Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is two days into his trial for his role in the Boston Marathon bombing of April 2013, and presiding Judge George O’Toole has already made several rulings that could affect his defense and, possibly, whether he receives the death penalty. Tsarnaev’s attorneys sought to limit survivors’ testimonies from Wednesday, saying they are too gruesome. David Bruck, one of the attorneys for the defense, argued that victim-impact testimony is customarily presented during sentencing. Prosecutors argued that the testimonies were not victim-impact, but merely descriptions of what they saw the day of the bombing. O’Toole agreed and refused to limit the testimonies.

O’Toole also ruled, prior to Wednesday opening statements, that he would limit discussions on whether the defendant was “more or less culpable” than his older brother Tamerlan, who was killed during the manhunt that followed the bombing. The decision essentially restricted the defense’s ability to make the case that it was Tamerlan who was primarily responsible for the attack. The judge stated that such arguments were generally not relevant before the trial entered the sentencing phase, at which time the jury would decide whether Tsarnaev should be given life in prison or the death penalty.

Survivors of the bombing testified to chaos and carnage in the wake of the two explosions. Jeffrey Bauman, who lost both legs, actually bumped into Tamerlan just as he was placing his backpack on the ground. He described the appearance of his legs after the first explosion hit, saying “I could see my bones sticking out.” He said he instantly knew his legs were gone. Unable to speak at the hospital, Bauman wrote notes for FBI agents describing the man he saw with the backpack.

William Richard has a family photo which was presented in court that shows Tsarnaev standing behind the group as they watch the race. Richard’s 8-year-old son Martin was killed. He describes his wife reaching for Martin after the explosion. He embraced his son, Henry, and saw 6-year-old Jane on the ground with her legs blown off. Richard’s wife Denise lost sight in one eye, and Richard still has hearing loss.

Frank Chiola, a Boston police officer, testified that from where he was, 20 yards from the second bomb, “you couldn’t tell who was dead or alive.” He applied tourniquets to Krystle Campbell, saying that from the waist down “it was complete mutilation.” He stayed with her in the medical tent even after she was dead. Another police officer, Lauren Woods, testified that she saw blood, flesh and bone covering the lower body of 23-year-old Lingzi Lu. She stayed with Lu until she died.

Alan Hern said that they found bone fragments in his 11-year-old son’s legs that belonged to someone else. Roseann Sdoia talked of waking up in a hospital with one of her legs amputated below the knee.

As Richard testified he pointed to photos of the scene. Several survivors in the gallery wept, as did a prosecutor’s wife.