NEW LONDON – Casey Chadwick suffered grievous stab and slice wounds to her body just before her death seven years ago, including ones that severed veins and arteries and penetrated her spinal column, a medical examiner testified on Tuesday.

During the sixth day of testimony in the murder re-trial of Jean Jacques in New London Superior Court, Dr. Gregory Vincent, who performed the autopsy on Chadwick’s body the day after it was discovered in her Norwich apartment on June 15, 2015, said the 25-year-old died of “sharp force injuries to her head and neck with vascular injuries.”

Under direct questioning by Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Christa Baker, Vincent said he found three major wounds on the right side of Chadwick’s neck, including one that cut through a jugular vein and carotid artery and another that slid between two vertebrae. A shallow, gaping “incised” wound could be seen near her jaw line.

Vincent said the autopsy showed several other injuries running from Chadwick’s torso to her trunk, including the remnants of blunt force blows and bleeding in her skull. He said a total of 19 sharp force injuries were noted on her body.

Vincent said Chadwick’s death, ruled a homicide, would have been “relatively immediate" after the neck wounds were made with her likely losing consciousness in less than a minute.

Vincent’s testimony was accompanied by several autopsy photos that were shown to the jury. The graphic nature of the day’s proceedings prompted two individuals to leave the courtroom.

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Prosecutors allege Jacques killed Chadwick, stashed her body inside her living room closet and stole the marijuana and cocaine stored at her Spaulding Street apartment by her boyfriend.

Police said Jacques was arrested the same day Chadwick’s body was found with cocaine for sale after telling a confidential informant less than a week earlier he had no drugs on hand.

Earlier on Tuesday, Dr. Maura DeJoseph, a deputy chief medical examiner, described her examination – made at Norwich police investigators’ request – of Jacques’ hands for injuries the day after Chadwick’s body was found.

She said Jacques’ hands presented with several small cuts that were likely incurred within a day or two. His nail bed areas were stained with a reddish-brown discoloration, though no blood tests were conducted.

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Jacques previously told police he’d cut his hand on a broken dish while working.

Joseph said the cuts could have been caused by “knife slippage,” a type of injury seen frequently in stabbing cases when a blade slips down an assailant's hand during an assault.

Under cross-examination by Jacques’ lawyer, Sebastian DeSantis, DeJoseph said she could not say with any certainty what caused the wounds, except it was a smooth, sharp object.

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Jacques, now 47, was convicted of killing Chadwick after a 2016 trial, but that conviction was overturned by the state Supreme Court and a new trial ordered.

The trial, overseen by Judge Shari Murphy, will resume on Wednesday.

John Penney can be reached at jpenney@norwichbulletin.com or at (860) 857-6965.