A 35-year-old mother of five found dead by her children was badly beaten and suffered more than a dozen stab wounds, according to a medical examiner's report released Monday.
Chattanooga police investigators ruled Chandra Powell's Oct. 27 death a homicide, a decision confirmed by the medical examiner's findings.
Powell's killer focused on the upper body, hitting her with enough force to cause "missing skull portions/exposed brain" and stabbing her seven times above her left breast, the report states.
DISCLAIMER: This autopsy report is extremely graphic and not suitable for some viewers.PDF: Powell autopsy report
Some of the larger wounds on both sides of Powell's neck penetrated the airway, going deeper than 4 inches. Medical investigators found a flurry of surface-level wounds on her neck, face and head.
Powell's teenage daughters and 11-year-old son saw her on the floor when they came home from school. Police found the body underneath a comforter but didn't say who covered her. Authorities haven't arrested anyone and had no additional leads Monday.
"There's nothing new yet," police spokeswoman Sgt. Jerri Weary said. "Investigators are still working on it."
Powell also had a 7-year-old son and an infant daughter, who was found unharmed in a bassinet, police said. Department of Children's Services spokesman Rob Johnson confirmed that all five children were still in state custody Monday afternoon.
Powell was single and had moved to Chattanooga from Indiana about a year ago.
Contact Chris Carroll at ccarroll@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6610.
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