A prosecutor said Tricoche told the 2-year-old to "put his hands up" to fight before punching him.
CAMDEN -- The Pennsauken man charged with beating a 2-year-old to death in 2016 has hired a medical examiner who could serve as an expert witness if his murder charge goes to trial.
Zacchery Tricoche, 24, is accused of killing his girlfriend's son, Jamil Baskerville, by punching him twice in the abdomen on Aug. 20 while he and the child's mother were arguing over groceries.
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Jamil Baskerville Jr. At Tricoche's arraignment last summer, Assistant Prosecutor Christine Shah said an autopsy showed that Baskerville died from internal bleeding because his liver was lacerated by one of the blows.
At disposition conference Monday, Tricoche's attorney, Telissa Lindsey, told Camden County Superior Court Judge Kathleen Delaney that Tricoche's family had gotten money together to hire a medical examiner to assist in his defense.
The case, which does not yet have a trial date, will be delayed for a few weeks while the medical examiner reviews the autopsy report and writes a report for the defense.
It is possible that the examiner could be called to testify as an expert witness if Tricoche goes to trial.
Assistant Camden County Prosecutor Lauren Pratter did not object to the delay and a next date was set for April 24.
LISTEN: Mom calls 911 for help
Tricoche was not in the courtroom Monday, which Delaney said was because he refused to be brought over from the jail, where he is being held on $1 million bail.
Lindsey, of Marlton, said that may have been because he knew she was going to ask that his appearance be waived.
Tricoche was arrested after his girlfriend called 911 around 11:30 p.m. Aug. 20, reporting that her son had vomited and became unresponsive while bruises spread across his chest.
She did not tell the 911 dispatcher anything about where the bruises had come from.
At Tricoche's first court appearance three days later, Shah said that Tricoche abused his girlfriend and her child because he was upset that she did not get anything he wanted to eat while grocery shopping. Shah said he told the toddler to "put his hands up" to fight and then twice punched Baskerville in the abdomen, sending him flying across the bedroom and into a wall.
Tricoche attempted to give the boy CPR while his girlfriend was on the phone with the dispatcher, according to a recording of the 911 call.
Rebecca Everett may be reached at reverett@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
