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Forensic doctor breaks into tears during testimony on autopsy details

Ksenia Novikova
Aug 20, 2018
04:13 P.M.

The medical examiner could not contain the crying during her testimony at the trial of a registered sex offender.

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As reported by the Daily Mail, the Jacksonville Medical Examiner in Chief, Dr. Valerie Rao, was the professional who performed the autopsy of Cherish Perrywinkle, 8 years old, after she was abducted, brutally abused and killed by a man 61 years old, at the beginning of 2018.

Rao gave her testimony full of emotion and revealed that Perrywinkle resulted in multiple severe injuries to her body after being strangled with a piece of her clothing and sexually abused.

In full testimony, as the court saw the photos of the girl's ill-fated body, Rao, who daily deals with violent deaths and grotesque corpses, was overwhelmed by emotion and could not continue.

Donald Smith was charged with kidnapping, raping and killing the girl. He was recently found guilty and was expected to be sentenced to death on the trial. Read more on our Twitter account @amomama_usa

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According to reports, Smith lured Perrywinkle and her family to a Walmart in June 2013. He promised the family to invite them to eat at McDonald's and buy them new clothes. The family at that time was in a difficult economic situation.

The security video shows how little Perrywinkle is walking towards the door following Smith. Those images were the last moments in which the girl was seen alive.

During Rao's 45-minute testimony, jurors cried while the coroner listed the injuries Smith inflicted on Perrywinkle.

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Rao also revealed that the girl tried to defend herself and succeeded in wounding Smith's private parts.

State Prosecutor Melissa Nelson presented the recordings made in jail before the jury. They reveal Smith bragging about his crime in front of other convicts.

Smith has been dubbed "the Walmart monster" by the Daily Mail newspaper and according to Crime Online, he received the death sentence due to the seriousness and cruelty of his crimes against the minor.

The jury deliberated for exactly 14 minutes last Valentine's Day before giving its unanimous verdict against Smith, in the Jacksonville court. So, this particular monster won’t haunt any other victim.

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