Body of teenager to be exhumed after investigation into unsolved WWL case

COVINGTON, Louisiana – For the first time in 12 years, Donna Wittner feels Washington Parish authorities are listening to her concerns about the way they handled the investigation into the shooting death of her 14-year-old son.

The Washington Parish Coroner’s Office says Brett Wittner’s remains will be exhumed in the coming week. The new sheriff says he will be on site to assist in the process and ensure evidence is carefully recorded and preserved.

The decision to re-examine Brett came after ballistics and medical experts from around the world reviewed Brett’s autopsy and medical records for WWL Louisiana and concluded that he had been shot twice in the head – not just once, as was determined in the original autopsy and police investigation in 2012.

The original autopsy was performed for Washington Parish Coroner Roger Casama by Dr. Christopher Tape, then a private forensic pathologist near Lafayette and now the controversial elected coroner of the Wittners’ home parish of St. Tammany. Three days after Brett Wittner’s death, he has repeatedly refused to comment on his work at the inquest.

Tape will not be involved when Brett Wittner is exhumed and re-examined next week. Washington Parish Deputy Coroner Paul Thibodeaux said local medical examiners have been reluctant to take on the case because the WWL investigation has generated so much attention, but a Texas pathologist with no ties to Tape or Washington Parish has agreed to re-examine it.

This was welcome news for Donna Wittner.

“I look at actions, not words, and I haven’t seen any actions in 12 years except for mine and (WWL),” she said. “So I’m willing to give everybody a fresh start, and we’ll just see what their integrity is.”

Donna and her husband David visited their son’s grave on Monday and eagerly awaited their return for the exhumation, now scheduled for July 10.

“I can only visit my son Brett here. And you know, I really miss him. I miss having all three of my children with me,” he said, kneeling next to Brett’s gravestone.

“And I still think about my wife telling me that David Hammer from WWL was going to do some research for a report. I was out of the country taking care of my family. And I’m just so excited that we’re doing something.”

Sheriff Jason Smith of New Washington Parish is also looking forward to Brett being re-examined by independent experts. On his first day as sheriff, right after he was sworn in and addressed his deputies, he sat down with WWL to talk about the Wittner investigation.

“I believe the medical examiner’s plan right now is to transport Brett’s body to Texas because they wanted an objective person to do an initial autopsy and look at the body. And then the FACES lab at LSU will do an examination to look at bullet trajectories and things like that. There are a lot more resources and a lot more expertise there, so we can clarify some of these questions,” he said.

Smith said he would not draw any conclusions until he saw Brett’s remains and heard testimony from pathologists in Beaumont, Texas, and forensic anthropologists at the LSU FACES lab. Still, he said conclusive evidence of two bullets would change the situation.

“Two bullets (would mean) that it was undoubtedly murder,” he said.

Smith says he is willing to follow the evidence anywhere, even if it reveals mistakes made by law enforcement.

“Ultimately, it is Ms. Wittner who has had to deal with the consequences of this case for the last 12 years,” he said. “And if I have the power to help resolve some of these issues, we will do what we can to make that happen.”

Donna Wittner said she was looking forward to the new sheriff and new district attorney Collin Sims looking at her son’s case “with fresh eyes.”

“The most important thing is that I want to get to the bottom of this and get absolute closure. I will always grieve for my son, but I need closure,” Donna Wittner said. “I believe the experts (at WWL), but if I have to prove to people over and over again that my son was shot twice, then that’s what I’m going to do.”