A college student who thought she was getting into an Uber was stabbed more than 100 times, a forensic pathologist testified Monday.
21-year-old Samantha Josephson was kidnapped and murdered after getting into a car with 27-year-old Nathaniel David Rowland in March of 2019. She accidentally got into his vehicle, mistaking it for her rideshare.
Dr. Thomas Beaver testified that Josephson had an estimated 120 stab wounds. He admitted he could not provide an accurate number because there were so many.
“It gets to a point where it really doesn’t add much to the report,” Beaver said during the trial.
He said in court that most of the stab wounds were located on the University of South Carolina senior’s head. She also sustained injuries to her back, arms, and chest.
There was so little blood left in Josephson’s body that it was a struggle to get enough during her autopsy. The human body typically contains four liters, or one gallon, while Josephson only had 20 milliliters or a little more than a teaspoon.
The trial is now in its second week, and the prosecution has presented evidence linking Rowland to Josephson’s murder. Josephson’s blood was found in his Chevrolet Impala, the knife believed to be the murder weapon was found in the trash at his girlfriend’s house, and cellphone data showing he was in the area where her body was discovered.
Rowland’s lawyers maintain that none of Rowland’s DNA was found on or under her fingernails, and scientists weren’t sure his DNA was on the knife.
Closing arguments are scheduled for Tuesday. Rowland faces life in prison if convicted.
