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Other Evidence 12. Marilyn's Watch
Marilyn's gold watch, found by detectives on the floor in the den behind Sam's desk. The watch and watchband were bloodied. Nancy Ahern, who dined at the Sheppard home with husband Don and their children on July 3, 1954, said in her police statement that she could "not specifically remember noticing her watch, wedding ring, or engagement ring that particular night, but I can seldom ever remember seeing her without them." When questioned about Marilyn's jewelry, Don Ahern said in his police statement, "I think she was wearing a watch." Mary Cowan, Medical Technologist at the Coroner's Office, performed blood-type testing on both Marilyn's and Sam's watches. According to her 1954 trial testimony and the Coroner's trace evidence report, the results were not conclusive.
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Other Evidence 13. Wounds on Marilyn's Left Hand, Autopsy Photo
In his 1954 trial testimony, assistant coroner Lester Adelson described Marilyn's left hand: "'There is almost a complete separation of the fingernail of the fourth left ring finger with the root of the nail exposed... there is a small bridge of skin which still holds the nail in place. That is called technically an evulsed wound or a wound where something had been torn away from its underlying attachments." In the 2000 trial, Terry Gilbert, attorney for the Sheppard Estate, referred to the booking records of Richard Eberling, Gilbert's favored suspect for Marilyn's murder, stating that the half-inch scar on Eberling's wrist could have come from Marilyn trying to defend herself against him. However, Cuyahoga County Coroner Elizabeth Balraj said that she felt the injury to Marilyn's left right finger was more consistent with blunt force trauma (from Dr. Sam Sheppard on Trial by Jack P. DeSario and Bill Mason, 2003, p. 156-157).
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Outside 01. South Side of Sheppard Home
South side of Sheppard home (facing West Lake Road), including attached two-story garage. The home, a four-bedroom, two-story colonial that overlooked Lake Erie, was located at 28924 Lake Road in Bay Village. The property included a private sandy beach and bath house. It was demolished in the mid-1990s.
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Outside 02. East Side of Sheppard Home
Attached garage at east side of Sheppard home. The summer house is visible at the far right. On July 4, 1954, the garage contained a Lincoln Continental, Jaguar, and Jeep.
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Outside 03. West Side of Sheppard Home
West side of Sheppard home, showing screened-in porch. The interior porch door leads to the living room.
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Outside 04. North Side of Sheppard Home
North side of Sheppard home (facing away from Lake Erie). Light is on in east end of living room.
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Outside 05. North Side of Sheppard Home, View from Beach Stairs
Screened porch at north end of Sheppard home as viewed from stairs leading down to beach. Sam and Marilyn had a late, informal supper with the Ahern family on the porch on the evening of July 3, 1954.
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Outside 06. Sheppards' Backyard
View of the Sheppards' backyard ("upper lake frontage" in police reports) showing top of stairs to beach; camera facing west. In his testimony at the Coroner's Inquest, Sam said: “I lost sight of it [the figure he saw in Marilyn’s room] down the stairs and saw it again go down the stairs from the landing where the beach house is down to the beach. I ran down those stairs from the landing down to the beach and at that time I thought that I could see a form of a, as I think of it now--I thought--I can’t quite decide in my mind what brings me to this feeling, of a big man...”
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