A slip or trip while hiking the Observation Point trail could not have launched the fall that sent Patricia Bottarini to her death, an expert witness testified Monday morning.
People tend to fall forward while walking — not to the side, said Dr. Wilson Hayes. Hayes is a professor of exercise and sport science at Oregon State University. Hayes was a witness for federal prosecutors who say that Patricia Bottarini's husband, James Bottarini, pushed her off the trail and over a 500-foot cliff while hiking in May of 1997.
Federal prosecutors say James Bottarini stood to collect some $1.25 million in life insurance payments and real estate holdings as a result of his wife's death.
Hayes said he based his testimony not only on the evidence and factual elements of the alleged crime, but on his years of research and the use of mathematical models. Those models factor in variables such as a person's weight and height, as well as the type of terrain they may be navigating.
Hayes said he examined the soles of hiking boots similar to those worn by Patricia Bottarini and determined that given the terrain upon which she was walking, there was low probability that she could have slipped.
"Had Patricia Bottarini been walking anywhere on that trail and had she slipped, tripped or fainted, she would not have fallen over the precipice to her death," Hayes said.
On cross-examination by defense attorney Ron Yengich, however, Hayes agreed that his assumptions do not necessarily consider every possible variable. Yengich cited possibilities such as twisting a knee or a possible combination of tripping and then stumbling.
Testimony was delayed about 40 minutes Monday morning because one member of the jury had witnessed a shooting involving a West Jordan police officer en route to court. U.S. District Judge David Sam said the juror was understandably upset but wanted to continue the trial.
The trial moved back into the U.S. District courtroom Monday after a Friday field trip to Zion National Park, where jurors retraced the hike to the East Rim Observation Point that Patricia Bottarini made with her husband in 1997.
Bottarini, 43, was stoic throughout Friday's unusual court outing, pausing only for a moment at the spot where prosecutors say his wife went over the cliff. Patricia Bottarini is believed to have left the trail at about the three-mile mark on the steep and strenuous four-mile trail. Investigators found drops of blood belonging to Patricia Bottarini on a rock 8 feet below the trail ridge and the first of many impact marks from her body on the canyon terrain 20 feet below.
Bottarini is not charged with murder, although prosecutors must prove the former Navy officer did indeed kill his wife in order to prevail. Bottarini faces four counts of wire fraud and one count each of making false statements to police and interstate domestic violence. Interstate domestic violence, which implies that Bottarini planned the killing and brought his wife to southern Utah for that express purpose, carries a possible penalty of life in prison.
Washington County prosecutors, who hold local jurisdiction, are watching the case closely. So far, they have declined to prosecute Bottarini in connection with Patricia Bottarini's death, but may do so if he is convicted by the federal jury.
The trial is expected to last through Friday.
E-MAIL: jdobner@desnews.com