Forensic Biology by Richard Li Chapter 3: Crime Scene Investigation and Laboratory Analysis of Biological Evidence Forensic Biology by Richard Li

Forensic Investigations Involving Biological Evidence Requires: Crime scene examination Scene security, documentation, collection and preservation of evidence Laboratory analysis Utilizes scientific techniques for evidence examination, identification of biological fluids, and the comparison of individual characteristics

Crime Scene Investigation Protecting and securing the scene: Duty of the first officer on the scene Only authorized personnel Use log sheet Obtain medical attention if needed Proper supplies and devices must be utilized E.g. Disposable suits, face mask, disposable gloves and booties

Crime Scene Investigation Documentation Sketch Rough and Finished Photographs Use photo log sheet Use scale Video

Crime Scene Investigation Chain of Custody- lists custody information at every point in time when evidence is handled or transferred

Crime Scene Investigation Recognition of probative biological evidence Corpus delicti evidence Evidence that a crime has occurred Context-dependent Victim-to-perpetrator linkage evidence Victim-to-scene linkage evidence Perpetrator-to-scene linkage evidence Case-to-case linkage evidence Modus operandi Ted Bundy

Ted Bundy Serial killer Murdered more than 30 women; may have been more than 100 (1972-78) Modus operandi Often approached victims in public places Used various ruses to gain their trust Pretended to have a broken leg (fake cast and crutches) Posed as police officer, fireman Targeted middle-class, young females (15-25) Hand-cuffed and then raped and bludgeoned victims Dumped bodies

Mug shot taken after arrest in Utah, 1975 Items taken from Bundy’s Volkswagon, Aug 16 1975

Bundy victims: 1972 January 4: "Joni Lenz" (pseudonym) (survived). University of Washington first-year student who was bludgeoned in her bed as she slept. February 1: Lynda Ann Healy (21). Bludgeoned while asleep and abducted from the house she shared with other female University of Washington students. March 12: Donna Gail Manson (19). Abducted while walking to a jazz concert on the Evergreen State College campus, Olympia, Washington. Bundy confessed to her murder, but her body was never found. April 17: Susan Elaine Rancourt (18). Disappeared as she walked across Ellensburg's Central Washington State College campus at night. May 6: Roberta Kathleen "Kathy" Parks (22). Vanished from Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon while walking to another dormitory to have coffee with friends. June 1: Brenda Carol Ball (22). Disappeared from the Flame Tavern in Burien, Washington. June 11: Georgeann Hawkins (18). Disappeared from behind her sorority house, Kappa Alpha Theta, at the University of Washington.

Bundy victims: 1974 July 14: Janice Ann Ott (23) and Denise Marie Naslund (19). Abducted several hours apart from Lake Sammamish State Park in Issaquah, Washington. September 2: Unknown teenage hitchhiker, Idaho. Confessed before his execution. No remains found. October 2: Nancy Wilcox (16). Disappeared in Holladay, Utah. Her body was never found. October 18: Melissa Anne Smith (17). Vanished from Midvale, Utah, after leaving a pizza parlor. October 31: Laura Aime (17). Disappeared from a Halloween party at Lehi, Utah. November 8: Carol DaRonch (survived). Escaped from Bundy by jumping out from his car in Murray, Utah. November 8: Debra "Debby" Kent (17). Vanished from the parking lot of a school in Bountiful, Utah, hours after Carol DaRonch escaped from Bundy. Shortly before his execution, Bundy confessed to investigators that he dumped Kent at a site near Fairview, Utah. An intense search of the site produced a human patella (knee cap), which matched the profile for someone of Kent's age and size. DNA testing has not been attempted.

Crime Scene Investigation Locard Exchange Principle: Cross-transference of evidence occurs when a perpetrator has any physical contact with something or someone else Scene Perpetrator Victim

Crime Scene Investigation Searches Alternate Light Source (ALS) Types Spiral Strip (parallel) Grid Quadrant/Zone

Crime Scene Investigation Collection Only done after documentation is complete Consider collecting entire item if small enough or mobile; sometimes may have to collect large item (e.g. car – see Bundy’s Volkswagon next slide) Considerations Bloodstain pattern evidence Multiple analysis of evidence Trace evidence Control samples Size of the stain Wet Evidence

Crime Scene Investigation

Crime Scene Investigation Packaging and Transportation Goal: protect and preserve evidence Avoid heat and humidity Package items separately Allow wet items to air dry Use paper! Label properly and seal

Laboratory Analysis Identification of biological evidence Comparison of individual characteristics of biological evidence

Laboratory Analysis Class Characteristics Individual Characteristics Can be placed into a category with other similar materials Examples? Individual Characteristics Evidence possesses characteristics that share a common origin with a reference sample Examples? Proof?

Laboratory Analysis Final steps: Reporting results Expert testimony