Adam Smith, 48, stands accused of murdering two men in St. Lawrence County in February and March 2023. He is currently held without bail at SLCCF. (Photo courtesy)

BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

Editor’s note: This story contains descriptive details of evidence presented in court that some readers may find disturbing.

CANTON —  A pathologist gave testimony Tuesday outlining the brutal details of two murders that police say were committed by Adam Smith last year.

Prosecutors in the Adam Smith murder trial called their first witness on the opening day of the trial, bringing Dr. Scott LaPoint to the stand. 

A pathologist, Dr. LaPoint conducted the autopsy on Robert Durham shortly after his death on February 11. 

When questioned by District Attorney Gary Pasqua, LaPoint said he had conducted around 7,000 autopsies in his career, with about 250 to 300 to his name in St. Lawrence County alone. 

Deemed an expert in the field, Dr. LaPoint gave a detailed description of the autopsy process of Durham, saying Durham came to him in a sealed bag directly from the scene of the crime. 

He commented that all of Durham’s clothing “was quite heavily blood stained” as he began to document the body. 

Upon initial examination, Dr. LaPoint commented it was “very apparent very quickly that there was a large cut type wound across his neck” when referring to Durham. 

Photos presented by Pasqua and entered into evidence showed Durham’s body still fully clothed, covered in blood. In one photo, the front of Durham’s shirt was almost entirely stained with blood. 

Dr. LaPoint said it was his determination that Durham suffered “sharp force trauma” or multiple wounds to his neck that occurred from a cutting or slicing motion, as opposed to a stabbing motion. 

He commented that the determination was made because the wounds, all three to the neck, were wider than they were deeper. 

Dr. LaPoint also commented that when examining Durham’s body he found minor defensive wounds on his left hand, which he determined to be consistent with a sharp force trauma wound. 

After documenting Durham’s body and the wounds to his neck, Dr. LaPoint said he then cleaned up the area around the wounds for his examination. 

He detailed what he found, commenting that Durham’s right interior and exterior carotid arteries and jugular vein were both severed. In such cases, individuals have “about a minute and a half to two minutes” before they bleed to death, Dr. LaPoint said. 

“You can see a series of incised wounds or cutting wounds. The upper one is right below the jawline and then that sort of commingles with two others that you can see because I’m holding them apart. So, you can see that there’s three separate wounds, but they also commingle and coalesce into one rather large wound across the neck,” Dr. LaPoint described in one photo. He said the wound was 18 cm in width, spanning almost the entire neck. 

Dr. LaPoint said the wound was so deep and “quite forceful” to the point it severed the tongue from the hyoid bone and left a “distinct groove” on the front part of the third cervical vertebra. 

In his cross examination, defense attorney Brian Barrett questioned how Dr. LaPoint knew the body was in fact Durham, to which he replied that a police officer informed him upon arrival. 

Dr. LaPoint also detailed what he found on Durham’s body, including $430 cash and $6.40 in change in his right front pocket. He said he also found two pocket knives, $2,300 in cash, two Stewarts cards and nail clippers in his left front pocket, along with a key fob. 

Barrett questioned if it was unusual to find multiple pocket knives on an individual, to which Dr. LaPoint said it was “not that uncommon” having encountered it himself on “three or four dozen” occasions. 

He said the most recent experience was during an autopsy he conducted in Buffalo “about two-and-a-half years ago.” 

In his redirect, Pasqua asked Dr. LaPoint about the size of the knives, to which Dr. LaPoint commented he was unsure while noting they “weren’t that remarkable.” 

Barrett questioned Dr. Lapoint regarding the time of death of Durham. 

Dr. LaPoint said that the coroner is the person who determines a time of death on scene, though in the case of Durham he said it would be difficult to determine given the cold temperatures around the time of death. He said “even under the best circumstances, it’s rare that you can pinpoint a time of death based on physical findings within four to six hours.” 

In his follow-up, Barrett asked Dr. LaPoint to detail the autopsy process. 

He commented that he first conducts an external review and documents his findings. State Police were on hand to take photos, at which time Dr. LaPoint would document his findings and then bag any materials found for evidence. 

Once finished, Dr. LaPoint said he would conduct a thorough internal review of the deceased, again documenting each step and all findings and evidence as he proceeded. 

Barrett also questioned who was present at the time of the autopsy and whether Dr. LaPoint had any assistance in removing Durham’s body from the body bag or gurney. 

Dr. LaPoint said he was unable to recollect if anyone helped him but noted he was “pretty light” and might have just pulled him over himself. 

On some occasions, Dr. LaPoint said it was not uncommon to have an assistant, funeral director or on some rare occasions a police officer assist in lifting a body  that may be too heavy for him to lift. 

In the end, Dr. LaPoint said it was his determination that Durham died from sharp force trauma wounds to the neck that led to heavy blood loss. 

The trial continues today, Oct. 23, at 9:30 a.m. 

See story on opening statements here.