By PAVEL BAILEY
Tribune Staff Reporter
pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A PATHOLOGIST testified yesterday that one of two teenage boys killed in Yellow Elder Gardens in 2017 was shot at close range to the head, as the double murder trial continued in the Supreme Court.
Dr Caryn Sands gave evidence in the trial of Deon Scavella, 30, before Justice Jeannine Weech-Gomez.
Prosecutors allege Scavella shot and killed Devonte Lindsey, 15, and Keishon Williams, 13, on March 19, 2017. Their bodies were later found on a dirt road off Graham Drive in Yellow Elder.
Dr Sands said Lindsey died from gunshot wounds to the head and torso. She said he had seven gunshot entry wounds and one graze.
She told the court a gunshot wound to Lindsey’s forehead showed evidence of close-range discharge. Using a morgue photograph, she explained that gunshot stippling indicated the barrel of the weapon was about two to three feet from the deceased.
Dr Sands said the bullet fractured Lindsey’s skull, entered the brain causing bleeding, and exited through the back of his head.
She said another gunshot wound entered Lindsey’s torso from the right side, penetrated his rib, lung and heart, and exited the left side of his chest.
She added that a wound to the abdomen penetrated the small intestine, causing spillage, and also struck the right groin.
Dr Sands said Lindsey also suffered gunshot wounds to his left arm, right forearm and right hand, resulting in a fractured humerus and skin lacerations.
Asked whether Lindsey was running at the time he was shot, Dr Sands said it was possible that both the deceased and the assailant were moving.
She said Lindsey’s body was identified by his mother at the morgue on March 20, 2017.
Dr Sands said Williams died from gunshot wounds to the head, torso and left arm.
She told the court that a gunshot wound to Williams’ head fractured his skull and caused brain bleeding. Another wound entered from his back and penetrated his spleen, aorta, rib, small intestine, liver and kidney, resulting in spillage of intestinal contents.
She said a gunshot wound to Williams’ left arm also contributed to blood loss.
Dr Sands said Williams had four gunshot entry wounds but no evidence of close-range discharge.
She confirmed to defence attorney Marianne Cadet that no bullets or fragments were recovered from either body.
After being shown the death certificates she signed, Dr Sands confirmed the addresses of the deceased as Knowles Drive and Plantol Street.
Earlier in the trial, a police officer testified that Scavella admitted to the shootings during an interview on May 6, 2017.
Assistant Superintendent of Police Arnold Strachan told the court the accused said the two boys approached him while he was at his home in Yellow Elder and asked him to help remove a car battery and tyres from a vehicle near the baseball stadium, an area known as the Gulf.
The officer said the accused told him he shot Lindsey while he was removing the battery and that Williams was working on the tyres. He said the accused chased Williams as he tried to flee and shot him before returning home.
ASP Strachan said the accused admitted using a 9mm Luger pistol but refused to read or sign the record of interview.
Shaneka Carey and Davina Pinder are the prosecutors.
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