Pathologist Testifies on Tay’s Last Moments Alive

High school honors student Stuart A. Tay may have suffered for as long as one hour before dying on New Year’s Eve, 1992, after being brutally beaten and made to drink rubbing alcohol, the county’s chief pathologist testified Monday.

In often graphic testimony, pathologist Richard I. Fukumoto told an Orange County Superior Court jury that an autopsy revealed Tay suffered a fractured skull during the beating, but showed no “defensive wounds”--a finding that boosts the prosecution’s contention that Tay was ambushed and never had a fighting chance to protect himself.

The pathologist told jurors that it might have taken up to one hour for Tay to die after the first of numerous blows was landed to the back of his neck. It is possible Tay’s life could have been saved if medical attention had been sought in time, Fukumoto told the jury.

Fukumoto was the last witness called before the prosecution rested its case against Robert Chan, 19, of Fullerton, who is accused of masterminding the attack because he believed Tay was going to double-cross him in a planned computer-parts robbery.

But instead of trying to save Tay, Chan is accused of murdering him by forcing rubbing alcohol down his throat, and then taping shut Tay’s nose and mouth. Tay’s body was then folded into a shallow grave in a Buena Park back yard, where it was later discovered by police.

Tay’s mother, Linda, has been present in the courtroom throughout the prosecution’s case. She appeared to pale upon hearing the pathologist’s testimony about her son’s last minutes alive before choking on his own vomit. She donned dark sunglasses and sat with her head bowed slightly during much of the testimony.

Three others charged in the case, Abraham Acosta, 17, of Buena Park, and Mun Bong Kang, 19, and Kirn Young Kim, 18, both of Fullerton, will go on trial after Chan’s case concludes.

The young men allegedly lured Tay to his death after learning that Tay had lied to the youths about his name, age and hometown while plotting the robbery together. When Chan discovered the deceptions, he decided to kill Tay, the prosecution alleges.

The key prosecution witness was a fifth youth, Charles Choe, 17, of Fullerton, who pleaded guilty to his role in the slaying and has agreed to testify against his former co-defendants. As part of his plea agreement, Choe was prosecuted in juvenile court and will likely be released from the California Youth Authority upon turning 25.

Defense attorney Marshall M. Schulman plans to prove that Chan, his client, who has been diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic, only turned on the defendant after believing that his own life was in danger.

In a bizarre example of teen-ager bragging, Tay--a senior at Santa Ana’s Foothill High School--often claimed to be a gang member with a powerful following, or a Secret Service agent, Schulman told jurors. In his fragile mental state, Chan believed Tay’s claims and came to fear him, the defense attorney told jurors.

As the prosecution case ended, the defense attorney called officials from Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton to the witness stand to testify that Chan--a onetime contender for valedictorian--began dressing strangely, suffered a slip in grades and began to skip classes shortly before the slaying took place.