The assault that landed Marilyn Pharis in the hospital created “a cascade of medical events” leading to the pulmonary embolism that caused her death, according to a trauma surgeon who testified Monday in a Santa Maria courtroom.
Dr. Thomas Bosshardt spent most of the day on the witness stand in the Santa Barbara County Superior Court trial of Victor Ramirez Martinez, 32, who is charged with murder for the death of Pharis, 64, a Santa Maria resident.
Pharis, who worked at the Vandenberg Air Force Base satellite tracking station, was attacked July 24, 2015, in her home on the 900 block of Dejoy Street, landing her in the hospital.
She died eight days later while still at Marian Regional Medical Center.
The prosecution team, including Senior Deputy District Attorney Ann Bramsen and her colleague, Fabiana Fede, contends the attack caused the death of Pharis.
Defense attorney Lori Perego has blamed the woman’s medical care for causing Pharis’ death.
“In your opinion, would she have died from a pulmonary embolism if she had not suffered the severe trauma blunt force injury?” Bramsen asked the doctor.
He replied no.
Bosshardt, who has worked 21 years as physician including trauma training at an Oakland area hospital, said he was summoned to evaluate Pharis after she arrived at the hospital.
As Bramsen asked the doctor questions, she displayed photos showing the badly bruised, bloodied and swollen face and neck of Pharis. One eye was swollen shut.
“This patient has clearly sustained severe trauma to her face,’ he said, adding that doctors were worried about possible unseen injuries that could compromise her ability to breath.
“I recall when I saw her that morning it was obvious she was not someone who could be discharged,” the doctor said, adding that he viewed the women’s injuries as “life threatening.”
The physicians decided to admit Pharis but did not give her aspirin or prescription blood thinners due to the concerns about her injuries.
“The bleeding risk was a higher priority,” Bosshardt said, adding that Pharis was a low risk for a spontaneous blood clot.
To prevent blood clots from developing, the doctor prescribed pneumatic compression stockings for Pharis.
The woman was admitted to a unit where her heart could be monitored constantly.
While Pharis previously had been treated for atrial fibrillation, or abnormal heart rhythm, she did not show signs of the condition until days later, but had been at risk for returning to the condition, the doctor said.
“The stress of the trauma, the anxiety, the shock that she was in, all of those will impact your heart function,” Bosshardt said.
Pharis later began to experience atrial fibrillation, and later developed a blood clot that broke off and moved to her lung, causing her death eight days later after the trauma surgeon had transferred care to another doctor.
In her questioning, Perego questioned the doctor’s statement that he had ordered bed rest for Pharis.
“So if you ordered bed rest, would it be dangerous for someone to not follow that order and allow someone to ambulate?” Perego asked,
“It would potentially be dangerous, yes,” Bosshardt said.
However, earlier nurses testified Pharis was able to walk to the restroom.
Near the end of the day Monday, jurors finished watching an interview with Santa Maria police Sgt. Michael Huffman.
Bramsen began to ask the detective about what Martinez said regarding using a hammer in the attack on Pharis.
But Perego objected, with Judge John McGregor dismissing the jury and overruled the objection.
That clears the way for Huffman to talk about what Martinez allegedly said regarding his use of a hammer during the attack. The police detective is expected to continue testifying Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, DNA experts were scheduled to take the witness stand at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday when the trial resumes.
Martinez’s co-defendant, Jose Villagomez, who allegedly served as lookout during the attack, took a plea deal after the trial started and will return in July for his sentencing hearing
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
