Opinion ID: 4569249
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Evidence found inside Froman’s vehicle

Text: {¶ 23} An evidence technician with the OSHP recovered a Hi-Point .40caliber semiautomatic pistol from Froman’s vehicle containing a magazine with four rounds of ammunition in it and a live round jammed in the firearm. Six spent shell casings, three intact projectiles, two live rounds, and a bullet jacket were recovered from inside the vehicle. J. Forensic testing {¶ 24} Matthew White, a firearms examiner with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, examined the gun found in Froman’s vehicle, determined that it was operable, and concluded that the spent shell casings recovered from the vehicle had been fired by that gun. White also determined that the spent shell casing found near Eli’s body had been fired by the same gun. White compared test bullets that he had fired through the gun with the bullet recovered from Eli’s body. Those comparisons revealed similar class characteristics (i.e., the caliber, the number and width of the lands and grooves, and the direction of the twist). However, there were insufficient characteristics present to identify or eliminate the bullet as having been fired by the gun. K. Autopsy results {¶ 25} Dr. Amy Burrows-Beckham, an assistant medical examiner with the state of Kentucky, conducted the autopsy of Eli’s body. Eli had been shot in the back of his head, his abdomen, and his right forearm. Dr. Burrows-Beckham testified that the pattern of stippling around the abdominal entrance wound showed that the gun had been fired from a distance of “about six inches.” She concluded that gunshot wounds had caused Eli’s death. {¶ 26} Dr. Susan Allen, a forensic pathologist with the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office, conducted the autopsy of Thomas’s body. Thomas had been shot in the back of her head, her right upper chest, her right breast, and her right upper abdomen. Thomas had also suffered blunt force trauma to her torso, inner thighs, 7 SUPREME COURT OF OHIO and extremities, a laceration on her upper lip, three lacerations on the top of her head, and abrasions on her forehead and right cheek. She had a broken jaw and one of her lower teeth had been knocked out. Dr. Allen determined that Thomas had died from multiple gunshot wounds.