Defence disputes cause of death by pathologist.
By Jensen LaVende
Trinidad & Tobago Express | Saturday, July 11th 2009

THE first line of defence against an allegation of murder facing Phillip “The Boss” Boodram, one of the nine men charged with killing Samdaye Rampersad, was drawn yesterday with the evidence of Prof Hubert Daisley.

Daisley was the first defence witness to be called after the State closed their case against the men on July 8. Daisley was called by Pamela Elder SC to challenge the evidence of pathologist Dr Hughvon Des Vignes, who gave evidence on behalf of the State on July 7.

Daisley testified before Justice Rajendra Narine in the Port of Spain Second Criminal Court that he was not one hundred per cent satisfied with the cause of death listed by Des Vignes.

Daisley added that a full autopsy could not have been performed on Rampersad because both her hands and her right foot were missing.

Daisley testified that he did not know how Rampersad acquired the broken back that severed her spinal cord but confirmed that a fall could have caused the injury.

He added that the account of Rampersad’s foot going up in the air after Boodram broke Rampersad’s back as related by the State’s main witness, Ryan Nigel “Super Cat” Roderique, was not possible as the severed spinal cord would result in paralysis below the fracture.

Daisley was also questioned by defence attorneys Wayne Sturge and Ravi Gooljar, the State is expected to cross-examine Daisley on Monday.

Boodram, Kervin “Arc Eye” Williams, Vivian “Clarkie” Clarke, Aaron “Kenna” Grappie, Steve “Boops” McGilvery, Pernell Martin, Rickey Singh, Roger Mootoo and Bobby Sankar, are all charged with Rampersad’s murder.

Rampersad was snatched from her Mendoza Lane, San Juan, home on November 26, 2007, and her semi-decomposing body was dug out of a shallow grave in a cashew field in Springvale, Claxton Bay, on January 5 the following year.