Matthew Hess testified about recovering a CD from the Mercedes and authenticating vehicle photographs on Day 35. On cross-examination, he described apparent bullet damage that the defense argued could explain Tsarnaev's driving, while qualifying his observations as nonexpert estimates.
Law enforcementMassachusetts State Police
Matthew Hess
Massachusetts State Police crime scene services investigator based in Worcester.
Appeared2015 Federal Trial
71 lines·3 proceedings·2 mentions
About
Matthew Hess testified on Day 35 about examining the black Mercedes at Watertown police headquarters on April 21, 2013. The Massachusetts State Police trooper described photographing the vehicle while assisting with its processing for ballistic evidence. He then obtained power with help from a tow truck, ejected a CD, photographed it, and bagged it.
On direct examination, Hess identified the recovered CD and authenticated a bumper photograph. The court admitted the photograph as Government Exhibit 782 without objection and admitted the CD as Government Exhibit 863 after the defense stated its position was subject to its motion. Hess remembered bumper damage but had made no notes about it and did not remember discoloration.
On cross-examination, Hess authenticated photographs showing apparent bullet damage to the windshield, vehicle sides, and headrests, along with a shattered rear window. He qualified his visual estimates by stating that he was not a ballistician and lacked projectile expertise. Bruck argued that the damage supported an inference that Tsarnaev was ducking and might not always have seen where he was driving; the government disputed that basis and objected to the photographs on scope, advance-notice, and relevance grounds. The court overruled the objection and admitted nine defense photographs. There was no redirect.
Trial Record (3)
No proceedings match this filter.