Friday, May 18, 2012

The Case of Preston Hughes III: Brain Teaser #2

The autopsy reports are in.


In Shandra's Neck, I explained why the wound path through Shandra's neck had to be either side-to-side or front-to-back, or nearly so. I ruled out the possibility that she had been stabbed in the neck at most any angle in between.

In Stabbings Well Done and Stabbing Redeaux, I explained why I believed either a side-to-side or a front-to-back wound path would be exculpatory. If side-to-side, the larynx would have been severed and Shandra would have been unable of providing a dying declaration, as the police so claimed. If front-to-rear, the wound path would have been so similar to that suffered by Marcell that the stabbings would have been the result of a well executed attack rather than an uncontrolled flurry, as Hughes so confessed.

The autopsy reports are in. The wound path through Shandra's neck was front-to-rear. The wound in Shandra's neck was more similar to the wound in Marcell's neck than I would have guessed.

I'm going to present the descriptions of the two neck wounds below. Read and compare them carefully. There will be a pop quiz afterwards.

From Shandra's Autopsy Report
There was a stab wound in the left side of the neck at the left submandibular area located 2 inches to the left of midline and 8 inches below the top of the head. The wound measured 1-1/8 inches in length and gaped up to 1/8 inch in width. There was no blunt end. The stab wound track perforated the soft tissues and muscles of the neck, transected the left jugular vein and the left common carotid artery and the track ended in the soft tissues and muscles of the neck with an approximate depth of penetration of 3-1/2 inches. The direction of the stab wound was from front to back, slightly to the right and slightly upwards.

From Marcell's Autopsy Report
There was a stab wound in the left side of the neck at the left submandibular area located 1-1/2 inches to the left of the midline and 7 inches below the top of the head. The wound measured 1 inch in length and gaped up to 1/8 inch in width. There was no blunt end. The stab wound track perforated the soft tissues and muscles of the left side of the neck, perforated the left common carotid artery, the left jugular vein and exited on the left side of the head at a point 2 inches to the left of the midline and 4 inches below the top of the head. The exit wound measured 9/16 inch in length and gaped up to 3/16 inch in width. This was located 4 inches from the entrance wound. The direction of the stab wound was from front to back, upwards and slightly to the left.

Now here's the pop quiz / brainteaser:
  • 20 points for the first person to explain why these reports exclude Hughes' knife as the murder weapon.
  • 10 points for each unique and insightful observation.
Don't forget to sign your comment with a pseudonym or an actual nym.

Go.

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4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, for starters, in both cases the report states that there was no blunt end to the wounds meaning a double edged knife was used. Preston's knife was single edged.

Paul

tsj said...

Paul,
I hereby award half of the 20 points.

I noticed too that "there was no blunt end." I then hit the net to research that. I quickly came across an extended medical paper on stabbing and puncture wounds. It explained that under two conditions, a blunt edge knife can leave no blunt end on the wound. Elsewhere, it provided enough information to include or exclude these wounds as exceptions.

You'll probably know if you find the same document. It includes lots and lots of photos, and many of them are astounding (and difficult) to behold.

I hold the other 10 points in reserve for the first person to explain why in neck wounds such as these, the absence of blunt ends does in fact indicate a double edge blade.

Matt in California said...

I believe if Shandra's fatal neck wound had been caused by Preston's knife, the evidence would show a larger entry wound than 1 inches based on the front-to-back cut and at the depths the knife reached. Same would go for Marcell (1 1/8 inches).

tsj said...

Matt,
I thought about that too. Check the figures in "Shandra's Neck." Check the one where the knife goes front to back and slightly to the right (her right.) That one looks very close to an inch.

Making the knife more nearly normal to the surface causes the wound size to approximate the blade width.

Not sure about Marcell though. I think I will have to make some images for Marcell as well. That's going to take some time that I won't have for two weeks or so.

Right now, it seems to me as if the wound lengths of 1 to 1-1/8 inch are reasonably consistent with a 1 inch wide blade.

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