“Did you interview the older child, Scott Sterling?”
“Yes. After the ambulance left with Skyler, Scott wandered into the living room. At first, I didn’t realize there was a second child.”
“What was the nature of your conversation?”
“Scott accused Bryce of hitting him on the backside and making him go to bed too early.”
“Was this a concern for you?”
The question stopped Radhauser and he thought about it for a few seconds. “At first, I was shocked and angered by what the child said, but after hearing the whole story and witnessing the way Bryce interacted with the boy, I felt differently.”
“I later learned the boy was upset because he wasn’t allowed to eat ice cream before dinner. And that he pushed Skyler, resulting in a fall down some concrete stairs. I have a four-year-old and I know how they love to exaggerate and claim things aren’t fair.”
“If you weren’t concerned, why did you file a report with Child Protective Services?”
“Because I’m required by law to do so with even the slightest suspicion of abuse.”
“So, you had a slight suspicion.”
“I had the boy’s testimony.”
“Did officers with a search warrant look for evidence at the Bryce home?”
“Yes.”
“What did they find?”
Radhauser knew where Marshall was going with this and he dreaded giving his answer. “They found an empty bottle of Haloperidol in the bathroom trash can, and the baby bottle in the victim’s bed.”
“What did forensics on the baby bottle show?”
“There was residue of both Haloperidol and apple juice in the bottle.”
“No further questions.”
On cross-examination Kendra asked, “What was the state of mind of the defendant when you arrived at his house?”
“Objection,” Marshall said. “Calls for an opinion.”
“I’ll rephrase, Your Honor. What did you observe in the kitchen?”
“I saw a man frantically administering CPR to a young child. I saw that the child had clamped down on the defendant’s finger and it was dripping blood. But the defendant continued to do everything in his power to get the toddler to breathe. When paramedics were able to release the finger, the defendant’s bone was exposed.”
“Did the defendant tell you it was his fault the child stopped breathing?”
“No. Not directly. He blamed himself because he fell asleep and hadn’t checked on Skyler as often as he planned to after his fall down the steps. He was afraid the toddler might have sustained a concussion and that was the reason for the seizure.”
“How would you characterize his behavior?”
“Objection,” Marshall said. “Again, she is calling for an opinion.”
Judge Shapiro overruled the objection.
“He behaved like a man who’d do anything to save a child he obviously loved.” There, he said it. The truth. And he sure hoped it wouldn’t come back to bite him in the ass.
“Did forensics check for fingerprints on the Haloperidol bottle?”
“Yes. They did, but the prints were not in the system.”
“Were they compared with the defendant’s?”
“Yes. They were not a match.”
“From the evidence collected so far in this case, do you believe, beyond any reasonable doubt, that Caleb Bryce deliberately poisoned Skyler Sterling?”
Despite his understanding of why Kendra asked it, this was the one question he’d hoped he wouldn’t have to answer. He waited a second, hoping Marshall would object.
Although he knew there’d be consequences from ADA Marshall and Captain Murphy, his innate sense of integrity wouldn’t allow him to answer any other way. “No,” he said. “I can’t truthfully say that I do.”
“Objection, Your Honor,” Marshall said. “Yet another opinion.”
Now, Radhauser understood. Marshall had expected a much different answer from a member of the prosecution’s team.
“Sustained,” Judge Shapiro said. “Jury is instructed to ignore that question and response.”
“No further questions,” Kendra said, a slight smile on her face.
* * *
The prosecution’s next witness was the medical examiner, Dr. Steven Heron.
Bryce had never met him before and there was something about Dr. Heron that reminded him of Isaiah Bryce. Probably the leanness of his body and length of his neck. The way he seemed to lope, rather than walk, up to the stand. After the court clerk swore him in, Marshall introduced his credentials, his numerous board certifications, and established him as an expert in the field of forensic pathology.
Marshall blocked Bryce’s view of Dr. Heron so he watched the woman sign in front of him, even though he could hear much of the testimony thanks to the device in his ear.
“Did you perform the autopsy on Skyler Sterling?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Would you please review your findings as to cause of death?”
Dr. Heron referred to his report, spread out on the stand in front of him. “Skyler Sterling died from an overdose of Haloperidol, a drug used for certain psychiatric disorders. Skyler Sterling was poisoned.”
“Were there other injuries?”
“Yes, some pretty severe ones. He suffered a lacerated spleen and hepatic portal vein. The spleen was removed and the vein repaired by a pediatric surgeon at Ashland Hospital.”
“Would you please educate us, in layman’s terms if possible, as to the function and importance of this vein?” Marshall stepped back from the stand, and Bryce, his eyes now planted on Heron’s face, could lip read what he couldn’t hear.
“It’s part of a major network that returns blood to the heart. The hepatic portal system includes veins that drain blood from the pancreas, spleen, stomach, intestines, and gall bladder and transport it to the portal vein of the liver. Ultimately, blood leaves the liver through the hepatic veins, enters the inferior vena cava, and is carried into the heart.”
“So, is it accurate to say Skyler Sterling would have bled to death from his injury on October eleventh had the surgeon not repaired the vein?”
“Yes,” Dr. Heron replied. “He likely would have.”
Marshall asked that the lights be dimmed so the medical examiner could review slides of the dead toddler’s body before autopsy. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” Marshall announced, “these may be difficult to view. If you feel queasy, take a deep breath. Sometimes it helps to oxygenate.”
Dr. Heron presented five slides. One of Skyler’s head. There was a blue knot the size of a large egg above his right eyebrow. He showed two views of his chest area, revealing numerous black and blue marks, and one of his lower extremities. The toddler had scrapes and bruises on both legs. The last slide was a close up of the child’s penis which showed a bruise and human teeth marks.
Two jurors gasped.
“All in all,” Heron testified. “There were twenty bruises on Skyler Sterling’s body.”
“Did you see evidence of sexual abuse?”
“I’m not sure,” Heron said. “There was no anal tearing or bruising. But he didn’t bite himself on the penis.”
“So, you’re saying sexual abuse is a possibility.”
“I wouldn’t rule it out without further investigation.”
“In your expert opinion, Dr. Heron, what would cause the severing of a hepatic vein?”
“A severe trauma. Sometimes a bullet. But most often we see this kind of blunt force injury when a child is struck by a car or a baseball bat, or a heavy object falls on their abdominal region.”
“Could an adult foot cause such an injury, Dr. Heron?”
Knowing Marshall had carefully plotted his questions, Bryce wondered where he was headed with that one.
“Objection, Your Honor. Leading the witness.” Kendra stood, and took a step toward the bench.
“Overruled,” Judge Shapiro said. “You may answer the quest
ion, Dr. Heron.”
“Yes,” he said. “I believe an adult who kicked or stepped on a child of Skyler Sterling’s size and weight could inflict this type of injury.”
“Thank you, Dr. Heron.” Marshall stepped away from the witness stand to take his place at the prosecution table. “I have no further questions.”
On cross-examination, Kendra had only a few questions. “Could the type of injury sustained by Skyler Sterling have occurred as a result of a fall down three concrete stairs?”
“It’s possible, but not very likely unless he hit the edge of the concrete with great force,” Dr. Heron said, shaking his head. “Kids fall all the time. Ordinarily they’re pretty resilient.”
“How about a fall sustained when a frantic adult raced across the room to call 9-1-1, a child blue and not breathing cradled in the crook of his arm? If that one-hundred-and-eighty pound adult tripped over a coffee table and fell on top of that twenty-five pound child, is it possible, Dr. Heron, that such an injury could be sustained?”
“Objection, Your Honor.” Marshall was on his feet. “Connection,” he demanded.
“I move that Your Honor receive the evidence to which my opponent has just objected subject to later connection.” Kendra approached the bench. “I present to the court it is my intention to connect this fall by testimony from the paramedics who first appeared on the scene. They will testify they observed evidence, as well as my client’s statement, to such a fall. The jury has already seen the photographs Detective Radhauser took of the overturned coffee table and broken oil lamp globe.”
“I’ll allow,” Judge Shapiro said. “You may answer the question, Dr. Heron.”
“Yes. Given the probable force of a running one-hundred-and-eighty pound adult falling on top of a twenty-five pound child, I would say injuries of the type Skyler Sterling sustained would be quite possible.”
Kendra continued with her questioning. “The drug found in Skyler Sterling’s blood, Haloperidol—isn’t it also used to treat symptoms of severe alcohol withdrawal?”
“Yes,” Heron replied. “It’s been shown to be very effective in treating delirium tremors.”
“Was there something in particular in the autopsy that made you suspect Skyler had been poisoned?”
Heron told the jury what he told Radhauser about the EKG and how unusual it was for a young child with a healthy heart to have QT interval prolongation. That it was a measurement of the time between the start of a Q wave and the end of a T wave in the heart’s electrical cycle. “Often prolongation is a risk factor for sudden death.”
He told the jury after more laboratory work, they found high concentrations of Haloperidol and its metabolites in Skyler’s blood and urine, and upon microscopic examination of his tissues. “This drug can cause seizures and heart rhythm abnormalities and would explain the QT interval prolongation.”
“I’d like to revisit the bite marks on Skyler Sterling’s penis,” she said, handing him a copy of the photograph Radhauser had taken of the bite mark on Bryce’s arm. Please compare this to your photograph of the victim’s bite marks.”
The medical examiner studied the photos for a moment. “Both bites show small teeth indentations, likely those of a child.”
“Thank you, Dr. Heron. I have no further questions.” Kendra laid her hand reassuringly on Bryce’s shoulder as she settled back into the seat beside him. Another gesture to show the jury she saw him as a decent human being and not a penis-biting child killer.
Andrew Marshall called Dr. Carter Barrows to the stand and after he was sworn in questioned him with regard to his credentials, the medical school he attended and his board certifications.
“Where do you currently work, Dr. Barrows?”
“I’m an emergency room physician at the Ashland Hospital.”
“Were you on duty the night of October eleventh and early morning of October twelfth?”
“Yes, sir, I was.”
“Did you treat Skyler Sterling?”
“Yes, sir, I did.”
“Would you please describe the condition of the child, Skyler Sterling, when you examined him?”
“His respirations were shallow and he was cyanotic. Paramedics reported the toddler had been found in his crib, stiff and apparently not breathing. CPR was administered at home and breathing resumed. At first, it appeared to be a seizure.”
“Were you suspicious of any other injuries?”
“Objection.” Kendra stood. “Leading the witness.”
The judge overruled and directed Barrows to answer.
“There was a large contusion on the child’s forehead, just over his right eye, several other bruises on the chest, but no obvious external injury to suggest something like a ruptured hepatic vein.” He paused, shuddered visibly, then continued. “We did have difficulty getting a vein to start IV fluids, but that sometimes happens with small children. They get dehydrated easily.”
“Were the number of external bruises unusual in a child of that age?” Marshall stood with his hands planted on his narrow hips.
“Yes and no,” Dr. Barrows answered. “We see all sorts of things in the ER. Kids that age are eye level to many surfaces that can cause injury to them. But we’re required to report any suspicion of child abuse to the authorities, and I did the following morning.”
“Were you informed by Mr. Bryce or the paramedics of any trauma to the child preceding the incident, any fall?”
“No. But the circumstances were unusual. The paramedics got another call for an automobile accident. They left in a hurry. Mr. Bryce was not with the child. Skyler was brought in by ambulance, without either of his parents. When the parents arrived, maybe fifteen minutes or so later, neither had been with the child at the time of the alleged seizure. And Skyler was already in surgery.”
“Would you have taken a different course of treatment had you suspected other trauma?” Marshall asked, then turned toward the jury.
“I doubt it would have changed the outcome very much,” Barrows said. “We got him to surgery pretty quickly. If we’d known he ingested Haloperidol, we might have pumped his stomach before surgery. It’s possible that could have made a difference.”
“No more questions, Your Honor.” Kendra sat beside Bryce. She scribbled a note on her yellow pad to reassure him.
Once Marshall was finished with his cross-examination, Kendra stood again. “Were the bruises on the child’s chest consistent with attempts to perform CPR by an untrained adult?”
“Possibly,” Barrows replied. “Pediatric CPR is different from adult CPR. Few lay people, even when trained, administer it to a child in a life-threatening situation without some evidence of injury.”
Kendra stepped closer to the stand for her next question. “Dr. Barrows, were you aware my client, Caleb Bryce, did come to the hospital that night after he arranged care for Skyler’s older brother? Mr. Bryce checked in at the emergency room and was sent up to the third-floor surgical waiting room. He would have been more than willing to talk with the physicians treating Skyler.”
“No, ma’am. We were not informed of Mr. Bryce’s presence, or that he had any pertinent information about the child.”
“So, no one at the hospital asked Mr. Bryce what happened that night?”
“Not to my knowledge.”
“Thank you,” Kendra said. “No further questions.”
Chapter Thirty
When Andrew Marshall called Reggie Sterling to the stand, dread wrapped its hands around Bryce’s throat. Reggie hated him and Bryce had no idea what he might say. After Reggie was sworn in, Marshall surprised Bryce with his line of questioning.
“Are you the biological father of Skyler Sterling?”
Reggie paused, stared at his lap. “I don’t think so,” he said in a voice Bryce couldn’t hear even with the aid. He read the interpreter’s signs. “Dana had a one-night stand when we were still married, but having some problems.”
“His birth certificate has your name on it, doesn’t
it, Mr. Sterling?”
“No, well, not exactly. You see Dana kept the Sterling name. So, you could say Skyler’s birth certificate has her name on it. I didn’t acknowledge him as my biological son.”
“Do you know who Skyler’s father is?”
He glared at Bryce. “I have a pretty good idea, but I can’t be sure.”
“How about Scott? Is Scott your son?”
“Yes, he’s my boy, all right. Our baby pictures are identical. You can’t tell us apart,” he said, his chest swelling.
A giggle escaped from one of the younger female jurors who quickly covered her mouth and lowered her head.
“Did you continue to have a relationship with Dana after she moved in with Mr. Bryce?”
“I saw her once in a while after she got off work. And sometimes during the day when I came to visit Scott. Before Bryce hurt his leg and hung around all the time. Me and Dana were talking about getting back together.”
“And was Dana agreeable to that?” Marshall stepped back and Bryce could read Reggie’s response on his lips.
“She said she wanted to, but was afraid of what Bryce would do if she left him.”
“She was afraid of Mr. Bryce? Do you know why?”
“Objection, Your Honor.” Kendra leapt to her feet. “Calls for an opinion on the part of the witness.”
“I’ll rephrase the question, Your Honor.” Marshall glanced at Kendra and smiled. It wasn’t a nice smile. “Did Dana Sterling indicate to you why she feared Mr. Bryce?”
“He stabbed her with an ice pick.”
The whole court sucked in a breath, followed by what seemed like an eternity of utter stillness.
Bryce couldn’t believe he really heard Reggie’s testimony and asked the interpreter to repeat her signs. When she did, his stomach curled into a knot as if to shield a kick. He never laid a hand on Dana, not once. And she told him the small scars on her abdomen were made by Reggie.
“Objection, Your Honor.” Kendra broke the silence and again rose to her feet. “That’s hearsay. Mr. Sterling was witness to no such act.”
“Please bear with me, Your Honor,” Marshall asked. “This is important to the defendant’s state of mind and may help establish a probable motive.”
A River of Silence Page 26