Peter Porco's death detailed

GOSHEN -- Peter Porco sustained 16 serious blows from a sharp, heavy instrument, including one that penetrated his skull and another that took off part of his jaw when he was attacked in November 2004.

Nonetheless, he almost certainly survived for a few hours, said Dr. Jeffrey Hubbard, a pathologist and Albany County coroner's physician.

``There are no injuries here that are instantly or rapidly fatal,'' Hubbard said Thursday at the Porco trial. ``The survival here could have been many hours.''

Hubbard's testimony echoed the theory by prosecutors that, in the minutes or hours following the attack, Peter Porco went through his morning routine as if he were getting ready for work, unaware that he had been mortally wounded with an ax or that his wife Joan Porco lay bleeding in their bed. The testimony also drove home, in stark visual terms, the violence with which Peter Porco was attacked.

As Hubbard was questioned by Chief Assistant District Attorney Michael McDermott, black and white autopsy photos of Peter Porco were projected on an approximately 10-foot by 6-foot screen. Hubbard used a laser pointer to note the various gashes and wounds found across Porco's head and upper body.

Christopher Porco, 23, who is accused of murdering his father and attempted murder of his mother, stared straight ahead or looked down while the photos appeared overhead, less than 10 feet from where he sat. He also rubbed his eye, as if wiping away a tear.

Jurors sat stoically during the gruesome presentation. Two men crossed their arms in front of their chests, while two women held their hands to their mouths. Another man hunched forward, elbows on his knees, looking intently at the screen.

The courtroom was eerily silent, unlike other portions of the trial, where there has been background hum of people shifting in their seats or ruffling papers during lengthy and sometimes arcane testimony and cross examinations.

Defense lawyer Laurie Shanks asked Hubbard if, based on the wounds, it was possible that there may have been more than one attacker. He said it was possible.

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