Jurors within the Brian Walshe homicide case noticed video footage of the defendant tossing a black plastic bag right into a liquor retailer dumpster and shopping for cleansing provides within the days following his spouse Ana’s disappearance.
Prosecutors had already proven they jury images of brown-red stained items of carpet, tissues, and slippers, however a forensic scientist lastly confirmed in court docket on Monday that these stains in addition to others discovered contained in the Walshe house have been blood.
The Commonwealth is attempting to show that Walshe killed Ana within the early hours of New Yr’s Day 2023. Though he pleaded responsible to mendacity to police about her disappearance and mishandling her physique, Walshe maintains he’s harmless on the homicide cost.
He as a substitute claims that Ana died from “sudden unexplained death,” and that he feared if he didn’t cowl it up, folks would possibly imagine he murdered his spouse, and he would lose custody of his three boys.
Jurors within the morning session at Norfolk Superior Courtroom obtained to listen to a few of this argument play out when the protection cross examined Dr. Richard Atkinson, a forensic pathologist for the Workplace of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Walshe’s lawyer Larry Tipton requested Atkinson a number of questions on how somebody might out of the blue and unexpectedly die from pure causes, with out accidents.
“People die suddenly quite often… but in a young person that has no medical history, yes, it’s rare,” Atkinson mentioned.
When the prosecution had the chance to redirect, Atkinson mentioned, “There was no evidence of any type of death… there’s not a body to autopsy.”
With out a physique, prosecutors turned to blood.
Within the afternoon, they referred to as Matthew Sheehan, a forensic scientist on the Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab, to the stand.
Sheehan mentioned a number of brown-red stains on the basement ground of the Walshe house examined constructive for blood, in addition to just a few marks on the basement stairs. Sheenhan additionally mentioned a knife discovered above the fridge additionally examined constructive.
Together with the gadgets from and areas of the home, Sheehan testified that many gadgets present in a dumpster the place Walshe’s cellphone was tracked additionally had blood on them, together with snippers, a hammer, a hacksaw, a hatchet, towels, tissues, painter sheets, a sponge, two pairs of slippers, a tyvek swimsuit, and several other lower up items of carpet.
Along with the blood, Sheehan mentioned he additionally noticed some human hairs within the proof. He additionally testified that the hatchet discovered within the dumpster had a greasy substance on the top — one thing he mentioned was in step with instruments that had lower by way of human flesh to physique fats.
Samples have been taken from the hatchet head and several other different gadgets to be examined for DNA.
Jurors additionally noticed a number of movies of surveillance footage taken within the days after Walshe mentioned Ana disappeared.
In a single video from New Yr’s Day, Walshe pulled as much as a Swampscott liquor retailer close to his mom’s house that he was know to frequent and tossed away a black trash bag in a dumpster.
In a number of different movies from the times that comply with, Walshe buys cleansing provides together with a mop, painters buckets, rags, three 64-ounce bottles of ammonia, and 5 bottles of hydrogen peroxide
At a self-check out register at a Weymouth Lowes, Walshe purchased a brand new trash can, however as a substitute of doing it alone, on this video from Jan. 4 — the day he reported Ana lacking — one in all his youngsters can be seen within the shot with a blurred-out face.
Walshe appears to have a look at himself within the reside video footage from the check-out kiosk, fixing his hair within the reflection, whereas his son makes use of the barcode scanner on the trash can with assist from a Lowes employee.
Choose Diane Freniere estimated that the trial is about two-thirds of the best way by way of. To this point, solely the prosecution has offered their case. Testimony is about to renew Tuesday.
