HATAITAI MURDER

Greymouth Evening Star, 6 November 1931, Page 7

HATAITAI MURDER

VICTIM BURIED ALIVE A DOCTOR’S THEORIES [PEB PBEBB ASSOCIATION.] , WELLINGTON, November 5. At the 'trial of George Errol Coats, for the murder of Phyllis Symons, Dr. P. Lynch, pathologist, Wellington Hospital, said, this afternoon, that if tho girl had fallen down the bank he would have expected her to have come to rest in a sprawling position, and not

with her knees drawn up to the abdo-

men. Ho could not conceive all the girl’s injuries having been the result of

such a fall. In the. case of a person pitching downward, the right shoulder ■ -would afford considerable protection to i the right temple. • Charles Monro Hector, B.Sc., M.D., formerly pathologist to the Coroner at Wellington, for five years pathologist to the Government, and an Examiner i in Pathology, said that he had conducts • ed the post mortem examination with Dr. Lynch, and conclusions he had come to were largely the. same as those reached by Dr. Lynch. He had no opinion to offer as far as the scarf was concerned. He had not seen the scarf in position. Crown Prosecutor: Is it your opinion that the body was alive while in the ground? Witness: Yes. « Will.you tell us your reasons? Witness: She was alive when the vomiting occurred. The vomiting occurred in the attitude in which she was found, and she probably died a minute or two after the vomiting. Dr. Hector said he did not think the

bank was steep enough for anyone to throw themselves down. He himself had rolled large stones down, but some of them had not reached the bottom. He did not think such injuries would have been caused by a fall down the bank. Cross-examined by counsel for accused, Dr. Hector said that a fall in the street, or on a hard, flat surface might produce contrecoup injuries. Witness was questioned closely with regard to his reasons for supposing that the girl had been bul’ied alive. He would not agree that the injuries at the back of the head and neck ,were such as would result from a wrench. Two pieces of iron piping, one narrower than the other, were referred to Dr. Hector. He said he considered the narrow one would have left a mark, even perhaps through the scarf, if it had been used to strike a blow on the temple. The larger one could have struck the blow without doing so. If powerful blows were struck on the right side of the back of the head up toward the ear, laceration of the skin would probably occur. This was not necessarily the case at the back of the muscles of the neck. j After further evidence had been | given, th® Court adjourned at 5.6 p.m.. until to-morrow.

THIS MORNING’S PROCEEDINGS WELLINGTON. November 6. When the Court resumed this morning. Dr Hayhurst said he was present when the accused was charged with murder on July 16. Detective N. Baylis’ also gave evidence as to the finding of the body. He also gave details of the various routes from Adelaide Road to the spot where; the body was found, and the times it took to walk leisurely over these routes. Re-examined by the Crown Prosecutor, Dr. Hector, said that he' did not think tire injuries at the back of the neck had been caused by a wrench. In his opinion, the girl was alive when buried, and death occurred in the attitude the bodj r was found. The mode of death was asphyxia, due to vomiting, which was caused either by blows on the back of the head or the smothering of death. Detective F. Hayhurst gave evidence relating to the finding of the body. He said that the position where the body was buried'was the deepest portion of the gully. He did not think that it would be possible for anyone to throw themselves over the tip and reach the bottom. If anyone did jump over, marks would show on the body. At this stage, the Judge decided to hear an application by Counsel for accused, regarding the admissibility of certain evidencd, in Chambers, and the Court was adjourned for this purpose.