Doctor testifies in N.H. toddler’s death

DOVER, N.H. – A Rochester toddler already had suffered several broken bones when she was killed by at least a dozen blows to the head and abdomen, according to the medical examiner who performed her autopsy.

Maine’s chief medical examiner, Dr. Margaret Greenwald, was the final prosecution witness in the trial of Chad Evans, who’s accused of killing 21-month-old Kassidy Bortner last year.

Evans, who is charged with second-degree murder and assault, was living with Kassidy’s mother in Rochester when the baby died Nov. 9 at a baby sitter’s home in Kittery, Maine.

On Thursday, the medical examiner testified that Kassidy died of multiple blunt injuries. Most of the bruises on the child would have occurred within eight to 12 hours before her death, she said.

In addition to two abdominal injuries, “There are probably at least eight to 10 blows if you include both the front and back of her head,” Greenwald said.

Greenwald also described three broken bones – Kassidy’s forearm, hand and shin. Kassidy’s arm had been broken three to six weeks before her death, Greenwald said.

The girl’s index finger had been broken for one to three weeks, and the girl’s shin had been broken twice. One break appeared to be several months old, while the other occurred days before Kassidy died, Greenwald said.