Two young women allegedly murdered by the accused Claremont serial killer died from neck injuries while trying to defend themselves, the WA Supreme Court has been told.
Key points:
- Bradley Robert Edwards is on trial for the wilful murders of three women in the 1990s
- His trial has heard more details about Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon's autopsies
- He said Ms Glennon had no injuries 'you might associate' with sexual assault
Forensic pathologist Clive Cooke has been giving evidence about the deaths of Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27, who died in 1996 and 1997 after vanishing at night from the streets of Claremont, a popular entertainment precinct in Perth's western suburbs.
Former Telstra technician Bradley Robert Edwards, 51, is on trial for the wilful murders of Ms Rimmer, Ms Glennon and a third young woman, 18-year-old Sarah Spiers, whose body has never been found.
Dr Cooke was present at the post-mortem examinations of both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon and was assisting chief forensic pathologist Karin Margolius, who has since died.
Ms Margolius's autopsy reports on the women have been read to the court, and Dr Cooke has been asked to verify various aspects of them.
Women had 'defence-type injuries'
Dr Cooke said both women appeared to have had their throats cut, suffering "incised or penetrating" cuts to their necks.
He also agreed with state prosecutor Carmel Barbagallo QC's assertion that they both "had defects to their wrists or inner forearm consistent with having been caused by a sharp instrument such as a knife or similar sharp cutting instrument".
"The appearance in Ms Glennon's case is very strongly suggestive of that," Dr Cooke said.
"With respect to Ms Rimmer, I think we had raised that likelihood, that possibility about that having happened."
Asked if the women were "defending themselves against a knife attack", Dr Cooke agreed.
"Yes, it's a common location to sustain defence-type injuries," he said.
But under cross-examination from defence counsel Genevieve Cleary, Dr Cooke admitted he could only conclude the injuries were "consistent with a sharp instrument", not that a knife was definitely involved.
No evidence of sexual assault
Dr Cooke previously told the court it could not be determined whether Ms Rimmer had been sexually assaulted before she was killed because her body had been so badly decomposed, although there was no sign that she had.
Today he confirmed the same was true of Ms Glennon, even though her body was less decomposed than that of Ms Rimmer, having been found 19 days after her disappearance.
Ms Rimmer's body was not discovered until August 3, 1996, almost two months after she vanished.
Dr Cooke told the court there were no injuries observed on Ms Glennon "that you might associate with sexual penetration", although the extent of decomposition had affected the ability to tell one way or another.
Questioned by Ms Cleary about practices at the state mortuary during the time of the women's autopsies, Dr Cooke said the bodies had been laid out on the floor at different times in order to be photographed, something that was not done any more.
In that position, he agreed they were more susceptible to accidental contamination from other people in the mortuary who may have leaned over them or coughed or sneezed near them.
It was not usual at that time for mortuary staff to wear face masks, and other post-mortems sometimes happened in the same area concurrently, he said.
Dr Cooke said instruments such as scissors and forceps used at the time would be washed at the end of each autopsy, but might be used several times on each body before being rinsed.
Disposable instruments were more commonly used these days, he said.
In earlier hearings the court was told a large pair of mortuary scissors were used to cut Ms Glennon's fingernails.
One of the key pieces of forensic evidence upon which the case hinges is a mixed profile DNA sample found under one of the young lawyer's fingernails which matched Edwards's DNA.
Edwards denies murdering the three women and the marathon trial, before Justice Stephen Hall, is continuing.
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