LEWISTOWN - The first day of an attempted homicide trial focused largely on two versions of an alleged assault that took place on Oct. 9, 2007, at a residence on Highland Avenue.
Derek L. Wilt's charges stem from an incident in which he allegedly assaulted Ashley Eby with a hammer, police said. Eby was later transported to Altoona General Hospital Trauma Center by helicopter and was treated for her injuries.
After Mifflin County District Attorney Steve Snook gave his opening statement on Wednesday, calling the assault a "random act of violence," defense attorney Bruce Manchester labeled Eby as the aggressor and claimed his client was simply "defending himself."
Testimony opened with the soft-spoken Eby giving her version of the events. She testified that on the day in question, Wilt came to her house to inquire if she was having problems with her water. Eby said she was not, at which point some small talk ensued between the two and Eby mentioned she was dissatisfied with her job.
Eby testified that Wilt offered to let her use the computer at his house to search job listings on the Internet, and she took his offer.
The alleged victim said that she was sitting at the computer, she suddenly felt "intense pain in the back of the head," but wasn't sure what happened. She said she spun around in the computer chair and saw Wilt standing, gripping a hammer with both hands and holding it at chest level.
Eby testified that she made several attempts to get away and could not recall exactly how many times Wilt struck her with the hammer.
During the course of the assault, Wilt threw her down several times and also choked her, she said. Eby said she was scared and thought Wilt was trying to kill her.
Eby testified that she is still struggling to figure out why Wilt assaulted her, adding that she could not make sense of why this happened.
What made it weird, Eby said, was that Wilt said something strange at one point when he was on top of her.
Eby testified that Wilt said "Why are you here? If you let go (of the hammer) I won't hit you in the head again," while she struggled to defend herself against the alleged assailant.
Several times throughout the course of Wednesday's testimony, Snook presented enlarged photographs showing Eby with dried blood on her neck and head, as well as bruising on her neck.
Later Wednesday, Wilt took the stand to testify, and claimed that he never intentionally struck Eby with the hammer and any injury she sustained was an accident that happened when he was trying to get the hammer away from her.
Wilt testified that the confrontation began after an accident, in which he tripped and fell on the computer chair Eby was sitting in while he was holding the hammer, which in turn fell to the ground when he lost his balance.
Wilt said that while falling, he put a hand on Eby's back to brace himself. She then turned around and claimed Wilt tried to hit her with the hammer, he said.
Wilt testified that a struggle ensued and he was forced to take the hammer away from Eby several times.
"I was real scared and didn't want anybody to get hit with it," Wilt said.
Wilt also claimed that he told Eby to leave several times during the struggle.
"If she would've calmed down, none of this would've happened," Wilt said.
Several law enforcement officials involved in the investigation also testified Wednesday, including Cpl. Arthur Stanton and Sgt. Scott Rupert, both of Mifflin County Regional Police Department.
Rupert testified that Wilt's version of events simply did not make any sense, given the evidence at the scene.
Stanton is an evidence technician for the department and testified that there was a "significant amount of blood at the scene."
A DNA expert with the Pennsylvania State Police, Julia Brolley, testified that all the blood samples taken from the residence of the assault matched the DNA profile of Eby.
Paul Kish, an independent forensic scientist who is an expert on blood stain pattern analysis, said the blood strewn throughout the residence was from a struggle. Kish went through several enlarged photographs depicting blood stains that were on the computer keyboard, coffee table, couch cover, carpet and walls.
Also testifying on Wednesday was Dr. Simon Lampard, the director of the Altoona Trauma Center where Eby was taken for treatment.
Lampard testified that Eby had several lacerations on her head that were consistent with strikes made by a metal object. Snook then asked Lampard if Eby's injuries were life threatening.
"I think any time you are struck in the head with a metal object, there is a risk of significant injury," Lampard said.
In addition to the numerous witnesses called to testify, the prosecution also played tapes of the 911 calls made pertaining to the incident.
The first was a call Wilt allegedly made to 911, in which he sounds out of breath as he tries to explain to the operator what happened with Eby. The second call was made by a paramedic and a woman can be heard screaming in the background.
The trial is expected to continue at 9 a.m. today with closing statements from the attorneys.
