Nicholas Compton appears in court during his trial on first-degree murder charges. (Pool photo)
By Joe Ragusa
BLOOMINGTON – The man who conducted the autopsy of a three-year-old alleged murder victim took the stand Friday.
Dr. Scott Denton is a forensic pathologist with the McLean County Coroner's office and conducted the autopsy on Robbie Cramer in March 2013. He said Cramer died from a blood infection caused by tissue damage near his intestines and the way the damage was healing indicated that the damage occurred between five and 10 days before Cramer's fatal seizure.
E-coli, strep bacteria and fecal material were found in Cramer's blood stream. Denton said the death was due to bacterial sepsis and peritonitis.
25-year-old Nicholas Compton is accused of abusing Cramer while living with the child's mother. Denton said the injuries suffered by Cramer, around 30 in all, weren't typical injuries.
"No, those are not injuries the three-year old would get from an accidental play or accidental tripping and running around," Denton said.
Denton says the injuries include bruises on Cramer's neck, head and torso, along with a burn on Cramer's right cheek. The prosecution contends the burn may have been caused by drug paraphernalia that was hot.
Another injury, two honeycomb-patterened bruises on Cramer's forehead, were consistent with tread marks from a pair of shoes Assistant State's Attorney Adam Ghrist presented in court, according to Denton's testimony.
Denton testified about the loss of hair Cramer suffered in March 2013 and said it was alopecia caused by potential stress, not by someone pulling out patches of Cramer's hair.
Compton kept his head down and showed tears while the prosecution showed photos from the autopsy in court.
The trial is expected to continue next week.
Joe Ragusa can be reached at [email protected].
