Murder trial turns to DNA, cause of death

PANAMA CITY — Michael Reid Scott’s nose and ear were spilt by blunt-force trauma and several of his ribs were broken before a pair of hands bore down on his throat, strangling him to death, the Bay County’s medical examiner testified Wednesday.

A neighbor found Scott, 90, lifeless in his Lynn Haven home two days later. During Wednesday’s trial of Kevin Jeffries, who is charged with first-degree murder, prosecutors established the manner of Scott’s death and began to reveal their case for what motivated three assailants to invade his home in April 2013.

Jurors will hear closing arguments Thursday.

Fourteenth Circuit Medical Examiner Michael Hunter Burst testified Wednesday that blood vessels in Scott’s eyes and gums indicated one of the two suspects manually strangled Scott, but the defense disagreed with Hunter’s interpretation of Scott’s autopsy.

William Anderson, forensic pathologist and former medical examiner in other Florida districts, called it a “partial strangulation” because the damage to Scott’s throat was contained to the right side of his neck.

Anderson said the amount of fluid in Scott’s lungs, which weighed twice the normal amount, indicated he continued bleeding from his other traumas until he died.

“Once the heart stops, hemorrhaging stops,” Anderson said. “In my opinion, the partial strangulation occurred a while before the time of death.”

The manner of Scott’s death — homicide — was uncontested, though. The difference in the two causes of death is the prosecution’s obligation to prove premeditation for a first-degree murder conviction. Both examiners agreed Scott had been brutally beaten before his death. And the slices to Scott’s genitalia were consistent with a theory he was tortured as the two men tried to coerce banking information during an attempted robbery.

Manhunt

More than 18 investigators across three states developed leads in Scott’s murder in the days after discovering his body, according to Capt. Jimmy Stanford of BCSO.

“The big break came when we got DNA results from the tip of a blue latex glove found at the scene that matched Jeffries’ DNA,” Stanford said. “Then we began a manhunt for him.”

Jeffries’ DNA also was found on belts and electrical chords at the scene that prosecutors said were used to bind Scott as he was beaten.

Deputies then used Ashley Griffin, the third suspect in the case and Jeffries’ girlfriend, to lure him to a convenience store in a rural area of Holmes County. Jeffries fled apprehension on foot with sheriff’s deputies firing in his direction before he surrendered in a cow pasture off State 2.

Defense attorney Walter Smith argued a pool of blood at Scott’s foot in crime scene photos and the upright position of his body when he was discovered corroborated Jeffries statements that he attempted to aid Scott after his brutal beating.

“With all that blood coming out of his ear and pooling on the carpet … he was at least in a different position from when he received those injuries than when the body was found,” Smith said. “Somehow he got into that seated position at the foot of the bed.”

Motive

Prior to receiving Jeffries’ DNA results, though, investigators were developing a lead on his aunt and David Chandeller’s mother, Sherri Mercer. The trial of David Challender, also charged with Scott’s murder, is pending.

“She was ruled out as being in Scott’s home at the time” of his death, Stanford said. “But things kept coming up, and we couldn’t just let her go as a person of interest.”

Scott filed a report of credit card fraud against Mercer and Deborah Cupps, who had been his caretakers at one point, but didn’t press charges. Mercer was also a recipient in Scott’s will, but Scott recently had begun seeking an attorney to remove her, a close friend of his testified.

“He was concerned about his safety, and I got the impression he wanted a will or something undone,” said private investigator David Middlebrooks. “He indicated he made a mistake, but he didn’t show me anything.”

Griffin testified Tuesday to hearing of Scott’s wealth through Mercer before plotting the trio’s robbery attempt, but jurors did not hear any further evidence Wednesday.

Jeffries also faces felony charges of robbery and burglary while armed for stealing two rifles and two handguns from Scott’s home.