Medical examiner testifies Randolph teen killed by at least 2 people, alive when dismembered:

Autopsy showed victim, Jennifer Parks, was stabbed and beaten by two people:

Former Bergen County medical examiner Sunandan Singh was the man who performed the autopsy on Jennifer Parks. The retired coroner testified today in the James Zarate trial.

He testified that Jennifer was punched in the face, stabbed twice in the neck, stabbed once in the stomach, and struck repeatedly on the back with a metal pole. He also said that a severe blow to her stomach is what actually killed her.

The force hurled her backward, knocked her unconscious, and drove blood and her stomach contents into her lungs so that she was asphyxiated.

Singh also said that an attempt was made to amputate Jennifer’s leg at the thigh and that attempt was made while she was unconscious but still alive.

The resulting bleeding into the soft tissues of the thigh showed her heart was still beating and blood was circulating, Singh said.

In a special hearing to determine if Singh could testify that more than one person committed the attack, he gave his opinion that it was two people (i.e. both Zarate brothers) who killed Jennifer.

At the special hearing, Singh explained that he believes Parks first was stabbed because one of her hands bore cut wounds to indicate she had seized the knife in an attempt to defend herself. Singh said he believes the three knife wounds were followed by a beating with fists and the metal pole. The injuries indicate more than one attacker because Parks only suffered knife cuts on the front of her body while only her back bore marks of being beaten with a pole. Singh said the injuries indicated to him that Parks could not fend off the blows to her back because she was fighting the frontal attack.

The judge ruled that Singh will be able to testify to that effect.

The trial continues tomorrow.