Medical experts testified, Tuesday, during the trial of George Huguely V, who has been charged with murdering his ex-girlfriend and University of Virginia classmate Yeardley Love, that a "blunt force trauma" had killed the girl.
Neuropathologist Christine E. Fuller said a lesion on the lower portion of Love's brain was a "contusion...a fancy word for a bruise."
When asked by prosecutor Dave Chapman to describe how the bruise could have formed, Fuller said it is the result of a "blunt force trauma to the head."
Fuller also pointed out that he had noticed an injury near the base of the brain in the vicinity of the spinal cord. It was caused by torque, or a violent twisting. That injury, the neuropathologist said, could have been fatal.
On Monday, Dr. Michael Gormley, who performed Love's autopsy, said the autopsy and subsequent examinations of her brain by other physicians made him believe that Love died as a result of cardiac arrhythmia, or an irregular heart, caused by blunt force trauma that injured her brain, disrupting the flow of blood to her heart.
Gormley also testified that Love's blood alcohol content was above the legal limit for drunken driving and that she had amphetamines - a class of drugs that includes Adderall - in her system. However, neither was present in high enough levels to cause death.
The doctor said his autopsy revealed evidence of suffocation as well as a potentially deadly neck injury.
He also described a series of bruises on Love's limbs, lower back and chest, which he said could have been caused by grabbing.
Love's most severe injuries were on the right side of her face, Gormley testified. The injuries included a battered right eye, bruising to her neck and under her jaw.
Gormley and Fuller's testimony strengthens the prosecution's case that Huguely that kicked through the door of Love's bedroom the night (May 3, 2010) she died, shook her violently, punched her and banged her head against the wall, before leaving her alone and unconscious, bleeding to death. Huguely suspected Love of infidelity and especially was suspicious of her on-and-off relationship with Michael Burns, a University of North Carolina lacrosse player.
The prosecutors say Huguely was upset to see Love and Burns together. Shortly before she died, he had sent her an email, saying, "When I found out about Mike Burns, I should have killed you."
The defense lawyers claim Love's death was caused by fatal combination of Adderall and alcohol that caused her heart to stop. The police had responded to a 911 call for a possible alcohol overdose.
Defense attorney Francis Lawrence told the jury that Huguely is incapable of being a calculating criminal and he's nothing more than "a lacrosse player."
If foundd guilty of first-degree murder, Huguely could be sentenced to life imprisonment.
