The state medical examiner and three police officers testified for the prosecution on the first day of trial for a man accused of manslaughter for his son's death.

Joshua Glen Coleman, 26, has been charged with manslaughter, a Class Bfelony, and abuse of a child, a Class C felony, for the Feb. 16 death of his 4-month-old son.

A jury of seven men and six women will decide the case. Jury selection began at 9 a.m., and the jury was sworn in shortly after 11 a.m.

One of the 13 jurors is an alternate, but the jury won't be told who the alternate is until after closing arguments, said South Central District Judge Bruce Romanick, who is presiding over the case.

Morton County Assistant State's Attorney Brian Grosinger said in his opening statement that Reese Coleman, the infant son of Joshua Coleman and Miranda Kadrmas, died because of blunt force trauma.

"What this damage was caused by was the brain speeding up and slowing down," Grosinger said.

He said the infant was "in the sole care of his father before his death."

Wayne Goter, Coleman's appointed defense attorney, said Coleman admitted to some conduct that would not be considered admirable during an interview with Mandan Police Det. Dave Shipman.

But Goter said Coleman's actions did not cause the baby's death.

"What you'll find out is this child really had a miserable life," Goter said, mentioning illnesses and stays in the hospital that Reese Coleman had endured before he died.

He said Coleman admitted to biting the infant in the interview with Shipman.

"I don't know what to say to you about that charge," Goter said.

But he said the state would not be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Coleman caused his son's death.

"You'll find there are reasons to be very doubtful about that," he said.

Dr. George Mizell, the state forensic examiner, testified that he performed an autopsy on Reese Coleman.

"In my opinion, the cause of death in this case is blunt force trauma to the head," he said.

Showing photographs from the autopsy to the jury, Mizell showed the kinds of injuries Reese Coleman died from. The infant had multiple bruises on his body, hemorrhages on his eyes and face, a bite mark on his right forearm, hemorrhages under his scalp and on his brain, and hemorrhages on his retinas and his optic nerves, Mizell said.

He said he believes the injuries were caused by forceful shaking.

Under cross-examination from Goter, Mizell said Reese Coleman had no broken bones and no neck injuries. Goter asked whether Mizell would expect to see those kinds of injuries if the infant were forcefully shaken.

"There may be injuries to the neck, and there may not be," Mizell said. He also said infant bones are not fully calcified, and thus are more likely to bend rather than break.

Mizell also said short falls may cause some of the injuries to the brain that Reese Coleman had, but short falls would be unlikely to cause hemorrhaging to the retinas and optic nerves.

Shipman testified that he had interviewed Coleman in February in Dickinson, then again on March 30 at the Morton County Law Enforcement Center. The second interview was videotaped, he said.

Shipman showed two videos to the jury of Coleman and him talking on March 30. Technical problems caused the tapes to have poor audio quality, he said.

Shipman and Grosinger said they could not comment on what was said during the inaudible portions of the videos until after the trial.

Shipman asked Coleman on the video about what happened on Feb. 15 and 16 that preceeded Reese Coleman's death.

Coleman could be heard admitting on the videotape to dropping Reese Coleman, to biting him and to pushing his head into the bed. Coleman, who cried through much of the interview with his head in his hands, said Reese Coleman was fussy and crying.

Before Mizell's and Shipman's testimonies, Mandan Police Sgt. Brent Wilmeth, who was a detective on Feb. 16, and Mandan Police Det. Beth Tebelius, who was a patrol officer on Feb. 16, testified that nothing initially seemed suspicious about the infant's death.

The defense will present its case beginning at 9 this morning at the Morton County Courthouse. The trial is expected to wrap up today.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@;bismarcktribune.com)