CENTERVILLE — Defense attorneys began their case Wednesday in the capital murder trial of Jerry Duane Martin, bringing six witnesses to the stand to testify on the Sept. 24, 2007, escape of Martin and fellow Texas Department of Criminal Justice inmate John Ray Falk from the Wynne Unit, which led to the death of TDCJ Officer Susan Canfield.

Defense attorney William Carter made his opening statement to the jury, which included an overview of the estimated 13-plus witnesses who were expected to take the stand.

“Our purpose will be to let you, the jury, know what officers on the scene did and did not do during the investigation,” Carter said. “And to let you know where every (TDCJ officer) was on the day of the escape.

“You will ultimately determine what happened that day,” he said. “We are going to bring evidence of (that) so you can know for certain.”

The first witness called to the stand was lead investigator Mark Cole of the Office of the Inspector General — the branch of the TDCJ that conducts criminal and administrative violation investigations.

Cole was the first from his unit to arrive at the Wynne Unit and City Service Center scenes, he said, marking off the areas with crime scene tape and securing the scene.

“I did not see any other law enforcement people there,” Cole said. “I walked up to Canfield and then went to my car to retrieve the crime scene tape.

“I remained at the (City Service Center) scene and kept it secure until Texas Rangers arrived,” he said. “Once they did, because they were the lead investigator and it was not on TDCJ property, I turned it over to them.”

Cole also recounted his responsibility of collecting weapons involved in the escape; and the numerous witnesses he interviewed in his investigation.

“I interviewed more than 75 people, including city employees, TDCJ officers and inmates,” he said. “I was charged with securing the weapons involved before we turned them over to DPS.”

The investigation continued beyond the day of the escape, with a completed report measuring 7 to 8 inches thick. That report was submitted to the Walker County District Attorney’s Office in February of 2008.

Next to take the stand was veterinarian Dr. Richard Posey, who conducted the initial examination of Canfield’s horse, then its eventual euthanasia and necropsy (or autopsy).

“I got the call from the TDCJ Horse Program manager Kevin McMillan at about 7 p.m. that evening,” Posey said. “He was primarily concerned that the horse had been shot, and that it had been hit by a vehicle earlier that day.”

Posey arrived at the Wynne Unit at about 8:30 p.m., and met will McMillan and Texas Rangers in the unit’s surgical room.

“The horse was distressed — its respiratory rate, temperature, and pulse were all at pretty dire levels,” the veterinarian said. “The horse had a bullet wound on its left side.”

Posey conducted a complete physical on the horse, finding no broken bones, but a few scrapes and the obvious bullet wound that led to the veterinarian’s decision to euthanize the horse.

“The bullet entered between the horse’s 17th and 18th ribs and went through the saddle’s girth strap, angling low on the abdomen toward the right hind leg, causing a tear in the abdomen wall,” Posey explained. “There was no doubt that the best thing to do in that case was euthanize the horse.”

The bullet was retrieved during the subsequent necropsy, Posey said, and handed over to Texas Rangers.

Also discovered during necropsy was massive bruising on the inside lining of the peritoneum, likely caused by the impact of the truck on the animal.

“It is hard to see bruising on animals — you can’t always see things that go on under their hide,” Posey said. “The only thing I noticed when I first saw him was that the horse was standing, and then determined that he was in deep distress.”

When asked by defense attorney Paxton Adams, Posey later noted that he had seen many cases where horses and other animals had been hit by vehicles and had no broken bones or ribs.

“Animals react differently in those situations,” Posey said. “The horse may not have even known it was shot at the time.”

DPS Officers David Daley and Richard Clay Brown Jr. testified about their role on the DPS’s District Accident Reconstruction Team that conducted forensic mapping of the crime scenes on the day of the escape.

Adams questioned both officers about their qualifications, and confirmed the formulas, equipment and procedures used in forensic mapping as well as in accident reconstruction.

According to Daley, the team met up at the City Service Center before being sent to the scene of Guaranty Bank and the former KFC restaurant, where Martin and Falk left the stolen city vehicle, stealing another truck and taking its driver hostage before continuing their escape.

“We did mapping of the bank, restaurant and the (Smither Road) feeder area,” Daley said. “We were then sent back to the City Service Center to map that scene.”

The defense’s final questions to both officers seemed to focus on the fact that the team was not asked by Texas Rangers to reconstruct the accident scene at the City Service Center — only being instructed to do the forensic mapping.

“We had all the equipment with us needed to do a complete accident reconstruction,” Daley said, confirming that the Texas Rangers were the lead investigators on the case. “All we were told to do was the forensic mapping.”

Adams asked both officers if they felt an accident reconstruction would have benefited the investigation of Canfield’s death, both responding with affirmative answers.

“Would you have liked to see what happened,” Adams asked Brown during questioning.

“Yes,” the trooper responded, “But we did not because we were not asked to.”

Also testifying for the defense on Wednesday were City of Huntsville employees Terrion O’Bryant, a city crewman at the time of the escape, and Darrell Doss, a mechanic at the City Service Center.

Wednesday marked the fifth day of the capital murder trial, taking place at the Leon County court house in Centerville under 278th State District Court Judge Kenneth H. Keeling.

Defense attorneys estimated having around 10 witnesses remaining and expect to complete their portion of the trial on Friday. Following closing statements from attorneys, the jury will begin deliberations.