Forensic Expert Says Evidence Backs George Zimmerman's Story

At the Miami Herald:

SANFORD -- Medical evidence supports George Zimmerman’s claims that he was beaten and on the bottom of a scrum with Trayvon Martin when Zimmerman fatally shot the Miami Gardens teen, a forensic-pathology expert testified Tuesday.

“This is consistent with Mr. Zimmerman’s account that Mr. Martin was over him, leaning forward at the time he was shot,” defense witness Dr. Vincent Di Maio said in Zimmerman’s second-degree murder trial.

Prosecutors accuse Zimmerman, 29, of profiling, pursuing and slaying Trayvon, 17, in a Sanford gated community on Feb 26, 2012. Zimmerman, a former neighborhood-watch coordinator, maintains that he shot the unarmed teen in self-defense after Trayvon punched him to the ground and bashed his head against a sidewalk. A 44-day gap between Trayvon’s killing and Zimmerman’s arrest led to marches and protests throughout Florida and elsewhere in the country.

On Tuesday, Di Maio, a former longtime San Antonio chief medical examiner and author of a textbook called Gunshot Wounds, turned his head toward jurors as he answered lawyers’ questions in a commanding voice.

The doctor’s findings, based on a review of Trayvon’s autopsy report, photographs and other evidence in the case, contradicted several witnesses who testified for the state, which rested its case last week. He also pointed out what he said were forensic flaws in the initial investigation.

Di Maio said he concluded:

•  DNA and other evidence from Trayvon’s hooded sweatshirt may have been compromised because crime-scene technicians improperly stored Trayvon’s wet clothes in plastic bags. Wet evidence should be allowed to dry out and be packaged in paper bags that allow it to “breathe,” Di Maio said.

•  Gunpowder markings on Trayvon’s body and sweatshirt indicated that the muzzle of Zimmerman’s gun was touching the sweatshirt and was two to four inches from Trayvon’s chest when Zimmerman pulled the trigger.

Dr. Shiping Bao, the associate medical examiner who conducted Trayvon’s autopsy, testified for the state last week that the gun could have been anywhere from a half-inch to four feet from Trayvon; prosecutor John Guy said in his opening argument that Zimmerman had pressed his gun into Trayvon’s chest.

“This is basic, you know, 101,” Di Maio said of the gunshot evidence.

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