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Steven Avery & Brendan Dassey— Case Archive
Steven Averytrial-daytrial-dayThomas J. FallonNorman A. GahnJerome F. ButingDean A. StrangJeffrey JentzenKenneth OlsondirectcrossredirectrecrossDay 15 - March 2, 2007Kenneth Olson reported elemental lead near defects in two cranial fragments but could not link it to item FL. Jeffrey Jentzen gave his opinion that Teresa Halbach died from gunshot wounds to the head, while acknowledging that the bones could not establish whether the wounds occurred during life.
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Day 15 - March 2, 2007

Olson's Lead Findings and Jentzen's Gunshot-Wound Opinion

Judge Patrick L. Willis
8Proceedings
2Pages
2Witnesses
848Lines
Day 15 of 27
Appearing:
Thomas J. Fallon Norman A. Gahn Jerome F. Buting Dean A. Strang Jeffrey Jentzen Kenneth Olson

Kenneth Olson reported elemental lead near defects in two cranial fragments but could not link it to item FL. Jeffrey Jentzen gave his opinion that Teresa Halbach died from gunshot wounds to the head, while acknowledging that the bones could not establish whether the wounds occurred during life.

Full day summary

State Crime Laboratory examiner Kenneth Olson identified charred cellphone and camera parts from material submitted from a burning barrel. He reported traces of elemental lead near a defect in cranial fragment EJ and more lead around a defect in fragment KQ. He said he had not examined item FL and could not attribute the lead in either fragment to it. Consulting forensic pathologist Jeffrey Jentzen described features of fragments identified to him as left parietal and occipital skull bone that he considered consistent with entrance gunshot wounds. He testified that, in his opinion, Teresa Halbach died from gunshot wounds to the head and that the manner of death was homicide. On cross-examination, he said the bones could not establish whether the wounds occurred shortly before or after death, and he could not determine a wound track, direction of fire, or who fired the shots. He maintained his opinions on redirect. After an objection to his reference to a legally binding determination, the judge said the determination in this case belonged to the jury.

1. Kenneth Olson — Direct/Cross/Redirect/Recross

Kenneth Olson testified about charred electronics and lead readings on cranial fragments, then addressed limits of his findings and testing he had not performed.

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Procedural
Morning Session Opening and Jury Return
9 lines
Direct
Kenneth Olson — Direct Kenneth Olson Thomas J. Fallon
292 lines

Kenneth Olson reported elemental lead near defects in two charred cranial fragments, described a limitation in examining a third, and identified charred electronic items.

Cross
Kenneth Olson — Cross Kenneth Olson Jerome F. Buting
55 lines

Olson explained a difference between images of cranial item KQ, said he could not link its lead traces to untested item FL, and reported finding no rope fibers on a headboard.

Redirect
Kenneth Olson — Redirect Kenneth Olson Thomas J. Fallon
12 lines

Olson testified that .22-caliber bullets are almost 99 percent lead after the court allowed the redirect question.

Recross
Kenneth Olson — Recross Kenneth Olson Jerome F. Buting
30 lines

Olson described variations in bullet composition and confirmed he had not examined item FL.

Highlights

Kenneth Olson — Directtestimony highlightOlson reported traces of elemental lead near the defect in item EJ. He described other readings as too low to call and said areas away from the defect served as controls.Kenneth Olson — Directtestimony highlightOlson reported elemental lead around the defect in item KQ, including four locations on its inner surface. He said KQ had considerably more lead than EJ and that he detected none in the inner-surface control area.Kenneth Olson — Direct“There was considerably more lead in this sample than there was in item EJ.”— Kenneth OlsonCompares Olson’s findings for item KQ with item EJ.Kenneth Olson — CrossadmissionOlson said he had not received or chemically tested item FL and agreed he could not say the lead traces in either cranial fragment came from it.

2. Jeffrey Jentzen — Direct/Cross/Redirect

Jeffrey Jentzen gave his opinion that Teresa Halbach died from gunshot wounds to the head. Cross-examination addressed the limits of the bone evidence; Jentzen maintained his opinions on redirect before jurors were excused until Tuesday.

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Direct
Jeffrey Jentzen — Direct Jeffrey Jentzen Norman A. Gahn
122 lines

Jeffrey Jentzen interpreted two skull fragments and their x-rays as consistent with entrance gunshot wounds and gave his opinion on Teresa Halbach's cause and manner of death.

Cross
Jeffrey Jentzen — Cross Jeffrey Jentzen Dean A. Strang
291 lines

Jentzen conceded he could not tell whether the skull wounds occurred before or after death, but maintained his gunshot cause-of-death and homicide manner-of-death opinions.

Redirect
Jeffrey Jentzen — Redirect Jeffrey Jentzen Norman A. Gahn
37 lines

Jentzen explained his method and reaffirmed his gunshot-wound and homicide opinions; the judge clarified the jury's role after an objection.

Highlights

Jeffrey Jentzen — Directtestimony highlightUsing the left parietal fragment and its x-ray, Jentzen described internal beveling and small radiodense fragments, and said the findings were consistent with an entrance gunshot wound.Jeffrey Jentzen — Directtestimony highlightJentzen described internal beveling on the left occipital fragment and radiodense fragments on its x-ray, and said the bone findings were consistent with an entrance gunshot wound.Jeffrey Jentzen — Directtestimony highlightJentzen gave his opinion that Teresa Halbach died from a gunshot wound or wounds to the head and classified the manner of death as homicide.Jeffrey Jentzen — Direct“It would be my opinion that she died as a result of gunshot wounds to the head and that the manner of her death would be homicide.”— Jeffrey JentzenStates his opinion on death and its manner.Jeffrey Jentzen — Crosstestimony highlightPressed on whether the skull wounds occurred while the person was alive, Jentzen said he could not make a definitive determination from the bones. He agreed that comparable wounds could result shortly before or after death, although he considered the bone unlike a fully skeletonized specimen.Jeffrey Jentzen — Cross“I don't specifically think that there's any one piece of information that would say that the person was alive, with a beating heart, or an intact brain.”— Jeffrey JentzenJentzen acknowledged the limit on determining whether a gunshot struck a living person.Jeffrey Jentzen — RedirectobjectionStrang objected to Jentzen's reference to a legally binding determination. The judge said the determination in this case belongs to the jury and that he would instruct it accordingly.
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