BANGOR, Maine — The fate of an Ellsworth man accused of killing his wife on Christmas Day 2013 rests with a Superior Court judge after closing arguments were presented Thursday after seven days of testimony in his jury-waived trial.
Christopher Saenz, 32, is accused of beating Hilary Saenz, 29, to death in their Central Street apartment while their two children, then 12 and 8 years old, were in the home.
He is charged with intentional or knowing murder and, in the alternative, depraved indifference murder in the death of his wife. Christopher Saenz has pleaded not guilty.
Justice Ann Murray will have to decide if the cerebral hemorrhage that caused Hilary Saenz’s death was a result of the blows her husband admitted inflicting on Dec. 22, 2013, or of the unexplained fall Christopher Saenz told police she suffered three days later.
The judge took the case under advisement Thursday but did not say when she would issue a verdict. Murray has issued written verdicts in other murder cases she has decided. There is no timetable under which she must make a decision.
“ Hilary Saenz died of blunt force trauma inflicted in the days before her death by her husband,” Assistant Attorney General Deb Cashman said in her closing statement. “The multiple injuries on her head did not come from a single fall.”
Retired chief medical examiner Dr. Margaret Greenwald testified last week that there were about 50 bruises on the victim’s body. Those included one on each side of her head and a third above her forehead over her left eye.
Most of the bruises were two or three days old, except the one above her forehead, Greenwald said. It appeared to be new. She described it as the beginnings of “a goose egg.”
Cashman said that the evidence — including the fact that Christopher Saenz waited 45 minutes after his wife collapsed to call 911 — proved he was guilty of depraved indifference murder.
“He may not have known she was dying of a subdural hematoma, but he knew he inflicted her injuries,” the prosecutor told the judge.
Defense attorney Jeffrey Toothaker of Ellsworth told the judge that the differing opinions presented by the medical experts on both sides showed there was enough reasonable doubt for her to find Saenz not guilty.
He said that Hilary Saenz died from bleeding in her brain because of a fall. What caused her to fall is unknown, Toothaker said.
“He beat her up, he was cruel to her,” Toothaker said. “Bruises don’t kill you. Fifty charges of assault would have been supported by the evidence, but the medical testimony does not support a murder conviction.”
Christopher Saenz has been held without bail at the Hancock County Jail since his arrest on Dec. 27, 2013.
If convicted of murder, Saenz faces between 25 years and life in prison. If the judge found him guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter — which Murray could do if the prosecution does not prove murder — he would face up to 30 years in prison.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence and would like to talk with an advocate, call 866-834-4357, TRS 800-787-3224. This free, confidential service is available 24/7 and is accessible from anywhere in Maine.