified, yesterday, the injuries lead me to that conclusion," Houston answered.

"A conclusion, not a fact," Quinn jumped in. "Isn't that correct?"

"Your Honor, defense should really let the witness finish his answer before interrupting him," Attenborough said.

"I agree, Counselor," Manning said. "Mr. Quinn, do not speak over a witness again. Dr. Houston, please finish your answer."

"As I was about to say," Houston said, obviously irked by the defense counsel, "routine, normal sexual interaction leaves distinct markers. There are abrasions in certain places on the vagina. The lubrication naturally produced during intercourse lessens the trauma significantly. Forcible intercourse rarely is preceded by stimulation in any form. Therefore the markers are different. The abrasions – or in this case the ripping and tearing of flesh – far exceeded what would be normal for consensual intercourse."

He gave Quinn a "so there" look.

"But what if the sexual contact was not what you'd consider 'normal', Doctor?" the lawyer inquired.

"The level of violence demonstrated by my autopsy exceeded that from a victim I autopsied who died in a bondage and domination dungeon, Mr. Quinn," Houston said. "For that to be the case, the victim in this case would have had to consent to something even the most masochistic would find intolerable. No, Mr. Quinn, for the victim to have participated in something as brutal as her attack she would have to have been unconscious or dead. In this case, she was both. That is my finding based upon twenty-two years of forensic pathology, and the fact that I've conducted autopsies on hundreds of victims of sexual violence. There is no question in my mind that the young woman in this case is another such victim. There was no consent. The level of drugs in her system would preclude it and the level of violence she sustained would make it impossible."

Quinn glared at the witness but he knew he had lost this round.

"I have nothing further," he said as he resumed his seat.

"Redirect, Your Honor," Allyson said, rising from her seat. She had purposefully avoided a line of questioning about how quickly chloral hydrate would take effect. That kept Quinn from broaching the subject. He had blundered by questioning that the sexual contact was consensual. Now Allyson wanted to make sure the jury knew for certain that Mary Beth Brockleman had not consented – because she was unable to consent.

"Dr. Houston, how long would it take for the effects of chloral hydrate to incapacitate someone?" she asked.

"As with so many things, the answer depends on many factors," Houston said, turning in his seat to face the jury. He was about to educate them again and he wanted their attention. "Those factors include weight of the victim, if immunity had been established due to previous usage, how recently the user ate, if the user had liver or stomach damage and if the user was using alcohol."

"Let's use a hypothetical victim who is my size," Allyson said. "I am five-foot-three and I weigh one hundred and twelve pounds. I am not a heavy user of alcohol and I have no previous use of the drug or health issues."

The jury would soon learn that Mary Beth Brockleman was five-foot-one and weighed one hundred four pounds.

"In your case, the correct dosage would create euphoria in about fifteen minutes," he testified. "You would grow increasingly drowsy and fall into a dreamless sleep in about half an hour to forty-five minutes."

"In the correct dosage," Allyson repeated. "What would the correct dosage be for someone my size?"

"For someone your size and weight – and given the other conditions you've stated, the correct dosage would be 500 milligrams – or half a gram," Houston said.

"And were you able to isolate the dosage given to the victim?" Allyson asked.

"Though a blood tox screen, I was able to determine that the victim was given between 1250 milligrams and 1500 milligrams – or between one and a quarter grams and one and a half grams."

"Did the victim in this case have liver damage?" Allyson wondered.

"No," Houston answered. "Her liver was healthy."

"Did she have any health issues related to her stomach?" Allyson inquired.

"She did not," Houston replied. "The lining of the victim's stomach was normal for a woman of her age and general health."

"What was her general health?" Allyson wondered.

"She was in very good health prior to her death," Houston said. "With proper health screenings and the avoidance of accidents or high-risk behavior, she very likely would have lived a very long life."

"Objection, Your Honor," Quinn said. "There is absolutely no way anyone can predict someone's longevity."

"Sustained," Manning stated. "The jury will disregard the witness' last answer."

Allyson shrugged off the objection.

"Now, the victim in this case was five-foot-one and weighed a hundred and four pounds," Allyson said. "Would the correct dosage for her be about the same as for me?"

"It would," Houston agreed.

"So she was given at least twice and possible as much as three times the correct dosage," Allyson said. "Is that your testimony?"

"She was given two-and-a-half to three times the correct amount of chloral hydrate," Houston said, nodding firmly.

"What would have been the reaction of someone the of victim's size?" Allyson asked.

"Your Honor, this again calls for testimony outside of Dr. Houston's expertise," Quinn tried.

"He is not only a forensic pathologist, he is a licensed physician," Allyson pointed out. "This is something anyone with a prescription pad should be able to answer. If you like, I can spend the next hour laying a foundation or we can accept it is a question a physician should be able to answer."

Manning considered for a moment.

"Dr. Houston, do you believe this is within your area of expertise?" he asked finally.

"I agree with Ms. Granger, Your Honor," Houston told the bench. "Drug interactions and the effects of an overdose are things any trained physician should be able to answer."

"The objection is overruled," Manning said as Houston turned back to face the jury.

"The word I used with Judge Manning was correct," he said. "This was an overdose. That not only speeds up the onset of symptoms – slurred speech, loss of coordination, difficulty swallowing and unconsciousness – but it also presents other problems. Quite honestly, another half gram very likely would have caused acute respiratory distress and death. At the very least, a dosage that size could have led to kidney and liver damage."

"So the affects would have been seen earlier," Allyson said. "How much earlier?"

"That is something I cannot answer with certainty," Houston admitted. "The rapidity was increased by alcohol usage prior to ingestion. But with a dose this large the effects very likely would be almost immediate. As soon as the stomach absorbed the drug into the bloodstream the user would demonstrate diminished capacity. Alcohol usage increases the potency of the hypnotic or euphoric affects. Those would present within minutes, as would slurred speech and loss of coordination. But the user would certainly be unconscious in less than a quarter hour – possibly within five minutes – with a dose of more than a gram."

Allyson gathered up her notes and started to head back to her table before she stopped.

"One more thing I want to get your testimony about," she said. "Can you describe in general terms what happens to the body at death?"

"The heart stops pumping, obviously," Houston answered. "The brain stops sending messages to the muscles so they relax at first. Is that what you mean?"