Opinion ID: 1119447
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Evidence of time of death.

Text: No testimony was adduced at trial fixing the time of death in relation to when the twig was inserted into the victim's rectum. Smith testified that Doyle said that the brick was dropped repeatedly on Mason's face until she died. Mason's body was discovered some distance from the road, where the struggle apparently took place. The twig matched the foliage in the area immediately surrounding the body. The medical expert estimated that Mason's injuries, which were apparently inflicted during the struggle, were likely to have produced death within two-to-four minutes. The autopsy revealed no evidence of contusion, laceration, or other trauma associated with Mason's rectum, evidence which would have supported the argument that she had been alive at the time of the penetration. Possible indications of digging located near Mason's hands suggest that she may have still been alive after being dragged into the bushes. We conclude, however, that this evidence, by itself, is not sufficient to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that sexual penetration occurred while Mason was alive. In fact, the only reasonable conclusion, based on the available evidence, is that Mason was killed and her body then carried or dragged into the bushes and discarded face down on the pile of dead twigs and branches. Then, in a final act of depravity, the twig was inserted into her rectum.