The deputy chief Summit County medical examiner attempted to shoot holes Monday in defense attorneys’ alternate theories to how Tevael Parker died.
Dr. George Sterbenz, testifying in the murder trial of Kerieda Beavers, Parker’s girlfriend, discounted the idea that Parker could have shot and killed himself after he and Beavers quarreled on the return trip to a corner store for more beer. Sterbenz pointed to a lack of gunshot residue that is consistent with a shot fired from six or more inches away. He said people who shoot themselves normally fire the gun close to their head or chest, leaving behind residue on the skin or clothing.
“Are you telling me there is no possibility he committed suicide?” Walter Benson, one of Beavers’ attorneys, asked Sterbenz.
“I just can’t answer that question ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ ” a testy Sterbenz replied.
Benson, who claims Akron detectives botched the investigation, also pressed Sterbenz on whether the driver or passenger of a gray vehicle seen by several witnesses in the Akron neighborhood where the Jan. 9 shooting happened could have fired the gun at Parker, with one bullet hitting Parker in the chin.
Sterbenz, though, said this seems unlikely because of how the 0.22-caliber revolver was found underneath Parker’s body.
“If he was shot from the vehicle, the person would have to get out and put the gun under his body,” said Sterbenz, who has been with the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office for 15 years.
“Or throw it out the window,” Benson replied.
The heated exchange between Sterbenz and Benson was the highlight of a long day of testimony in the trial that began one week ago in Summit County Common Pleas Judge Scot Stevenson’s courtroom. Jurors heard testimony from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, with the court trying to wrap up the trial before the Thanksgiving weekend. Testimony resumes Tuesday.
Family and friends of both Beavers and Parker, who know each other because they are neighbors, are sitting through the trial. Parker’s mother sobbed during part of Sterbenz’s testimony that included autopsy photos of her son.
Beavers, 22, of Akron is charged with murder and felonious assault with firearms specifications. Prosecutors say Beavers shot Parker, also 22 and from Akron, once in the head after they quarreled about 1 a.m. Jan. 9 in the 1000 block of Weehawken Place. Parker was taken to the hospital where he later died. Beavers also was taken to the hospital for injuries she suffered at the hands of one of Parker’s relatives, who assaulted her after seeing Parker had been shot.
Other highlights of the prosecution’s witnesses Wednesday included:
• David Miller, a DNA analyst with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), said he excluded Beavers’ DNA from the items he tested, which included the gun used in the shooting.
• Dan Winterich, a blood-spatter analyst with BCI, testified that Beavers had no blood spatter on her clothing but did have blood stains on her white shirt, sweatshirt and jacket. He acknowledged these stains likely were caused by Beavers laying on and cradling Parker after he was shot.
• Det. Troy Looney was the first to interview Beavers at the hospital after she had initially been treated. Prosecutors played audio of the interview, which included Beavers sobbing and changing details, including the color of the shooter’s car.
“Try to get your composure together,” Looney said to her at one point. “I know it’s a lot. Who did you see do this?”
“It was a male,” she said. “I don’t know.”
“Is there something else you’re not telling me,” Looney pressed. “Because we’re going to find out.”
“I don’t know,” Beavers said, sobbing. “I don’t know.”
On Friday afternoon, Dr. William Manion, an expert witness for the defense who is a forensic pathologist and has appeared on the Nancy Grace show, testified out of order because of scheduling issues. Manion, who examined the autopsy report, photos, police reports and Beavers’ medical records, concluded that what Beavers said to detectives after the shooting was unreliable because she was in shock, suffering from concussive syndrome and had a large amount of alcohol and medications in her system.
He said other potential explanations for Parker’s death included suicide and a person in a car or lying on the ground shooting him.
Assistant Prosecutor Jon Baumoel pressed Manion on Beavers’ statements to police.
“Her statements could be lying to the police to cover up a crime she committed,” he said.
“The problem is: what’s the truth and what’s the lie,” Manion responded.
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705, swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com and on Twitter: @swarsmithabj .