Shelley Malil
Charlie Neuman/San Diego Union-Tribune/Zuma
But as the second week of actor Shelley Malil's trial got underway Tuesday, a criminologist said DNA evidence on the steak knife allegedly used in the attack did not belong to the defendant or the victim, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Criminologist Lauren Sautkulis's testimony may lend credence to Malil's defense attorney's claims that his client did not use the steak knife in the alleged attack. The testimony, however, also suggested that the evidence doesn't necessarily prove that Malil did not use the knife, either.
The alleged stabbing occurred on Aug. 10, 2008. According to prosecutors, it involved the steak knife in question plus a larger kitchen knife.
Beebe, 38, suffered a punctured lung and other injuries but survived.
Malil, 45, best known for playing an electronics-store clerk in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, has pleaded not guilty to charges of premeditated attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and residential burglary.
If convicted, he could get 21 years to life in prison.
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