Retired FBI agent, Medical Examiner’s lab director testify in Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting Trial
Day Seven of the trial against Robert Bowers, the man accused of shooting and killing 11 worshippers at a Squirrel Hill synagogue, continues today with more witnesses taking the stand.
In addition to SWAT officers, the forensic pathologists who performed autopsies on the victims testified in court Tuesday.
PITTSBURGH SYNAGOGUE SHOOTING TRIAL: FULL COVERAGE ⇒
Warning: the details coming out of this trial are difficult to hear and may be upsetting to some.
If you or someone you know is experiencing mental health effects from the trial, go to 1027healingpartnership.org to find help resources. As always, call 911 to report threats.
Phone: 412-697-3534
We have a team of reporters inside the courthouse and have live updates below throughout the day.
UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: Retired Allegheny County SWAT Team member testifies
Justin LaPaglia, a SWAT Operator and sniper, is called to the stand.
LaPaglia said when he arrived on scene, the SWAT van was not there yet. His helmet and body armor were in the van, but he went in anyway, without that gear.
“The priority of life is we need to get in there,” LaPaglia said. “There are innocent victims in there and we have to render aid.”
He said he went through the doors with bullet holes in them, knowing that was the last place officers had contact with the shooter.
“I anticipated going in and hearing crying and hearing things that would drive me to people in help. But there was no noise whatsoever,” LaPaglia said. “There was no one in the area who was going to need help. There were a lot of rounds fired so I expected there to be a decent amount of people injured.”
LaPaglia said he located two survivors in the basement.
“They were pale and unresponsive. They looked like they were in shock, I was surprised they were able to follow my direction,” he said.
UPDATE 2:45 p.m.: Retired Allegheny County SWAT Team member testifies
Michael O’Keefe, who is now retired but previously worked for the Allegheny County Police Department, is called to the stand.
O’Keefe was on the County SWAT team and responded to the synagogue scene.
“I went towards the gunfire because that was my duty,” he said. “It was upstairs from me, I was in a foyer area. In my immediate area there were several deceased people, spent shell casings and an odor of gun powder.”
He encountered Officer Matson after he was shot.
“He appeared to have some gunshot wounds. He appeared like he was in shock to me,” O’Keefe said.
O’Keefe testified that Bowers crawled out to surrender.
“He said the invaders were coming. The Jews were killing our children and he had to take action,” O’Keefe recalled.
He said Bowers had run out of ammunition and he was shot, prompting him to surrender.
O’Keefe said Bowers seemed sarcastic. Medics reportedly asked Bowers if something hurt, to which he replied, “not as bad as being shot.”
UPDATE 2:30 p.m.: Pittsburgh paramedic testifies
Shawn Eigenbrod, a paramedic for the City of Pittsburgh, is called to the stand.
Eigenbrod is a member of the first Tactical SWAT team in 2011. They train with the SWAT team once per month.
He treated Officers Matson and Burke, and also treated Bowers.
“He was laying on the ground in the middle of the room on a rug. Two other medics were already in the room starting treatment,” Eigenbrod said. “He was awake looking at us being pretty cooperative, answered any questions.”
Eigenbrod was one of four people who carried Bowers out of the building. He said that Bowers had a wound on his left elbow that rubbed against a wall.
Eigenbrod testified that Bowers complained about his wound rubbing against the wall.
UPDATE 2 p.m.: Laboratory director for Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office testifies
Witness No. 2 on Wednesday is Mandy Tinkey, the laboratory director for the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office.
Tinkey has worked for the office for 20 years.
She was dispatched to the scene that day. The initial call was from Allegheny County Polie for an officer-involved shooting.
The standard procedure is for one Medical Examiner to respond.
Eight firearms were transferred to the ME’s office from the FBI.
UPDATE 1:03 p.m.: Dammann returns to the stand
Dammann continues her testimony.
Numerous photos of evidence are presented, including responding officers’ weapons and Bower’s guns.
Photos are shown of Bowers’ vehicle and items that were removed from it.
Bowers’ wallet is examined. The prosecution asks about identification in the wallet.
“There is an Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office license to carry a firearm in the name of Robert Bowers,” Damman says.
UPDATE 9:57 a.m.: Retired FBI Special Agent Andrea Dammann testifies
Retired FBI Special Agent Andrea Dammann started with the FBI in January 1989.
She was trained to investigate crime scenes as part of the Evidence Response Team or “ERT.” It’s a time-consuming process and she underwent ongoing training over her 30-year career to keep up.
She was a senior leader of the ERT for Pittsburgh when the shooting took place. On that day, Dammann received a call at 10:38 a.m. that there was a shooting at a synagogue in the area. She put the other members of the ERT on standby and was looking for extra units to respond as well from Quantico.
She started heading to the South Side and was told to head to the crime scene and arrived there around 11:25 a.m.
A binder of documents of FBI processing of the scene is entered as evidence.
When Dammann got on scene, she spoke with the city police chief about securing the crime scene and it was turned over to her.
She controlled the scene from 12:25 p.m. on Oct. 27 until 7:05 p.m. on Nov. 5.
The FBI did laser scans, photo logs and various things from that scene in those nine days, Dammann says.
Teams from Virginia, Baltimore and Seattle were brought in and there was assistance from the Allegheny County crime lab. The medical examiner had the ultimate authority over the bodies.
Each room was given a letter to help describe the spaces, Dammann says.
A Hyundai Sonata was the first thing she saw when she arrived on the day of the shooting. It was opened up and cleared to make sure there was no more danger.
“There were holes in the plate glass windows along the building and shell casings on the pavement,” Dammann says.
Photos are shown in court of what Dammann says she saw outside during the preliminary walkthrough.
She says she then entered at the big entrance and saw the main sanctuary.
Dammann says she walked in and saw the magazine on the ground, then she walked down steps and observed four additional victims. She went to the lower level and saw victims in the kitchen and another in the entrance way of the storage area.
Up the stairs in the classrooms, she saw where the gunfight had occurred and the defendant was treated, she says.
Initially, two people did hand-drawn sketches to supplement the evidence collection, Dammann says.
The sketches as well as diagrams of the rooms are presented in court.
There is a set of photos from when FBI arrived and another set when FBI work was complete on Nov. 5.
Where the victims were found in the building is discussed in court.
Dammann says that a team was assisting with appropriate methods to follow Jewish burial customs.
In addition, SWAT team members needed weapons that weren’t damaged to be processed and quickly returned to them.
A morning recess is called.
UPDATE 9:02 a.m.: Court is in session
Court is in session. The first witness is Andrea Dammann, a retired Special Agent for the FBI and supervisor of the Evidence Response Team.
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