ProsecutionSouth Carolina Attorney General's Office

Donald J. Zelenka

Deputy South Carolina attorney general and a member of the prosecution team in the 2023 murder trial.

Appeared2023 Murder Trial

27 lines·2 proceedings

About

On Day 20, Donald J. Zelenka conducted the State's cross-examination of defense witness Richard Harvey, the Colleton County Coroner. Zelenka questioned Harvey about the estimated one-to-three-hour time-of-death window and the conditions that can affect postmortem temperature. Harvey acknowledged that he took no body temperature and that the 9:00 p.m. entry on the death certificates was an estimate rather than a precise measurement.

Trial Record (2)

20232023 Murder TrialJan 23, 2023 – Mar 3, 2023

On Day 20, Donald J. Zelenka conducted the State's cross-examination of defense witness and Colleton County Coroner Richard Harvey.

Day 20

Feb 17, 2023

DirectRichard Harvey - DirectRichard HarveyDick Harpootlian2lines spoken

Summary

Coroner Richard Harvey said the death certificates' 9:00 time was an estimate based on body warmth and lack of rigor, and he agreed the deaths could have occurred between 8:00 and 10:00.

CrossRichard Harvey - CrossRichard HarveyDonald J. Zelenka24lines spoken

Summary

Coroner Richard Harvey agreed that he took no temperature and lacked a precise incident time, while explaining that body warmth and the absence of rigor informed a one-to-three-hour timeframe.