State v. Chiellini

OPINION

MURRAY, Justice.

On July 9, 1985, a corpse was discovered lying face down in the tall grass of Merino Park in Providence, Rhode Island. Clad only in socks and sneakers, the woman’s scarred body was heavily infested with maggots. The deceased was fifty-four-year-old Verna Mester. She had been stabbed over ninety times about the face, neck, chest, abdomen, legs, and arms. Two days in the July heat had badly decomposed the body.

Arthur C. Bums, former deputy chief medical examiner, performed an autopsy on Mester’s remains. Although most of the wounds were superficial and individually would…