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00:00First of all, on behalf of my wife and my sons, and on behalf of my other family, our
00:06people at the Office of Chief Medical Examiner, we wish to extend our deepest sympathies to
00:13the families and everyone else who has been so hurt by this event.
00:19Our thoughts and our prayers are with you.
00:23The Office of Chief Medical Examiner got here a couple hours after the building was
00:34secured.
00:35We were here until approximately 12.30 last night.
00:40We thanked the emergency services who built us a temporary facility in the parking lot,
00:48and we took identification photographs and did preliminary identification on all victims
00:58and had everybody transported back to Farmington by about 1 in the morning.
01:06Our entire staff turned out, started the post-mortem examinations this morning.
01:14We completed the children by about 1.30, and I believe everybody except the assailant
01:21and his mother will be finished tonight, and I'll do those tomorrow morning.
01:32Lieutenant Vance and staff have a list of the names and the dates of birth, and that'll
01:45be distributed.
01:46I hope we got enough copies.
01:53Everybody that was caused by, everyone that we've completed so far was caused by gunshot
02:01wounds, and obviously the manner of death on all these cases has been classified as homicide.
02:10How many medical examiners are working here today, sir?
02:15I have four doctors and I think all ten of my technicians, both the full-timers and part-timers
02:26were there, and one student from Quinnipiac University.
02:32This was her first day.
02:33That was kind of interesting, and the majority of our investigative staff were working on
02:40this at some point, whether they were with us last night or on the job today, and I think
02:49a lot of our clerical or what they call processing techs who do the paperwork and so forth were
02:57there.
02:58They were up all on the second floor, and I didn't get there today.
02:59Sir, you obviously, by the nature of your job, you deal with horrible things at times.
03:00Is this one, over the top, is this one a bit different than things you've dealt with before,
03:01sir?
03:02Did everybody hear the question?
03:03No.
03:04Given what I deal with all the time, is this one over the top?
03:24I've been at this for a third of a century, and my sensibilities may not be the average
03:33man, but this probably is the worst I have seen or the worst that I know of any of my
03:45colleagues having seen, and that all the more makes me proud and grateful to our staff who,
03:55to a man, have just behaved most professionally and strongly, and I hope they and I hope the
04:12people of Newtown don't have it crash on their head later.
04:16Doctor, on that examination, did you tell which caliber of the handgun compared to the
04:24rifle?
04:25Is there anything more I couldn't have said?
04:26It's a good thing it's not being prosecuted, because then I couldn't answer that, but all
04:34the wounds that I know of at this point were caused by the long weapon.
04:38So the rifle was the primary weapon?
04:41Yes.
04:42And what caliber were these bullets?
04:45The question was what caliber were these bullets, and I know, I probably know more about firearms
04:53than most pathologists, but if I say it in court, they yell at me and don't make me answer,
04:56so I'll let the police deal with that for you.
05:01Doctor, can you tell about the nature of the wounds?
05:04Were they at very close range?
05:06Were the children shot from across the river?
05:08Did you tell?
05:09I only did seven of the autopsies.
05:12The victims I had ranged from three to 11 wounds apiece, and I only saw two of them
05:18with close-range shooting, but that's a sample.
05:22I really don't have detailed information on the rest of the injuries.
05:27But you said it was the long rifle that was used?
05:30Yes.
05:31But the long rifle was discovered in the park.
05:34That's not correct?
05:35That's not correct, sir.
05:36To follow up on that question, how many bullets did the police in this practice seem to find
05:41totally on the autopsies?
05:43Can you tell us that?
05:45Oh, I'm lucky I can tell you how many I found.
05:52I don't know.
05:53There were lots of them.
05:55This type of weapon is not...
06:00The bullets are designed in such a fashion that the energy...
06:06This is very clinical.
06:07I shouldn't be saying this, but the energy is deposited in the tissue,
06:10and so the bullet stays in.
06:13Do the children die quickly?
06:15Are you able to tell that?
06:17That's always a difficult question, and obviously I don't have...
06:27I don't have detailed information on all of them,
06:29but this is a very devastating set of injuries.
06:34Did they suffer?
06:36I don't...
06:39I don't have my ability to answer that question,
06:41which is always less than perfect.
06:44If so, not for very long.
06:46What were most of the injuries?
06:49All the ones...
06:53I believe so, yes.
06:57What type?
06:58What shape were the bodies and the families?
07:02We did not bring the bodies and the families into contact.
07:07We took pictures of them, of their facial features.
07:12You have...
07:14It's easier on the families when you do that.
07:16There is a time and a place for a person, personal, in the grieving process.
07:22But to accomplish this, we felt it would be best to do it this way.
07:28And you can sort of...
07:32You can control the situation, depending on your photographer.
07:37We have very good photographers.
07:39But...
07:49No, I don't.
07:51Sorry, I don't.
07:57You're all going to have to look at the spreadsheet when we pass it out, I'm sorry.
08:02All the ones I know were all first...
08:04I believe they're all first graders.
08:09I don't know yet. I'll examine him tomorrow morning.
08:12But I don't think so.
08:16I have not seen her yet.
08:24Can I ask what are we relating on that?
08:28Paul and company will deal with that.
08:30Paul and company.
08:33Lieutenant Vance is going to handle it.
08:42We discussed this briefly with the staff before I came here.
08:45There was...
08:50I believe everybody was hit more than once.
09:03Was it precision or was it spread randomly?
09:09Both.
09:11It's a very difficult question to answer.
09:13Even the wounds?
09:15Yeah.
09:17It's really...
09:21You'd think after the thousands of people I've seen shot, I could answer that question.
09:27If I attempted to answer it in court, there'd be an objection and they'd win.
09:32Doctor, can you...
09:42They're wearing cute kid stuff.
09:44I mean they're first graders.
09:46They're wearing cute kid stuff.
09:48It's the kind of stuff you'd...
09:50You'd send your kids or your grandkids out the door until first grading.
10:02They're similar to us, the children.
10:12All over.
10:18I have not examined her yet.
10:20That'll be tomorrow morning.
10:26I'll let the guys through, the scene guys,
10:28address that issue.
10:31Obviously I was at the scene.
10:33Obviously I'm very experienced in that.
10:35But there are people who are
10:39the number one professionals in that.
10:41I'll let them handle it.
10:49And that's just the ones that I did.
10:57I think the...
11:00Yeah, I think the guys who did the crime scene
11:02are going to be able to tell you something about how many cartridges were found.
11:12Our goal...
11:14Our goal was to get the kids out
11:16and available to the funeral directors first.
11:22Just for...
11:24Well, yeah, obvious reasons.
11:30I don't know.
11:48Not yet.
11:50But...
11:52Yeah, there have been times in my career
11:54when I've...
11:56For reasons I don't appreciate
11:58I go in the locker room and sit on a crack.
12:00But...
12:02And I think if you...
12:04If you don't have to do that,
12:06you shouldn't be in this business.
12:08But for this one, not yet.
12:10Notice I said yet.
12:12All right, folks.
12:14Thank you very much.
12:18Yeah, sure.
12:20Just I hope you...
12:22I hope you all put this in your calendar
12:24because in 31 years
12:27and 26 as chief medical examiner
12:29this is the only second press conference I've given.
12:31It's H
12:33Wayne, W-A-Y-N-E
12:37Carver, C-A-R-V-E-R
12:39And it's the second.
12:43And that's why I don't use the H
12:45because when my father
12:49asked my grandfather
12:51he said, fine,
12:53but as long as you never call him Harold.
12:56Can you just...
12:58Did they set up a tent?
13:00It wasn't a tent.
13:02It was this magnificent
13:04thing.
13:06It's sectional
13:08and it sticks together with Velcro
13:10and then they stake it to the ground
13:12and electricity and lights and heat appear.
13:14And it's from
13:16the Department of Emergency Management
13:18and I think it came from the Army
13:20but I'm not sure.
13:22I think it's these things that they use
13:25to set up field hospitals very quickly.
13:27Mobile hospitals.
13:31I don't know. The mortuaries have all been
13:33called
13:35and
13:37the paperwork's
13:39been done as of 1.30
13:41the paperwork has been done
13:43the usual drill is the funeral homes call us
13:45and as soon as
13:47the paperwork's done we call them back.
13:49That process was completed for the children
13:51at 1.30 today.
13:54And you're transporting the bodies to where?
13:56To our office in Farmington.
14:00And how do you transport them?
14:02We have our transport vehicles.
14:06We have three vehicles
14:08and a lot of guys that drive them.
14:12Actually
14:14one of the highlights
14:16of my administration
14:18is that we make them as nondescript
14:20and unmarked as possible.
14:22Just to foil you guys.
14:24They started out at 6.
14:34I don't have
14:36the differential between the two classrooms.
14:42I'm going to let the police
14:44handle that because they're the scene guys.
14:52Are you doing that personally?
14:54Yeah.
14:56It just so happened
14:58it was my weekend.
15:00Doctor, you said you can't confirm
15:02that the gunshot wounds
15:04of the assailant are self-inflicted
15:06does that mean you don't have evidence?
15:08You don't know?
15:12I can't technically
15:14make that diagnosis until
15:16I examine him.
15:18I don't want to belabor the obvious
15:21that everybody believes at this point
15:23but in terms of my fiduciary responsibilities
15:25I haven't executed them yet.