BOULDER, Colo. — Physical evidence took center stage on Day 2 of the jury trial of Dynel Lane as doctors and police testified.
Lane is accused of attempted first-degree murder and unlawful termination of a pregnancy for the March 2015 attack that left Michelle Wilkins‘ unborn daughter dead.
Wilkins, who was seven months pregnant at the time, went to Lane’s home after she posted an ad on Craigslist for baby clothes. Wilkins recounted the attack in testimony on Wednesday.
Det. Mark Deaton showed a mattress with deep red stains to the jury. The mattress came from the bedroom where Wilkins laid dying after the attack.
The jury also saw bloody shirts, towels and glass shards from a lava lamp. The prosecution said Lane attacked Wilkins with the lamp, shattering it and knocking her out.
Deaton then showed the two knives that he said Lane used to cut baby Aurora out of Wilkins’ womb.
Dr. Kevin Berg testified that he did not know if Wilkins can ever have children again because of her injuries, which included a large cut across her abdomen and wounds to her neck. He said Wilkins lost more than half of her blood.
Dr. Brian Nelson, another doctor who was on duty in the emergency room that day, called Wilkins’ improvised C-section precise.
“Precision cut like a first-year med student,” he said.
He also recounted first seeing Lane in the emergency room with her boyfriend, David Ridley. All of this as the doctor tried to piece together what was happening.
Even as the jury stared for her reaction, Lane showed no emotion in court even through the most gruesome testimony.
Later, Chief District Court Judge Maria Berkenkotterthe agreed with the defense that the testimony of the doctor who performed the autopsy on the baby should not be allowed.
Defense attorney Jennifer Beck said the testimony would be irrelevant because Lane is not charged with murder in the case of Aurora.