By Rochelle Steinhaus
Court TV
The nurse who examined Mark Chmura's former babysitter testified that the teen's injuries were consistent with a sexual assault.
As the second week of testimony began Monday in Waukesha, Wis., registered nurse Deborah Donovan said that the 17-year-old had an abrasion and redness surrounding her genital area in the hours following the April 9, 2000, prom party. The girl, Allison, claims that the former Green Bay Packer raped her in the bathroom at the party.
"It was consistent to what she reported had happened to her," Donovan said of the examination at Sinai Samaritan Medical Center's sexual assault treatment center. "I believe she was assaulted."
Allison was accompanied to the hospital by several of her friends, including one who says she was assaulted by Chmura's friend, the owner of the house where the party took place. Identified only as Kim, the young woman who testified as the first witness in Chmura's trial was examined immediately after Allison, Donovan testified.
The two teenagers, who were driven to the hospital by a friend's mother, nurse Jeanne Flannery, were crying as they sat in the waiting room, Donovan testified under direct examination by District Attorney Paul Bucher.
"She was crying intermittently throughout most of the time period I was with her that day," Donovan said of Allison.
Allison also seemed very concerned about not revealing the name of her alleged attacker.
"It was a little out of the ordinary," said Donovan, who added that identifying the alleged assailant wasn't necessary to receive treatment.
Before the physical examination, Donovan conducted an interview, where she asked Allison questions about which parts of her body were touched and the circumstances of what had happened.
"He is at least four times my size. What could I do?" Donovan said Allison told her.
On cross-examination, defense lawyer Gerald Boyle quizzed Donovan about why the injuries were not photographed even though the instrument used in the examination is equipped with a camera and Allison had signed a consent form.
Donovan said that for confidentiality reasons, photos are only used for training purposes, and there had never been a need for them for legal purposes.
"Well, there is now," Boyle shot back, "but you don't have them today, do you?"
During her graphic testimony, Donovan said that Allison was not "aware of full penetration."
"She knew that it hurt. She knew it felt like something went inside of her," but what, Donovan said, Allison was not sure.
Boyle asked if the abrasions that Allison suffered could have been caused by riding a bicycle or by clothing, but Donovan rebuffed those notions.
Donovan also conceded that Allison showed no bruising to her thighs like some rape victims, but said that not all rape victims necessarily suffer such injuries.
Jurors were paying close attention and taking notes, but showed little expression during the graphic testimony. Some did chuckle, however, as Boyle blamed his hearing aid for his voice being too low.
Among those seated in court were relatives of Allison and two of Chmura's brothers.
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