Judge Denies Defense Motion For Mistrial

It is possible that CPR could cause the type of petechia bruising found on Camden Fry's chest, but that was unlikely the cause of the pinpoint bruises on the 8-year-old girl's body, according to former state medical examiner Dr. William Cox.

Cox testified previously that he discovered the petechia — defined as reddish or purplish spots containing blood that appear in skin or mucous membranes as a result of localized hemorrhaging — on Camden's chest, neck, shoulder and eyelids, along with a fracture of the hyaloid bone in her neck. The injuries were caused by manual strangulation, Cox said.

Kimberly Fry is charged with strangling her daughter in their North Kingstown home on Aug. 10, 2009 during a temper tenatrum over the girl's refusal to take a bath. Defense attorney Sarah Wright has said Camden's death was an accident, the result of a restraint technique designed to stop a tantrum.

Wright questioned Cox on cross examination Tuesday morning regarding the autopsy he performed on Camden's body, inquiring whether anything else — choking, for example — could produce the petechia he found. While that is possible, he said, the totality of Camden's inuries points to manual strangulation.

Wright pointed out that Cox did not mention the word "fracture" in his autopsy report. While that's true, he said, he wrote the hyaloid bone was "freely movable," synonymous with a fracture.

Wright also questioned Cox regarding his criminal past. The doctor pleaded to nine misdemeanor crimes in Ohio related to pathological work he conducted in that state. He was charged with using public facilities for private autopsies, and ordered to serve a three-year suspended sentence and pay $138,000 in restitution.

Before beginning testimony Tuesday morning, Wright motioned for a mistrial over Cox's testimony. The pathologist had been on the stand for more than a full day of direct examination, with several breaks interrupting his testimony. During one such break, prosecutor Stephen Regine spoke to Cox, Wright said, in violation of Judge William Carnes' order that witnesses are to speak to no one regarding their testimony. Carnes denied the defense motion, along with another to strike Cox' testimony from the record.