Testimony in the third week of Dr. Cyril H. Wecht's criminal trial began today with the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office chief histologist describing how his predecessor, George Hollis, increasingly did private work for the former coroner using county resources.

Joseph T. Rabickow III, who started at the coroner's office in 1995, said he and Mr. Hollis initially shared the county workload, but Mr. Hollis's county work diminished over time, falling off dramatically in early 2001.

"I noticed I had a lot more to do," Mr. Rabickow said.

In 2004, the government contended, Mr. Hollis prepared only a single histology slide for county-related work.

Among the cases Mr. Hollis handled were ones with tissue samples from buckets marked "CHW" -- presumably Cyril H. Wecht. Previous testimony about pathologists studying brains stored at the coroner's office from Dr. Wecht's private cases described them sitting in buckets marked "CHW."

Mr. Rabickow said he did not do any private work for Dr. Wecht. The closest he came to dealing with Dr. Wecht's private slides was when he had to remove them from a processing machine to make room for slides pertaining to county work.

Histologists prepare samples of human tissue on slides for pathologists to study.

Under a brisk flurry of questions during cross-examination by defense attorney Mark Rush, Mr. Rabickow said he never complained about the backlog, never discussed it with Dr. Wecht or Mr. Hollis, and saw Dr. Wecht in the office only when the former coroner "popped his head in" looking for Mr. Hollis.

However, Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen S. Stallings asked Mr. Rabickow why he never complained.

"Not in my nature," he replied. "I like to keep my nose to the grindstone and out of other people's business."

Dr. Wecht is charged with 41 federal offenses, including mail fraud, wire fraud and theft from an agency receiving federal funds.

The morning's second witness was Maribeth Blettner, Dr. Wecht's secretary for 31 years in his private practice and public office. She described using blank invoices from a defunct travel agency to bill clients for airfare and limousine service during trips for her boss's private clients.

Ms. Blettner said she would cash reimbursement checks for Dr. Wecht's travel expenses and give the cash to her boss, never forwarding any of the information to the accountants who prepared Cyril H. Wecht & Pathology Associates' taxes.

Ms. Blettner said she knew that Dr. Wecht would at times bill clients for roundtrip limousine rides although he did not use such a service. Asked if she ever questioned her boss why he did that, she replied, "No, it was just something we had done."

Ms. Stallings showed Ms. Blettner numerous receipts on travel agency invoices that were prepared years after the agency closed. He also showed an exhibit in which Dr. Wecht had attached a sticky note directing Ms. Blettner to add a roundtrip expense for airfare, indicating that he was directly involved in crafting his expenses.

Testimony will resume this afternoon with Ms. Blettner still under direct examination.

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.