Treatment of Evidence that Helped/Ruined Solving a Case

[WishfulDreamer]

Thought I'd start a new thread since this was on my mind the other day.

Saved Evidence:

1) Shannon Mohr's parents not allowing Dave Davis to have his wife's body cremated preserved evidence of her being drugged (the injection marks and the chemical used). Without this, he probably would have gotten away with the crime.

2) In the Eugene Bailey case, a day planner belonging to one of the perpetrator's girlfriends was found and connected him to the case. Unlike the dishonorable mention I added below.

3) Police's thorough investigation/broadcasting of the cheat sheet of Ethel Kidd's killer got his handwriting recognized. I believe this also happened in the case of Oba Chandler.

Lost Evidence:

1) Crystal Spencer's remains being cremated pretty much tarnished any chance of finding out what exactly happened to her. I realize the state of decomposition possibly had already accomplished this, but potentially evidence could have been uncovered under a second autopsy if this had not taken place.

2) The gas can in Bobby Fuller's car being thrown away by a detective (who also picked it up/touched everything without gloves)

3) The burn barrel in Debbie Wolfe's case not being retrieved initially by police, who then denied its existence. Not sure this would have 100% caught who did it, but it would have pretty much proven this was no accident.

Dishonorable Mention:

1) In the Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman case, a card belonging to the girlfriend of one of the perpetrators was found at the scene of the fire. Had police investigated this thoroughly, they not only could have cracked the case way sooner, but they could even have found the girls alive.

[dynoguy88]

Originally Posted by WishfulDreamer

In the Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman case, a card belonging to the girlfriend of one of the perpetrators was found at the scene of the fire. Had police investigated this thoroughly, they not only could have cracked the case way sooner, but they could even have found the girls alive.

This absolutely kills me. When I watched that special on ID a couple years ago about this case and they pointed out the card angle. I immediately did the math in my head, already knowing that the girls were kept alive for several days. And then finding out they could both have been rescued approximately 24-48 hours after the fire was set with even mediocre police work? It's absolutely sickening.

[WishfulDreamer]

Originally Posted by dynoguy88

This absolutely kills me. When I watched that special on ID a couple years ago about this case and they pointed out the card angle. I immediately did the math in my head, already knowing that the girls were kept alive for several days. And then finding out they could both have been rescued approximately 24-48 hours after the fire was set with even mediocre police work? It's absolutely sickening.

It was already bad enough that the Bibles had to discover the body of Ashley Freeman's father, but I never imagined something that could crack the case was actually right there at the crime scene and totally ignored. These "investigators" should be ashamed of themselves.

[TheCars1986]

The one that immediately comes to mind are the glasses left behind by the killer of Harold and Thelma Swain being lost after law enforcement sent them to Unsolved Mysteries.

[dynoguy88]

Originally Posted by WishfulDreamer

1) Crystal Spencer's remains being cremated pretty much tarnished any chance of finding out what exactly happened to her. I realize the state of decomposition possibly had already accomplished this, but potentially evidence could have been uncovered under a second autopsy if this had not taken place.

Decomposition is not necessarily a dead end for autopsies. In Keith Warren's case, it was several years (nearly a decade, I believe) when his remains were exhumed and all those toxic chemicals were discovered inside him, making suicide medically not supportable.

In the case of Joyce McLain, it took her mother Pam a whopping 28 years of fighting just to have her remains exhumed. And when they finally were, it was stated that her remains were 80% preserved and new evidence was able to be taken in 2008 that they didn't take in 1980. The specifics of how they're able to do this is pretty amazing but confusing since you're basically dealing with a skeleton at this point.

So, I agree with you about Crystal Spencer. Unexplained deaths are not going to be helped by cremation.

[1990 UM fan]

Eileen Mangold's murder. Took a decade for authorities to knab the suspect, only for him to be acquitted of her murder because jury members were inexperienced with DNA evidence. Total bull****.

[sharonite]

I think it goes without saying that failure to secure the crime scene dealt a huge blow to the chances of solving the JonBenet Ramsey murder.

[Hambone2421]

I would say the way the investigations were handled in both the Stanley Gryziec and Debbie Wolfe cases are prime examples of downright ruining any chance of finding the perpetrator.

The police work in the Oba Chandler case was top notch.