Opinion ID: 2508357
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Ipsen deliberately refrained from asking Dr. Ribe about the postmortem abrasion in Sakarias's trial

Text: The referee, observing that in Sakarias's trial Ipsen had introduced virtually all the same autopsy photographs as in Waidla's trial but had omitted exhibit 59K, which showed the abrasion on Viivi Piirisild's back, concluded Ipsen's omissions of this exhibit and of questioning regarding the abrasion were deliberate, designed to avoid the presentation of evidence inconvenient to his new and different theory of the attack, evidence much easier to omit than to explain. We conclude this finding is supported by substantial evidence. Though Ipsen testified he had no memory of deciding not to introduce that [exhibit], he agreed it was odd that the one photograph is not in. To be sure, Ipsen's examination of Dr. Ribe in Sakarias's trial was not as long as in Waidla's; Ipsen testified he was less concerned with the medical and physical evidence in Sakarias's trial, where Sakarias had confessed to the attack and raised a psychiatric defense, than in Waidla's. But even in Sakarias's trial, the examination of Dr. Ribe was methodical, covering each of Viivi Piirisild's major injuries and including questions as to the hemorrhagic or nonhemorrhagic character of most. In an earlier examination of the police detective, moreover, Ipsen had already presented evidence that the abrasion on Viivi's body and the condition of the carpeting corroborated Sakarias's statement that petitioners had dragged her body to the bedroom. As the referee reasoned, It is highly improbable that Ipsen recognized the significance of the abrasion as evidence that the body was dragged, but forgot the significance of the abrasion as evidence that Piirisild died in the living room before being dragged to the bedroom. In light of this circumstantial evidence, and given Ipsen's lack of specific memory as to how he came to omit examination on the postmortem character of the abrasion, the referee could reasonably conclude the omission was deliberate.