SAVANNA-LA-MAR, Westmoreland — A defence lawyer on Thursday questioned the integrity of the crime scene in the Mario Deane trial, grilling the crime scene examiner who said he processed and collected samples 24 hours after the beating that led to Deane’s death.

The witness, who will not be named in keeping with the trial judge’s instructions, was testifying in the trial of three cops — Corporal Elaine Stewart and constables Juliana Clevon and Marlon Grant — charged with manslaughter, perverting the course of justice, and misconduct in a public office.

“Do you agree that when forensically examining a crime scene a meticulous approach has to be taken?” asked Martin Thomas, the lawyer representing Stewart and Grant.

The forensic expert replied, “Yes.”

Thomas later asked, “Prior to your arrival, you cannot say whether or not the scene was preserved?”

The forensic expert replied, “I can’t comment on that.”

Asked to expound on his answer, he said he had no knowledge of what had occurred before he arrived at the scene. The witness later agreed with Thomas that it would be useful to know whether or not the crime scene was contaminated before his arrival.

The expert, who is also the Crown’s sixth witness, testified on Thursday that he arrived at the scene 24 hours after the incident and, therefore, he was unable to say what took place at the scene between August 3 and 4.

He also said he was unable to say if what appeared to be blood drops and droplets were deposited before or after the Mario Deane incident.

“The truth is that these things that you call blood droplets, you cannot say that they form a part of your crime scene because you don’t know when they got there and how they got there,” suggested Thomas.

The witness replied, “Is that a question?”

Thomas said it was a suggestion and asked the witness if he agreed.

“Since I wasn’t there I cannot say,” stated the forensic expert.

During the cross-examination, the witness failed to recall how many people accompanied him to the Barnett Street Police Station and if anyone was in the vehicle he drove. He was also unable to recall who he spoke with at the station and who gave him access to the cell block. He also told the court that he made no observation of the nearby cells — one to three — on the block.

Originally expected to begin Thursday morning, the case got underway in the afternoon after the matter was stood down to allow the defence team to decide on the admission of certain pictures from a crime scene compact disc (CD). The CD also contains videos.

This was resolved and several photos and a video were shown in court. The video showed the layout of the corridor and cell number four on the Barnett Street Police Station cell block where the fatal attack on Deane took place.

The images and video also showed markers used to denote items of importance that were sampled for later testing. These included what appeared to be blood stains on walls, door jambs, a concrete bed, a grille door, and the floor.

During Thursday’s presentation, the three accused sat in the prisoner’s dock and watched attentively as the photos and video were displayed on a big screen monitor in the courtroom. They were equally attentive during cross-examination of the witness whose evidence in chief concluded before he was cross-examined by Thomas late Thursday afternoon.

The case will resume Friday at 10:00 am when Dalton Reid, the attorney representing Clevon, is expected to cross-examine the witness.

In addition, the Crown’s seventh witness — a detective constable — is expected to take the stand.

The allegations in the case are that Deane was arrested for possession of a ganja spliff and placed in custody, where he was brutally beaten on August 3, 2014. He sustained severe injuries to his brain, which left him in a coma. He died three days later at Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James.

It is alleged that the three cops were on duty at the police station when Deane was beaten. It is further alleged that Corporal Stewart instructed that the cell in which the attack took place be cleaned before the arrival of investigators from the Independent Commission of Investigations.