Post by Anja on Jun 10, 2006 20:25:11 GMT -5
Witness: Boy was covered with scars
Davontae Williams' body was so scarred and bruised that a former Tarrant
County medical examiner initially thought the 9-year-old's death had been
caused by some kind of blunt trauma, the man testified Friday.
Jurors in the capital murder trial of Lisa Ann Coleman were shown photos
of Williams' autopsy. The images depicted the child's body marked heavily
with old and fresh scars. They also showed his knobby knees and emaciated
legs.
Coleman, 30, is accused of participating in the 2004 starving death of
Davontae. If convicted, she could face the death penalty. His mother,
Marcella Williams, faces her own capital murder trial later.
Earlier Friday, jurors heard from Davontae's 1st-grade teacher, who
recalled a child she might have mistaken for a kindergartner by his size
and one who often tried to go through the lunch line twice.
Testimony is expected to continue Monday before state District Judge
Everett Young.
Daniel Konzelmann, a former deputy Tarrant County medical examiner,
testified that Davontae's death was caused by malnutrition and minor
pneumonia. The boy weighed 35.8 pounds when he was discovered dead July
26, 2004. Konzelmann also noted that Davontae's body showed signs he had
been bound.
He added that Davontae was so deprived of protein that his body had begun
burning muscle and fat tissue for energy. The lack of nutrition also made
it difficult for his body to fight off infections from the scars,
Konzelmann said.
Davontae had minimal amounts of fat tissue around his heart, which
Konzelmann called "very unusual."
Photos showed that a fresh wound around the boy's left leg was wrapped
with a sock.
"It shows that there was an understanding that he required treatment,
although this was inadequate," Konzelmann said when prosecutor Mitch Poe
asked him to comment on the makeshift bandage.
Konzelmann testified that about 3 ounces of what was believed to be
noodles and PediaSure, a nutrition drink for children, were found in
Davontae's stomach.
Under cross-examination, defense attorney Michael Heiskell asked
Konzelmann whether his testimony indicated that Davontae was being fed.
Konzelmann emphasized that Davontae was not getting "adequate" amounts of
food.
Heiskell contends that the death was caused by incompetent parenting.
Jean Stokes, who taught Davontae in the first grade at Webb Elementary
School in southeast Arlington, testified that it took less than 2
sentences for her to form a special bond with the boy in fall 2002.
During a class reading exercise, Davontae walked up to Stokes, tugged on
her sleeve and asked, "When's recess?" Stokes testified, smiling as she
recounted for jurors their first interaction.
Stokes said Davontae was a least a foot shorter than his classmates.
Unlike some first-graders, Stokes said, "Davontae was not afraid. He was
excited, but just unfamiliar with how school worked."
Stokes said Davontae had behavioral problems and spent most of his time
sitting next to her in class.
"He was like a puppy dog learning to sit," she said. "He'll see a
butterfly, and he'll have to go investigate. He seemed academically
capable of learning, but he was just very distractible."
Stokes said that on several occasions, when Williams was picking up her
son, she spoke with the mother about how to help Davontae.
"I tried to tell her what we were working on," Stokes said. "I tried to
tell her to work with Davontae on picking up cues."
(source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
Davontae Williams' body was so scarred and bruised that a former Tarrant
County medical examiner initially thought the 9-year-old's death had been
caused by some kind of blunt trauma, the man testified Friday.
Jurors in the capital murder trial of Lisa Ann Coleman were shown photos
of Williams' autopsy. The images depicted the child's body marked heavily
with old and fresh scars. They also showed his knobby knees and emaciated
legs.
Coleman, 30, is accused of participating in the 2004 starving death of
Davontae. If convicted, she could face the death penalty. His mother,
Marcella Williams, faces her own capital murder trial later.
Earlier Friday, jurors heard from Davontae's 1st-grade teacher, who
recalled a child she might have mistaken for a kindergartner by his size
and one who often tried to go through the lunch line twice.
Testimony is expected to continue Monday before state District Judge
Everett Young.
Daniel Konzelmann, a former deputy Tarrant County medical examiner,
testified that Davontae's death was caused by malnutrition and minor
pneumonia. The boy weighed 35.8 pounds when he was discovered dead July
26, 2004. Konzelmann also noted that Davontae's body showed signs he had
been bound.
He added that Davontae was so deprived of protein that his body had begun
burning muscle and fat tissue for energy. The lack of nutrition also made
it difficult for his body to fight off infections from the scars,
Konzelmann said.
Davontae had minimal amounts of fat tissue around his heart, which
Konzelmann called "very unusual."
Photos showed that a fresh wound around the boy's left leg was wrapped
with a sock.
"It shows that there was an understanding that he required treatment,
although this was inadequate," Konzelmann said when prosecutor Mitch Poe
asked him to comment on the makeshift bandage.
Konzelmann testified that about 3 ounces of what was believed to be
noodles and PediaSure, a nutrition drink for children, were found in
Davontae's stomach.
Under cross-examination, defense attorney Michael Heiskell asked
Konzelmann whether his testimony indicated that Davontae was being fed.
Konzelmann emphasized that Davontae was not getting "adequate" amounts of
food.
Heiskell contends that the death was caused by incompetent parenting.
Jean Stokes, who taught Davontae in the first grade at Webb Elementary
School in southeast Arlington, testified that it took less than 2
sentences for her to form a special bond with the boy in fall 2002.
During a class reading exercise, Davontae walked up to Stokes, tugged on
her sleeve and asked, "When's recess?" Stokes testified, smiling as she
recounted for jurors their first interaction.
Stokes said Davontae was a least a foot shorter than his classmates.
Unlike some first-graders, Stokes said, "Davontae was not afraid. He was
excited, but just unfamiliar with how school worked."
Stokes said Davontae had behavioral problems and spent most of his time
sitting next to her in class.
"He was like a puppy dog learning to sit," she said. "He'll see a
butterfly, and he'll have to go investigate. He seemed academically
capable of learning, but he was just very distractible."
Stokes said that on several occasions, when Williams was picking up her
son, she spoke with the mother about how to help Davontae.
"I tried to tell her what we were working on," Stokes said. "I tried to
tell her to work with Davontae on picking up cues."
(source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram)