3.René Robinson — Direct/Cross/Redirect
476 linesRENÉ ROBINSON, duly sworn
COURT CLERK: Have a seat. State your name, spell your name for the record, keep your voice up and speak into the mic.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Sure. My name is Dr. René Robinson. Last name is spelled R-O-B-I-N-S-O-N.
DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Dr. Robinson, if I could have just one moment.
(Pause.)
MR. MELLIN: Thank you. Dr. Robinson, where are you employed?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I'm employed at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Boston.
MR. MELLIN: And if we could just briefly go through your background. Where did you grow up?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I'm sorry. Where did I grow up?
MR. MELLIN: Yes. I'm throwing you way back.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Okay. I grew up in Ohio, actually. Columbus in Northeastern Ohio.
MR. MELLIN: Did you not want to admit that in Massachusetts?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Go Buckeyes.
MR. MELLIN: I felt that was coming. And where did you go to school?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did my undergraduate in Ohio, as well as my medical school, and that was seven years combined. After medical school, I furthered my training by going to a pathology residency at Dartmouth in New Hampshire. That was four years. Beyond that, I did one additional year in training for forensic pathology in Richmond, Virginia, at which point I took a job with Massachusetts.
MR. MELLIN: The four-year residency, what was that about?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Pathology residency is training for doctors. And after medical school, everybody takes a residency. I took pathology. And that's the study of disease in the human body. Primarily it's hospital-based. And the best explanation I can give you of what we do is, one, autopsies; but, two, in a hospital setting, if you ever had a biopsy taken out by a surgeon, that tissue specimen goes to pathology. They put it on a microscopic slide and the doctor looks at the slide underneath the microscope and can render a diagnosis.
MR. MELLIN: And you said you did a one-year study in Richmond, or were you actually working for the medical examiner's office there?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Both. It's a training program, but you are working every day in the capacity as a medical examiner. This is in forensic pathology. It's one year. And this is a specialization of regular pathology in that not only are you studying normal human disease and anatomy, but you're also studying abnormal things like trauma and injury.
MR. MELLIN: And when you say "abnormal things," are you also studying how someone would die?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. The forensic pathology fellowship was primarily autopsies in a medical examiner office.
MR. MELLIN: As you sit here today in 2015, have you performed autopsies yourself?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I have.
MR. MELLIN: Approximately how many?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Over a thousand.
MR. MELLIN: Can you just briefly describe -- not all thousand, just briefly describe how it is that you go about doing an autopsy.
RENÉ ROBINSON: An autopsy can be broken into two parts. The first part is the external exam. And during the external exam, I'm walking around with a clipboard, I'm looking at the outside of the body. I'm noting any normal or abnormal things that I find on the body. In addition, I'm noting scars, tattoos, eye color, hair color, all the finer details of the outside of the body. And I make notes of this on a body diagram that's on my clipboard. That's the first part of the autopsy. The second part is actually opening up the body using a Y incision, taking out all the organs one by one, and inspecting them again for normal disease processes or abnormal processes like trauma.
MR. MELLIN: You mentioned the Y incision. What is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: In order to get to the organs, a Y incision is performed. And what that is is using a scalpel to cut the skin from each shoulder to about the middle of the chest, and then bringing it down to about the level of the navel and pulling the skin back to get to the organs.
MR. MELLIN: And what do you actually do with the organs?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I take them out one by one, I dissect each of them in a special way that will help me look for abnormal or normal things.
MR. MELLIN: Do you also examine the skull?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: How do you go about doing that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: We make an incision into the scalp, pull the scalp forward so that we can get to the bone of the skull, use a bone saw to open the top of the skull to get to the brain. At that point we can look at the outside of the brain, take the brain out, weigh it, dissect it and make our notes.
MR. MELLIN: Typically, when you're looking at a brain, what are you looking for?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Usually in our setting we're suspecting trauma over anything. But we're looking for, again, maybe the person has a natural disease going on. So both natural and unnatural things.
MR. MELLIN: I'm assuming that a gunshot wound to the head is an unnatural thing?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It is.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. So how do you go about investigating a gunshot wound to the skull and ultimately to the brain?
RENÉ ROBINSON: When you're looking at a gunshot wound, the most important part of the autopsy is the external exam, or the first portion. We're looking at the gunshot wounds to note size, characteristics, location on the body, and we're noting all that down. And that can help tell us what's an entrance, what's an exit, how close the gun was to the body, things like that.
MR. MELLIN: You mentioned an entrance and an exit. What are you talking about?
RENÉ ROBINSON: When a bullet goes through the body, it creates a hole, which is the entrance, and if it goes through the body, it will create an exit hole. So entrance and exit holes. But sometimes the bullet does not leave the body and you only have an entrance wound and the bullet will still be in the body.
MR. MELLIN: Are entrance wounds and exit wounds essentially the same or do they usually have different patterns?
RENÉ ROBINSON: They usually have characteristic patterns that can help us identify what's an entrance and what an exit is.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And what kind of characteristics are you looking for?
RENÉ ROBINSON: The presence of a muzzle stamp, gunpowder residues, various configurations of the size of the wound itself.
MR. MELLIN: You mentioned a muzzle stamp. What is a muzzle stamp?
RENÉ ROBINSON: To describe a muzzle stamp I'm going to have to talk a little bit about how a gun works. When a gun is fired, it's not just the bullet that comes out of the barrel of the gun; there's burned and unburned powder residues, there's soot, there's hot gases. All of this is following the bullet out of the end of the muzzle. When the muzzle of the gun is pressed up against the skin, it can create an abrasion or contusion, and that just means scraping of the skin or bruising of the skin because the skin pressed up against the end of the muzzle will create the pattern of the end of the muzzle.
MR. MELLIN: Looking at an entrance wound of a gunshot injury, are you able to determine if it's a wound that was caused by having the gun right next to the skin or if some distance very close to the skin?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes, we can tell that.
MR. MELLIN: How do you go about telling that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: A contact gunshot wound will create a muzzle stamp that I talked about previously. This is a pattern around the hole of the entrance wound itself that is red to red-black in nature, or in color, and has a pattern that is similar to the end of the muzzle that created it. Now, if the gun is not pressed up against the skin, you can get something called stippling. So if you remember before when I said that other things than the bullet are coming out at the end of the muzzle, the gases, the powder, if the gun is near the skin but not pressed up against the skin, not only is the bullet hitting the skin, but all these residues, these gases, these unburned and burned powder residues, they will create what's called tattooing into the skin, stippling. I think that's best demonstrated on your following exhibits.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. You're way ahead of me. Have you ever testified as an expert before in a court?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I have.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Approximately how many times?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Over 20.
MR. MELLIN: Okay.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, at this time I would ask to qualify Dr. Robinson an expert in forensic pathology.
THE COURT: Is there any objection?
MR. WATKINS: No.
THE COURT: Okay.
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Dr. Robinson, concerning this case, did you perform an autopsy on Sean Collier?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: And as a result of that, did you actually prepare a report?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: And in preparation of testimony here today and in preparation of meeting with the prosecutors, did you also prepare a bit of a PowerPoint presentation?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And do you have that with you today?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. If you would like, you may refer to that while you're testifying. Let me take you back to April 19th, 2013. On April 19th, 2013, did you perform the autopsy of Sean Collier?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: Can you describe for the ladies and gentlemen of the jury what it is you did.
RENÉ ROBINSON: I performed an autopsy on Mr. Collier, again looking at the outside of his body, the first half of the autopsy, and the second half, opening up his body to investigate his organs.
MR. MELLIN: Based on your autopsy, did you determine a cause of death?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: And what was the cause of Sean Collier's death?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Gunshot wounds of the head.
MR. MELLIN: Did you also determine what is called the manner of death?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: And what is the manner of death?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Homicide.
MR. MELLIN: What do you mean by "manner of death"?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So the medical examiners render a manner of death, and this is a classification of how they died. There's accident, natural, homicide, suicide and undetermined.
MR. MELLIN: And in this case you determined it was a homicide?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. In layman terms, can you please describe how it is Sean Collier died.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Well, as I stated before, the cause of death is gunshot wounds of the head. Bullets went into his brain, destroyed vital parts of the brain that you cannot live with.
MR. MELLIN: How many times was Officer Collier shot?
RENÉ ROBINSON: He was shot three times in the head.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And was he also shot somewhere else on his body?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. His right hand demonstrated two gunshot wounds and a graze.
MR. MELLIN: Indicating three shots?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Possible, yeah.
MR. MELLIN: Now, you talked about three gunshot wounds to the head. Are you able to determine which of the three gunshot wounds happened first?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I cannot tell you that.
MR. MELLIN: And why is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: They happened in rapid succession and I did not see anything in the autopsy that would tell me which one came first.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Now, in your report you list the three shots, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And in your first -- in shot 1, you indicate that it is an intermediate-range penetrating wound, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. What do you mean by intermediate-range penetrating wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: When I say "intermediate range," that means that the gun was not up against the skin but it also wasn't far away. I can't tell you exactly how close the gun was to the skin. In order to do that, the weapon used must be taken to the lab and test-fired to create a pattern that's similar to the one that's found on the skin. That's the stippling I talked about earlier.
MR. MELLIN: Did you see signs of stippling with this first gunshot wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: What was the location of this wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It was between the eyes, closer to the left eye.
MR. MELLIN: Now, the shot between the eyes, what types of signs of stippling did you see?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So around the main wound, or the main entrance defect, the hole, there were tiny pinpoint areas of abrasion, which is just the superficial layer of the skin coming off. That was created by, again, the burned and unburned powder from the end of the gun telling me that the barrel of the gun was close to the skin.
MR. MELLIN: And when you say it was close to the skin, approximately how close?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Again, I can't give you an exact distance, but if I were to go to a textbook, it could be a foot, foot and a half.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. So if I shoot you from the distance we're apart here, there will be no stippling, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: I'd have to be much closer, almost at the witness stand box?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Likely, yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, at this time I would like to have the doctor look at a few exhibits, and I just wanted to verify that those will not be shown in the overflow courtroom either.
THE COURT: Yes, that's confirmed by our technician.
MR. MELLIN: Thank you.
THE COURT: And the public screens here will be inoperable as well. The jurors will see the pictures.
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Dr. Robinson, if I could have you look at Exhibit 728.
MR. MELLIN: And first just the Doctor for this one.
MR. MELLIN: Do you recognize Exhibit 728?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: What is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: This is a photo of Mr. Collier's face taken at the time of autopsy.
MR. MELLIN: And is that a fair and accurate photograph of how he appeared at the time of autopsy?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, at this time the government would move in Exhibit 728 and ask to publish Exhibit 728.
MR. WATKINS: No objection.
THE COURT: All right.
(Government Exhibit No. 728 received into evidence.)
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, may I continue part of this inquiry up by the witness so that I can look at the photograph while the witness is looking at the photograph?
THE COURT: That's okay as long as you share the mic.
MR. MELLIN: All right. Is your court reporter okay with that?
THE COURT: It's important not only for the court reporter but for the overflow.
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Dr. Robinson, as you look at Exhibit 728, can you please first describe what it is you see?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So as you can see, in the middle of his face between the eyes, again closer to the left eye, there is a big hole, and around his eyes, on his forehead, underneath his eyes and -- may I use the --
MR. MELLIN: Yes.
RENÉ ROBINSON: You see these areas here and here, all these tiny little red dots, that is the stippling pattern that surrounds the main wound.
MR. MELLIN: And for the record, you indicated the stippling pattern was on his forehead, on his cheeks. Is that correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Right. Forehead, cheeks, underneath his eyes.
MR. MELLIN: All right. Now, what else do you see then when you look at this photograph?
RENÉ ROBINSON: He has additional wounds on the left side of his face, but you can't see those quite as clearly.
MR. MELLIN: And what can you tell about the gunshot wound to the middle of his face?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Again, this is an intermediate-range wound. The end of the gun was close enough to the skin that the gases and powder could reach the skin.
MR. MELLIN: And can you tell if that's an exit or an entry wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: That is an entrance wound.
MR. MELLIN: As you look at that photograph, how can you tell that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Because of the stippling pattern, but also because the bullet did not leave the body.
MR. MELLIN: Thank you. You said the bullet did not leave the body. How do you know that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Well, before we actually open the body, we do take X-rays to let us know if there's any projectile in the body. But also, if you trace the wound path from the entrance down to the side of his neck, it leads you right to the bullet.
MR. MELLIN: How are you able to actually follow that wound path?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Careful dissection of his face and upper body.
MR. MELLIN: What was the wound path?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Well, you saw the entrance wound on the front of the face. It goes through the skin, it goes through his nose bone, it goes at an angle down through his upper jaw, it goes into the soft tissues of his neck and actually transects, or cuts, the internal carotid artery.
MR. MELLIN: What is important about that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: The carotid artery is a vessel that helps take blood from the heart up to your brain. If you hold your fingers up against neck, you can feel your own pulse, and that pulse is from the carotid artery. The internal carotid artery is just a branch off of that main artery.
MR. MELLIN: If your internal carotid artery is transected, is that going to have an impact on your ability to sustain life?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes, you can bleed out from that.
MR. MELLIN: And then you said the bullet is actually recovered where?
RENÉ ROBINSON: In the soft tissues of the neck.
MR. MELLIN: About -- on your neck about where, if you can just indicate for the...
RENÉ ROBINSON: Below the right ear on the right side (indicating).
MR. MELLIN: And so what direction is the wound path, from left to right or right to left?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's from left to right. And when I say "left to right," I mean Mr. Collier's left to right.
MR. MELLIN: Did you also recover the bullet in Officer Collier's neck?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: If I could have you look at Exhibit 733. Do you recognize Exhibit 733?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: And what is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It is the projectile that I pulled from his neck. It was a deformed bullet, and there was an additional small metal fragment that came from the jacket that surrounds the bullet.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And just for the record, this is a photograph of that. Is that right?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yeah, it's a photograph.
MR. MELLIN: All right. And is that fair and accurate, how it appeared when you recovered that bullet on April the 19th, 2013?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's accurate.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, I would move into evidence Exhibit 733 and ask to publish.
MR. WATKINS: No objection.
THE COURT: Okay.
(Government Exhibit No. 733 received into evidence.)
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Now, just for the ladies and gentlemen of the jury, can you -- first off, there's some writing at the top, there's some typed information. What is that all about?
RENÉ ROBINSON: The stuff that's handwritten is what I wrote, and it's a description of the bullet: "A deformed large-caliber gray metal bullet with an orange metal jacket with" -- and then underneath the label it says "gray fragment."
MR. MELLIN: And then there's a number "1 - neck." Is that right?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: And why did you write that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: To tell me and to tell the investigators where I recovered it from.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Now, if you look at the items just below that little placard, there's two items. Is that right?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And can you please describe each for the jury? Just circle the one you're describing each time.
RENÉ ROBINSON: That one is the deformed bullet, that one is the piece of metal fragment (indicating).
MR. MELLIN: All right. So the deformed bullet is the item on the right of Exhibit 733?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And the other one, is that a jacket, is that what you said?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And that's on the left in this photograph?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. So now let's talk about what is a bullet and what is a jacket.
RENÉ ROBINSON: The bullet is the gray part of the projectile. Some bullets have metal jackets on the outside. These are usually orange or yellow in color. And the ballistic expert can speak more to the markings on the jacket that can help them identify a gun.
MR. MELLIN: Is it fair to say that as these bullets enter and hit the skull and enter the brain, that they may fracture apart?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And is that what you're indicating here, that these two actually fracture apart?
RENÉ ROBINSON: They did.
MR. MELLIN: If I could move on, then, to the second gunshot wound which in your report you indicated was a contact range penetrating wound.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: What do you mean by that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: "Contact" means the muzzle of the gun was up against the skin, "penetrating" means the bullet went into the body but did not exit.
MR. MELLIN: If it's easier, you can set those reports up on the witness stand.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Thank you. This chair is very high.
MR. MELLIN: And you're able to tell, again, this is a contact wound how?
RENÉ ROBINSON: There is a large area of abrasion or contusion. Again, that's taking off the top layer of the skin and bruising around the entrance defect.
MR. MELLIN: If I may pull up Exhibit 729. And again, your Honor, if I may approach the witness.
THE COURT: All right.
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Do you recognize Exhibit 729?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: What is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It is the left side of Mr. Collier's face. This photograph was taken at the time of autopsy.
MR. MELLIN: Is it a fair and accurate photograph from the autopsy?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, I move in Exhibit 729 and ask to publish.
MR. WATKINS: No objection.
THE COURT: Okay.
(Government Exhibit No. 729 received into evidence.)
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: So looking at Exhibit 729, as you look at that photograph, first, do you see the wound that we already talked about, the wound that was between the eyes?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do. It is on this portion of the photograph.
MR. MELLIN: Thank you. You just circled that it's the wound at the top right of Mr. Collier's head in this photograph?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And now we're talking about what you have marked as Gunshot Wound No. 2. Which wound are we discussing now?
RENÉ ROBINSON: We're discussing the one on his cheek, his left cheek.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And for the record, again, that's the one that's kind of right in the center of the photograph?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Now, as you look at that, how can you tell that's a contact wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So where I'm drawing now, that is the entrance defect. That is actually a hole. This area around that hole that I'm circling right now, that is the damage to the surface of the skin caused by the muzzle of the gun.
MR. MELLIN: And when you look at a contact wound, will you see stippling or will you see something completely different?
RENÉ ROBINSON: You will not see stippling.
MR. MELLIN: And why not?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Because all of the gases and particles are going into the wound path themselves; they're not hitting the outside of the skin.
MR. MELLIN: Again, were you able to follow the wound path of this gunshot wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I was.
MR. MELLIN: And were you able to recover the bullet?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: Where did you recover the bullet?
RENÉ ROBINSON: In the brain.
MR. MELLIN: Where in the brain?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I can talk about the path, if you'd like.
MR. MELLIN: That's probably better.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Okay. So it enters on the left side of his cheek, it goes through his left cheekbone, goes up through the base of the skull. It enters the right hemisphere of his brain, it goes through a structure in the brain called the basal ganglia, which is essential for life, and then it comes to rest in an adjacent portion of brain.
MR. MELLIN: Is it fair to say the wound path is left to right, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: All right. So now as this wound [sic] is going through Officer Collier's brain, what is it actually doing? What portions of the brain is it hitting?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's destroying portions of the brain that it goes through. So it's destroying the base of the skull, it's destroying brain matter. It's destroying important structures within the brain itself.
MR. MELLIN: You mentioned the basal ganglia. What does the basal ganglia do?
RENÉ ROBINSON: The basal ganglia are structures in the brain that are located towards the middle of the brain. And they're important for things like voluntary movement, emotion, things like that. It's also an important center of the brain because it's interconnected to the rest of the brain, into the brain stem.
MR. MELLIN: If your ganglia is destroyed, how would that impact your ability to function?
RENÉ ROBINSON: You can't function.
MR. MELLIN: And if I may have you look at Exhibit 735, please. Do you recognize Exhibit 735?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do. This one corresponds to Wound 3, however.
MR. MELLIN: I'm glad we did that. So then let's look at 737. Disregard our numbering ability. Do you recognize Exhibit 737?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: All right. What is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: This is the bullet that corresponds to the gunshot wound I've just been talking about.
MR. MELLIN: And again, it's a photograph of the bullet?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: All right.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, I would move into evidence Exhibit 737.
MR. WATKINS: No objection.
(Government Exhibit No. 737 received into evidence.)
MR. MELLIN: And I'd ask to publish it, please.
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Dr. Robinson, again for the record, what are we looking at in Exhibit 737?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Well, there is an envelope that I wrote -- handwrote some notes on; there's a label from the autopsy that indicates the case numbering, Mr. Collier's name; and then underneath it, which is what I'm circling right now, is the deformed bullet.
MR. MELLIN: You mentioned in this photograph something about -- is it a crib plate?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yeah, that was a note to myself at the time of autopsy to remind me what part of the base of the brain that the bullet went through.
MR. MELLIN: All right. Thank you. If we can turn finally, then, to the third gunshot wound to the head. And again, this is another contact range penetrating wound. Is that correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: All right. And if I could pull up Exhibit 728 again. Excuse me. 729. Do you see Exhibit 729 in front of you again?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Now, we're talking about the third gunshot wound. Which one are we talking about?
RENÉ ROBINSON: We're talking about the one I'm circling now, which is right in front of the left ear.
MR. MELLIN: And as you look at that wound, what do you see from just regular observation?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Again, where I'm drawing, this is the entrance defect, or the hole in the skin from the gun -- the gunshot wound, and this area surrounding it -- sorry. Here we go. This area surrounding it tells me that it's a contact gunshot wound.
MR. MELLIN: And the area that you marked that surrounds it, just for the record, is the very dark colored area?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: And again, though, you are not able to determine which of these two wounds to the left side of Officer Collier's face were fired first, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: You just know that they were both contact wounds?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: All right. All right. Were you able to recover the bullet with that gunshot wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I was.
MR. MELLIN: The one I already showed you?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Did you determine the wound path?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did. So this wound goes through the skin and the soft tissue on the left side of his cheek, it goes through a part of his cheekbone, goes into his skull at the base, and also goes through the left hemisphere of his brain, again, damaging the basal ganglia, and the bullet comes to rest in an adjacent portion of the brain.
MR. MELLIN: And again, like the other shots, it's left to right?
RENÉ ROBINSON: This one is, yes.
MR. MELLIN: And if I can have you now look at Exhibit 735. For the second time, do you recognize Exhibit 735?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And is that a picture of the bullet that you recovered?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. Again, the picture shows an envelope with my handwriting --
MR. MELLIN: If you can hold on one second.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, I would move into evidence Exhibit 735 and ask to publish.
MR. WATKINS: No objection.
THE COURT: All right.
(Government Exhibit No. 735 received into evidence.)
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Thank you, Doctor. Now, back to you. You were about to say?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's a picture of an envelope with my handwriting on it, also has the autopsy identifiers. And below it, which is where I'm circling, that is the deformed bullet.
MR. MELLIN: Below that to the right do you see some handwriting or something?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: Do you know what that is?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. These are, again, notes to myself at the time of autopsy to remind me which path this bullet took.
MR. MELLIN: In addition to those three gunshot wounds to Officer Collier's head, did you also make some additional, or what you called associated, findings?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: Can you describe for us, first, what are associated findings and then what were your findings?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Damage to the brain can manifest not only in the actual parts of the brain that were damaged but also with what I call associated findings. So in this case Mr. Collier had bilateral subdural hematomas. Now, what that is is blood on his brain on both sides, on both hemispheres.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And when you say it's subdural, what does "subdural" mean as opposed to subarachnoid?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So your brain is covered by a thick membrane called the dura. When you have blood under the dura and on top of the brain, that's called "sub." So "subdural hemorrhage" is blood that's underneath the dura but on top of the brain.
MR. MELLIN: And this is an area that is actually on top of the brain but it's inside the skull, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Then what is subarachnoid?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So there's another layer of a thin membrane that covers the brain. So there's dura, and then there's arachnoid. That is the thin membrane that covers the brain. And when you have blood in between the arachnoid and the brain, that's called a subarachnoid.
MR. MELLIN: What does either a subdural hemorrhage or a subarachnoid hemorrhage indicate to a pathologist?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Trauma.
MR. MELLIN: And any specific trauma or just general?
RENÉ ROBINSON: General trauma.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. If there -- let me rephrase that. Can you just describe for us what would have happened to Officer Collier after receiving these three gunshot wounds to his head? Would he be able to move, would he be able to breathe, would his heart function?
RENÉ ROBINSON: He'd have no purposeful movements. He's essentially dead right away.
MR. MELLIN: And why is he essentially dead right away?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Major parts of his brain have been disrupted. That's going to stop breathing, stop your heart rate. It's going to cause total cardiorespiratory death.
MR. MELLIN: And in this case, how is it that he would actually die?
RENÉ ROBINSON: When you destroy vital centers of the brain, the rest of your body cannot function without input from the brain. So it's direct destruction of the brain.
MR. MELLIN: So does he die because his heart stops or does he die because he's not breathing or what?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Well, that's the end result, is your heart stops.
MR. MELLIN: Did you also make notations about his lungs?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I did.
MR. MELLIN: And did you note that there was hemoaspiration?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: What does that mean?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Hemoaspiration means that Mr. Collier inhaled his own blood. And I could see that at autopsy because there was blood in the air spaces of his lung and also within his windpipe.
MR. MELLIN: As a forensic pathologist, what would that indicate to you?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Trauma.
MR. MELLIN: Okay.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Most of the time.
MR. MELLIN: Now, the findings that you made, are they consistent with someone firing one shot from a -- some distance away from Officer Collier and then firing two more shots with the muzzle of the gun against his face?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: You mentioned earlier that Officer Collier was also shot -- well, when he was shot the three times in the head, would he be able to move his arms and legs at that point?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Not purposefully.
MR. MELLIN: When you say "not purposefully," what do you mean by that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I mean I can't say whether or not -- there might have been a jerk or two, but he would not be able to move his extremities as he wished.
MR. MELLIN: So he wouldn't have the voluntary ability to move his arms or legs?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: But he might have a reflexive movement of arms or legs or feet?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I can't really say.
MR. MELLIN: Now, let me turn to the three shots in the hand. The three shots in the hand: First off, were those fatal wounds?
RENÉ ROBINSON: No, they were not.
MR. MELLIN: And can you tell in what order they were fired?
RENÉ ROBINSON: No, I can't.
MR. MELLIN: Are you able to tell if those shots were fired before or after the shots to the head?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I cannot.
MR. MELLIN: Let's turn to -- the first gunshot wound to the hand you said is an intermediate-range perforating gunshot, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Indeterminate.
MR. MELLIN: Indeterminate. I'm sorry. Is that right?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yup.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And what do you mean by that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Far away, but I don't know how far.
MR. MELLIN: And when you say it's a perforating gunshot wound, what does that mean?
RENÉ ROBINSON: This means the bullet goes in but it also exits.
MR. MELLIN: If I could have you look at Exhibit 727.
MR. MELLIN: And, your Honor, if I may approach again.
THE COURT: Yes.
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Do you recognize Exhibit 727?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: What is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: This is a picture of Mr. Collier's right hand.
MR. MELLIN: Is this a fair and accurate photo of his right hand from the autopsy on April 19, 2013?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It is.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, I would move into evidence Exhibit 727.
MR. WATKINS: No objection.
THE COURT: Okay.
(Government Exhibit No. 728 received into evidence.)
BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Now, as we look at Exhibit 727, can you describe generally what you see as you look at that photograph?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Well, in this particular photograph it only shows four wounds. In order to determine the nature of these wounds, I needed to dissect the hand. And I determined that the wound I'm circling now, which is on the back of the hand, more towards the thumb, that wound corresponds to this wound that I'm circling that's at the base of the pinky finger. And when I say "corresponds," I mean they connect. This is one wound path. In fact, the bullet entered the hand in the direction that I just indicated.
MR. MELLIN: And just for the record, you drew an arrow?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes, I drew an arrow on the one by the base of the thumb and exits out the hole that's at the base of the pinky finger.
MR. MELLIN: How are you able to determine that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I look at the characteristics of both wounds and it can tell me the direction that this is going based on those characteristics.
MR. MELLIN: And why do you say it's an indeterminant range?
RENÉ ROBINSON: In this case it's definitely not contact. It doesn't have those findings around the wound that we saw in the other contact wounds, and it's not close because I don't see stippling like we saw in the first wound. So in this case I can't determine how far away the gun was.
MR. MELLIN: Can you determine the direction of the shot?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I can.
MR. MELLIN: And what is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: So it enters here, again, at the base of the thumb, comes out at the base of the pinky. I call this right to left, and this is his right to left. And it's done in what's called the anatomic -- standard anatomic position in which case the body's oriented with palms facing up.
MR. MELLIN: So now if his palm is turned over and if he's seated in the vehicle and the shot hits his -- the top of his right hand, what direction is the shot going?
RENÉ ROBINSON: If his hand's in that configuration, it's going from his left to his right.
MR. MELLIN: Now, it appears as if that shot does not go very deep into his hand. Is that fair?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. It only destroyed some of the bones of his hand and also some of the tendons.
MR. MELLIN: Let me move on to the Gunshot Wound No. 2. Again, you determined that was an indeterminate-range perforating gunshot wound. Is that right?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Again, yes.
MR. MELLIN: Exactly the same description as the last one, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. I can't tell how far away it was. And it did exit.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Did you see it indicated on this photograph, Exhibit 727?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I see the entrance portion.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. Where's the entrance portion?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's at the back of the wrist.
MR. MELLIN: And is there an exit portion?
RENÉ ROBINSON: There is, but it's not visible on this photograph.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And is it on the other side of the hand?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And just for the record, we're talking about Officer Collier's right hand, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. MELLIN: Okay. And what did you determine about the wound path or anything about that particular wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Again, this wound path, it goes in and the bullet comes out, and it disrupts some of the bones of the wrist.
MR. MELLIN: And then finally, do you see the graze wound that you had as the Gunshot Wound No. 3?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I do.
MR. MELLIN: Where is that?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's in the middle on the back side of the hand.
MR. MELLIN: What can you tell us about that wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: This is what is called a graze wound, meaning that a bullet or a fragment from a bullet just takes off the top layer of the skin here. It does not disrupt any muscle or bones. It's superficial.
MR. MELLIN: Now, those three gunshot wounds to the hand that we were just discussing, are your findings all consistent with Officer Collier sitting in his police vehicle and having his right hand rested on the console region of his car?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It could be consistent.
MR. MELLIN: When you say "could be consistent," you're saying that because you don't know for a scientific fact?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I mean, using what I know, it's entirely possible, but his hand could have been oriented in other ways. I wasn't there.
MR. MELLIN: Got it.
MR. MELLIN: With the Court's indulgence.
(Counsel confer off the record.)
MR. MELLIN: Thank you, Dr. Robinson.
CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. WATKINS:
MR. WATKINS: Good morning, Dr. Robinson.
RENÉ ROBINSON: Good morning.
MR. WATKINS: I'm Tim Watkins. I'm one of Dzokhar Tsarnaev's attorneys. You taught us about what happens when a gun goes off and the gases and the burned powder and the unburned powder that is expelled from the muzzle?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. WATKINS: And that causes stippling on the skin if it's close to the skin?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes.
MR. WATKINS: That -- gases and burned powder and unburned powder doesn't just go straight ahead; it can go pretty diffuse. Is that correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Yes. To try to put it in simple terms, if you think of a spray paint can, the closer you hold the nozzle up to a surface, the more concentrated the spray paint is going to be. The further away you spray the spray can, the more dispersed the spray paint is going to be.
MR. WATKINS: And using your spray paint analogy, that spray can can actually spray three to five sheet of that particular matter. Is that correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: You know, I don't play around with spray cans too much. I would assume.
MR. WATKINS: Turning specifically to gunshot residue, the burnt and unburnt powder that is projected, expelled by the gases, that can be expelled three to five feet in every direction. Is that correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I suppose so.
MR. WATKINS: You talked about intermediate -- I'm sorry, in that three to five feet, that could land on clothing, that could land on the seats of the car, it can land on the shooter, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's possible.
MR. WATKINS: And indeed, you've been involved in investigations where there are attempts to get gunshot residue from shooters?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's rare in Massachusetts, but sometimes state police do like to do GSR tests on the hands.
MR. WATKINS: And that would be consistent with what you told us, that these gases, unburnt powder and burnt powder, are disbursed throughout the air?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I'm sorry. I don't follow.
MR. WATKINS: I think what you told us is like a spray can, these gases and the particulate matter will disburse throughout the air the farther you get, correct?
RENÉ ROBINSON: Correct.
MR. WATKINS: And so if you are the shooter, that can indeed come back on to you?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's possible.
MR. WATKINS: Also, when a bullet pierces the skin, there are fine droplets of blood that are created?
RENÉ ROBINSON: You're talking about spatter?
MR. WATKINS: Yes.
RENÉ ROBINSON: It's possible.
MR. WATKINS: And again, that spatter can be quite diffuse and go all over the place?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It can be, yes.
MR. WATKINS: And both forward, in the direction of the bullet, but also back from the wound?
RENÉ ROBINSON: I suppose it could bounce back. This is probably better answered by a blood spatter expert.
MR. WATKINS: Thank you.
That's all I have, your Honor.
MR. MELLIN: Your Honor, very briefly.
THE COURT: Okay.
REDIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. MELLIN:
MR. MELLIN: Dr. Robinson, concerning the stippling in this case, was the stippling in this case dispersed over a large area or was the stippling on the face of Officer Collier?
RENÉ ROBINSON: It was on his face.
MR. MELLIN: Thank you. Nothing further.
THE COURT: All right, Doctor. Thank you. You may step down.
(The witness is excused.)
MR. WEINREB: The United States calls Alan Mednick.