The Case of the Queenly Contestant

Dillon said, “If the Court is going to permit those questions, I may as well go right ahead and show the time of death.”

“Well, Counsel has asked a question and he’s entitled to an answer,” Judge Elwell said. “The witness will answer the question.”

“The contents of the stomach,” Dr. Clinton said, “showed green peas, scallops, potatoes, and bread.”

“In what state of preservation?” Mason asked. “In other words, how far had digestion progressed?”

“Death had taken place within approximately thirty minutes of the time the meal had been ingested.”

Judge Elwell said, “There was no objection to that question, Mr. Mason; but I think you are probably technically restricted in your cross-examination as to matters which were brought out on direct examination and the physical condition of the body. I understand the prosecutor wants to proceed with evidence showing the time of death.”

“Very well,” Mason said. “Under those circumstances, I have no further cross-examination at this time.”

“All right,” Stanley Dillon said, “I may as well go into the time of death. How long had the decedent been dead before your examination?”

“I would say between twenty-four and thirty-six hours.”

“Could you make it any closer than that?”

“Not from a standpoint of accurate evidence, no. I would be somewhat inclined to fix the time of death as approximately twenty-four hours before the body was discovered.”

“And the body was discovered at about eight-twenty on the evening of the fifth?”

“As to that, I know only by hearsay. I know that I performed my autopsy at seven o’clock on the morning of the sixth; and I would generally fix the time of death as from twenty-four to thirty-six hours previous to my examination.”

“Can you tell whether the body had been moved after death?”

“In my opinion, the body had not been moved after death unless it had been moved almost immediately after the fatal shot had been fired.”

“What causes you to have that opinion, Doctor?”

“Because of postmortem lividity. After death, the blood becomes discolored and settles in the lower part of the body. In other words, after the heart ceases to function, the forces of gravitation take over and the blood has a tendency to settle in the body and become discolored. There was a well-defined postmortem lividity here, indicating that the body had not been moved — unless it was moved very shortly after the fatal wound had been inflicted.”

“I think that’s all at this time,” Dillon said.

“Did you form any opinion as to the caliber of the fatal bullet?” Mason asked.

“These things are very, very tricky,” Dr. Clinton said. “My personal opinion is that the bullet was a thirty-eight-caliber bullet; but the skin is elastic during lifetime and it is difficult without examining the fatal bullet itself to be sure as to its caliber.”

“And there was no fatal bullet in the body?” Mason asked.

“No. The bullet had emerged from the upper left chest, as I stated in my earlier testimony.”

“Thank you, Doctor. That’s all.”

“Now, then, I’ll recall Lieutenant Tragg,” Dillon said.

Tragg again took the stand.

“When did you arrive at 1635 Manlay Avenue, Lieutenant?”

“At eight forty-seven on the evening of the fifth.”

“You made an examination of the premises?”

“I did.”

“Did you meet the defendant there at that time?”

“I did.”

“Did you discuss with her what she had observed and why she had gone there?”

“Generally, yes.”

“And, at that time, your inquiries were simply general. You had not determined upon the defendant as a suspect at that time.”

“That is correct.”

“Did she tell you anything about her time of arrival?”

“She said that she had come there with Mr. Perry Mason and Miss Della Street, Perry Mason’s secretary; that they had found the woman dead and had promptly called police.”

“Did she say anything at any time about having been there earlier?”

“No, sir. She gave us to understand this was her first visit to the place in some time.”

“Did she say anything to you about having taken a diary or any other personal property from the premises?”

“On the contrary, she said they had left things just as they found them.”

“Did you try to develop latent fingerprints?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Were you able to develop any?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Were you able to identify any of the latent prints you developed?”

“Yes, sir. There were fingerprints of the decedent, of course; there were fingerprints of some individual who has not been identified; and there were fingerprints of a man named Ralph Corning, who is — so to speak — a boyfriend of the decedent and who had been there earlier in the week but who was out of town on the third, fourth and fifth.”

“Any other fingerprints?”

“Those of the defendant,” the witness said, “and some others that were smudged — but many good fingerprints of the defendant.”

“Where did you find them?”

“Generally, we found them on the bureau drawers, on the doorknob, on the woodwork, on the glass panel of the front door.”

“Inside or outside?”