Evidence at Holmen women’s murder trial focuses on injuries leading to husband’s death

Jurors at the Lori Phillips murder trial in La Crosse saw photos from the autopsy of Mark Phillips in court on Tuesday.

Lori is accused of reckless homicide, for allegedly striking Mark with a truck outside their Holmen area residence in February of 2019. The defense says Mark may have been badly injured in a fall, and it’s suggested that if he was hit by a vehicle, that it was an accident. Prosecution witnesses continued to take the stand on the second-day of the trial.

Forensic pathologist Dr. Ross Reichard, a southern Minnesota medical examiner, was questioned in court, and the defense asked whether a fall could have caused the injuries that killed Mark Phillips. Reichard said a fall with force could have led to Mark’s injuries. Reichard spoke about rib fractures and blood loss contributing to the death, saying that several ribs on both side of Phillips’s chest were broken.

Prosecutors argue that Lori and Mark got into an argument, and that she hit him while driving a truck. Lori claims that she discovered Mark’s body in the snow the morning after the fight. A La Crosse sheriff’s deputy who investigated Mark’s death said that Lori stated “I didn’t hit him or anything.”

The trial in La Crosse County court continues for a third day on Wednesday.