Guidance: Parts of this story may disturb readers
Sophie Elliott died of blood loss from lethal stab wounds to the heart and major arteries in her neck in the knife attack by Clayton Robert Weatherston, the High Court at Christchurch was told today.
A police witnesses, a scientist, and pathologist Martin Sage have now described the scene in
the bedroom where her body was found after the attack in Dunedin on January 9, 2008.
They have described extensive blood-staining around the room, and the recovery of body parts which had been severed from Miss Elliott in the attack.
Detective Hamish Barrons went to the scene as the officer in charge of Miss Elliott's body, accompanied by Dr Sage.
He said there was heavy blood staining on her clothing. Her face and neck appeared to have received multiple stab and cut wounds.
Her eyes were closed but they appeared to have received multiple cut injuries.
Clumps of Miss Elliott's long wavy hair had been cut off.
Parts of her nose and right ear had been removed.
At the post mortem, Mr Barrons was told by Dr Sage that the cause of death had been blood loss from lethal stab wounds to the heart and major arteries in the neck.
When he gave evidence, Dr Sage said the body showed signs of a "persistent, focused, and determined attack" with 216 stabbing or cutting wounds.
Defensive wounds on the arms and hands showed Miss Elliott had been capable of purposeful and organised movement during the early part of the attack.
She may have taken several minutes to die.
The wounds were mainly in 11 clusters at the eye sockets, left cheek, left temple, left ear, 14 cuts to left side of the neck, and 45 to the front to the throat, some penetrating the larynx and trachea.
Some of the stab wounds in the throat appeared, from their shape, to have been carried out with scissors with the blades closed.
There were 11 wounds to the left breast and one had cut off the nipple.
Chest wounds penetrated the lung and heart.
"There were substantial clusters at sites posing an imminent threat to life," Dr Sage said.
Many of the wounds had been directed at disfiguring the body.
The bloodstains on the walls were typical of impact spatter stains commonly seen at the scene of violence, Dr Michael Taylor from the Environmental Science and Research organisation told the court.
He said some of the blood marks on the carpet showed that she had had a number of injuries and then had been dragged to the centre of the room where she was found.
She was found on a partially packed suitcase with the lid open, and her head and shoulders were on the lid.
She had a large amount of blood on her arms, legs, face and chest, and a number of severe injuries, he said.
There were contact blood smears on her legs, including hand marks in blood.
Slightly bent and bloodstained scissors were between her legs, and an extensively bloodstained blade of a knife was found in the suitcase, with the broken handle on the open lid underneath her head and shoulders.
He said there was blood spattered in the corner of the bedroom, on a chair, on the drawers, and on the bed.
Using luminol, eight bloodied footprints were found on the carpet, he said.
Detective Graeme Smaill said he searched the flat of Weatherston. It was very untidy and cluttered. In the kitchen he found a knife block with one knife missing. The knife used in the attack fitted in the empty slot.
University lecturer Weatherston, 33, denies murdering Miss Elliott, but has indicated he would admit a charge of manslaughter. The defence claims provocation.
Today is the ninth day of the trial before Justice Judith Potter and a jury.
- NZPA
