Medical examiner testifies about injuries that killed 3 firefighters battling Stricker Street fire
Tuesday marked the second day of testimony in the trial of James Barnett, the man accused of setting the Stricker Street rowhome fire that killed three firefighters.
Lt. Kelsey Sadler, Lt. Paul Butrim and EMT/firefighter Kenny Lacayo died after becoming trapped when the rowhome collapsed. Firefighter John McMaster spent nearly two weeks in hospitals after the blaze and was left permanently injured.
Maryland's Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. Stephanie Dean, started the day of testimony recounting the injuries of the three firefighters who died. Dr. Dean says she served as the assistant medical examiner when she performed the autopsies of Sadler Butrim and Lacayo.
Dr. Dean said 30% of Lacayo's body had burn injuries. She added she found soot in his nose, mouth and lungs. She noted his injuries included blunt force and smoke inhalation. She added that 70% of Sadler's body had burn injuries, while 65% of Butrim's body experienced burns. She said Sadler and Butrim both suffered from compressive asphyxia, in which external pressure cuts off air from the body.
Start of Stricker Street fire investigation
Also in the courtroom, Baltimore police arson unit detective Kyle Kruesi took the stand to discuss the beginning of his investigation into the fire.
He described the start of his investigation by checking CityWatch cameras, beginning with the surveillance camera at the intersection of Pratt and Stricker Streets.
It captures a man in a two-tone jacket -- later identified as the suspect James Barnett -- leaving the home that caught fire on Stricker Street.
Police interview Barnett
Prosecutors played an hours-long police interview with Barnett. Barnett, initially, goes back and forth with detectives on what the interview is about. Detectives show Barnett pictures of himself leaving a rowhome on Stricker Street. However, Barnett denies being in those images.
Detectives believe Barnett lived in a vacant home on Ashton Street. They said they were able to track Barnett seven hours before the fire.
A Baltimore Police Crime Laboratory Technician told the court, after receiving a search warrant, she photographed evidence inside the home, swabbed for DNA and found fingerprints she took back to the lab.
Barnett sounded surprised to hear detectives were investigating a house fire. "A house caught on fire and I'm in it?" Barnett shouted in the video.
He denied any involvement in setting the home on fire. "I am not a fire bug," he said.
In the video, he agrees to DNA testing and permits detectives to take his fingerprints. "I bet you won't find anything," he said. "My fingerprints ain't gonna be in it."