South Africa - Susan Rohde, 47, murdered, Stellenbosch, 24 July 2016

[JudgeJudi]

CK asked why he didn't share his autopsy information with Perumal who conducted a private autopsy on Susan #Rohde. CK says don't want bias and would be illegal under Inquest Act. Only Judge can tell him to do so. Plus, call from Perumal was "courtesy call", adds CK.

Another slide coming up to discuss whether Perumal caused a mark on Susan's neck during the private autopsy. Pointer envy seems to have been smoothed over, with VDS offering his to CK.

Van der Spuy says CK has previously criticised Perumal's report, saying it was "aimed at misleading" but CK had missed scar under knee, breast of Susan

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[JudgeJudi]

CK agrees that he did not conduct a "facial flap" on Susan #Rohde. Defence extracts from him that this process could show injuries from being smothered

Jason #Rohde told defence that he noticed Susan dribbling from the mouth and wiped it off with his hand before starting resusc. CK says saliva could have built up before smothering

After death, the saliva could have been released

Asked to comment on blood found on bed at Spier, CK says he just finds it odd that somebody who is bleeding will just get into bed and sleep

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[JudgeJudi]

The clock is ticking for the #Rohde defence. They have Coetzee-Khan until 11am. His boss Deidre Abrahams has already been sent for

Defence says that to this day, they have not managed to obtain the handbag and the cosmetic bag of Susan

CK explains how a death case is classified "high profile". High media exposure and possible media intrusion, security, managing lots of people - all plays a part

Defence wants to know why the private pathologist did not find the altered blood that CK says he found in Susan's stomach, and put in jug. CK says the blood was put back in Susan's body.

[url]https://twitter.com/itchybyte[/URL]

 

[JudgeJudi]

CK says Susan #Rohde's blood was supposed to go back into her body in a packet for Perumal's investigation. VDS says Perumal did not find the blood

CK accused of setting out to exclude hanging. His mention of possible Battered Woman Syndrome cited as eg. CK says but there was an element of violence seen between Susan and Jason as per yys info. CK says originally told only verbal fight

Defence says Coetzee-Khan's comments about Perumal were "outrageous" and Perumal "with respect" reserves his rights. CK says it is up to Judge Gayaat Salie-Hlophe to interpret what he said

[url]https://twitter.com/itchybyte[/URL]

 

[JudgeJudi]

Prosecutor now asks Coetzee-Khan to display the headblock he uses at autopsy of Susan #Rohde. Lots of rustling of plastic while he removes the brown wooden structure with curved neck rest edged into it. Shoulder blades rest on other part

Prosecutor hands in set of pics numbered 1 - 96 taken by Sgt Van Rooyen at inspection in loco.

Pros Van Niekerk says pics can help with cause of broken ribs. CK says could have been blunt force trauma, or when fell into garden bed and small retaining wall during confrontations with Jason during Susan #Rohde's last hours

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[JudgeJudi]

CK says he thought Susan #Rohde's ribs were broken by blunt force trauma. Could have been from someone pressing down ribs, poss knee on chest. There is not always bruises if ribs are broken, he says

Dr Coetzee-Khan finally steps down. Court adjourned for tea

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[JudgeJudi]

I find this battle of the pathologists worrying. Perumal is a very well-known and highly respected forensic pathologist. I know nothing about Khan but can’t help feeling that he’s a bit too *advertiser censored*-sure of himself and rather arrogant. Read about Perumal here and you’ll see why I’m beginning to have doubts about some of Khan’s testimony.

Khan denied that Perumal had invited him to attend the second autopsy.

“CK gets lip from defence for rolling his eyes when defence says Perumal did a "proper" autopsy. Defence considers rolled eyes slur against Perumal”

Defence says CK told Perumal Susan had a fractured hyoid bone during the courtesy call. CK strongly denies saying this as he is quizzed on Perumal's finding that her hyoid bone was not fractured

#Rohde's lawyer insists that CK said Susan's hyoid was broken when he and Perumal spoke on phone. Perumal asked defence for go ahead to do CT scan and an X-ray to show hyoid intact.

Defence asks why would Perumal bother with all the extra procedures if CK had not mentioned Susan's fractured hyoid?

CK says that in his testimony in chief he said the fractures to Susan #Rohde's ribs could possibly be due to resuscitation attempts. Not in his report

 

[JudgeJudi]

Dr Deidre Abrahams is sworn in as the #Rohde trial resumes after the tea adjournment

Dr Abrahams has worked at Paarl forensic services since 2003. She is chief of unit in charge of West Coast/Winelands. Coetzee-Khan at Vredendal assists with work in their region

She has done about 9000 autopsies. They all included specialist cases, requiring special techniques such as those used on Susan

Dr Abrahams produced a report on Susan #Rohde autopsy and concur with Dr Coetzee-Khan after having read his report

[url]https://twitter.com/itchybyte[/URL]

 

[JudgeJudi]

That last tweet above is encouraging.

 

[JudgeJudi]

Dr Coetzee-Khan called Abrahams to tell her that some of the injuries on Susan #Rohde body did not fit into suicide. She would then also assist because of some of the anomalies he said he found, and because it was a high profile case

Abrahams is explaining how Susan #Rohde's body was put into position for the autopsy conducted later

They went through the initial processes of checking who was in attendance, whether they wore protective clothing, whether their kits for the alcohol and drug samples were ready

Coetzee-Khan started by examing external injuries, swabbing injuries without touching them. Abrahams' role was observe, be available for Coetzee-Khan to discuss what he says as he notes it on a diagram.

[url]https://twitter.com/itchybyte[/URL]

 

[JudgeJudi]

Abrahams said she received a copy of Susan #Rohde's autopsy report emailed to her by Coetzee-Khan. She would check for errors, not alter if there were errors, would phone him, point out typing, spelling, calculation errors. He would consider these, complete his report

[It’s more than a little interesting that Abrahams didn’t pick up on the fact that Khan’s time of death was wrong. How could something so important slip under the radar]

She is asked to explain how she came to findings in her report of what Coetzee-Khan was doing during Susan #Rohde's autopsy on 26 July, 2016

Abrahams says she noted that Susan #Rohde was declared dead at 09:08 on 24 July, 2016. She concurred with CK that cause of death was: Unnatural and consistent [with] asphyxia following manual strangulation and external airway obstruction

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[tmar]

Dr Deidre Abrahams is sworn in as the #Rohde trial resumes after the tea adjournment

Dr Abrahams has worked at Paarl forensic services since 2003. She is chief of unit in charge of West Coast/Winelands. Coetzee-Khan at Vredendal assists with work in their region

She has done about 9000 autopsies. They all included specialist cases, requiring special techniques such as those used on Susan

Dr Abrahams produced a report on Susan #Rohde autopsy and concur with Dr Coetzee-Khan after having read his report

https://twitter.com/itchybyte

Thanks JJ for your ongoing hard work.
You would think that Dr Abrahams' report would be supportive of CK's findings.
Here's hoping!!!

 

[JudgeJudi]

Abrahams also concluded that ligature indentation on neck is consistent with post mortem-placement

Pointer crisis here. Defence's one's battery is flat. Pressing on without one to go over the pics of Susan #Rohde's neck. She points out a scratch mark on right neck at jaw angle

Prosecutor announces that miraculously a pointer is now working, and is passed to her. She points red dot at scratch marks under Susan's chin and on bottom side of neck ligature mark

She points out four horizontal scratch marks under the chin and neck region of Susan #Rohde. Abrasion of left upper eyelid, and small mark under left eye.

[url]https://twitter.com/itchybyte[/URL]

 

[JudgeJudi]

Jason #Rohde back at his spot on a chair near the witness, head tilted, not looking at pics on wall to his right of his late wife's autopsy.

Dr Abrahams is asked to take the plastic off to describe how the deceased are placed on the autopsy block. She snaps some blue gloves on and provides an explainer of how wooden autopsy blocks are used. They also have black ones with sharper shape

Abrahams said Susan #Rohde's ribs seem to have been broken by blunt force trauma. There were contusions in her lungs, blood had gone through her stomach towards her bowel

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[JudgeJudi]

Abrahams does not speak of "Susan" or "Mrs Rohde". She says "the person". In this case, "the person" would not have been breathing well, would have been swallowing blood, in pain

Trial adjourned for lunch

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[JudgeJudi]

O/T Just a reminder that Terry Price will be presenting Panayiotou’s pre-sentence report in mitigation of sentence tomorrow at 9:30 SA time.

 

[JudgeJudi]

Trial back on after lunch. Chief pathologist Dr Abrahams said she underlined that the ligature mark on Susan's neck was not made before her death (ante-mortem)

Abrahams points at pic that she says shows evidence of blunt force trauma to the lungs before Susan #Rohde's death

Ligature mark on Susan's neck is consistent with a post-mortem placement

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[JudgeJudi]

Abrahams turns to Dr Perumal's report, and notes that the time of death is in dispute and says cannot resolve this through 2nd autopsy

Abrahams said it might be raised in question that a possible suspect gets to say the cause of death. She notes that Perumal not considered impartial because he was paid by the defence

Abrahams saying Perumal excluded vital findings from his report.

Abrahams says Perumal did not comment on scratch-like marks on Susan and whether they were signs of self-defence or assailant injury to the deceased.

[url]https://twitter.com/itchybyte[/URL]

 

[JudgeJudi]

Abrahams is alleging possible negligence, misleading findings, omissions as she goes through Perumal's report on the private autopsy conducted on Susan

They have forgotten to switch the lights back on so we are in the dark, with a nice picture of Spier projected on the wall, as Dr Abrahams goes through what she thought of Perumal's private autopsy report

Susan's blood alcohol level dropped from 0.05 to 0.03% between first and second autopsy. Not unusual for second autopsy results

Ligature mark on Susan #Rohde "dubiously low" and indicates post-mortem placement in a seated position most likely to conceal a manual strangulation. Adjourns to tomorrow

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[JudgeJudi]

Judge Gayaat Salie-Hlophe is asking lots of questions on how somebody injured before death would respond to blunt force trauma.

The #Rohde case has been adjourned to Tuesday for defence to prepare to cross examine Dr Abrahams

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