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Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTENTS

INTERVIEW

TABLE OF CONTENTS

10 CE ARTICLES

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER速 Spring 2011

MATHEMATICAL AND STATISTICAL EVIDENCE OF BLOODSTAIN EVIDENCE By Martin Matisoff, MSc, MS, BA, and Larry Barksdale, AA, BS, MA

THE FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY OF OLFACTION EVIDENCE By Allen J. Smith, PhD and Erika A. Porter, BSN

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VOLUME 20 • NUMBER 3 •WINTER 2011

FALSE CONFESSION VS. INVESTIGATIVE LOGIC By Mark E. Safarik, Ann W. Burgess, and Allen G. Burgess

SOLUTION IN THE DETAILS: INVESTIGATIVE STRATEGY ON A UNIQUE CASE By special agent Joe Dietz and Katherine Ramsland

INTERVIEW: AL RIDENHOUR

IN THIS ISSUE

08 52 68 60 FICTION— Mrs. Pomfrey’s Elderberry Wine 69 FALSELY ACCUSED— 84 The Dixmoor Five: Exonerated 81 After Nearly 20 Years 82 DETECTIVE’S CORNER— 85 80 THE Personal Baggage PROFILE— ROBERT D. KEPPEL: Consulting Detective

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Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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2012 EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Nicholas G. Apostolou, DBA, DABFA, CPA, Cr.FA Donna Bader, MA, MSN, CFN, DACFEI Larry Barksdale, BS, MA E. Robert Bertolli, OD, FACFEI, CHS-V, CMI-V Kenneth E. Blackstone, BA, MS, CFC, DABFE David T. Boyd, DBA, CPA, Cr.FA, CMA Jules Brayman, CPA, CVA, DABFA, FACFEI John Brick, PhD, MA, DABFM, FACFEI Dennis L. Caputo, MS, DABFET, CHMM, FACFEI Dennis H. Chevalier, BS, MSM, DM, CMI David F. Ciampi, PhD, FACFEI, DABPS Andrew N. Dentino, MD, FACFEI, DABFE, DABFM James A. DiGabriele, PhD/DPS, CPA, Cr.FA, FACFEI John Shelby DuPont Jr., DDS, DABFD Per Freitag, PhD, MD, FACFEI, DABFM L. Sue Gabriel, MSN, MFS, EdD, RN Ron Grassi, DC, FACFEI, DABFM, DABFE Richard C. W. Hall, MD, FACFEI, DABFM, DABFE John J. Haberströh, DC, CFC, CMI-V, FACFEI Raymond F. Hanbury, PhD, ABPP, FACFEI, DABFE David L. Holmes, EdD, FACFEI, DABFE, DABPS Leo L. Holzenthal Jr., PE, DABFET, FACFEI Linda Hopkins, PhD, CFC, DABPS, DABRE Matthew Howard, PhD Edward J. Hyman, PhD Zafar M. Iqbal, PhD Nursine S. Jackson, MSN, RN, DABFN Robert S. Kassoff, PhD, DABPS, DACFM, DABFE Philip Kaushall, PhD, DABFE, DABPS, FACFEI Eric Kreuter, PhD, CPA, DABFA, FACFEI Ronald G. Lanfranchi, DC, PhD, CMI-IV, FACFEI Richard Levenson, Jr., PsyD, DABFE, DABPS, FACFEI Monique Levermore, PhD, FACFEI, DABPS Jonathan Lipman, PhD, FACFEI, DABFE, DABPS Judith Logue, PhD, FACFEI, DABFSW, DABPS Mike Meacham, PhD, LCSW, DABFSW, FACFEI David Miller, DDS, FACFEI, DABFE, DABFD

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THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

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ACFEI EXECUTIVE ADVISORY BOARDS American Board of Forensic Accounting

CHAIR Alexander Lamar Casparis, CPA, MBA, Cr. FA, FACFEI MEMBERS Stewart L. Appelrouth, CPA, CFLM, Cr.FA, FACFEI Gary Bloome, CPA, Cr.FA D. Larry Crumbley, PhD, CPA, DABFA, Cr.FA James A. DiGabriele, PhD/DPS, CPA, Cr.FA, FACFEI Michael W. Feinberg, CPA, Cr.FA Michael G. Kessler, Cr.FA, CICA, FACFEI, DABFA Eric A. Kreuter, PhD, CPA, FACFEI, DABFA Robert K. Minniti, CPA, MBA, Cr.FA J. Bradley Sargent, CPA, CFS, Cr.FA, FACFEI Joseph F. Wheeler, CPA, Cr.FA, CHS-III, CFF

American Board of Forensic Counselors

CHAIR Marilyn J. Nolan, MS, FACFEI, DABFC, DABCIP Chair Emeritus: Dow R. Pursley, EdD, FACFEI, DABFC MEMBERS George Bishop, LPC, LAT, FACFEI, DABFE Laura W. Kelley, PhD, LPC, DABFC, FACFEI William M. Sloane, JD, LLM, FACFEI, CHS-III

American Board of Forensic Dentistry

CHAIR James H. Hutson, DDS, CMI-V, FACFEI Chair Emeritus: Brian L. Karasic, DMD, MBA, DABFD, CMI-III MEMBERS Bill B. Akpinar, DDS, CMI-V, FACFEI, DABFD Stephanie L. Anton-Bettey, DDS, CMI-V Robert Byrd, DDS Chester B. Kulak, DMD, CMI-V, CFC, DABFD

CHAIR Douglas Wayne Beal, MD, MSHA, CMI-V, CFP MEMBERS Jess P. Armine, DC, FACFEI, DABFE, DABFM Ronna F. Dillon, PhD, DABFE, DABPS, CMI-V, CHS-III Bruce H. Gross, PhD, JD, MBA, FACFEI Darrell C. Hawkins, MS, JD, FACFEI, CMI-V Michael W. Homick, PhD, DABCHS, CHS-V John L. Laseter, PhD, FACFEI, CMI-IV, CHS-III Lawrence Lavine, DO, MPH, CHS-V, CMI-V Leonard K. Lucenko, PhD, FACFEI, DABFE, CPSI Marc A. Rabinoff, EdD, FACFEI, DABFE, CFC Janet M. Schwartz, PhD, FACFEI, DABFE, CHS-V

American Board of Forensic Engineering and Technology

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American Board of Forensic Medicine

CHAIR Cyril H. Wecht, MD, JD, FACFEI, CFP

MEMBERS Douglas Wayne Beal, MD, MSHA, CMI-V, CFP Zhaoming Chen, MD, PhD, MS, CFP John A. Consalvo, MD, DABFE, DABFM, FACFEI Louis W. Irmisch III, MD, FACFEI, CMI-V, CFP Michael Fitting Karagiozis, DO, MBA, CFP, CMI-V Lawrence Lavine, DO, MPH, CHS-V, CMI-V Kenneth A. Levin, MD, CFP, FACFEI, DABFM E. Franklin Livingstone, MD, CFP, FACFEI, DABFM Manijeh K. Nikakhtar, MD, CFP, MPH, CMI-V Matthias I. Okoye, MD, MSc, JD, FRCP John R. Parker, MD, FACFEI, DABFM, CFP Jerald H. Ratner, MD, DABFE, DABFM, FACFEI S. Sandy Sanbar, MD, PhD, JD, FCLM Gere Unger, MD, JD, LL.M

American Board of Forensic Nursing

CHAIR Dianne T. Ditmer, MS, RN, CFN, CHS-III

MEMBERS Donna Bader, MSN, RNC, CFN Heidi H. Bale, RN, BSN, CFN, DABFN Wanda Broner, MSN, RN, FNE, CEN Marilyn A. Bello, RNC, MS, CFN, CMI-IV Cynthia J. Curtsinger, RN, CFN Linda J. Doyle, RN, CLNC, CFN, CMI-III L. Sue Gabriel, EdD, MSN, RN, CFN Diane L. Reboy, MS, RN, CFN, FACFEI Elizabeth Russell, RN, BSN, CCM, BC Sharon L. Walker, MPH, PhD, RN, CFN Carol A. Wood, RN, CFN, BS, NHA Theresa Wyatt, MSFN, RN, CFN, D-ABMDI

American Board of Forensic Social Workers

CHAIR Douglas E. Fountain, PhD, LCSW, DABFE, DABFSW

MEMBERS Matthew A. Capezzuto, PhD, LISW-S, CMFSW, DABFSW Peter W. Choate, PhD, MSW, DABFSW, DABFE Viola Vaughan-Eden, PhD, LCSW, CMFSW, DAPA Nathalie P. Hughes, MSW, LSW, CMFSW Tina Jaeckle, PhD, LCSW, MFSW, CFC Shannon C. Lebak, MSW, LSW, CMFSW Michael G. Meacham, PhD, LCSW, DCSW, FACFEI Kathleen Monahan, DSW, MSW, CMFSW, CFC Susan P. Robbins, PhD, LCSW, DCSW, DABFSW Steven J. Sprengelmeyer, MSW, MA, FACFEI

American Board of Psychological Specialties

CHAIR Raymond H. Hamden, PhD, FACFEI, CFC, CMI-V CHAIR EMERITUS Raymond F. Hanbury, PhD, FACFEI, DABPS, DABFE MEMBERS Carol J. Armstrong, PhD, LPC, DABPS Martha Barham, RN, PhD, DABFE Ronna F. Dillon, PhD, DABPS, CMI-V, CHS-III

Carl N. Edwards, PhD, JD, FACFEI, DABPS Keith Franklin Kennett, PhD, BA, MA, DABFE Paula Mackenzie, PsyD Helen D. Pratt, PhD, FACFEI, DABPS Douglas H. Ruben, PhD, FACFEI, DABPS, DABFE Richard M. Skaff, PsyD, DABPS Charles R. Stern, PhD, DABPS, FACFEI, CMI-V Joseph C. Yeager, PhD, DABFE, DABPS, FACFEI Donna M. Zook, PhD, DABPS, CFC

American Board of Recorded Evidence

CHAIR Gregg M. Stutchman

MEMBERS Ernst F.W. Alexanderson, BA, MBA, FACFEI, DABRE Eddy B. Brixen, DABFET Charles K. Deak, BS, CPC, DABFE, DABRE Ryan O. Johnson, BA, DABFE, DABRE Michael C. McDermott, JD, DABRE, DABFE, FACFEI Jennifer E. Owen, BA, DABRE, DABFE Thomas J. Owen, BA, FACFEI, DABRE, CHS-V Lonnie L. Smrkovski, BS, DABRE, DABFE, FACFEI

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CHAIR Dana Way, CMI-V, RI, DABRI

MEMBERS Kenneth E. Blackstone, MS, CFC, DABFE Henry S. Browne, MS, RS, RI Mark Boutwell, CPPP, FIPC, CMI-I Robert Boyden, PhD, MS, SCSA Marvin “Gene” Bullington, CFC, FACFEI Dennis Chevalier, CPPP, FIPC, CMI-I John Daab, PhD, MA, MBA, MPS, MA, RI Joseph A. Juchniewicz, MA, SSI, CHS-III, RI Eric Lakes, CHS-III, CLWE, MCSE Lt. David Millsap, RI, CMI-III Harold F. Risk, PhD, DABPS, FACFEI Cyril H. Wecht, MD, JD, CFP, FACFEI

Executive Advisory Board of the International College of the Behavioral Sciences

CHAIR Janet M. Schwartz, PhD, FACFEI, DABFE, CHS-V BOARD SECRETARY Steven Crimando

MEMBERS Mike Baer, PhD Duane L. Dobbert, PhD, FACFEI Sue Gabriel, EdD, RN, CFN Mark L. Goldstein, PhD Raymond H. Hamden, PhD, FACFEI, CFC, CMI-V Janice L. Hargrave, MEd, CFC David L. Holmes, EdD Tina Jaeckle, PhD, LCSW, MFSW, CFC Gary Kesling, PhD., LMFT, LPC, DAPA Lon Kopit, PsyD, LPC, BCPC Carl J. Patrasso, PsyD Katherine Ramsland, PhD, CMI-V Jerald H. Ratner, MD, CFP Doug Ruben, PhD Ronald M. Ruff, PhD

Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

BOARDS

American Board of Forensic Examiners

Max L. Porter, PhD, DABFET, CFC, FACFEI

FEATURE

Confession

vs.

Investigative Logic FEATURE

By Mark E. Safarik, Ann W. Burgess, and Allen G. Burgess

An age-old question asked by many is the following:

WHY DO PEOPLE MAKE FALSE CONFESSIONS?

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER速 Spring 2011

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Abstract A confession is one of the most powerful types of evidence presented against a person charged with a crime, since few people believe an innocent person would confess to a crime, yet it happens with surprising frequency. The case presented in this article begins with a man calling the police to say he killed his wife. Police investigated under the theory that it was a domestic violence homicide. The analysis of the crime scene evidence, the overlooked evidence, and the use of investigative logic challenges the premise of the law enforcement process. False Confession vs. Investigative Logic An age-old question asked by many is the following: why do people make false confessions? No study of a violent murder should be complete without an understanding of the increasing number of proven false convictions that began in the late 1980s with the advent of advanced DNA testing. Each time a convicted murderer is released from prison—exonerated by DNA or other evidence—it represents a breakdown of the system and a “black eye to law enforcement” (Shellem, 2006). However, more importantly, it means the real perpetrator escaped apprehension and prosecution and likely will never be brought to justice unless detectives working cold case units are brought in. In an attempt to address the question “why does someone falsely confess to a crime?” according to Quintieri and Weiss (2005), some reasons include mental illness, mental retardation, attention-seeking, publicity-seeking, or a combination of these. One of the first recorded voluntary confessions occurred September 1666 when Robert Hubert confessed to starting the great fire of London that demolished about 4/5th of the city. Hubert, a French Protestant watchmaker, told authorities he threw a fire bomb through a bakery window on Pudding Lane. Although his confession seemed to change and flounder under scrutiny, he was tried and hanged. Afterwards, colleagues told the inquiry Hubert had been at sea with them at the time, and the inquiry concluded the fire had indeed been an accident. No one knows why he confessed (Tinniswood, 2003). This article will focus on a case involving a voluntary confession. The question becomes: Did the confession trump missed crime scene evidence and investigative logic with the possibility that the criminal(s) remain at large?

after 2s.m. Although forensic evidence was insufficient to link him to the crime, prosecutors charged the husband with murder based on the 911 call. The defense attorney called two experts into the case: Ann Burgess, because the prosecutor’s theory was that domestic violence was the underlying motive for the crime and Mark Safarik, because of his criminal profiling background and research on elderly homicide. The following categories outline the key crime analysis process.

FEATURE

The Murder On May 5, 2009, a 911 call was made to police by a 78-year-old man who said he had killed his wife. Indeed, police arrived and did find his 74-year-old wife dead in the kitchen from massive trauma to her head. The caller, however, was unable to remember any details of the crime. He remembered that day: shopping, dinner and watching television with his wife, and retiring to bed at 9:30 p.m. but nothing else until he came across his wife’s body at

Victimology Victimology - the review of a person’s lifestyle, reputation, behavior, and personal history; measures the victim’s risk level; and assesses why the person was murdered. The victim’s risk level is assessed in concert with the level of risk assumed by the offender as he or she gains access to the victim, commits the homicide, and egresses from the scene.

“why does someone falsely confess to a crime?” according to Quintieri and Weiss (2005), some reasons include mental illness, mental retardation, attention-seeking, publicityseeking, or a combination of these.

Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

In 2008, Kassin defined

TYPES OF CONFESSIONS AS THE FOLLOWING:

confessions–Those in which people claim responsibility for crimes they did not commit without prompting from police.

• Voluntary

• Compliant confessions–Cases in which the suspect acqui-

esces in order to escape from a stressful situation, avoid punishment, or gain a promised or implied reward. • Internalized false confessions–Those in which in-

nocent but vulnerable suspects, exposed to highly suggestive interrogation techniques, come to not only confess but come to believe they committed the crime in question (Kassin, 2008).

Crime Area and Geographic Risk

FEATURE

The geographic risk assessment of crime in the neighborhood can contribute to determining the likelihood of someone becoming the victim of a violent crime. Crime statistics were not maintained by the police for this particular neighborhood area but for the entire city of Bismarck.

The violent crime rate for Bismarck was low and there were no known homicides or serious violent crime in the area around the Z residence.

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

Mrs. Z was a 74-year-old white female, 5 feet 4 inches, and weighed 151 pounds. At the time of her death she had been living in a single family home with her husband, 78, in Bismarck, North Dakota for 29 years. The Z’s had been married for 48 years and were described as a loving couple that spent most of their time together. Mr. Z had been a road trucker early in his career, but eventually bought several trucks and became an owneroperator. The business proved to be quite successful and they purchased several industrial/ commercial rental properties which they were managing up until Mrs. Z’s death. Mrs. Z had been a homemaker and raised their two sons. They were partners in the trucking business with Mrs. Z handling the bookkeeping and Mr. Z running the business. Mr. Z had recently been diagnosed with stage 3 cancer. He had started radiation and chemotherapy and Mrs. Z drove him to each of his appointments. Neither Mrs. nor Mr. Z had any history of domestic violence or criminal contact with law enforcement. They were financially independent and owned their own home. One of the Z’s sons said that for the past 15+ years his parents had spent a great deal of time traveling around the world. It was after a recent trip to Egypt that Mr. Z was reevaluated for his cancer and it was determined that it had returned. Five years before, Mr. Z had partial removal of one of his lungs. With the new diagnosis,

Mr. Z had begun an aggressive treatment regimen for his cancer in April that consisted of five sessions of chemotherapy in the morning with radiation therapy in the afternoon. These treatments left him weak and exhausted. The son described a visit by his parents to his home on May 3, 2009, two days before the homicide, in which his father could barely walk from the driveway to the backyard, became winded, had to sit down in a chair to use his prescription inhaler, and then needed to leave and go home to lie down. The son described his father as even tempered, said that he had never seen his father angry at his mother and had never seen them fight—even as a child. His mother had previously had breast cancer but she had been cancer free for five years. He said she was not seeing any doctors and was in good health. He said both his parents were pretty conscientious about locking the windows, but that they often left the double French doors on the ground floor open, as well as the sliding glass door in their bedroom upstairs for ventilation and fresh air. Interviews with neighbors reported the couple were always together, were quiet and seemed to get along well. As a couple they always made decisions together and had the utmost respect for each other. The neighbors were shocked at the news of the homicide. A friend of both Mr. and Mrs. Z said she had known them for over 25 years. She said they adored each other and were a loving couple who partnered in everything they did. She had never heard them argue. She also said they had a lot of respect for one another. A work associate who had known the Z’s for 43 years described them as “the nicest couple you could ever meet.” He said they were always together when traveling around town, and Mr. Z always ate breakfast and lunch at home. Mr. Z was not a person to go drinking at bars or eat meals out. He liked being with Mrs. Z at home. He saw both Mrs. and Mr. Z about a week before the homicide at the doctors where Mr. Z was getting his chemotherapy and radiation treatments. He said that they were always together at the doctor’s. Money was never an issue for either of them, and they had plenty as Mr. Z was a good businessman. Watson said in all the years he had known them he never heard anything negative about either individual. There was nothing noted, implied, or commented on in the police investigation that suggested that Mrs. Z was anything but a low-risk victim.

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Injuries and the Medical Examiner’s Report Mr. Z reported having been asleep and awakening around 2:57 a.m. His wife was not in bed with him so he went to find her. He discovered her body near the top of the stairs between the kitchen and dining room. She was covered in blood. He did not know what had happened to her or how she had been injured. He thought she had been hit or stabbed. A review of photographs revealed the extent of the injuries sustained from repeated blunt force strikes. The injuries were identified as being consistent with a blunt force object similar to a hammer. The presence of defensive wounds indicates that Mrs. Z did not perceive the threat to her life until it was too late to respond in a manner that would allow her to flee, escape, or effectively repel the attack. There are no injuries indicative of Mrs. Z having engaged in a struggle with the offender. The cause of death was listed as “blunt head injury due to multiple impacts with blunt instrument.” The Medical Examiner described the blunt impacts as “a significant number (probably a double digit) of impacts to the head and face…” These blunt force injuries resulted in multiple individual and intersecting scalp and facial lacerations, as well as depressed and intersecting linear skull fractures. The ME opined that there were a minimum of 14 and maximum of 23 blows to the head. Mrs. Z sustained

abrasions and contusions to both hands consistent with defensive injuries, as well as a left chest rib fracture that was identified as having occurred at the same time as the other fatal injuries. There was nothing identified by the medical examiner to indicate that Mrs. Z had been sexually assaulted. Another significant behavioral consideration is the location, nature, and severity of the injuries and their intended lethality. The offender used a weapon (hammer) to commit the homicide. The offender inflicted the blunt force injury in an anatomical location that he expected would result in Mrs. Z’s death. The blunt force strikes were inflicted with such force that they resulted in lacerations that penetrated to the bone with concomitant skull fractures and subdural hemorrhages. The number and severity of these injuries is consistent with having been inflicted by a younger offender. In empirical research conducted by one of the authors, a homicide injury scale was developed to evaluate the severity of injuries in the homicides of elderly females. The study (Safarik, et al., 2005) indicated that over 50 percent of injury identified as excessive on the Homicide Injury Scale (HIS) was inflicted by offenders in the 15 to 24-year-old age range. Generally, it was observed that the older the offender the less severe the inflicted injury. Young offenders, those well under the mean age of 27 years, possess the physical prowess, strength, and stamina to inflict such severe and repeated injury.

Offender Risk Level In a well-planned and organized homicide, the offender makes a conscious decision about the level of risk he is willing to assume to complete the crime, which includes the disposition of the body. It is consistent, based on the location and time frame of this homicide and the nature of her injuries that Mrs. Z was a victim of opportunity, known to the offender, although the level of knowledge would likely only indicate that the offender had knowledge of her and in fact did not know her. This level of relationship is referred to as a relative stranger (Safarik, Jarvis, and Nussbaum, 2002) and that the residence was purposefully selected by the offender as he operated within the geographical area of his choice.

◀◀Injuries consistent with a blunt force object similar to a hammer

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◀◀Injuries sustained from repeated blunt force strikes

◀◀Minimum oF 14 and maximum of 23 blows to the head ◀◀No indications of sexual assault ◀◀Number and severity of injuries is consistent with having been inflicted by a younger offender

Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

“Assessing the offender’s motive and evaluating his actions both chronologically and temporally is paramount to establishing a framework for understanding the dynamics of this crime.”

Crime Analysis One of the fundamental tenants of crime scene analysis is the unbiased evaluation of forensic and behavioral attributes in order to provide a reasonable explanation for why and how, as in this case, Mrs. Z became the victim of homicide. Assessing the offender’s motive and evaluating his actions both chronologically and temporally is paramount to establishing a framework for understanding the dynamics of this crime. In an interview with police investigators, Mr. Z recounted the events of May 4, 2009. He stated that he and his wife ate dinner around 6:00 pm and that they watched the news while they ate. He said that after he ate he went to bed. He only wore a T-shirt and underwear to bed. He said that when he awoke the television show Dancing with the Stars was on. The show was approximately half over and since the show runs from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm he deduced that it was around 8:00 that evening when he woke up. He watched the balance of the show with Mrs. Z and then went back to bed. Mrs. Z did not accompany him to bed as was her customary habit, instead staying up to do paperwork. After he was in bed he received a call from his daughter-in-law around 9:30 that night asking to speak with Mrs. Z, but Mr. Z told

her she was sleeping on the couch. The phone call did not last very long. Mr. Z reported taking some sleeping pills before he went to bed, but it was not clarified if he took them before going to bed the first time or second time. Mr. Z said that he awoke later in the early morning of the 5th. He was concerned that his wife was not in bed with him so he went to find her. He found her on the floor near the kitchen in a pool of blood. He did not know what happened to her to cause her injuries. He also did not know what to do. He said he waited about an hour before calling police. Initially he said he did not touch her but later on said he did touch her but did not remember. He said that after finding his wife he had to sit down. He reported checking the doors and found they were locked. He eventually got dressed and called 911 to report his wife’s death. He opened the door to the garage and the main garage door and waited for the police to arrive. Mrs. Z was found lying on her right side at the top of the stairway coming from downstairs. Her legs and lower torso were within the confines of the kitchen dining area. Blood spatter was located in the kitchen and dining room. Blood spatter was located on top of the kitchen table and the fact that her glasses were on the table with minimal spatter indicates that the initial assault began with her seated

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◀◀MRS. Z WAS FOUND LYING ON HER RIGHT SIDE AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRWAY ◀◀LEGS AND LOWER TORSO WERE WITHIN THE CONFINES OF THE KITCHEN DINING AREA ◀◀HEAD WAS NEAR THE GROUND WHEN SHE WAS BEING STRUCK ◀◀EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT THE ENTIRE ASSAULT OCCURRED IN A SMALL AREA WHERE THE KITCHEN, STAIRS, AND FORMAL DINING ROOM CONVERGE

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

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on the t-shirt but no blood was found on his feet, shoes or pants. On absorbent material such as cotton, directionality is difficult to assess. Its presence on the t-shirt may have resulted from the victim exhaling minute droplets if she were still alive when Mr. Z found her or in the process of Mr. Z handling her body as he attempted to render aid. The lack of significant spatter considering the weapon that was used, the number of strikes to her head, the massive amount of blood from the impact spatter and bleeding out, and the close proximity of the offender to the victim in order to inflict those injuries is inconsistent with the very small amount observed on Mr. Z’s shirt. Five pairs of underwear were located; however no blood spatters were identified on them.

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at the kitchen table. At a point early in the assault she had fallen out of the chair and against the wood cabinet siding directly across from the kitchen table. This wood cabinet siding had numerous blood spatters to include several swipes, caused due to the transfer of blood from a bloody object (her head) to a nonbloody object (the cabinet) when either are in motion that contained strands of her hair. The assault continued with her on the floor, as there were numerous directional blood spatters on the cabinet and edge of the wall separating the kitchen from the formal dining room. There were hairs contained within the blood stain on the wall edge. The directionality of the spatter on the cabinet indicates that her head was near the ground when she was being struck. Blood spatter analysts also documented numerous directional spatters on the formal dining room carpet that radiate from a central area of convergence in the area of the floor and wall edge. The forensic evaluation of the blood spatter evidence indicates that the entire assault occurred in a relatively small area where the kitchen, stairs, and formal dining room converge. There were several void patterns between the location where her head finally rested, and the significant bleeding that had occurred while her head laid adjacent to the cabinet. Police located the t-shirt that Mr. Z had been wearing when he said he found his wife. He had changed his underwear and shirt in anticipation of going with the police and put the items in the washing machine where they were found by police. There were some minimal spatters

The Weapon Offenders make conscious decisions about the type of weapon they want to use when committing a violent assault. This is especially true when the crime is premeditated. Of notable interest is the fact that the weapon originated from the crime scene. In response to the Medical Examiner’s opinion that the blunt force weapon was a heavier object such as a statue, heavy decoration, or hammer, police investigators identified several hammers in the garage. One of the hammers—a blue rubber handled hammer—was identified as the weapon in this homicide. The hammer was a weapon of opportunity. The offender used an object from the garage and subsequent to its use, cleaned the majority of the blood off before returning it to its original location, a workbench where other tools were located.

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Matching Evidence with Investigative Wisdom and Research The void blood pattern: what would explain the void patterns at those locations? It is likely that the offender, despite the extensive and severe injury inflicted believed that he had killed Mrs. Z may have been able to lift herself a couple of times as she slowly moved to the location in which she was found before expiring. The offender’s failure to make sure that he had killed Mrs. Z may indicate an inexperienced offender. Leaving a victim alive in an assault in which death was intended has been observed in other elder homicide cases (Safarik, et al., 2002). An alternate explanation is that Mr. Z may have moved his wife in an attempt to aid her. Weapons: offenders who use weapons of opportunity they obtain from the scene often leave the weapon. They leave the weapon for a couple of reasons. One reason may be it does not belong to them, so there is no personal interest or attachment to it and no need to take it with them. Secondly, because they have no connection to the weapon there is no reason to believe that law enforcement could link the weapon to them. In fact, by taking the weapon it becomes a liability if it is discovered on their person or in their possession. The offender may clean the weapon in order to remove fingerprints or other biological evidence from it if he intends to leave the weapon at the scene. The choice of a hammer as a weapon with which to kill someone is unusual. The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports data reflected that of all homicides committed in 2001 only 4.5% were committed using a blunt force object. Such blunt force objects include but are not limited to bats, rocks, pipes, boards, and

household objects (lamps, chairs, and cooking utensils). Experientially within the BAU, the use of a hammer to commit a homicide is rarely seen. As a percentage of blunt force objects used to commit homicides, a hammer would be exceeding small. Although a hammer can prove to be a very lethal weapon, it is unwieldy in the hands of someone unaccustomed to it. Attempting to strike an individual who is moving, defending themselves, and fighting back may prove difficult because the actual lethal anatomical target area of the hammer is so small. By its nature, in the hands of someone not used to handling such a tool, it is a poor choice for a weapon and the injuries resulting from such an assault would be more widely distributed over the body. The effective use of such a weapon would likely require an offender with strength and dexterity. Because the fatal trauma is limited to Mrs. Z’s head, the offender likely blitz attacked her (the application of overwhelming physically injurious force to immediately incapacitate the victim). A blitz attack from behind the victim would have caught her unaware. After the commission of a homicide the first decision the offender must make is whether to transport the victim to a different location or leave the victim at the crime scene. The decision to transport the victim is usually made when the offender’s perception is that the discovery of the victim’s body alone or its discovery at a particular location will focus the investigation of the victim’s death on him. Strangers generally do not find it necessary to transport as they have no reasonable expectation that law enforcement will link them either to the victim or the crime scene. Research conducted on elder female homicides reveals that the victims are rarely transported and instead left at the scene as in this case.

“offenders who use weapons of opportunity they obtain from the scene often leave the weapon.”

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Motive What was the offender’s motive for killing Mrs. Z? Motives commonly seen in violent homicides that were considered in this case include criminal enterprise, personal cause, sexual homicide, and group cause (Douglas et al, 2006).

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Criminal Enterprise Criminal enterprise or immediate financial gain is a common and regularly identifiable motive. Offenders often kill in the course of financially motivated crimes (e.g. carjacking, home invasion robbery, and armed robbery). Offenders can kill in the course of an intended burglary when they unexpectedly encounter someone in the home. Although the home had many items of value nothing was determined to be missing, and there was nothing to indicate that a search for valuables had taken place. If an offender had entered the residence to commit a burglary, the individual may have unexpectedly encountered Mrs. Z and killed her to prevent her from identifying him or her.

Personal Cause Another commonly identified motive in homicide is personal cause, whereby interpersonal conflict between two people is at the root of the cause for the homicide of one of them (Douglas, Burgess, Burgess, and Ressler, 2006). From the offender’s perspective, the problem between

them can only be resolved by the death of the victim. Some common causes that lie at the root of the interpersonal conflict include jealousy, revenge, and the need to punish. The totality of behavior, victimology, and crime dynamics observed in this homicide does not support a personal cause motive that resulted from an interpersonal conflict. There was no evidence for the police theory of domestic violence.

Sexual Homicide There was nothing seen in this crime either forensically or behaviorally to indicate that sexual assault was a motive here. However, many attributes of this homicide are consistent with sexual assault homicides.

Group Cause Group cause or thrill killing was considered but dismissed, because there was nothing identified behaviorally or in the totality of the events that was consistent with that motive.

Profile Characteristics of the Offender The following information is identified as important in developing offender profile characteristics in the homicide of Mrs. Z. The Safarik et al (2005) homicide injury scale was developed to evaluate the severity of injuries in the homicides of elder females. In elder female homicides, fifty percent of offenders inflicting the most severe injury ranged in age from 15-24 years of age. Similar excessively severe injury was sustained by Mrs. Z. Generally, the older the offender the less severe the inflicted injury. Young offenders, those well under the mean age of 27 years, possess the physical prowess, strength, and stamina to inflict such severe and repeated injury.

87%

82%

94%

74%

of victims of these types of homicides are white females. Mrs. Z is a white female.

60%

Nearly of offenders of the elderly had a burglary history. Burglary was the most prevalent crime in the criminal histories of these offenders. Since there is no indication that any property was removed, the dynamics of this crime are consistent with an interrupted burglary. Offenders have reported that the homicides occurred as a result of panic after the offender was confronted while in the residence. The weapon identified in this case was located immediately adjacent to the path of travel of someone who would have entered through the garage door on the rear of the house en route to the garage door into the house. The blood spatter patterns were extensive on the floor (carpeting and linoleum) around the victim, the cabinet wall, the wall dividing the formal dining room from the kitchen, the floor of the formal dining room, and the victim. The Medical Examiner described the blunt impacts as “a significant number (probably a double

of the offenders in the study entered the victims’ residence between 8:00 pm and 8:00 am and the majority of those after 12:00 am. The homicide attributes indicate that Mrs. Z died after 12:00 am.

77%

of offenders in the study did not bring a weapon with them and obtained the weapon from the crime scene. The weapon (hammer) was obtained from the crime scene at a workbench area in the garage.

digit) of impacts to the head and face…” opining that there were a minimum of 14 and maximum of 23 blows to the head. It is expected that the offender would have had significant blood spatter on his clothing commensurates not only with the large amount of blood identified at the scene, but the excessive number of close contact blows inflicted to cause such bleeding. The use of a hammer to inflict the number of blows identified by the Medical Examiner (minimum of 14 and maximum of 23) to such a small anatomical area would be consistent with an offender who was strong,

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are attacked in their own homes; Mrs. Z was attacked in her home.

of offenders utilized a blitz assault on their victims. The attack on Mrs. Z and resulting injuries are consistent with a blitz attack.

dexterous, mobile, and young. The majority of the blows were inflicted on Mrs. Z while she was prone on the floor. This would have required the offender to bend over in order to deliver the hammer strikes. Based on Safarik et al’s research, the identified crime scene behavior, forensics, and associated indicia was consistent with a young male offender who entered the residence through the garage, armed himself with a weapon of opportunity from the scene, and unexpectedly encountered Mrs. Z in the kitchen. The same crime scene dynamics are inconsistent with an elder offender. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

Overlooked Evidence The safe

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A safe, whose combination was known only by Mrs. Z, and which typically contained cash, was found opened and empty after the police completed their investigation.

Legal Outcome Mr. Z entered an Alford plea to Class A felony murder in the death of his wife. An Alford plea means Mr. Z does not admit guilt but acknowledges there is enough evidence for a jury to find him guilty. Mr. Z originally had been charged with Class AA felony murder, but the assistant state’s attorney amended the charge to a Class A felony. The difference between the two charges is that the Class A version is committed with evidence of an “extreme emotional disturbance for which there is a reasonable excuse.” After he entered the plea, a psychological evaluation at the state hospital said Mr. Z suffered from a loss or distortion of reality at the time of the murder. He was found not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility.

The credit card Someone took out a credit card in Mr. Z’s name on May 12, which was a week after he was in jail and charged about $6,500 to it. The credit card was opened on the internet, using Mr. Z’s Social Security number and personal information. This was information Mrs. Z was working on at the kitchen table the night of the murder. Money from the credit card appeared to have been transferred to another credit card. Calls from the banking company and bills started arriving at the Z home in August.

The keys Although the house was purported to be secure with locked doors, a set of house keys was overlooked in a storage closet immediately adjacent to a garage door on the rear of the house. The son said that set of house keys had been hanging there since the 1990s and consisted of the key to the formal front door, the front garage door, the door to the back of the garage, and a key to the door from the garage to the house. The keys were not hidden but clearly visible and labeled to anyone who opened the door. Ingress to the residence could have occurred by accessing the garage using the keys hanging in the storage closet immediately adjacent to the garage door on the rear exterior of the residence. An offender accessing the garage through that door would have walked directly by the location where the hammers were visible and accessible. The offender may have armed himself with such a weapon as a precaution.

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Conclusion In conclusion, crime scene evidence, dynamics, and investigative logic failed to validate Mr. Z’s confession. In fact, the crime scene evidence suggests another offender, probably younger and with a burglary or criminal enterprise background. Of note, this case includes interactive immersive education software using this crime scene to train investigative techniques, crime scene dynamics, and evidence collection.

Bibliography Douglas, J.E., Burgess, A.W., Burgess, A.G. and Ressler, R.K. (2006) Crime Classification Manual: A Standard System for Investigating and Classifying Violent Crimes. John Wiley & Sons, 2nd Ed., San Francisco, pp. 150-164. Federal Bureau of Investigation (2005) Crime in the United States 2004 U.S. Government Printing Office: Washington, D.C. Kassin, S.M. (2008). “False Confessions Causes, Consequences, and Implications for Reform,” Current Directions in Psychological Science 17, no. 4: 249. Quintieri, P. and Weiss, K.J. (2005). Admissibility of False-Confession Testimony: Know Thy Standard J Am Acad Psychiatry Law 33:4:535-538

The confession Mr. Z has repeatedly said he does not remember the murder. He does remember shopping with his wife in the afternoon, what he ate for dinner, the television programs he watched, going to bed, his daughter-in-law’s phone call, and his wife washing dishes, and not being in bed when he awoke. He remembers finding his wife and checking the doors and windows of the house but no memory of the murder. His logic was that the house was so secure who else could have done it? Thus, concluded he did it.

Despite the fact that Mr. Z confessed (because in his mind he could not figure out what had happened to his wife so assumed he must be responsible) the police failed to conduct any parallel investigation to eliminate other possible explanations for Mrs. Z’s murder. A confession lulled the police into a false sense that this case was an open and shut matter. In some cases, it is the integration of the forensics and the behavioral dynamics that address the totality of the circumstances and offer insight into what in all probability most consistently explains all of the evidence both forensic and behavioral.

Mark E. Safarik, M.S., V.S.M. (Supervisory Special Agent, FBI Ret.) is the Executive Director of Forensic Behavioral Services and a former FBI profiler. His research and publications include elder sexual assault and homicide, criminal motivation, injury assessment, and behavioral analysis. He is an internationally recognized expert on violent criminal behavior. His new television series, Killer Instinct finished its first season in December 2011 on the Cloo network. Ann Wolbert Burgess, DNSc, APRN is Professor of Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing at Boston College Connell School of Nursing. Her research and publications include rape trauma, child sexual abuse, child pornography, serial offenders, crime classification, post-traumatic stress, infant abduction, elder sexual abuse, and mental disorders.

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Crime scene analysis and investigative logic point away from Mr. Z, especially in terms of his physical ability to commit such a violent crime. Mr. Z. was in the midst of cancer treatments, on multiple medications, and was observed two days prior to the crime of being unable to walk more than 50 feet before tiring. On the night of the murder in their multiple level home, Mr. Z would have to get up out of bed, walk down a flight of stairs to the kitchen, pass by his wife and continue down another flight of stairs to the garage level, travel several more steps down into the garage, retrieve the hammer, retrace his steps to attack his wife, then retrace the steps back down to the garage, wipe off the hammer, remove his clothes, return upstairs past his wife, and further upstairs to his bedroom before calling the police. In Mr. Z’s physical condition, this defies logic and common sense. Additionally, crime scene evidence shows blood spatter at the back door of the garage, some tiny blood spots on Mr. Z’s T-shirt found in the laundry room, and no blood on his shoes or signs of showering. The hammer was found cleaned and returned to the tool shelf. Why would Mr. Z bother to do that if he was mentally unstable? The behavior was too organized.

Safarik, Mark E. and Jarvis, John P. (2005). “Examining Attributes of Homicides: Toward Quantifying Qualitative Values of Injury Severity”, Journal of Homicide Studies, Sage Publications. Vol. 9 No. 3, pp.183-203 Safarik, Mark E. Jarvis, John P. & Nussbaum, Kathleen (2002) “Sexual Homicide of Elderly Females: Linking Offender Characteristics to Victim and Crime Scene Attributes,” Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 17(5), 500-525. Shellem, P. (2006) Wrongful convictions. In Douglas, Burgess, Burgess & Ressler, Crime Classification Manual, 2/e. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Tinniswood, A. (2003) By Permission of Heaven: The True Story of the Great Fire of London. New York: Riverhead Publishing

Allen G. Burgess, DBA is president of Data Integrity, Inc., a computer software company. He has design experience with main frames, mini-computers, personal computers, and micro controllers. He currently teaches the Forensic Science Lab at Boston College and is a co-designer for interactive forensic simulation learning where his specialty is digital forensics. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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A memorial where Tina Herrmann lived with her children. Balloons blow in the wind while volunteers searched for their bodies on November 18, 2010. (MCT PHOTO)

(TOP LEFT) Tina Herrmann, (TOP RIGHT) Stephanie Sprang, (BOTTOM LEFT) Kody Maynard, (BOTTOM RIGHT) Sarah Maynard

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in the

By Special Agent Joe Dietz and Katherine Ramsland

Investigative Strategy on a Unique Case

A step-by-step analysis of a unique case affirms diligent observation and flexible guidelines.

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The Incident On November 12, 2010, Ohio BCI Agent Joe Dietz received a call from the Knox County Sherriff ’s Office concerning four missing persons from Howard, Ohio. Tina Herrmann, 32, had failed to report to work for a second day in a row. Her manager, concerned, went to her home to check. When no one came to the door, the manager entered and saw blood, so she called the police.

Professional training in law enforcement includes little about how cognitive processing subtly influences perception, memory, and decision-making. Homicide investigators arrive at scenes with a specific mindset that derives from experience and expectations. These mindsets can help, but they can also result in a threshold diagnosis and tunnel vision, which narrows the investigator’s focus to a limited range of options. The following case illustrates how an attentive and flexible team thwarted tunnel vision in time to rescue a victim.

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Investigators arrived to process the scene and found a number of disturbing items. They saw large patches of oil, seemingly poured over blood, and in the bathtub they discovered a considerable amount of blood spatter. Shoeprints indicated that someone had stepped in both oil and blood, and a pair of gloves near a bleach bottle suggested an attempt to clean up. There were also bloodstains on a box of trash bags in the bathroom and on several places in a Jeep Cherokee parked in the garage. In the Jeep’s grill were different types of weeds. An empty dog crate stood open, but there was no dog. On the kitchen floor were grocery bags containing items that needed refrigeration. Herrmann was gone, as were her two children, 13-year-old Sarah Maynard and 11-yearold Kody Maynard. Detectives learned that the Jeep belonged to a neighbor, Stephanie Sprang, 41, who could not be located. All four had been missing for two days.

Crime scene analysis indicated that three people might be dead, but that one was possibly still alive and could be rescued.

Several days passed before a crime scene processor noticed that a new roll of plastic bags found in a Wal-Mart bag in the garage were slightly different from plastic bags in the house. The Wal-Mart bag also contained two new tarps. Along with the blood spatters in the bathroom, this supported the possibility that one or more bodies had been dismembered. Detectives asked a Wal-Mart manager to search store records for the purchase of these items. The search turned up a purchase just after midnight on November 11, 2010.

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Herrmann’s missing Ford pickup truck was eventually located near a local college nature area. Detectives learned from Herrmann’s manager that Herrmann had confided that she was breaking up with her live-in boyfriend, so this man was located. He came in voluntarily to answer questions. He had left the home early on November 10 to go to work and had planned a golf outing for the following Veteran’s Day holiday, so he had spent the night with an out-of-town friend and co-worker. Investigators confirmed this, but they also learned from the friend that Herrmann’s boyfriend had received a call from his mother about her disappearance and had seemed unconcerned. He became a suspect until his alibi fully checked out. An extensive search was conducted by land and air, including at a private lake half a mile from the home. Since the disappearance, no activity had been recorded on either woman’s cell phone or credit card accounts. Sprang’s Jeep was registered in a male friend’s name, and he, too, became a person of interest when investigators suspected that he felt an unrequited emotional attachment to Sprang.

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The Rescue At the store, investigators matched product codes on the purchased items to the items at the scene. Viewing store videos, they saw the customer: a medium-build, bespectacled, darkhaired white male between the ages of 25 and 40. Other videos showed him driving a silver Toyota Yaris to and from the parking lot. A state database was used to review the photos of local silver Yaris owners. Comparison of the photos to the store video enabled detectives to identify the subject as Matthew J. Hoffman. The BMV photo showed him wearing the same camouflage shirt as in the store video. He had given his mother’s home (which was half a mile from the crime scene) as his address, but they found another home in his name a few miles away. A check of dispatch logs revealed that a deputy had stopped Hoffman near the recovery location of Herrmann’s abandoned pickup just after it had been discovered. The deputy recalled that Hoffman claimed he was waiting for his girlfriend, “Sarah,” but Hoffman could not recall her last name.

Hoffman had a criminal record, including a charge of domestic violence. This led to a former girlfriend who clarified Hoffman’s current location. On November 14, SWAT entered Hoffman’s home and arrested him. A search turned up the missing Sarah Maynard. She was bound and gagged but alive, and she was transported to emergency care. Sarah believed her mother and brother were dead, but because Hoffman had bound and blindfolded her, she did not know his movements on the day he had kidnapped her. Inside Hoffman’s home was evidence of a psychological disorder. He had collected an abundance of dead leaves, which he had spread on the floor, used as a bed, and stuffed into more than 100 grocery bags. These bags were attached in a uniform manner to the walls, as if for insulation. Searchers located a gorilla suit, and in the refrigerator was a dead squirrel (on which he reportedly dined). The leaves that Hoffman used for a bed were piled so high that investigators believed the bodies might be underneath. However, no one but Sarah was found in the home. SARAH MAYNARD FOUND BOUND AND GAGGED, BUT ALIVE.

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INVESTIGATORS FOUND DEAD LEAVES SPREAD OUT ON THE FLOOR AND ATTACHED TO THE WALLS IN GROCERY BAGS INSIDE THE HOFFMAN HOME.

EVIDENCE of a

PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER

for the first time. He said he was confused and having a hard time figuring out what had happened. He claimed that when he came home on Thursday (November 11), he had found Sarah tied up in his basement. He figured he must have done something wrong. He “took care of her,” and she told him that “he had done it.” After making these statements Hoffman again became unresponsive. The following day’s efforts involved a female FBI agent, who removed the handcuffs and shared a pizza with him. “I’m afraid that what they’re saying is true,” he admitted. She asked what he last recalled, and he said it did not seem as if he had forgotten anything. He then hunched over and would not talk. By the ninth hour of interrogation, Hoffman said, “I agree that closure is good. I can’t give it to them,” and, “I’m afraid to know what hap-

“If I’ve done what you guys say I’ve done,” he stated, “then I’m a monster.”

pened. I’ve heard enough details that I don’t know if I can handle it.” By day three, Hoffman was more responsive. At one point, he requested to use the restroom. There he asked SA Dietz to remove all recording devices. When Dietz handed his cell phones to a deputy posted outside, Hoffman proposed a deal: he would give the information they sought to an attorney if they would take him for a drive and then shoot him while he tried to escape. Upon his death, the attorney would give them the directions to the bodies. He stated that he had had a dream the night before about a food processing plant in which people were being chopped up. In the dream, he had seen body parts in the garbage and he now remembered what he had done. “If I’ve done what you guys say I’ve done,” he stated, “then I’m a monster.” When Dietz turned down the deal, Hoffman pretended that he had invented the idea that he could tell them where he had placed the bodies. The interview ended when a public defender arrived. But Hoffman’s attorney soon offered a viable deal: information about the body dump location in exchange for removing the death penalty. The victims’ families agreed. Then Hoffman confessed.

Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

FEATURE

Making a Deal Hoffman was a thirty-year-old unemployed tree trimmer whom some neighbors referred to as a weirdo. People reported that he often climbed on his roof or up a tree to spy on them. He also set fire to piles of leaves in his backyard, and had a rap sheet for arson, theft, assault, and burglary. On November 13, one neighbor recalled that Hoffman had made a large bonfire. Hoffman was brought into an interrogation room, wearing a red hooded sweatshirt and a wool cap. Several detectives questioned him, but he sat straight up in a chair with his eyes closed, saying little. The officers told him how important it was to find the missing people, which elicited a few tears from him. About thirty-five minutes into the interview, Hoffman made hand gestures and hit himself on the chest. The detectives surmised that he was indicating a broken heart. After two hours, he removed his cap, and a while later, while handcuffed, he pulled off his sweatshirt as far as he could, either indicating that he was hot or creating a protective barrier. Special Agent Dietz arrived after completing the initial interview with Sarah Maynard and began to speak with Hoffman. After about fifteen minutes of interrogation Hoffman spoke

DETAIL AREA KNOX COUNTY

Three bodies found KOKOSING WILDLIFE AREA Columbus

FREDERICKTOWN

13 3

SEARCH AREAS

APPLE VALLEY LAKE Herrmann home

229

1 N MILE

Hoffman’s home FOUNDATION PARK

KOKOSING GAP TRAIL MOUNT VERNON

GAMBIER 229

Herrmann’s truck found

MURDER WEAPON

FEATURE

15.3“ SOG JUNGLE PRIMITIVE KNIFE

Hoffman’s Tale Hoffman admitted to killing two women and a boy, as well as a dog but he had intended only to burglarize the home. On November 10, he had parked some distance away and walked to the Herrmann’s house, chosen for its relative isolation and a garage door that was partially ajar. Across from the house was a wooded area, where he slept overnight and waited in the morning for everyone to leave. When he found the front door locked, he crawled under the garage door and kicked open the inside door to enter the house. He took time to repair the damage. Hoffman spent an hour looking for valuables, but found nothing. He admitted to being excited by being in another person’s house, until he heard a vehicle pull into the driveway. Hoffman hid inside a bedroom and readied his knife. When Herrmann entered the bedroom, Hoffman forced her to lie face down on the

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

bed. He hit her twice with a blackjack, but failed to knock her out. To his surprise, another woman (Sprang) entered the room. He panicked, stabbing Herrmann twice before chasing Sprang into another bedroom. He stabbed her in the chest until she fell. Then he returned to Herrmann to make sure she was dead. Since the dog was barking, he killed it as well. As he stood in the midst of this carnage, he tried to figure out how to destroy the evidence. He decided to remove the bodies and burn down the house. Then he had an idea. Hoffman liked to hang out in the woods near a tall beech tree that had a hollow trunk. He decided he could dismember the bodies and hide them in the tree. One at a time, he dragged them into the bathroom to cut into pieces. These he placed into trash bags he had found in the kitchen. Hoffman also tried bleaching the rugs. When this didn’t

HOFFMAN ENTERS THE HOUSE THROUGH THE GARAGE DOOR THAT WAS PARTIALLY AJAR.

GAS CAN FOUND IN THE BACK OF HERRMANN’S PICKUP

work, he poured oil on the bloodstains. He then moved Sprang’s Jeep Cherokee from the driveway into the garage to place the bags inside. He still had some bags to load when he heard children come in. Hoffman encountered Sarah and Kody in the hallway. Sarah ran to her room, but Hoffman grabbed Kody and stabbed him in the chest, killing him. He then went after Sarah. When he saw that she was not calling for help, he decided to spare her. He bound and blindfolded her, and forced her to lie waiting while he dismembered her brother. When it was dark, he took Sarah to his house, leaving her bound while he took his tree-climbing equipment to leave by the tree. On the way to get Sprang’s Jeep at Herrmann’s house, Hoffman stopped at Wal-Mart to purchase heavy-duty trash bags and tarps. He then attended to the task

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Investigative Lessons Investigators remained alert regarding three aspects of this case, any one of which could easily have resulted in evidence lost or overlooked. For example, they decided to ignore the recommended time limits for collecting viable biological specimens, and swabs from Hoffman linked him to the incident. Thus, they retrieved crucial physical evidence. Second, the crime scene processors could have overlooked a subtle detail that became the significant lead. The Wal-Mart bag near a trashcan in the garage looked like something a resident could have dumped there. However, because the bags were different from those in the home and because there were new tarps,

an attentive processor considered the possibility of dismemberment. This led to the store transaction research, which produced the video, and Hoffman. In addition, Dietz realized that the investigators could have fixated on Herrmann’s boyfriend. Because Herrmann had expressed concern about this man’s reaction to the breakup, and because his plans provided a convenient way to be out of the house for two days, he was a good suspect. Home-based murders are more likely to be committed by a relative or acquaintance than a stranger. It would have been easy to ignore other possibilities. “Even after we had arrested Hoffman and rescued Sarah,” Dietz said, “there were family members who suspected the boyfriend of some complicity. This was due in part to his lack of emotional response upon finding out what happened.” This issue highlights a mental bias to which investigators are prone: threshold diagnosis and assumptions from familiarity (also called gut instinct). This derives from what psychologists call heuristics, or mental shortcuts. Because we have limited mental capacity, we become cognitive misers. We use shortcuts to reduce complex information into simple rules-of-thumb. However, because heuristics form automatically and without thoughtful consideration they can cause errors. Thus, they can influence poor decisions that negatively impact people’s lives. They can hinder – even damage -- a criminal investigation.

THE CONVICTION Hoffman was charged with ten counts, including aggravated murder, gross abuse of a corpse, burglary and kidnapping, amongst other

charges.

After

Hoffman offered the beech tree’s location in the Kokosing Nature Preserve near Fredericktown, his ties to it. They discov-

of transporting and hiding the bodies. He hoisted the bagged remains up the 70-foot beech to its hollow area and dumped them deep inside. It was nearly dawn before he was finished. Intending to torch the house, Hoffman drove the Jeep into the garage and left the Wal-Mart bag there. He placed gas cans in Hermann’s pickup and was driving to get them filled when he noticed the truck had a transmission problem. He abandoned it and walked back to where he had parked his Yaris. He went home for a while, but then returned to retrieve the gas cans from Herrmann’s truck, parking near where he had left it when the Sheriff ’s deputy stopped him. Hoffman had the impression that the crime scene had been discovered, so he had aborted his plan to burn the house. That night, he burnt his shoes in a bonfire in his yard. Two days later, he was arrested.

ered that about forty-five feet up the tree divided, and there it formed a hollow into which Hoffmann had placed the victims’ SUITCASE FOUND IN HOFFMAN’S TOYOTA YARIS FILLED WITH HIS TREE-CLIMBING GEAR

FEATURE

attorney took authori-

remains. The bodies were carefully removed. Hoffman pled guilty to the charges and received life without

the

possibility of parole.

Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

FEATURE

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Our brain encodes our experiences to produce expectations. Research reveals, for example, that exposing subjects to a specific context will influence their interpretation of an ambiguous stimulus. If they see numbers before seeing a symbol that looks like both a ‘B’ and the number 13, they see 13; if they are shown letters first, they see a ‘B’. Contexts influence our readiness to perceive something in accordance with our expectations. We selectively attend to certain aspects of a stimulus while failing to process others. Detective Kim Rossmo has studied how certain cognitive processes affect investigations. For example, he finds that recall is more consistent with personal beliefs than with facts, especially as it supports a formulated hypothesis, and contradictory information is generally ignored. Rossmo points out that clear and rational thinking is not automatic and the human brain is not wired to deal effectively with uncertainty. The result of these pressures can be a quick threshold diagnosis (“The indifferent boyfriend is implicated”), which limits the focus. Rossmo states that some information goes through rational channels and some goes through emotional or intuitive, channels. Intuition, he says, is aligned with automatic, subconscious judgment. It is rapid and its conclusions form without benefit of analysis. Thus, it is highly vulnerable to error. Although reasoning is slower, it opens the mind to a greater range of factors, and the result is usually more reliable. In other words, what feels right is not necessarily what is right. One influencing factor is the accessibility from memory of specific social constructs, such as Herrmann’s indifferent boyfriend. From a few typical indicators, this man quickly became a viable suspect. Repeated experience with such constructs strengthens them and gives them the appearance of truth. One study involving detectives provided them with a scenario in which various murder suspects looked more or less guilty, based on social stereotypes. The detectives then received ambiguous evidence from witness statements. In the condition in which a suspect looked guilty, the detectives tended to interpret the ambiguous evidence toward guilt. In addition, the structure of a story can facilitate a mental transition from specific details to a summary of abstractions, otherwise known as the “gist” of a story. Researchers found that mock jurors were more strongly influenced by evidence presented in story form than merely as brute facts. In addition, evidence presented ambiguously received a spin in the direction of the story frame.

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With the Hoffman case, the “story” of a relationship breaking up that inspired fatal retaliation was plausible for investigators. It was a fairly common scenario – certainly more common than a burglary gone gruesomely bad. If they had accepted it, they might have automatically reduced the effort they put into remaining alert to other possibilities, because they “knew” in their gut what had occurred. They would not have realized that this simplifying response of their natural perceptual system, along with the pressure to find four missing people, can undermine careful decision-making. It can even direct what they see and how they interpret any items they find. However, with training and effort, investigative decision-makers can replace the shortcutting intuitive system with mindful analysis. Complex tasks such as a criminal investigation should be undertaken carefully, with eyes and mind open. Below are strategies for defusing the potential negative impact of heuristics: 1. Teach investigators about the impact of cognitive heuristics on their work. 2. Teach investigators how to form and analyze competing hypotheses. 3. Create a case-specific checklist of key assumptions. 4. Spell out areas of uncertainty or ambiguity as attractants for heuristics. 5. Practice being mindful and aware: observe and think about details. 6. Use cases like this one as models for how reasoning can follow different tracks.

Conclusion Cognitive biases present a persistent challenge for criminal investigators. It is important to minimize their influence. As heuristics reduce complexity, they can introduce error. This should become a platform for law enforcement education. Since detectives have considerable discretion in making investigative decisions, being aware of these perceptual quirks can remind them to exercise caution about quick decisions, even if – and especially if – those decisions feel “right.” n References Ask, K., & Granhag, P. A. (2005). Motivational sources of confirmation bias in criminal investigations. Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, 2(1), 43-63. Gilovich, T., & Griffin, D. (2002). Heuristics and biases: Then and now. In T. Gilovich, D. Griffin, & D. Kahneman (Eds.), Heuristics and Biases: The Psychology of Intuitive Imagination (pp. 1-18). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1982). The simulation heuristic. In D. Kahneman, P. Slovic, & A. Tversky (Eds.), Judgment Under Uncertainty: Heuristics and Biases. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. Kebbell, M. R., Muller, D., & Martin, K. (2010). Understanding and managing bias. Canberra, Australia: ANU Press. Lord, C. G., Ross, L., & Lepper, M. R. (1979). Biased assimilation and attitude polarization: The effects of prior theories on subsequently considered evidence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 2098-2109. Pennington, N. & Hastie, R. (1992). Explaining the evidence: Tests of the story model for juror decision making. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62, 189-206. Rossmo, K. D. (2008). Cognitive biases: Perception, intuition, and tunnel vision. In K. D. Rossmo (Ed.), Criminal Investigative Failures (pp. 9-21). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Stelfox, P., & Pease, K. (2005). Cognition and detection: Reluctant bedfellows? In M. Smith & N. Tilley (Eds.), Crime Science: New Approaches to Preventing and Detecting Crime (pp. 194-210). Cullompton, UK: Willan Publishing.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS KATHERINE RAMSLAND, PhD, CMI-V has published over 1,000 articles and 40 books, including The Mind of a Murderer: Privileged Access to the Demons that Drive Extreme Violence. Dr. Ramsland is an associate professor of forensic psychology and criminal justice at DeSales University in Pennsylvania and has been a member of the American College of Forensic Examiners International since 1998. Currently a Special Agent Supervisor for the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation Cyber Crimes Unit, Special Agent Dietz worked previously in both the Special Investigations and Crime Scene sections of the BCI Major Crimes Unit. Prior to his employment with the Ohio BCI he worked as a Lieutenant in the Palm Beach, Florida, Police Department and a Detective for the Steubenville, Ohio Police Department. Agent Dietz is a graduate of Florida Atlantic University and the University of Louisville Southern Police Institute.

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CE ARTICLE: 1 CE CREDIT

CE ARTICLE

Part 1

Abstract In the last several decades, advances in scientific methods have resulted in more precise and accurate techniques for analyzing bloodstain patterns. One important development is the use of probability and statistics to evaluate trace evidence that is collected, processed, and presented in criminal trials. Trace evidence, particularly bloodstains, can tell bloodstain pattern analysts what, when, where, and how a crime was committed. Bloodstain pattern analysts rely on mathematics to help them determine the movement and direction of persons or objects during bloodshed. Using triangulation, analysts can determine the position of persons or objects during bloodshed, movement of persons or objects after bloodshed, mechanisms or objects used to create specific patterns, direction a blood source is traveling at time of deposition, area of origin, minimum number of impacts occurring at time of incident, and sequence of events. Bloodstain pattern analysts rely on probability and statistics to determine the likelihood that a particular event was a deliberate criminal act and not just a random event. This paper will attempt to clarify the role forensic statistics play in crime scene analysis.

THE FORENSIC EXAMINERÂŽ Spring 2011

I know too well that these arguments from probabilities are imposters, and unless great caution is observed in the use of them, they are apt to be deceptive. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Plato in Phaedo

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thrombocytes

erythrocytes

leukocytes

Blood is a specialized form of connective tissue that consists predominantly of three distinct types of cells: red blood cells (RBCs, erythrocytes), white blood cells (WBCs, leukocytes), and platelets (thrombocytes), all of which are suspended in plasma. The body contains approximately 12 U.S. pints of blood, which equates to approximately eight percent of an average male’s total body weight (assuming a weight of 154 pounds). There are about 30 trillion erythrocytes and 430 billion leukocytes circulating in the blood at any given time. Platelets play a major role in blood clotting, or hemostasis, by blocking breaches in damaged blood vessels. Plasma consists of 92 percent water, seven percent protein, and various other substances including sugars, salts, clotting factors, mineral ions, hormones, and carbon dioxide. Plasma makes up about 55 percent of the total blood volume.

Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

CE ARTICLE

It’s All About The Blood

Introduction Statistics is the application of mathematical principles to the collection, analysis, and presentation of numerical data. Statistics relies on a set of mathematical procedures to organize, summarize, and interpret data. This paper focuses on the application of statistical methods in the interpretation of bloodstain pattern evidence. We review the most common mathematical methods for measuring bloodstains; explain the importance of formulating a hypothesis; discuss methods for minimizing errors in hypothesis testing; and explain standard and relative error, uncertainty analysis, types of error, and common sources of error. Since the O.J. Simpson trial, the public’s craving for forensic science has increased dramatically, as evidenced by the number of crime dramas (e.g., CSI, Law & Order, Criminal Minds, etc.) and real-life crime shows (e.g., American Justice, The F.B.I. Files, Trace Evidence: The Case Files of Dr. Henry Lee, etc.). Crime scene investigators must employ sophisticated techniques, including scientific explanations and statistical analysis, to solve crimes and to convince the public (See Appendix A to read the testimony from Dr. Henry Lee in which he explained bloodstain analysis and its application in the O.J. Simpson trial). The importance and prevalence of mathematics and statistical analysis in criminal investigations and trials has never been more critical. This paper is intended for forensic investigators, police detectives, private investigators, trial lawyers, prosecutors, and anyone else who may handle and process evidence.

EARN CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS TAKE THE CE TEST FOR THIS ARTICLE ON PAGE 90

This article is approved by the following for continuing education credit:

(ACFEI) The American College of Forensic Examiners International provides this continuing education credit for Diplomates and certified members.

After studying this article, participants should be better able to do the following:

1. Explain the mathematical techniques involved in bloodstain pattern analysis 2. Articulate the application of pattern recognition and anecdotal information in bloodstain pattern analysis and certainty 3. define the properties of blood that facilitate bloodstain analysis predictive capacities 4. Provide an account of the information that can be gotten from bloodstains

CE ARTICLE

KEY WORDS: Bloodstains, evidence, analysis, errors, bloodstain patterns, manual, field book, hypothesis testing, fallacies TARGET AUDIENCE: forensic scientists, crime scene investigators, students lawyers, police officers, investigators, consultants, educators DISCLOSURE: The author has nothing to disclose. PROGRAM LEVEL: Basic PREREQUISITES: None

Behavioral Properties of Blood The qualities of blood are important from a forensic standpoint because the way blood reacts in response to violent force largely determines how the resulting bloodstain pattern will form. When blood leaves the body, it behaves as a non-Newtonian fluid. Unlike Newtonian fluids such as water, inks, and alcohols that form a drop, based upon the strength of the surface tension and weight of the drop, non-Newtonian fluids separate into drops based on internal cohesion. Their flow properties are not described by a single constant viscosity value. Therefore, the mechanical behaviors of blood cannot be described using classical Newtonian mechanics (Wonder, 2007). Blood is described by its rheological properties, which describe the relationships between stress and strain rate tensors under different flow conditions (Fung, 1971). These characteristics contribute to the unique bloodstain patterns that are deposited when blood leaves the body under gravitational, internal, or impact forces. An important difference between blood— a non-Newtonian fluid, and water—a Newtonian fluid, has to do with the relationship between the stress and strain under different flow conditions. In Newtonian fluids, the coefficient of viscosity is constant at all

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

shear values (Misra, 2005). In contrast, nonNewtonian fluids do not maintain constant viscosity under shearing forces. Therefore, they react differently to a sudden application of force. For example, stabbing the surface of a non-Newtonian fluid with a finger leads to the fluid behaving like a solid rather than a liquid. This same fluid, however, reacts like a liquid when a finger is slowly inserted into the fluid. This property is called “shear thickening,” or more correctly “shear thinning,” when discussing the projection of blood as it leaves the body under violent forces. Shear thinning is considered the most significant non-Newtonian characteristic of blood (Siebert & Fodor, 2009). This quality is important when analyzing how blood behaves when it is released from the body and what type of stain will be created as it impacts a substrate. At very slow shear rates, blood cells tend to aggregate, or clump together, increasing viscosity. As the shear rate increases, these formations break apart, reducing blood viscosity. The flexibility of the red blood cells (RBCs) also is a factor in shear thinning. RBCs become increasingly deformed as the flow rate increases, decreasing the apparent viscosity of blood. This enables large cells to enter very small capillaries. The blood viscosity decreases as the shear rate increases. Shear

thinning describes how blood behaves in response to an applied force: i.e., it becomes runnier and less viscous. Yield stress is a function of hematocrit and fibrinogen concentrations in plasma—both important for blood clotting. Yield stress tends to inhibit flow under relatively low stresses induced by gravity. However, if the lateral force exceeds a certain magnitude, blood will not relax back to its original shape or position leading to permanent (plastic or viscous) deformation, i.e., the blood flows (Merrill, Cheng, & Pelletier, 1969). FIGURE 1. Blood Vessels Branching (Courtesy of the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health)

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THE BODY’S BLOOD Without blood, the body’s tissues and cells would die. What’s in it and what it does: FUNCTIONS • Delivers oxygen from lungs, nutrients from digestive tract to cells • Removes carbon dioxide waste for elimination via lungs, kidneys • Transports hormones, clotting agents COMPONENTS

• RED BLOOD CELLS—Carry oxygen and carbon dioxide, and can live

up to 120 days • WHITE BLOOD CELLS—Protect the body from infection, diseases • PLATELETS—Clump together, stop bleeding, seal blood vessel • PLASMA—Fluid in blood, carries nutrients

they must act against gravity, forcing the blood back to the heart. When the muscle relaxes, small valves close. These valves prevent blood from going downward in response to gravitational force. Veins are very thin and contain very little muscle. Vascular pressure, therefore, is much lower than arterial pressure. Except in rare instances, such as victims with high blood pressure, venous bloodstain patterns respond to gravitation effects. When blood spurts a long distance, there is a good possibility that there was an injury to an artery.

CE ARTICLE

Red blood cells tend to stay in the center of the path of flow in vessels because they are large (Zhang, 1997). When smaller vessels break off from a vessel, shear thinning occurs because more cells continue to go straight rather than enter the new vessel. This affects the hematocrit ratio in the vessels, which is lowest in capillaries and other small vessels because the RBCs take the path of least resistance (see Figure 1). This can be an important factor evaluating low, medium, and highvelocity bloodstain patterns, i.e., venous flow versus arterial gush/spray. For example, deoxygenated blood is pumped through the heart to the pulmonary artery, and then to the lungs for reoxygenation. This pumping action forces blood through the arterial system. Arteries are thick and muscular. This is very important to understand, because as a volume of blood is pumped through the arteries, the blood exerts considerable pressure against the artery walls. When a victim’s artery is damaged, the pressure exerted on the blood forces it to leave the body under the same high pressure it exerts in the closed circulatory system. When blood leaves the body under extreme pressure, it creates a spurt or gush pattern on the substrate it hits. In contrast, venous pressure is created by muscle contraction. As the muscles contract,

Bloodstain Patterns and Actor Behavior Bloodstain pattern analysts sometimes can state with a relative level of certainty that a particular sequence of events occurred at the time of bloodshed, i.e., position, movement, direction of persons or objects at the time of bloodshed, mechanisms or objects used to create specific bloodstain patterns, the minimum number of impacts that occurred at the time of bloodshed, and direction of travel when the bloodstain was deposited on the substrate. The characteristics of blood as mentioned above have some effect on making these determinations. The behavior of the persons and instruSpring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

w l

CE ARTICLE

FIGURE 2. Direction of Travel

ROUND TRIP The human body’s 5 liters of blood takes 20-30 seconds to circulate through the entire body

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

ments involved in the bloodshed events are other important variables. Blood is often not released from a single point source, i.e., blood is not released one droplet at a time; rather, it is released in multiple droplets at the same time, resulting in patterns that do not regress back to a single source point. Furthermore, the victim and the assailant are not fixed in three-dimensional space. Depending on the force(s) involved, the victim may fall dead away, bend down, fall backwards, twist, or turn. Any of these variables, acting alone or in concert with each other, determine how blood will be deposited on various substrates, such as the walls, floors, or ceiling. For example, victims of violent injuries related to gunshot wounds, bludgeoning, and accidental or deliberate suffocation, might twist or turn because of the force being applied to their body. If the killer uses a ligature, such as an electrical extension cord, to kill his victim, the victim may fall dead away once the ligature is removed from his neck, despite any ensuing struggle. In these cases, bloodstain patterns may help identify what instrument or tool was used to murder the victim. Mathematics and the Interpretation of Bloodstain Evidence Blood droplets in free-fall are affected by several forces, the most important of which are gravity, air resistance, and extraneous forces such as from the wind or a fan. Blood that exits the body accelerates due to the force of gravity until it reaches terminal velocity – the point where the droplets are in equilibrium with wind shear and other forces. Terminal velocity affects the formation of bloodstain patterns. However, the terminal velocity point is a function of mass and composition. The mass of a blood drop is not uniform, except in a vacuum. Therefore, the mass and composi-

tion of the falling drop are not uniform, so the terminal velocity will vary (Wonder, 2007). This action has a direct effect on the formation of bloodstain patterns. Dr. Herbert MacDonell established that blood released from an eyedropper (0.05 mL) reached terminal velocity (25.1 fps) at a height of six feet (MacDonell, 1971). He also found that the size of a round stain (90 degree) does not increase in size when blood is dropped from a greater height. In contrast, blood droplets that strike a surface at an angle less than 90 degrees exhibit elongated, elliptical shapes. The angle formed by the blood droplets and the substrate determine the angle of impact (AoI). (see Figure 2). Dr. Victor Balthazard (1939), and later Dr. Herbert Leon MacDonell, realized that the relationship of the width-length ratio of the ellipse was a function of the sine of the impact angle (James, Kish, & Sutton, 2005). This approximate angle can be calculated by accurately measuring the width (w) and length (l) of the bloodstain. Angle of Impact The angle of impact is the acute angle formed between the trajectory of the blood drop and the plane of the surface it strikes (see Figure 2). Calculating the angle θ (see Figure 3) Where: l = length of ellipse (major axis) w = width of ellipse (minor axis) θ = angle of impact The relationship between these variables is: sin= ?? Therefore: =sin-1?? This calculation, the angle of impact, is a well-known technique to educated bloodstain pattern analysts. If the width of a well-formed bloodstain is 2 mm and the length is 4 mm

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strument (Dror, 2010). Errors introduced by the analyst as a result of misreading the scale can lead to significant errors later down the line when the data is analyzed. Dror (2009; 2010) adds that cognitive biases and functions also can affect how an analyst reads the scale and determines the length and width. For these reasons, it is imperative that analysts be as precise and accurate as possible when taking measurements and record the actual measurements, not what the analyst thinks should be the measurement. They must be able to recognize potential sources of error as they take measurement and be able to account for them in the calculations. For example, analysts who have taken measurements over a period of years often can “guestimate” the angle of impact simply by looking at the shape of an elliptical bloodstain. A very narrow bloodstain typically approximates a 10-degree angle of impact. Analysts know that certain measurement values result in 10-degree impact angles. Bias may be introduced to the analyst reading the measuring device in attempts to match the readings on the instrument to what is expected in the purported angle of impact. FIGURE 3. Angle of Impact

Accuracy and Precision Bloodstain pattern measurements must be as accurate and precise as possible. Any error introduced by the analyst while taking measurements increases the level of uncertainty (Bevel & Gardner, 2008). Accuracy refers to how close one can measure to the actual value. For example, when calculating the angle of impact, the accuracy depends on accurate measurements of the length and the width. Precision refers to the repeatability of measurements time after time. For example, if the actual angle of impact was 10 degrees, and an analyst made several measurements that result in a one-degree difference, the accuracy would be ± 1 degree. If an analyst measured twenty stains, all of which impacted at the same angle and the actual angle was 10 degrees, but the analyst took measurements that calculated out to six degrees for all 20, it could be said that the analyst was precise but not very accurate. The ideal is that the analyst takes measurements that are very close to the actual angle of impact and

gets the same measurements each time. Hence, the analyst would be accurate and precise, and there would be a well-defined uncertainty such as ± 1 degree in the above example. Error can be introduced, then, in the skill with which the analyst takes measurements. Another source of error relates to the measurement instrument used and the number of significant digits. A basic rule is that one cannot accurately measure greater than the smallest value of the measuring instrument. If one is using a scale marked in millimeters, one cannot measure the length of a bloodstain in any smaller value than a millimeter. For example, one could say that the length is 2 mm or 3 mm, but not 2.5 mm length. That is because the instrument, the scale, does not allow for any smaller division of a measurement. If you would guess that it was about 2.5 mm, this is a guess and not a scientific measurement. Hence, one measures according to the capabilities of the instrument to be scientifically accurate and precise. If one wanted to be more accurate, one would get an instrument with smaller measurement units such as a micrometer that would measure in tenths of a millimeter. It is imperative that one follow the rules of significant digits. The analyst is another very important in-

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the sin of the angle of impact would be 2/4, which would be 0.5. The arcsin would be 30, indicating that the bloodstain impacted the substrate at an angle of 30 degrees.

The Area of Convergence: A Mathematical Application As previously acknowledged, projected blood strikes the target substrate at various angles and trajectory paths. That is, on a vertical surface the blood drop may have been traveling through space on a line consistent with twenty degrees from the horizontal (X) axis as defined by the standard Cartesian coordinates. A line drawn through a number of the well-formed bloodstains in the direction of the tails will project back to the area of location where the bloodshed incident occurred. Blood usually is not released from a single static point source, so often times the actual “point” of convergence cannot be determined. Instead, the angles and directions of the impact bloodstain patterns can be used to determine the statistically probable “area” of convergence (AOC) where the original bloodshed occurred in two dimensions. This mathematical application is performed frequently by bloodstain analysts. Area of Convergence (AOC) is determined by tracing the long axis of several well-formed bloodstains in the pattern back to a common area of convergence (see Figure 4). The intersecting lines indicate the direction of travel, or the trajectory path, for each bloodstain, prior to it striking the substrate. The distance from the point of impact of the bloodstain and its distance to the AOC is an important value

used to determine the area of origin. Keep this value in mind. It will come into play as “distance” in the following model. Following the Blood Evidence in Three-Dimensional Space The Area of Origin (AO) identifies the location in three-dimensional space where the blood source originated, i.e., the height (H) above ground level or the horizontal distance from a known point, such as a point on a wall. The height, also known as the third dimension, can be determined using the following formula: Height (H) = tan (θ) * d Where: θ is the angle of impact d is distance from the blood drop point of impact (represented by the head of the elliptical bloodstain and the selected point in the approximate center of the area of convergence).

FIGURE 4. Area of Convergence (Courtesy of Larry Barksdale)

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Bloodstains FIGURE 5. Bloodstain Source in Three-Dimensional Space

Height

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Origin of Impact

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The area of origin is the geographic location in three-dimensional space where the blood source was located at the time of the bloodletting incident (see Figure 5). The area of origin includes the area of convergence with a third dimension in the z direction. Since the z-axis is perpendicular to the substrate surface, the area of origin is described by three dimensions. In the above example, the z-axis would be the height or the vertical distance from a fixed point. By applying the above formula to each well-formed bloodstain, it is possible to determine the area of convergence. The resulting range of values is defined as the area of origin. Just as with the area of convergence, the area of origin is not a single point in space; rather, it is area defined by the parameters determined from mathematical calculations, i.e., it is a modeled geometrical entity. A Consideration of Uncertainty When collecting and analyzing data related to a blood source remember that the sources are not fixed in three-dimensional space. Rather, they are dynamic. Victims move when struck. Skin elasticity affects how blood exits a wound, as do the positions of bones. Blood droplets collide and slightly alter their trajectories. Therefore, the forces related to projections can fluctuate. That is why most experts refer to an “area of origin,” rather than a single “point of origin.”

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Conclusion Bloodstain pattern analysts follow strict protocols that dictate the best methods for collecting bloodstains: taking accurate and precise measurements, calculating angles of impact, determining areas of origin and convergence, and packaging and storing bloodstain evidence. These procedures are designed to ensure that evidence is not compromised during collection and processing, and that it represents an accurate portrayal of the original crime scene. When statistical evidence is used in tandem with a bloodstain pattern index, it may improve the credibility of bloodstain evidence. When preparing a bloodstain pattern index, it is critical to take precautionary measures to ensure all evidence intended for inclusion in the database is protected against the elements and prepared in accordance with long-term archival techniques. n

References Annotation. (1980). Admissibility, weight and sufficiency of blood grouping tests in criminal cases. 2, American Law Reports. Aspen Publishers Editorial Staff. 4th (ALR Series). 500. Bar-Hillel, M. (1980). The base-rate fallacy in probability judgments. Acta Psychologica, 44(3), 211-233. Balthazard, V., R. Piedelievre, H. Desoille, L. DeRobert. (1939). Study of projected drops of blood. Ann Med Leg Criminol Police Sci Toxicol. 19:265-323. Barksdale, L. (2009). Origin determinations. Unpublished manuscript. Bevel, T. and R.M. Gardner, R. M. (2008). Bloodstain pattern analysis with an introduction to crime scene reconstruction. 300 pp. CRC Press. Boca Raton, FL. Borgida, E. and N. Brekke. (1981). The base rate fallacy in attribution and prediction. New Directions in Attribution Research, 3, 63-95. Croarkin, C. and P. Tobias. (2002). Engineering statistics handbook National Institute of Standards and Technology Information Technology Laboratory. CRC Press. Boca Raton, FL. Deedrick, D. W. (2000). Hairs, fibers, crime, and evidence. Masthead, 2(3). Dror, I. (2009). How can francis bacon help forensic science? the four idols of human biases. Jurimetrics, 50, 93-110. Dror, I. (2010). Why must forensic practice be based on cognitive research: Forensic science initiative training. Unpublished manuscript. Dror, I. and S. Cole. (2010). The vision in ‘blind’ justice: Expert perception, judgment and visual cognition in forensic pattern recognition. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 17(2), 161-167. Dunn, P. F. and R.M. Brach. (2004). Uncertainty analysis for forensic science Lawyers & Judges Pub Co. Fung, Y. C. (1971). Biomechanics: A survey of the blood flow problem. In C. S. Yih (Ed.), Advances in applied mechanics. Academic Press Inc. New York, NY. Gravetter, F. J. and L.B. Wallnau. (2008). Statistics for the behavioral sciences. 783 pp. Wadsworth Pub Co. Belmont, CA. James, S. H., P.E. Kish, and T.P. Sutton. (2005). Principles of bloodstain pattern analysis: Theory and practice. 576 pp. CRC Press. Boca Raton, FL. Jonakait, R. N. (1983). When blood is their argument: Probabilities in criminal cases, genetic markers, and, once again, bayes’ theorem. U.Ill.L.Rev. 369. Kahane, H. (1984). Logic and contemporary rhetoric: The use of reason in everyday life. Thomson Wadsworth. Florence, KY. Kaye, D. (1980). Naked statistical evidence. The Yale Law Journal, 89(3), 601-611. Lane, D. (2009). Hyperstat online contents. Retrieved October 16, 2009, from http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/A16252.html Linder, D. (1995). The O. J. simpson trial. Session 14. Lorenz, E. N. (1972). Does the flap of a butterfly’s wings in brazil set off a tornado in texas? American Association for the Advancement of Science. Presented at the Global Atmospheric Research Program. 139th Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Unpublished. MacDonell, H. L. (1971). Flight characteristics and stain patterns of human blood. No. PR 71-4, 77. Merrill, E. W., C.S. Cheng and G.A. Pelletier. (1969). Yield stress of normal human blood as a function of endogenous fibrinogen. Journal of Applied Physiology, 26(1), 1. Misra, J. C. (2005). Modern applied mathematics. In J. C. Misra, & B. Pal (Eds.), Modern applied mathematics (pp. 56-82). India: Narosa Publishing House. Rangaswamy, R. and L.J. Young. (1997). A text book of agricultural statistics. Journal of Natural Resources and

Life Sciences Education, 26(1), 82-82. Rossmo, D. K. (2009). Criminal investigative failures. 400 pp. CRC. Boca Raton, Fl. Siebert, M. W. and P.S. Fodor. (2009). Newtonian and non-newtonian blood flow over a backward-facing Step–A case study. COMSOL Conference 2009, Boston. 1-5. Thompson, W. C. and E.L. Schumann. (1987). Interpretation of statistical evidence in criminal trials. Law and Human Behavior, 11(3), 167-187. Wells, G. L. (1992). Naked statistical evidence of liability: Is subjective probability enough? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62(5), 739-752. Wonder, A. Y. (2007). Bloodstain pattern evidence: Objective approaches and case applications Academic Press. New York, NY. Zhang, Z. (1997). Parameter estimation techniques: A tutorial with application to conic fitting. Image and Vision Computing, 15(1), 59-76.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Martin Matisoff began his forensic career in the 1970s while working in the toxicology department of the Los Angeles County Coroner/Medical Examiner. Marty spent numerous hours in the autopsy room observing forensic pathologists as they conducted pathological examinations on victims of murder, suicide, vehicular manslaughter, arson, and spree killings. Marty has a B.A. in Scientific Communication from Western Illinois University and a M.S. in entomology with a subspecialty in Forensic Science from the University of Nebraska. Currently, Marty is studying measurement-based error in bloodstain pattern evidence.

Larry Barksdale has worked for the Lincoln, Nebraska Police Department since 1971. His current assignments are Case Manager, Criminal Investigations and Supervisor, and Crime Scene Technician. Larry holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice from the University Nebraska - Omaha and a M.A. in Political Science from the University of Nebraska Lincoln. Larry also is an Adjunct Instructor at Nebraska Wesleyan University, and he has lectured in Crime Scene Investigation subjects at multiple universities. Larry currently is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Practice Forensic Science at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. He is a Certified Crime Scene Analyst, International Association for Identification, and a Certified Professional Law Enforcement Instructor for the State of Nebraska Law Enforcement Academy. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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The variables in the bloodshed event can introduce uncertainty when calculating the area of convergence and area of origin values. These can be considered as inherent sources of uncertainty. Another source of uncertainty has to do with the line used to bisect the stain and the method for measuring the trajectory angle (see Figures 2 and 3). There is a certain amount of error in all measurement techniques used for measuring patterns due to the measuring instruments. There is also inherent error related to the instrument. Regardless of the instrument use, measurements are never absolute. Another source of error is related to the skill of the person taking the measurement. In other words, bloodstain measurements are as reliable as the person reading the scale. The most important thing to remember when measuring bloodstain patterns is that even the smallest, apparently inconsequential error resulting from inaccurate or imprecise measurement can lead to significant errors further on. This error is called the “Butterfly Effect,” or more appropriately the “sensitive dependence on initial conditions” (Lorenz, 1972). If the errors are serious enough, they can bias or skew the data leading to a type I error. Bloodstain measurements taken in two-dimensional space do not accurately represent the behavior of blood as it moves through three-dimensional space. In other words, the length and width measurements of an elliptical bloodstain can only provide a relative measurement of the angle of impact, not an absolute measurement. As with any statistical measurement, the more data you gather, the more likely you are to get to an absolute measurement.

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Olfaction Evidence The Basic Science of Olfaction Evidence It is the goal of forensic examiners to use the best scientific techniques available to deliver objective information (Evans, 2004; Ormerod, 2005). In some cases, as with olfactory evidence, the science is underappreciated and underutilized (Mesloh, 2000; Shepherd, 2004; 2006; Sulmont, Issanchou, & Koster, 2002). Juries may be left with the impression that the evidence is less scientific than it actually is, and the potential is there for doubt where it should not be (Porter, Craven, Khan, Chang, Kang, Judkewitz, Volpe, Settles, & Sobel, 2007; Schaefer, Young, & Restrepo, 2001). The collection of olfaction evidence uses procedures that are public. The definitions are precise, the data collection is objective, the approach is systematic and cumulative, and the findings are replicable (Watterson, Blackmore, & Bagby, 2006). This enables other examiners to test the results of a report by attempting to reproduce them. Careful reporting of steps taken ensures reliability. It is reasonable for the court to want high reliability in order to place their confidence in the report. The court may even want the reliability to be checked for statistical significance if possible. The set of evaluators who are allowed to validate the science must be carefully defined and be selected from the most qualified professionals.

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The Forensic Psychology of

Abstract This review centers on sensation and perception literature regarding olfaction as relevant to forensic examination from the perspective of rules of evidence, differential psychology, and psychophysics. Many advances have been made in the past fifty years in the study of olfaction, probably more so than for any of the other senses. There is reliable agreement among experts on the definition, anatomy, and physiology of the olfaction sense and on how odors are learned and associated with events by conditioning. Because the olfactory bulb is part of the brain’s limbic system, an area closely associated with memory and feeling, a smell can call up conditioned responses instantaneously. The reliability and validity of olfaction has been underutilized as evidence. When used as part of a Bayesian analysis, olfaction can provide significant confirming evidence. Presented in a court as testimony, olfaction evidence can withstand the same rules of evidence and crossexamination procedures as other parts of witness reports.

By Allen J. Schuh, PhD and Erika A. Porter, BSN

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This article is approved by the following for continuing education credit:

(ACFEI) The American College of Forensic Examiners International provides this continuing education credit for Diplomates and certified members.

After studying this article, participants should be better able to do the following:

1. Have the ability to provide a structure or framework to use olfaction data as reliable evidence in an operational setting. 2. Examine the individual differences in psychophysical and measurement assumptions under which olfaction data are being analyzed and reported, and to evaluate their role in building a credible solution to a forensic investigation. 3. Make a conscious effort to help witnesses organize the olfactory information presented to them and to perceive relationships based on that information. 4. Increase olfaction related behavior when in a situation, as measured by observation and data collection and identify olfaction responses when presented with alternatives, as measured by data collection. 5. Discuss the major structures of the olfactory system.

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KEY WORDS: dog scent lineups, differential psychology, olfaction, witness testimony, receptors TARGET AUDIENCE: Nurses and psychologists DISCLOSURE: The author has nothing to disclose. PROGRAM LEVEL: Basic PREREQUISITES: None

Olfaction on the Witness Stand Unless a witness is testifying as an expert witness, testimony in the form of opinions or inferences is generally limited to those opinions or inferences that are rationally based on the perceptions of the witness and are helpful to a clear understanding of the witness testimony. What is lacking in most testimony is the report of odors. Smells are more primitive and lasting than vision or hearing. The key to using olfaction evidence is to play to the strengths of odor memory. The next time you want witnesses to remember something, ask them to pay attention to the smells that accompanied the scene. To provide valid testimony that you smelled a particular odor, it must be based upon reason and common sense beyond a reasonable doubt. It does not have to be beyond all doubt.

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Operation of Olfaction The human observer is not a camera and recording device. For many years, witnesses add, delete, and distort the facts about what they witness (Davis, McMahon, & Greenwood, 2005; Fisher, Brennan, & McCauley, 2002; Haney, 1979; Wright, Loftus, & Hall, 2001). A clever interrogator can use leading questions, quoting statements out of context, interrupting the interviewee, and using other tricks to make the testimony of accurate observers seem distrustful to an audience, even a jury in a criminal trial. Over the last century, hundreds of demonstrations featuring faults of the witness and interrogators have become evident. Olfaction on the witness stand will face many of the same issues. Testimony must survive rules of evidence and cross-examination (DiCarlo, 2001; Evans, 2004; Federal Rules of Evidence, 2010; Ormerod, 2005; Ormerod, & Sturman, 2005). Research over the past half-century on olfaction, as reviewed here, suggests that such testimony can

be expected to survive these screens at least as well as information from the other senses such as vision and hearing. Such evidence appears to be underutilized. Olfaction Is One of the Senses The senses and their operation, classification, and theory are overlapping topics, studied by a variety of fields, including but not limited to advertising, anthropology, biology, criminology, medicine, and psychology. Human senses are categorized by what sets it off: chemical, light, mechanical, or heat. All living organisms can detect chemical substances in their environment. Olfaction is responsive to chemical stimuli, but it is also receptive to temperature and pain. The mammalian olfaction sense represents one of the most complex and intricate physiological systems in the body. The cumulative history of olfaction can be seen in the classical works that defined the field until the middle of the last century (Wenger, Jones, & Jones, 1956; Woodworth, & Schlosberg, 1954). Older literature is in

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contrast to the modern research that is summarized here and includes new interest in qualityof-life issues with recognition of loss of smell that may accompany brain injury (MBTI) (Bryant, 2008; Tepe, & Fendley, 2009). There are many new applications, including analysis of the uniqueness and persistence of human scent (Curran, Rabin, & Furton, 2005) and its survivability (Stockham, Slavin, & Kift, 2004). Both of the major histocompatibility complex, MHC, and volatile steroids contribute to human body odor. Recognition of individual body odors is analogous to human face recognition in that it provides information about identity (Schaefer, Young, & Restrepo, 2001). Women tend to be more sensitive to some odors than men (Bensafi, Brown, Tsutsui, Mainland, Johnson, Bremner, Young, Mauss, Ray, Gross, Richards, Stappen, Levenson, & Sobel, 2003; Keverne, 2002; Lundstrom, Hummel, & Olsson, 2003).

The olfactory system is directly linked to the neuroendocrine system. The study of human pheromones, neuroscience, and related behavior provides a better understanding of olfaction. The neurobehavioral interface between sensation, learning, and experience has been demonstrated with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) (Gottfried, 2007; Herz, Eliassen, Beland, & Souza, 2003). Anatomy and Physiology of Odorant Receptors The olfactory system is the first of our sensory systems deciphered primarily using molecular techniques. The study of olfaction changed with the article “A novel multigene family may encode odorant receptors: A molecular basis for odor recognition” (Buck & Axel, 1991), which received the 2004 Noble prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery that the large family of odorant receptors belongs to the G protein coupled receptors (GPCR). Axel and Buck discovered a large gene family, comprised of some 1,000 different genes that give rise to an equivalent number of olfactory receptor types. Each olfactory receptor cell possesses only one type of odor-

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“Smells are more primitive and lasting than vision or hearing.”

ant receptor, and each receptor can detect a limited number of odorant substances. All the odorant receptors are related proteins but differ in certain details, explaining why they are triggered by different odorous molecules. Each receptor consists of a chain of amino acids that is anchored into the cell membrane and traverses it seven times. The chain creates a binding pocket where the odorant can attach. When that happens, the shape of the receptor protein is altered, leading to G protein activation. Different olfactory receptors are encoded by a different gene and recognize different odorants. If one’s DNA is missing a gene or if the gene is damaged, it can cause one to be unable to detect a certain smell. For example, some people are unable to smell camphor. It is assumed that with increasing age a person’s ability to smell will degrade. Normal olfactory functioning plays a key role in nutrition and food selection, and thus is important for the maintenance of a good quality of life. Probably millions, the exact number is not known, suffer from smell (and therefore also taste) disorders. Deficits in the sense not only can reduce the pleasure derived from food, but can also lead to food poisoning or over exposure to hazardous agents that are otherwise detectable by smell. Distortion of smell is associated with the use of certain

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medications, nutritional deficiency, increasing age, and disease (Bryant, 2008). During a single smelling event, adaptation occurs at the receptor level as equilibrium is reached between activated and inactivated receptors. Habituation occurs at a cognitive level when the brain blocks sensory entry if it is constant and strong (Chaudhury, Manella, Arellanos, Escanilla, Cleland, & Linster, 2010). Olfaction, as with the other senses, only reacts to change. The senses only provide information about change, while the thought process provides abstractions about stability and constancy. If you examine five apples in the grocery store, probably each is a slightly different size, weight, and hardness, and some smell stronger than others, but you recognize them all as apples, not as five different things. The concept apple must come from the thought processes. Wakefulness, alertness, arousal, and the decision processes are strongly dependent on circular connections between cerebral cortex, subcortical structures like basal ganglia, and the thalamus. The thalamus is a region of the brain near the center of the cerebral hemispheres. All sensory information, except smell, is sent to the thalamus and then relayed to the cerebral cortex.

HOW SENSE SMELL WORKS

an electrical impulse to the olfactory bulb through the axon at its base. Supporting cells provide structure to the olfactory epithelium and help insulate receptor cells. They also nourish the receptors and detoxify chemicals on the epitheliumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surface. The olfactory epithelium contains another sensory system in the form of trigeminal nerve receptors. The fifth cranial, or trigeminal nerve, is the largest cranial nerve and is the responsible sensory nerve of the face, teeth, mouth, most of the scalp, and the motor nerve of the muscles of mastication. It provides a second set of nerve endings that are responsible for tactile, pressure, pain, and temperature sensations in the areas of the mouth, eyes, and nasal cavity. Trigeminal nerve fibers in the olfactory epithelium respond to pain. When you smell something caustic like ammonia, receptor

the

When you smell something, molecules have to evaporate from it and travel to the sensitive receptors in your nose. A piece of steel has no smell because steel is a nonvolatile solid. A steel surface is a good one for conducting scent lineups. Esters are organic molecules, and are either naturally occurring, as in the ester isoamyl acetate of banana, or artificially produced, such as in perfumes. When a scent is taken up through the nostrils, the molecules make contact with the olfactory epithelium, which occupies only a small area of the superior portion of the nasal cavity. Mucus secreted by the olfactory gland coats the epitheliumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surface and helps dissolve the odorant. Olfactory receptor cells are neurons with knob-shaped tips called dendrites. Olfactory hairs that bind with odorants cover the dendrites. When an odorant stimulates a receptor cell, the cell sends

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Bone

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The Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology has gone to two U.S. scientists who discovered how tiny sensors and nerve connections make the sense of smell work.

Airborne molecules trigger receptor cells.

Signals from receptor cells are collected in glomeruli.

Mitral cell

Nasal Lining

Glomeruli Nerve bundles; each linked to receptors of just one type

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Olfactory Bulb

Mitral cells relay signal to rest of the brain. The brain can recognize about 10,000 different odors–various combinations of signals from receptors.

Receptor cell about 1,000 different types; each triggered by a different scent molecule

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cells pick up odorants while trigeminal nerve fibers account for the sharp sting that makes you recoil. About 70 percent of all odors are said to stimulate the trigeminal nerve. Other commonly encountered trigeminal stimulants include the chemicals allyl isothiocyanate (mustard, mustard oil), capsaicin (hot chili powder, mace spray) and diallyl sulfide (onion). The olfactory bulb in the brain, which sorts sensation into perception, is part of the limbic system that includes the amygdala and hippocampus. The amygdala processes emotion, and the hippocampus is responsible for associative learning. Smell can call up memories and evoke powerful conditioned responses almost instantaneously. When you first smell a new scent, you link it to the moment. Your brain associates the smell and a memory. It is the classic one-trial learning of imprinting. Because we encounter most new odors in our youth, you might associate the smell of chlorine with time spent at a swimming pool, or the smell of lilies with a funeral or a wedding. When you encounter the smell again, the link is already there, ready to elicit the memory. Students of learning theory and of personality

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theory in psychology recognize the importance of this functioning. In humans, odor memorization is always linked to a context. This has created a special problem in odor identification. Two observers may both report smelling a banana (isoamyl acetate) but have different opinions as to its desirability. Perhaps one had a banana at a birthday party, but the other slipped on a banana peel and was injured. The study of pheromones is of special interest as it is assumed they always elicit a specific unconditioned response (Sobel, & Brown, 2001; Stowers, & Marton, 2005; Tirindelli, Dibattista, Pifferi, & Menini, 2009). Pheromones are social-environmental chemical stimuli produced by one individual and detected by another individual of the same species (Haselton, Mortezaie, Pillsworth, Bleske-Recheck, & Frederick, 2007). Typically, pheromonal communication elicits physiological and behavioral changes (Keverne, 2002). Pheromones exert their influence whether or not an animal is conscious of pheromone detection. Chemical signals that are likely to function as pheromones are processed by the

main olfactory system of mammals (Boehm, Zou, & Buck, 2005; Liberles, & Buck, 2006; Meredith, & Westberry, 2004; Pick, Etter, Baud, Schmauder, Bordoli, Schwede, & Vogel, 2009). The Study of Differential Psychology The foundation for differential psychology (also called the study of individual differences in psychology) was the introduction of experimentation, genetic, and mathematical methods by Galton, Binet, Stern, and Cattel during the past century (Boring, 1950). Differential psychology refers to the range of behaviors within a set of operationally defined behavior. Olfaction can be an area with large individual differences in capacity. The axiomatic base of differential psychology as relevant to olfaction is that: 1. Individuals have a number of senses, determined by DNA, including olfaction; 2. Individuals vary in the capacity of sensitivity to the various senses, that is, a high standing on vision does not mean you also have a high standing on sense of smell;

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ODORS

Some odors are pleasant and nontoxic (e.g., a sun-ripened strawberry). Some odors are offensive but nontoxic such as the condition known as bromhidrosis bacterial decomposition (e.g., stinky feet). Some odors may or may not be offensive but could be toxic. Health effects associated with odors requires knowledge of the chemical constituents responsible for the odors. Some odors are not detectable by humans, but deadly (e.g., carbon monoxide). There are wide individual differences in preference for certain odors (e.g., “I love the smell of napalm in the morning” (Duvall, 1979) as Lt. Colonel Bill Kilgore, in Apocalypse Now).

Using Olfaction with Witness Testimony The study of witness olfaction testimony needs to be a synthesis of elements from perception, learning theory, personality theory, philosophy, systems theory, anatomy, anthropology, and physiology. The examiner’s structured approach in questioning a witness to obtain the olfaction evidence is important for the analysis of the testimony by the witness. The questions—their order, wording, and trend establish a framework for the witness to conduct a review of the important information (Fisher, Brennan, & McCauley, 2002).

The major operating idea of this broad approach is that we can stand aside mentally and see the difference between the world when we think about smell and when we do not. From the point of view of psychology, there is nothing new in this role of consciousness. What is new is the recognition that more than one approach is required to explain why information acquisition, confirmation, and retrieval is not the rational process we expect it should be (McClintock, Bullivant, Jacob, Spencer, Zelano, & Ober, 2005). Both cognitive and affective approaches to questioning the perception experience are needed to account for the way information is processed by a witness. Each approach will have a component that may be tied to what was smelled at the time of the episode under review. The cognitive approach focuses on the general influences to information gathering, combination, and decision. Its focus is on the architecture of a person’s previously developed concepts present in some quantitative amount, which are linked logically into what is referred to as a Logical-MathematicalStructure (LMS) for the environmental experience. There are many synonyms for LMS

in the literature including mental models, knowledge structures, cognitive maps, scripts, frames, and schemata. A LMS will determine what factors and relationships the person will perceive, hence will be available for testimony (Davis, McMahon, & Greenwood, 2005). However, an affective model is also necessary (Herz, 2004; 2005; 2009a; 2009b) when a single episode has both positive and negative properties, hence a conflict about some of the material (Li, Moallem, Paller, & Gottfried, 2007). Some reactions are reached so quickly (Johnson, Mainland, & Sobel, 2003) that a feeling or affect model must account for some results because there is not time to retrieve cognitive information from long term stores (Prehn, Ohrt, Sojka, Ferstl, & Pause, 2006; Vermetten, & Bremner, 2003). The availability of different perception models has not been recognized, but accounts for many findings (Webster, 1982). Forensic examination improvement requires the development of a more developed explanation of the role of models of perception, which the individual personality must use to cope with social and physical traumas. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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3. Individuals differ one from another in their sensitivity of the olfaction sense, which can be distributed from complete lack of smell to an educated smell brain; 4. It is possible to measure the sensitivity of olfaction with standardized tests; and 5. The standing on these tests of olfaction is consistently repeated on the same person with the same stimulus.

“Some odors are offensive but nontoxic such as the condition known as bromhidrosis bacterial decomposition (i.g., stinky feet).”

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HANDLER TEAMS IN FORENSIC ASSIGNMENTS

The dog (Canis familiaris) and its handler are probably the most widely used, sensitive, accurate, fast, mobile, flexible, and durable systems available for many olfactory forensic assignments. The assignment (e.g. search, arson, cadaver, drug, explosive, land mines, lineup) the team receives also affects the probability of a successful result (Cicoria, 1999; Garner, Busbee, Cornwell, Edmonds, Mullins, Rader, Johnston, & Williams, 2000; Godfrey-Smith, 2004; Komar, 1999; Lechliter, 2008; Leggett, Jenkins, Hogan, Ranney, & Miyares, A person’s ability to perceive effectively is based on attention or concentration and the information processing system of productive thought from long-term storage that permits the new information to be integrated at the time of perception and extended beyond the time of perception. Attention is the state of concentration or capacity to be receptive to the perceptual world. Many believe the best witnesses will be those who have greater knowledge of word meanings, a larger shortterm memory span, greater speed of retrieval of word meanings, and a better ability to concentrate (Haney, 1979). The method of introspection is how we review our relations with the world. Introspection is the classical method of mind study. It is, figuratively speaking, looking inward, and can be defined as direct observation of the mind by itself. It is from the Latin

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2000; Phelan, Webb, Rodacy, & Barnett, 2001). The Probability of Detection (POD) is about 85 percent under ideal conditions for search and rescue, but not for apprehending suspects that actively resist detection, who know to run through distracters such as gasoline filling stations to avoid detection. Many variables affect success including wind, cloud cover, temperature, terrain, amount of daylight, and the amount of territory to cover. War dogs play an increasing role in ferreting out roadside bombs in key Afghanistan provinces (Perry, 2011). Dogs have been fighting alongside U.S. soldiers for more than 100 years. Today, they are a central part of efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, with 2,800 active-duty dogs deployed, and their numbers are expected to grow. It was no surprise that among the commandos involved in Operation Neptune Spear that resulted in Osama bin Laden’s killing, there was a dog present (Frankel, 2011). The Institute for Biological Detection Systems at Auburn University researches the forensic applications of scent discriminating dogs in a field known as odorology (Mesloh, 2000). The canine team can be taught to detect a wide-range of substances and their specific odors. The explosives canine detection reliability is better than a human searching for the same device. The Institute for Biological Detection Systems found that dogs learn to depend upon the most abundant vapor constituents of a substance for identification of that substance. The odor discrimination skills of dogs considerably exceed the abilities of laboratory machines for detection of mines. The main advantage of dogs is that they can detect suspected land mines faster than human teams. They work in situations where large amounts of metal debris prevent the use of standard metal detectors. Dogs probably detect mines using the odor of explosives chemicals leaking from them. The availability of odor for the dogs to detect varies in complex ways with the environment in which the mine occurs. Influences include soil types, soil moisture, activity of micro-organisms, and climatic variables. Dogs are able to discriminate extremely faint signals (target odors) against a very noisy background (masking odors).

introspicere, which means to look within. The method has been of primary importance to many philosophers, including Hobbs, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, J. Mill, J. S. Mill, and Bain. Among the pioneer psychologists, introspection was the method of Wundt and Titchener (Woodworth, & Schlosberg, 1954). Despite the growth of behaviorism, the method of introspection has never been abandoned in phenomenology and existentialism, or in the study of perception and psychophysics. It is still used in personality theory (Hall, & Lindzey, 1978) when patients report their states to counselors, medical personnel, psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychoanalysts. All word association and projective tests used for diagnostic purposes employ introspection. The self makes use of both the cue and arousal properties of stimuli (Hebb, 1966). The cue property guides effective response

(Boehm, Zou, & Buck, 2005). The arousal property activates many habits and their associated stimuli (Ackerl, Atzmueller, & Grammer, 2002) and can be held in longterm memory and relived (Hilgard, 1956). The arousal is more than what we need to deal with our physical circumstances. Because stimuli have cue and arousal properties, the addition of more affective arousal exceeds the cue level needed to deal properly with the situation (Jacquot, Monnin, & Brand, 2004). Some people have more disposition to be traumatized as there are individual differences in sensitivity (Lundström, Hummel, & Olsson, 2003; Tokunaga, Omoto, Sangu, Miyazaki, Kon, & Takada, 2005), and some individuals are in a more hostile environment (Wolpe, & Plaud, 1997). The emotional accompaniment then takes on a life of its own (Berne, 1961; 1964). The heightened arousal

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innervates many cell assemblies, which become associated with a memory of the stimulus as in classical or instrumental conditioning (Chen, & Haviland-Jones, 2000; Chen, Katdare, & Lucas, 2006). The episode is encapsulated as a complex or walled-off area in life space, and a conflict develops because of a mixed motive to approach and to avoid the object or event, as it exists in memory (Devriese, Winters, Stegen, Van Diest, Veulemans, Nemery, Eelen, Van de Woestijne, & Van den Bergh, 2000; Herz, Eliassen, Beland, & Souza, 2003). If the olfaction experience was during a traumatic episode as captured in memory, it will have a cognitive and an affective component (Bryant, 2008). The affective component, which is associated with the cognitive, energizes the episode and adds more cell-assemblies. The idea reverberates in the cell-assemblies, and each time it is relived more associations are added

Some dogs are able to distinguish the odors of different people. However, the success rate of dogs for identifying people by scent needs to be demonstrated for that specific dog in that specific assignment before it would be admissible in a court of law. Canines are not all equal when it comes to their abilities. A wide range of skill levels between teams is the common finding of researchers. In a scent lineup, dogs match the smell on an item from a crime scene to a suspect in a group, preferably based upon a method pioneered by Dutch Canine Units. Strict protocols for the collection and storing of scent objects secured in an airtight container is required to make comparison at a much later date as a form of physical evidence. Lineups should be conducted in clean rooms. A check person would handle an object and a preliminary lineup would be conducted in order for the dog to demonstrate its reliability to discriminate scent. Approximately half of the dogs that are tested are disqualified by this check. If the dog demonstrates reliability in the preliminary check phase, the real lineup would take place. The dog is then given the scent from the evidence, and the check person’s scent would be included in the lineup along with the suspect’s scent. Six stainless steel pipes are each scented by the suspect and five others, who are the same sex and same race, by holding them for five minutes, and then lined up on the floor. The canine is given the scent from the original piece of scent evidence and is instructed to locate a matching scent. A number of controls are used to ensure fairness, including a second line of pipes (with no suspect scent) to preclude the possibility that the canine feels compelled to make a choice. Under these conditions, there is a 75 percent accuracy rate. Scent lineups can provide results as accurate as human witness identification lineups. Dogs are used successfully in many forensic assignments. Their success is frequently reported in the popular literature (Institute for Canine Forensics, 2004). Reports on their use in special assignments, such as to detect mines, are covered in only a few technical conferences and their papers, or by research laboratories.

to it. Soon, it takes on a life of its own and becomes a stream of conscious or ulterior motive. It grows in neural associations until more life energy is spent reviewing the unfinished event and repressing the event by developing inhibitory tendencies to prevent its expression. Conflict that is experienced can be brought under conscious control. The individual consciously puts oneself into a restful state. The healthy personality develops this discipline. Once he or she has the discipline to free his or her mind from entanglements of streams of thoughts, he or she can see the separation from the perceptual world as he or she introspects and when he or she does not. The forensic examiner needs to be aware of both components to the relived experience, and be prepared to practice patience while the witness goes through it, this time, in a state of less excitement.

Olfactory Tests Olfactory tests reflect the different orientation of the researcher and are of two general types: Psychophysical testing or Clinical Electrophysiological testing. Psychophysical testing includes threshold tests, identification tests, and discrimination tests. The tests do not differentiate between central and peripheral causes. Smell tests are now being used to detect many diseases, such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and schizophrenia. Many patients tell their doctors they cannot smell, years before they actually get Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.

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Arson dogs can be trained to detect accelerants with reliability equal to or exceeding laboratory test instruments for gasoline and kerosene. Their success is due to an ability to discern the accelerant from the background odor of other burnt material. If an object is touched, human scent transfers to that item from the skin oils of the person. The object has a scent different than that of the surrounding area. The scent of the object begins to take on the odor of the surrounding environment and diffuses from objects with time. There is a certain amount of controversy regarding what the dog is tracking. Some think that the dog is following the actual scent of the person, made up of skin flakes, perspiration, oil, and gaseous components, while others think that the dog is following the scent of crushed vegetation or ground disturbance, or a combination of the two. What the dog exactly follows may differ for different dog teams and may differ each time. Law enforcement agencies are often called upon to locate criminal suspects within structures. This type of operation is potentially hazardous because of the ability of suspects to remain in concealment and ambush officers as they approach. Canine teams are able to locate hidden suspects more frequently in comparison to human-only teams. The dog is able to clear buildings more accurately and safely than officers alone. As a result, the use of canine teams to locate hidden suspects has become routine. The use of trained search and rescue dogs proves that a fresh scent is the best way a dog can track and find. When assigned to find a lost child, the canine team would prefer to use a piece of clothing recently worn and still unwashed, but it has to be done quickly. Similar to an area search, the canine is brought downwind and directed to search the area. Cadaver dogs are trained to locate the scent of the chemistry of decomposition. A scent cone spreads from a deceased person in the same fashion of that of a live person (Watterson, Blackmore, & Bagby, 2006).

Psychological Estimations of Physical Stimuli The possibility of quantifying psychological estimations of physical stimuli requires a method for determining how much it must be

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BAYESIAN INFERENCE SCREENING

Odor data can be instrumental in leading to additional collection of data to confirm that an individual is guilty of Driving Under the Influence (DUI) of alcohol. All legally defined DUIs do not exhibit the poor driving behaviors that we think typify the condition although they are intoxicated, at least to the extent of the legal definition, which is based on a blood alcohol level indicated in the state vehicle code. Some drivers who demonstrate poor driving behaviors similar to that of one driving under the influence, may actually be driving while distracted, suffering with a medical condition, or simply be a poor driver. You may see a driver of a vehicle weave in and out of traffic, slow down and speed up, straddle the divider line between the far right hand sides of the lane, and is halfway into the shoulder, when he or she does attempt to stay in a lane. Perhaps, in your opinion, these situations warrant a further check to protect the public safety. Use your cell phone to notify the appropriate authorities of the danger and keep the driver in sight to aid discovery and possible arrest.

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Assume a traffic officer pulls the driver over. The officer approaches the driver’s side of the vehicle and asks the driver to roll down the window. Upon this occasion, the officer notices a strong odor of alcohol. The point is that there are two bits of data here: the reckless driving and the smell of alcohol. These together form a higher probability than either alone. The officer asks the driver out of the vehicle and has him or her take a position in front of the patrol camera. The officer may do a pat down for weapons and will administer a Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST), which includes having the driver count backward or recite the ABCs without singing. Then the officer administers a few routine perceptual motor skill tests, such as the instruction to balance on one foot, or extend your arms and then touch your nose with your left hand. The camera should be recording the questions and the driver’s answers. The ability of the police officer to detect the odor of alcohol can be demonstrated reliably. The question is whether any test, less than a blood test performed by medical personnel, is conclusive enough to establish the alcohol percentage for that person. The separate issue is that the person may be less than the legal arbitrary criterion established by the law, but in the opinion of medical personnel be considered a danger to self and others if allowed release until the level of blood alcohol decreases. Nothing was said here about administering a breath analyzer test as part of the screening. There have been reliability issues with such tests even though they have been given for many years. There are volatile compounds (other than ethyl alcohol) that can cause false readings on a breath test device. Many over the counter substances or a person’s physical condition can cause false positives. Analgesics, diet aids, nasal sprays, and asthma medications are among the common culprits. It may be time to start implementing “trained noses” as a diagnostic tool to determine relative level of blood alcohol.

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“Perhaps there is a window between when one has sensory symptoms like loss of smell and when one begins to demonstrate clinical motor symptoms.”

Hence, researchers must choose their stimuli based largely on their personal experience, and it is a nominal scale with measurement options limited to that scale. Stevens developed a distinction of measurement systems that can be classified into four types: Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio. Much of the work of psychologists, criminologists, anthropologists, medical service workers, and other behavioral scientists is based upon the use of observations, interviews, and questionnaires, which have data that fit these types. Today there are many tests available to gauge smelling ability, including the current standard: the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). This test presents patients with 40 squares of paper infused with odors and asks them to choose an accurate description of each smell from four options. It has been reported that the UPSIT has internal consistency reliability. People with a normal sense of smell can identify around 35 odors correctly. Parkinson’s patients typically can only identify 20 or less. Perhaps there is a window between when

one has sensory symptoms like loss of smell and when one begins to demonstrate clinical motor symptoms. Similar tests include the Connecticut Chemosensory Clinical Research Center Test and the Sniffin Sticks test, which dispenses odors from pen-like devices. Those tests generally ask observers to relate odors to familiar smells like dill pickle, root beer, and pumpkin pie. Haller roughly organized his scale of olfaction along a hedonistic scale for which pleasantness is taken to be the primitive and basic classification principle. Haller’s system provided a range from pleasant through intermediate, to unpleasant. It fits with the evaluative scale of Osgood’s semantic differential. The Sniff Magnitude Test consists of a nasal tube, called a cannula, attached to a plastic container about the size and shape of a coffee thermos. Chemical vapors inside the canister are released through the tube, exposing the person to a series of smells. Some smells are like banana and others, presumably, are more offensive like sewer odors. As people take whiffs of each fragrance, sensors in the thermos unit measure the negative pressure Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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raised or lowered before a person can detect a difference. Such a difference is called a limen, which in this case is a measure of the increase or decrease in the physical stimulus that produces a perceptual just noticeable difference (JND) for the observer. Just as it is possible to raise a value from zero to a level where it is noticed, it can also be reduced in magnitude until the observer reports it can no longer be detected. The Alcohol Sniff Test measures the distance from the nose to where the alcohol pad is detected. These limen tests have been performed for over a century and are wellestablished technology in psychophysical laboratories. It is possible to present pairs of stimuli, one being the standard and another the comparison, and their JND established between them. Since the observer of the data is directly participating in the testing it is an obtrusive and reactive measure. Not all tests require such observer cooperation. There is no physical continuum for olfaction as there is sound frequency in hearing. There is no chosen stimuli span for the whole olfactory perception space, which can be compared to the wheel of colors for vision.

concluding remarks The use of olfaction is underutilized as forensic evidence. Smells witnessed in crime scenes can be important forensic artifacts, providing enhanced validity and reliability of testimonies. With additional research investigating the role of olfaction in crime solutions, a new predictor for forensic analysis may open a vista of ways witnesses are prepared for trials and recall their facts.

The Problem of Confounding Variables Any compound may have a different aroma at a different concentration. The mixtures of any two compounds can result in an additive effect, whereby you smell both, or one might mask the other and you smell only one. They could also possibly blend, and you would smell something totally different than either. There is the additional possibility of synergism, whereby the two compounds together may be detected at far lower concentrations than they could alone. Without proper ventilation, the atmosphere can become contaminated, thus masking aromas. The exact amount of the material that produces the aroma intensity will vary with temperature. Any judgment should be evaluated again after 30 minutes to ensure test-retest reliability. n References

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the inhalations produce. The size and intensity of these sniffs turn out to be an important unobtrusive (Webb, Campbell, Schwartz, & Sechrest, 1966) gauge of olfactory ability. After detecting a strong or disagreeable odor, people with a normal sense of smell take very small sniffs to avoid smelling it. Observers with an impaired sense of smell, on the other hand, continue taking deep whiffs, because the scent does not register in their brains.

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About the Authors Allen J. Schuh, Ph.D., DABPS, is a retired college professor. He received his degrees in Psychology: a B.A. from San Diego State University, a M.A. from the University of California, and a Ph.D. from Ohio State University. During the 1960s he served in the U.S. Navy. He has published several dozen scholarly papers and a textbook. He maintains membership in scholarly and professional associations, including the American Psychological Association, Association for Psychological Science, Institute of Operations Research and Management Sciences (INFORMS), and the American College of Forensic Examiners. Allen’s contact information is aschuh101@yYahoo.com.

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ology and behavior. International Journal of Neuroscience, 119, 263-290. Herz, R. S. (2009b). Basic processes in human olfactory cognition: current questions and future directions. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1170, 313-317. Herz, R. S., Eliassen, J. C., Beland, S. L., & Souza, T. (2003). Neuroimaging evidence for the emotional potency of odor-evoked memory. Neuropsychologia, 42, 371-378. Hilgard, E. R. (1956). Theories of learning. NY: Appleton Century Crofts. Institute for Canine Forensics. (2004). Retrieved from www.k9forensic.org . Jacquot, L., Monnin, J., & Brand, G. (2004). Unconscious odor detection could not be due to odor itself. Brain Research, Mar 26; 1002(1-2), 51-54. Johnson, B. N., Mainland, J. D., & Sobel, N. (2003). Rapid olfactory processing implicates subcortical control of an olfactomotor system. Journal of Neurophysiology, 90 (2), 1084-1094. Keverne, E. B. (2002). Pheromones, vomeronasal function and gender specific behaviour. Cell, 108, 735-738. Komar, D. A. (1999). The use of cadaver dogs in locating scattered, scavenged human remains: Preliminary field test results. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 44(2), 405-408. Lechliter, J. (2008). Best friends to the lost: Search and rescue dog teams should be activated sooner in most searches. Retrieved from www.theforensicexaminer. com/archive/summer08/5/ Leggett, D. C., Jenkins, T. F., Hogan, A. W., Ranney T., & Miyares, P. H. (2000). External contamination on landmines by organic nitro-compounds. U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, ERDCCRREL Technical Report TR-00-2, Hanover, NH. Li, W., Moallem, I., Paller, K. A., & Gottfried, J. A. (2007). Subliminal smells can guide social preferences. Psychological Science, 18, 1044-1049. Liberles, S. D., & Buck, L. B. (2006). A second class of chemosensory receptors in the olfactory epithelium. Nature, 442 (7103), 645-650. Lundström, J. N., Hummel, T, & Olsson, M. J. (2003). Individual differences in sensitivity to the odor of 4,16-androstadien-3-one. Chemical Senses, 28, 643-650. McClintock, M. K., Bullivant, S., Jacob, S., Spencer, N., Zelano, B., & Ober, C. (2005). Human body scents: Conscious perceptions and biological effects. Chemical Senses, 30 (S1), 135-137. Meredith, M., & Westberry, J. M. (2004). Distinctive responses in medial amygdala to same and different species pheromones. Journal of Neuroscience, 24, 5719-5725. Mesloh, C. (2000). Scent as forensic evidence and its relationship to the law enforcement canine. Retrieved from www.uspcak9.com. Ormerod, D., & Sturman, J. (2005). Working with the courts: Advice for expert witnesses. In L. Alison (Ed.), The forensic psychologist’s casebook: Psychological profiling and criminal investigation (170–191). Devon: Willan. Ormerod, D. (2005). Smith and Hogan criminal law. Twelfth Edition Oxford University Press. Perry, T. (2011). Afghanistans most loyal troops: Dogs play an increasing role in ferreting out roadside bombs in key provinces. Los Angeles Times. February 08, 2011. Retrieved from www.articles.latimes.com/2011/ feb/08/nation/la-na-war-dogs-20110208. Phelan, J. M., Webb, S.W., Rodacy, P. J., & Barnett, J.

Erika A. Porter, RN, BSN, CCRN, is a critical care nurse at Stanford Hospital and Clinics. She received her BSN from California State University, Hayward. She has been a critical care nurse for nearly 20 years.eErika is a member of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN). hErika’r contact information is eporter@stanfordmed.org. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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PROFILE

By Katherine Ramsland, PhD Robert Keppel is best known for the central role he played in the investigation of Ted Bundy’s string of homicides in the Pacific Northwest. Keppel had been a homicide investigator in the King County Sheriff ’s Office in Washington State for just two weeks in 1974 when two girls disappeared on the same day from Lake Sammamish State Park. Thus began a frustrating series of investigations that went cold, until they were eventually linked to Bundy. Only years after Bundy’s conviction for murders in Florida put him on death row did he open up about his West Coast activities. When he finally unloaded a stunning confession, Keppel was there to record it.

PROFILE

Robert D. Keppel: Consulting Detective

Currently an associate professor of criminal justice at the University of New Haven, Keppel has consulted on over 2,000 homicide cases, many of which were associated with one of the 50-plus serial killers his work has covered. He has written or co-written numerous articles, book chapters, and books about homicide investigation; created software and databases for investigators; and crystallized best practices for interviewing offenders. As a consulting detective, he is eager to offer what he has learned to others in the field. Among his books is the aptly titled The Psychology of Serial Killer Investigations: The Grisly Business Unit. In it, Keppel discusses the way jurisdictions either accept or deny that they have a serial killer operating in their area. He also describes issues that task forces face, especially as time passes without an arrest. They are not “profilers” who jump in from out of town to comment before moving on. They are stuck with the case until it is solved, and some are not happy about it. Keppel has seen resistance, despair, and even outright denial in the face of solid evidence. “Serial homicide investigations succeed or fail,” he writes, “on whether the police know what they have on their hands, how they accept the truth, and how they manage it once they’ve accepted it.” Before he became an internationally renowned consultant, he gathered his experience as a detective. Surprisingly, this had not been among his career goals.

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The Making of a Detective Keppel grew up in Spokane, Washington, and graduated from Central Valley High School in 1962, where he was a star athlete. He attended Washington State University on an athletic scholarship, developing his skill as a high jumper, and he just missed making America’s 1964 Olympic team. After getting a master’s degree in police science, he joined the King County Sheriff ’s Department as a patrol officer, but was then drafted. “I was an Army drill sergeant,” he says, “before going to Vietnam as a captain.” As part of the Army’s Military Police Corps for nearly a year, he acquired plenty of investigative experience. He then returned to the Sheriff ’s Department to resume his patrol duties. His father, who died when Keppel was a junior in college, had been a significant role model. “My father was in charge of drill sergeants in the Marines during WWII in San Diego,” Keppel reports. “He was also a Spokane County Deputy Sheriff before he became a store detective for Rosauers Supermarket. Prior to that, he’d been a senior liquor inspector for the State of Washington.” As a result, Keppel was exposed to uniformed officers, the notion of suspects, and methods of interrogation.

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“Recognition is the single most important concept in a serial murder investigation,” Keppel states. Without it, the probability of solving the cases diminishes, while the likelihood of more murders rises. A key error, he says, is the mismanagement of information— failing to collect, analyze, and organize it according to effective priorities. This is why he believes that of the types of consultants one might hire for a serial homicide investigation, the consulting detective with experience in effective information management is the most valuable. Detectives who have been on a serial homicide task force know the truth of Sherlock Holmes’ credo, “It is a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. It biases the judgment.” Never one to shirk writing reports, Keppel took on the task of feeding lists of names into a mainframe computer, which eventually narrowed the cache of more than 3,000 suspects to 25. Even so, he estimated that it would take them a year to fully investigate this many. Among them was Ted Bundy. A week later, Utah authorities phoned Seattle investigators to tell them that Bundy had been arrested for an attempted abduction. This was the break they needed. Keppel learned that Bundy, out on bail, was back in Seattle, so he went to where Bundy was staying. He remembers meeting the elusive suspect face-to-face: “He showed up to his friend’s apartment with some groceries, so Roger and I confronted him at the door. He wasn’t nervous. He agreed to talk with us in the future. But then he went back to Utah. I gave his attorney times and dates and asked if Bundy would supply alibis. I never heard from him.” Bundy, convicted in Utah of an attempted abduction, was sent to Colorado to stand trial for murder, but he escaped and disappeared. Moving On The co-ed murders remained unsolved when Keppel decided to look for other work. In 1978, after Bundy was apprehended in Florida for a sorority house attack that left two dead, Keppel returned to school for another master’s degree. Then in 1980, he enrolled in a unique doctoral program at the University of Washington that allowed him to focus on more than one area of study. He selected seven, which took him twelve years to complete but exposed him to several exceptional experts. “Forensic psychiatrist John Liebert supervised the psychiatry section of my Ph.D. study,” he recounts. “Dr. Elizabeth Loftus and Dr. John

Berberich assisted me with the psychology section. Other sections of my Ph.D. program were forensic pathology, forensic dentistry, sociology of violence, law of murder, and physical anthropology.” His doctoral advisor, Dr. Joe Weiss, then co-authored a book, Murder, with Keppel and they used it to team-teach a sociology course. After he had begun his ambitious program, Keppel went to work as chief investigator for the Washington State Attorney General’s Office. There he had the opportunity to investigate homicides around the state, two of which he considers to be quite unique. In August 1980, Captain Rolf Neslund, a former ship’s pilot, had disappeared from his home on Washington’s Lopez Island. His wife, Nettie “Ruth” Neslund, claimed that they’d argued over money, so he had left her to return to his native Norway. However, no one could locate him there, either. Although Neslund was 79 years old, aside from diabetes he was in good health. Friends urged the police to check and Ruth told them to ask his girlfriend in Norway, with whom he had had two sons. She was there—with her new husband. A search of the home turned up Neslund’s possessions, including eyeglasses and medication. He had not renewed any of his prescriptions, nor had he contacted anyone who knew him. No one had received his typical card at Christmas. Further investigation revealed that during the month before he had disappeared, Ruth had transferred $80,000 from their joint accounts to her sole account. Several friends knew that Neslund had discovered this and had decided to change his will to favor his sons. He had also confided to a friend that he feared that Ruth might poison him. Ruth’s relatives confirmed that she had threatened to kill her husband, and her brother told police that she had confessed to him that she had shot Neslund in the head while their brother Robert held him. They had then dismembered the body and burned the parts in a barrel before dumping the ashes in the manure pile. The investigators discovered bloodstains matching Neslund’s type under new carpet, with high-velocity spatter (as from a closerange gunshot) on the ceiling and walls. (Ruth said this was from nosebleeds and home improvement accidents.) In Ruth’s dresser was a bloodstained .38 revolver. Since there was no body, this became a precedent-setting case for the state, but the wealth of evidence was solid. There was enough blood at the scene to state that the chances that the victim had been Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

PROFILE

He wanted to remain in uniform, but because he had a master’s degree his superiors pressured him to take the test to become a detective. “So I took it and I maxed it, because they had used O’Hare’s criminal investigation book to write their test and I had just taken a class that had used that book. So I became a burglary/larceny detective for the southeast area of King County.” Among his jobs was to investigate missing persons, and in June 1974, a woman named Brenda Ball had disappeared after leaving a local bar. Keppel had barely started on this case when he was asked to replace a homicide detective with a bad heart; so, now he was a homicide detective. On July 1, he joined his new partner, Roger Dunn. Two weeks later, they were asked to assist on a disturbing case. “On July 14, two girls went missing from Lake Sammamish State Park,” Keppel recounts, “and the chief of police from Issaquah turned the case over to us. Since we were the detectives for that area, we were stuck with it.” Janice Ott and Denise Naslund had vanished on that sunny afternoon in front of a crowd of people. In fact, as Keppel discovered, there had been similar reports of missing women during the prior six months in various areas of Oregon and Washington—including Brenda Ball. However, there were no bodies. Although several people had described a young man named “Ted” speaking to Ott, these leads failed to pinpoint a suspect. Then on September 7, Keppel was called out to a woodsy area a few miles from Lake Sammamish where human bones had been discovered. When he arrived he realized how little he knew about what he faced. It was daunting to be in charge, but he rose to the challenge. “The bodies had been dragged along animal trails for maybe 300 or 400 feet,” he recalls. “The Search and Rescue people showed up, but I had no experience working with them. I just knew that the woods had to be searched. I didn’t know anything about skeletons or dental work, so I researched this area to learn where animals would drag things.” This setting turned out to be the dumping ground for Ott and Naslund, as well as a third young woman who remained unidentified. The following spring, parts of the skulls of four female victims turned up near Taylor Mountain, 11 miles further east. There was little doubt that a serial offender was committing multiple murders.

The following is a chronological summary of the 20 identified victims and five identified survivors: 1974

TED BUNDY In custody, Florida, July 27, 1978

PROFILE

SOURCE: www.floridamemory.com/PhotographicCollection

mortally wounded were high. In 1985, Ruth Neslund was convicted of first-degree murder. Since her accomplice was now in a nursing home with dementia, he escaped the same fate. Keppel re-opened another case that begged for a revised opinion. Donna Howard had been a rodeo trick rider, but in January 1975, she was discovered dead in the stable of her Yakima County farm. Her husband Russ had surmised that one of her horses had kicked her in the head. The coroner had accepted that her wound was consistent with a kick, but Donna’s family had sought an independent inquiry. They had reported that the unfaithful Russ had often hit her. One of Russ’s girlfriends later informed police that he had killed his wife with a hammer, which launched the new investigation. Keppel had Donna’s body exhumed and he sent her skull for examination by specialists. To him, the blow to her head looked consistent with a hammer, but he needed more evidence. He invited blood spatter expert Rod Englert, who had worked with him on the Neslund case, to examine grainy photos of bloodstains in the stable. Englert confirmed that Donna was probably the victim of a homicide. The case went to trial in 1986 and Russ Howard was convicted. By this time, Bundy had popped back into Keppel’s life in an unexpected way. Bundy’s Confession In October 1984, Bundy sent a letter to the Green River Task Force, via a judge in Pierce County. “The detective assigned to get it

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

Washington, Oregon • January 4: Joni Lenz (pseudonym) (age 18): Bludgeoned and sexually assaulted in her bed as she slept; survived • February 1: Lynda Ann Healy (age 21): Bludgeoned while asleep and abducted; skull and mandible recovered at Taylor Mountain site • March 12: Donna Gail Manson (age 19): Abducted while walking to concert at Evergreen State College; body left (according to Bundy) at Taylor Mountain site, but never found • April 17: Susan Elaine Rancourt (age 18): Disappeared after evening advisors’ meeting, Central Washington State College; skull and mandible recovered at Taylor Mountain site

brought it to me,” Keppel recalls. “So I wrote back to Bundy and he corresponded with me.” Bundy had read about the series of “Green River” murders in the newspapers and believed that, since he knew those areas, he would have some insight into the offender’s behavior. Keppel, who was assisting with this investigation, decided to go talk with him face to face. First, he carefully prepared. He consulted with two former doctoral mentors, Liebert and Berberich, who had taught him a great deal about the psychology of killers. “I remember some guidelines they went over with me,” he says. “First, question the interviewee at his level. Use the same words that he uses and the same sentence structure. This would make Bundy feel comfortable. Don’t ask questions over his head intellectually and, at the same time, don’t ask questions below his intellectual level or he will never cover what you want.” Just over a month after Bundy’s first letter, Keppel went to Florida with Detective Dave Reichert from the Green River Task Force to interview the notorious killer on death row. Keppel wrote about his encounter in The Riverman: Ted Bundy and I Hunt the Green River Killer, which became a made-for-television movie for A&E. Hoping to avoid giving Bundy a sense of importance, Keppel told him that his visit was just a side trip: “I made it appear that my trip to Florida was for other reasons, and I had just stopped by because it was no trouble and I was so close by, anyway. He never knew that the

• May 6: Roberta Kathleen Parks (age 22): Vanished from Oregon State University in Corvallis; skull and mandible recovered at Taylor Mountain site • June 1: Brenda Carol Ball (age 22): Disappeared after leaving the Flame Tavern in Burien; skull and mandible recovered at Taylor Mountain site • June 11: Georgeann Hawkins (age 18): Disappeared from alley behind her sorority house, UW; skeletal remains recovered at Issaquah site • July 14: Janice Ann Ott (age 23): Abducted from Lake Sammamish State Park in broad daylight; skeletal remains recovered at Issaquah site • July 14: Denise Marie Naslund (age 19): Abducted four hours after Ott from the same park; skeletal remains recovered at Issaquah site only reason I went to see him was to keep our relationship going.” Meeting Bundy was one thing, but watching the behavior of a life-long liar for deception or deflection was quite another. “One strategy,” Keppel recalls, “was to ask Bundy a question that was blatantly false and determine his style, looks, vocabulary, and sentence structure when he defended the truth. He’d lied so much over the years that he looked highly comfortable when doing it.” Sometimes Bundy’s responses were uncharacteristically vague and Keppel soon realized why. “He would talk a lot about nothing when things approached the truth about him. I believe he wanted to confess so bad that he would be void of detail when his answers were close to what he would have done. This was a signal to me that I was getting dangerously close to his self-admission. This was a signal that he was answering things about himself. Go any closer and he might clam up.” Another strategy was to ask questions that could seem like they were about the Green River offender but could just as easily be about Bundy’s motives and methods: “The questions we asked, such as why would a killer murder two victims on the same day, were the type of questions we might ask about the Green River Killer. We hoped we might get Bundy to use the first-person when answering.” Bundy did not confess during this first encounter, but the seed had been planted: Bundy now knew Keppel and was comfortable enough to confess if he ever decided to.

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Utah • October 2: Nancy Wilcox (age 16): Ambushed, assaulted, and strangled in Holladay, Utah; body never found • October 18: Melissa Anne Smith (age 17): Vanished from Midvale, Utah; body found in nearby mountainous area • October 31: Laura Aime (age 17): Disappeared from Lehi, Utah; body discovered by hikers in American Fork Canyon • November 8: Carol DaRonch (age 18): Attempted abduction in Murray, Utah; escaped from Bundy’s car and survived • November 8: Debra Kent (age 17): Vanished after leaving a school play in Bountiful, Utah; body left (according to Bundy) near Fairview, Utah; minimal skeletal remains (one patella) found, but never positively identified as Kent’s

Colorado • January 12: Caryn Campbell (age 23): Disappeared from hotel hallway in Snowmass, Colorado; body discovered on a dirt road near the hotel • March 15: Julie Cunningham (age 26): Disappeared on the way to a tavern in Vail, Colorado; body buried (according to Bundy) near Rifle, 90 miles (140 km) west of Vail, but never found • April 6: Denise Oliverson (age 25): Abducted while bicycling to her parents’ house in Grand Junction, Colorado; body thrown (according to Bundy) into the Colorado River 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Grand Junction, but never found Idaho • May 6: Lynette Culver (age 12): Abducted from Alameda Junior High School in Pocatello, Idaho; body never found • June 28: Susan Curtis (age 15) Disappeared during a youth conference at Brigham Young University; body buried (according to Bundy) near Price, Utah, 75 miles (121 km) southeast of Provo, but never found Finally, Bundy was scheduled for execution in January 1989. Keppel was invited to “debrief ” him. He arrived for his final interview and Bundy was ready. He revealed that he often beheaded his victims and gave up several names to help Keppel close cases. He admitted to the Ott and Naslund murders and put a name to the female victim whose remains had been found with theirs. He also described abducting Brenda Ball, whose disappearance Keppel had investigated in June 1974. Bundy confirmed the eight victims on Keppel’s list and suggested three more, but resisted admitting to some for which Keppel suspected him. Bundy admitted to an FBI agent that he had killed a total of thirty but told his attorney 35. To this day, Keppel believes Bundy took many secrets to his grave. “When he said ‘three figures’ to the police officer in Pensacola, I didn’t think that was impossible. Looking back, I think that number is realistic.” Keppel’s Legacy: Best Practices Bundy’s cross-country murder spree indirectly inspired the FBI’s computerized ViCAP database, which offers investigators around the country a way to compare homicides and sexual assaults across jurisdictions. To better serve the state of Washington, Keppel and his colleagues developed a similar software program after they received an NIJ grant to examine solvability characteristics of murder. They called it the Washington Attorney General’s Homicide Investigation Tracking System, or HITS. It was designed

1978

Florida • January 15: Margaret Bowman (age 21): Bludgeoned and then strangled as she slept, Chi Omega sorority, FSU (No secondary crime scene) • January 15: Lisa Levy (age 20): Bludgeoned, strangled and sexually assaulted as she slept, Chi Omega sorority, FSU (No secondary crime scene) • January 15: Karen Chandler (age 21): Bludgeoned as she slept, Chi Omega sorority, FSU; survived • January 15: Kathy Kleiner (age 21): Bludgeoned as she slept, Chi Omega sorority, FSU; survived • January 15: Cheryl Thomas (age 21): Bludgeoned as she slept, eight blocks from Chi Omega; survived • February 9: Kimberly Leach (age 12): Abducted from her junior high school in Lake City, Florida; skeletal remains found near Suwannee River State Park

to improve the apprehension rate of violent offenders. The study of homicide solvability factors remains Keppel’s driving passion, especially when several cases can be connected. Besides assisting with the development of technology, Keppel is interested in educating future investigators and researchers. At the University of New Haven, he teaches such courses as “Advanced Investigation” and “Death Investigation: From Scene to Court” and he is working on numerous projects with colleagues and former graduate students. In addition, he continues to consult on cases. “The business of gaining serial killer information came from the necessities of my job, over 30 years of homicide investigation experience,” Keppel adds. “My specialty is helping detectives solve their unsolved cases.” n

PROFILE

In 1988, Keppel returned to get more information about the way serial killers operated, and now Bundy was fidgety. “I could tell that something was really bothering him. Unknown to me, he had just spoken to his advisers, attorneys and psychiatrists, and was plotting to confess to me.” However, Bundy’s advisors had persuaded him that a confession now would undermine his pending appeals. Even so, in retrospect, Keppel was able to see that Bundy had been giving him indirect guidance: “He was actually telling me how he wanted to be interviewed by me.” For example, Bundy told Keppel that the best way to interview a serial killer was to leave aside all judgment. The interviewer who could understand that for the killer some murders were “okay” because they satisfied a need was the person best poised to receive the most detailed and intimate information. “And that’s the level of interview a good investigator should be able to have with a suspect,” Keppel later wrote. While questioning Bundy, Keppel noted his paranoia and grandiosity, especially as Bundy described to him how superior he felt whenever he eluded law enforcement’s efforts to identify him. Even with only indirect references, in his attempt to show off his cunning and intelligence he gave up plenty of information about his movements. Keppel duly recorded every detail. Among the things he learned was that Bundy considered his crime scenes and dumpsites to be sacred: “The interesting question was, why did he return? Because the process of possession and necrophilia were important to him.”

1975

ABOUT THE AUTHOR KATHERINE RAMSLAND, PhD, CMI-V has published over 1,000 articles and 40 books, including The Mind of a Murderer: Privileged Access to the Demons that Drive Extreme Violence. Dr. Ramsland is an associate professor of forensic psychology and criminal justice at DeSales University in Pennsylvania and has been a member of the American College of Forensic Examiners International since 1998. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

FICTION

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER速 Spring 2011

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f only Grover hadn’t been such a competent detective. If only we hadn’t gone to the Pomfreys’ house that first time to drink elderberry wine, or that last time to pick up our paperwork. If only Herb hadn’t been such an avid gardener or Hilda hadn’t been such an overpowering behemoth. If only. If only. If only.

I thought, as I reviewed the circumstances that had brought us to this place in time. Circumstances, I might add, to which I would not have lived up, ethically or morally, if I had been left to my own devices. It all started out when my husband, Grover, did one of those soul mate things that, if you loved your spouse, would be considered endearing. But if you hated him, would leave you shredding napkins and biting your nails.

I adore Grover, so when he pulled out his police department retiree newsletter and flipped to the classified section, at first, I didn’t react. “Fifteen plus-or-minus acres for sale in Chesterfield County,” Grover read aloud. “Perfect site for retirement home.” Then he let the newsletter fall to his lap, lifted his gorgeous brown eyes to me—chocolate truffle eyes, I always call them—and added, “You know, Ellie, I’ve always wanted to own a place in the country.”

FICTION Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

This was the aforementioned “soul mate thing.” Husband to wife: “You know, honey, I’ve always wanted to jump out of an airplane,” or “Sweetheart, why don’t we go to Alaska and run a dog sled team at the Iditarod?” Wife to husband: “You know, honey, I’ve always wanted to go to Circus School and learn how to swallow swords,” or “Why don’t we adopt a special-needs Russian child who has been diagnosed as manic-depressive with schizophrenic tendencies?” I figure that when one or the other of us makes one of these mildly disconcerting or totally flabbergasting statements, we have two choices. Either we can nip it in the bud, “We are not adopting a seven-year-old Bolshevik psychopath,” or we can tap our chins thoughtfully with our forefingers and say (lovingly), “Although we have been married for twenty-three years and you never once mentioned that you want to own a place in the country… what the hell. I’m game. Make the call.” Which is what I said. And which is what Grover did. A woman answered the phone, and she responded to my husband’s inquiry with the following:

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One: The land they were selling was on Route 32, just outside the village of Jessup. Two: It had three thousand feet of roadside frontage, two creeks, and a hidden field. Three: Her name was Hilda Pomfrey.

Then she told Grover a little about herself. Her husband, Herbert, had been a police officer who’d spent most of his career working in Lost Property. He retired twenty-two years before. Herb had bought the land with his first wife, Betty, hoping to build a cabin on it when they retired. But Betty died of spinal meningitis at age 32, and Herb, who was lonely, began to court Hilda, a widow who lived next-door. They, too, planned to build a cabin on the property. Or so Hilda led Herbert to believe before she lock-stock-and-barreled him into marrying her. In fact, Hilda’s retirement plan was always to live in Florida, and Herb, a knee-knocking coward when it came to standing up to his new bride (why in the world had he married her?), gradually began to see his dream of a cabin in the country fade away. Instead, they bought a condo in Orlando, and Herb’s land went up for sale. If you are wondering why a stranger on the telephone would tell so much to a man she had never met, it is because Grover is a great listener. There is something about him that makes everyone—bank presidents,

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

checkout-clerks in supermarkets, hairdressers, and felons—want to tell him their life stories. When Grover was a cop, Al Gottleib, his partner, used to say that Grover had “ear lint” because, “When he leaned toward a suspect, and asked questions, he attracted injudicious comments and inadvertent confessions the way that cotton attracts lint.” Cute, huh? Al’s a good guy. Anyway, by the time that Grover hung up the phone, Hilda Pomfrey had promised to send us a map so that we could locate the property once we got to Jessup. We would need one, she insisted, because there were no street addresses that far out, and sometimes the nearest crossroad was over half-a-mile away. Off in the distance and through the phone’s receiver, we heard a male voice—presumably Herb’s—saying, “Hilda, dear, if you tell them that the land is in Cow Country, they’ll understand.” She ignored him. But overhearing Herb somewhat prepared us for what we eventually encountered. Two days later, it was on a Thursday, Hilda’s map arrived in the mail. The map was accompanied by detailed directions written in a spiky script with blue-black ink that appeared to have extruded from a wide-nibbed fountain pen. Two days after that, at seven o’clock on Saturday morning, we slathered ourselves with sunscreen, tossed four turkey sandwiches and a spray can of bug repellant into the car, and hit the road. Five hours and four wrong turns later, we finally… finally…came upon the land. We would have missed it all together, except that the third farmhouse at which we stopped to ask directions was directly across the road from the fifteen acres we were looking for. Claire and Hudson Friedwald, the couple who lived there, told us that their house was part of a homestead that originally had included those fifteen acres, and that they’d purchased their house plus 85 acres from Hilda and Herb Pomfrey twelve years earlier. Then the Friedwalds told us a cautionary tale. “When we were negotiating to buy the house,” Claire said over a cup of coffee and the best oatmeal cookies I’ve ever eaten, “Mrs. Pomfrey didn’t tell us that all the pipes were broken, the roof leaked, and the basement flooded. And she didn’t tell us that the guy in the farm next to ours built a split rail fence forty-five feet inside the boundaries of our land.” Hudson Friedwald reached for a cigarette, struck a match, inhaled, and added, “We wanted an engineer to inspect the house before we signed the contract, but the old witch had a fit. She said, ‘Take it or leave it,’

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I don’t know if my husband and I fell more in love with the fifteen acres, or with the idea of having Claire and Hudson as neighbors, but either way, we went home, dialed the Pomfreys’ number, and made an offer on the phone. Mrs. Pomfrey, of course, did the negotiating. I won’t bore you with all of her stipulations, highhanded objections (she didn’t want us to have the property surveyed), and bargaining tactics. All you have to know is that on a gorgeous Sunday in May, under sunlight streaming from clouds so majestic that the sky looked positively biblical, Grover and I got into our car. No. We weren’t going back to the acreage we’d decided to buy. We were driving to a sleepy hamlet on the North Shore of Long Island. Our objective was to hand-deliver a check and sign a purchase agreement. Our dread was to meet Hilda and Herb Pomfrey for the first time. Hilda answered the door. Herb stood behind her. Do you remember the nursing rhyme about Jack Sprat? It goes like this:

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and we were out of options, so we took it. Sight unseen.” Claire, also a smoker, picked up a cigarette, fiddled with it for a second or two, and then put it back into the pack. She looked down for an instant at her hands. When she raised her head, she looked ten years older and a thousand times wearier. “Back then,” she said. “Our oldest boy, Jimmy, was nine. The twins were five, and Corey was two-years-old. I was seven months pregnant with Sandy. We wanted to buy a little house in the country. Somewhere to take the kids on weekends. The house we were living in on Long Island was a rental, and the lease was running out. We were planning to renew, but… ” Claire shook her head and reached again for the cigarette. This time she lit up. Hudson continued the story. “I had a machine shop two blocks from the house. One night, someone pulled a van to the back door of my shop and cleaned me out. Stole all of my tools, equipment...everything. I didn’t have insurance, and just like this.” He snapped his fingers. “I had no way to make a living, and we had nowhere to live. A week before my shop got looted, we’d heard about this place. So it was come here or nothing.” Hudson shrugged. “We came.” An unhappy start for a new life. A happy ending, though, because they loved the house. At least, they eventually came to love their house, but that was only after the ordeal of making it habitable. Claire told harrowing stories about a leaking roof, an unreliable furnace, broken pipes, and having to walk in the winter over a thousand feet three times a day to the creek to lug water back to the kitchen. All while pregnant. On top of that, one month when she and Hudson were two days late with their mortgage payment—two days, for God’s sake!—Hilda the Horrible had her attorney send a certified letter threatening foreclosure. But…Claire and Hudson Friedwald were hearty souls. Hudson built a new machine shop behind the old farmhouse, and Claire did his bookkeeping and raised their five kids. They loved the village of Jessup, loved their neighbors (except for the guy who’d built a fence on their property), and made it perfectly clear that if we purchased the land across the road, they were more than willing to love Grover and me, too.

Jack Sprat could eat no fat His wife could eat no lean And so betwixt the two of the They licked the platter clean. In the classic Arthur Rackham illustration of that rhyme, Jack is portrayed as a needle thin, knobby-kneed, meek

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fellow sitting humbly at the dining room table over a miniscule glass of wine. Mrs. Sprat, opposite him, is as big as a cow, with a head the size of a pumpkin and tiny eyes like house flies that landed above her nose on her smug fat face. Herb Pomfrey was Jack Sprat brought to life. And we all know who Hilda was. Herb was maybe five-feet-six-inches tall and skinny, skinny, skinny. It was a warm day, so we could see his thin arms and bony wrists jutting out of a short-sleeved open neck shirt. His collarbones stood out like perches for canaries, and his thin sandy-brown hair barely covered a head shaped like the top half of a light bulb. Nor was Herb’s face a landscape of beauty. Big nose. Thin lips. Sunken cheeks. Oddly, though, it was a likeable face. He had defeated gray eyes, but they were beautiful eyes with long silver eyelashes. And Herb’s smile, although timid, was really quite wonderful. It almost, but not quite, concealed a whisper of whimsy. A dash of dreamer. I liked him right away. Mrs. Sprat though…I mean…Hilda the Horrible, was enormous. Not chubby. Not fat. Big. HUGE. You could squeeze nine Herbs into the bodysuit of one Hilda. She was Ferdinand the Bull in a foul mood. Brunhilda on the warpath. She was every ogre from every fairytale, compressed, revamped, and reconstituted to fit into an ugly brown and black paisley print polyester dress. Despite her forbidding aspect, once we had arrived at their residence, she was cordiality itself. Or, to quote from another nursery rhyme, “‘Will you walk into my parlor?’ said the spider to the fly.”

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First, Hilda showed us around the house. It was a contemporary split-level ranch, weighted down with heavy Victorian furniture, Waterford crystal, snake plants with sharp spear-shaped leaves (no wonder why they’re called Mother-in-law-tongues), and crocheted doilies. Lots and lots of crocheted doilies. After we had oohed and aahed sufficiently, Hilda suggested that Herb show us the backyard and garden while she set the table so that we could partake of date nut bread and elderberry wine. The bread and wine, she assured us, were homemade. Herb’s garden consisted of a few clumps of peonies, half-a-dozen irises, and a couple islands of narcissus, all neatly surrounded by dark red mulch. Nothing special. The yard, however, was a real jaw dropper. It had to be at least an acre, with a perimeter of privet hedges over ten feet tall. Between the hedges and the back of the house were dozens…maybe hundreds…of small, sturdy, weird looking trees. They reminded me of the rose bushes in Walt Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, but without the roses. None was taller than Grover, who is five-eleven, even though he tells everyone, including his doctors, that he is six-feet-two-inches tall, which confirms what I have always believed: That men lie about their height and women lie about their weight. I certainly do. The little trees had smooth gray trunks covered with what looked more like sharkskin than bark, and they were topped by branches that unfurled like umbrellas and dangled large luscious leaves shaped like spades in a deck of cards. I have no idea what kind of trees they were, and I’ve

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turned out to be twenty-five acres instead of fifteen (we had it surveyed at our own expense), five miles north of the village of Jessup, in Cow Country USA. The next few years were fun, with occasional moments of angst. First, we considered building a cabin on our land, but costs turned out to be prohibitive, so when the farmhouse adjacent to our property went on sale, we snatched it up. After that, we endured the nerve shattering ordeal of mice, snakes, frozen pipes, drafty walls, leaky roofs, spiders, dead birds in the fireplace, and turning a ramshackle farmhouse into a home. Little by little, though, our house of horrors became a dream domicile, a haven, and a Brigadoon. Grover’s private investigation business (he specializes in insurance fraud) grew, our income increased, and one day, five years after we bought our 25 acres from the Pomfreys, my husband picked up the telephone and dialed their number to tell them that we were going to pay everything that we still owed on the land. Hilda picked up on the second ring. The only words Grover got out were, “Our next check will be a pay off figure on the mortgage” before Brunhilda (I mean Hilda) launched into a nerve-jangling tirade that I could hear through the receiver, even though I was standing over six feet away. “Presumptuous…impudent…uncivilized…depraved…” were some of the accusations that assailed our ears. Five minutes into this one-sided conversation, Hilda hung up. Grover and I stared at each other. Stunned. The very next day, we got a letter in the mail from Mrs. Pomfrey reiterating what she had said to us…yelled at us…on the phone. We read the letter. At first appalled. Then numb. Then, perceiving humor in the situation, amused. After we stopped laughing, we decided to let a few days go by and let Hilda calm down before we sent the check. Ten days later, our bank informed us that our check had been deposited into the Pomfrey’s bank account, which meant that pending receipt of the satisfaction of mortgage papers and the deed, the twenty-five acres,

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never seen anything remotely like them before or since. Each was separated from its brother and sister by about ten feet, and often the fingertips of their branches touched. All had been planted with perfect symmetry, so that if you stepped in any direction, you were surrounded on all four sides by spade-leafed trees. Other than its unlikely existence, the most perplexing thing about this odd little arboretum was the pride and joy that Herbert Pomfrey took in it. He was like a possessive father showing off his honors student-kids. Grover and I followed him as he serpentined through the trees, leading us along what he probably considered a path, but which made me think that I was hopping like a bunny along random dots on a map that led from nowhere to nowhere else. When we finally got to the outer edge of the arbor, we saw a wide swath of grass on which nothing grew but grass. Herb gave this land an unsmiling look of appraisal, as if he had already sectioned it off in his mind for future trees. We oohed and aahed again. Then Herb led us back to the house. Hilda had set the table with crocheted placemats, date nut bread (cut into very tiny pieces and placed on small china plates), and four delicate wine glasses. In the center of the table was a beautiful cut glass decanter containing what I assumed was elderberry wine. There was something very disorienting about a mountainous, mean-spirited woman presiding over such an elegant ritual, but we played our parts, and the only glitch in the proceedings occurred when Hilda refused to allow us to add a prepayment without penalty clause to the purchase agreement. But we were adamant about its inclusion, and she eventually gave in. Then we clicked glasses, congratulated ourselves on all being such shrewd negotiators, and got down to the business of eating date nut bread. Grover and Herb started to exchange war stories about working for the police department, and Hilda regaled me with her recipe for elderberry wine, not a word of which I remember, and I’m still vague about what an elderberry is. Eventually, we signed the purchase agreement, and left their house with a contract to buy what

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MAZING HOW MUCH BETTER HILDA’S ELDERBERRY WINE TASTED WITHOUT HILDA. WHICH BRINGS US TO THE SUBJECT OF HERB’S BELLIGERENT BRIDE. “WHERE IS SHE?”

along with all of the spiders, snakes, mice, and dead birds that abided on the land, belonged to us. Free and clear. In the intervening few weeks, we spent many hours with Claire and Hudson Freidwald, our neighbors across the road. We gleefully exchanged Pomfrey stories, and agreed that although Herb was a sweetheart, his wife was a villainess out of a Charles Dickens novel and a bad joke. We drank a lot of coffee. We ate a lot of Claire’s oatmeal cookies (I gained five pounds in three days). And we speculated endlessly about why gentle Herb had married what we now referred to as “the widowatrocity who had lived next door.” Grover and I originally intended to wait a few more weeks to see if Hilda did what she was supposed to do, and mailed us the satisfaction of mortgage and the deed. But those plans changed when Grover was assigned a tripand-fall investigation at a shopping mall on Long Island. The accident supposedly had taken place in front of the ladies bathroom on the upper level of the mall, which (will coincidences never cease?) was located a mere two miles east of the town where Hilda and Herb Pomfrey lived. Grover suggested that I accompany him to Long Island, and that after he took his photographs and conducted his interviews, we stop in on Herb and Hilda, and pick up our papers on the way home. I leaped at the opportunity. So Grover dialed the Pomfreys’ number to tell them our plans. He expected, of course, that Hilda would pick up the phone and explode acrimony in his ear. But that isn’t what happened. Not only were no eruptions forthcoming, it was not even she who answered the call. It was Herb. Dear, sweet, overwhelmed, over-awed, and alwaysintimidated Herb. He said to Grover, “How nice to hear from you Mr. Church.” Grover said to Herb, “Call me Grover.” Herb said to Grover, “You are such a handsome couple, you and your beautiful wife. I will have all of the documents ready for you. And perhaps, if you can spare an extra few minutes, we can celebrate the satisfaction of your mortgage with a nice glass of elderberry wine.”

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

Grover hung up the telephone. He stared at me dumbfounded. “Umm…I don’t know what just happened.” We were similarly disconcerted the day that we drove to Long Island. First, Grover went to the mall to investigate his trip-and-fall. Then we drove west, took the exit for the Pomfreys’ house, and parked in their driveway. We walked up the neat brick path, and rang the bell. Within seconds, Herb opened the door. But this was a different Herb than the one we had met five years before. Firstly, he had gained weight. Not much. But at least his body now looked more like one belonging to an adult sixty-ish male than to a mummified corpse. Secondly, he was wearing a frilly apron over his cuffed trousers, and in his right hand, he was waving a wooden spoon covered with what looked like vanilla frosting. Thirdly, his big beautiful gray eyes were twinkling like those on a benevolent genie. Fourthly, he was smiling. Not the timid smile that I’d seen before. A real smile. A wide smile. A joyous, generous, wonderful smile. “Come in! Come in,” he said happily. “I have all of your papers ready, and I just finished frosting the cake.” Well, what else can I tell you? What can I say? Herb had set plates, cups, cake, and wine glasses out on the patio overlooking the backyard. The sun was shining, the breeze was gentle, and it was a glorious afternoon. Unlike on our first visit, instead of Grover and Herb exchanging somber war stories about their years on the job, each regaled the other with really funny tales of Precinct Life. Herb told one about male Siamese twins, a pinball machine, and a three-legged Pekinese dog that made me laugh so hard I choked on my cake. Delicious cake by the way. A thousand times better than Hilda’s date nut bread. And Grover told one about a naked guy wearing suction cup straps on his bare feet, trying to climb up the side of the Citibank building that had me gasping for breath. Amazing how much better Hilda’s elderberry wine tasted without Hilda. Which brings us to the subject of Herb’s belligerent bride. “Where is she?” Grover asked after his third piece of cake. “Florida,” Herb said joyfully, toasting her absence with

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“Oh. I was never suspicious,” he said. “I always knew.” I frowned and thought for a bit. “When?” I asked. “When did you know?” “I knew the minute that Herb picked up the phone.” “Knew what? Knew how? Knew why?” I persisted. “I knew what Herb had done because I’m a cop. Private sector now. True. But a cop is a cop is a cop. I knew how he had done it for the same reason. And I knew why, because Herb was happy.” And the funny thing is that Herb is still happy. After we left him that day, Grover called a former colleague in Nassau County, and a couple of detectives drove to the Pomfrey house. They came prepared with a search warrant. Grover had told them to look for a tree about ten feet from the hedgerow that was slightly out of alignment, where the sod had a look of recent disturbance and the spade shaped leaves looked withered and dry. Characteristic of Hilda, isn’t it? That even her mortal remains were bitter. Any other dead body would have made excellent fertilizer. Or so Herb later explained. I visit him every few months in prison. Grover comes with me from time to time. Herb loves to see us both. He bears no grudge against Grover, and Grover still likes Herb. A lot. Our old friend, and he has become a friend, teaches horticulture classes in prison, and the guards have given him a little garden where he and his fellow inmates cultivate vegetables. I never saw it, of course, but Herb told me that it is a most satisfactory plot of land. Herb has also assured me that nowhere within the prison’s perimeter are there any Alice in Wonderland trees. “Somehow,” he added with his bewilderingly beautiful smile, “I no longer seem to have a need for trees.” n Copyright © 2012 Shelly Reuben

ABOUT THE AUTHOR SHELLY REUBEN is an author, newspaper columnist, private detective, and certified fire investigator. Her books have been nominated for Edgar, Prometheus, and Falcon awards. She has just finished writing a new arson procedural novel and is working on a book about her cases. For more information about her work, visit www.shellyreuben.com.

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another glass of wine. “Hilda went ahead of me to get the condo ready, since we’re moving down there permanently next week.” Then he looked around his backyard, and his appreciative glance seemed to take in every one of the dozens…maybe hundreds…of small trees with spade-shaped leaves that he had planted so lovingly over the years. “Are you going to miss them?” Grover asked. Herb looked at my husband and furrowed his brow, as if confused. “The trees,” Grover explained, “Are you going to miss the trees?” Herb grinned. What a nice face he had. What kind eyes. “No,” he said merrily. “I can’t wait to sell this place.” Later, after a few more stories and another glass of elderberry wine, Herb excused himself to retrieve our documents, and my husband took my hand, and led me into the backyard. I followed Grover through that Alice in Wonderland maze of trees. By then, I had already surpassed my quota of cake and was paying less attention to foliage than to my queasy stomach, but I was happy enough to tag along. We went all the way to the far perimeter of the trees, which, by now, had moved at least ten feet closer to the hedgerow. I laughed. “Good thing they’re moving to Florida!” I said. “No room for anymore trees.” But Grover wasn’t paying attention to me. He was concentrating on…oh, I didn’t know what. All I knew was that he wasn’t responding to my attempts at conversation, so I left him where he was standing, returned to the house, and asked Herb if I could use the powder room. About twenty minutes later, I gave the man who had sold us our wonderful 25 acres a hug, and I kissed him on the cheek. Then, as Grover pulled our car out of the driveway, I stuck my hand out the window and waved and waved and waved to that dear, sweet man, as if I were waving to my father from the train on my way to summer camp. There we were. Mission accomplished. Our deed and satisfaction of mortgage in perfect order, and in good spirits. Or at least I was in good spirits. Grover was oddly silent all the way home. And this is the part where, soul mate considerations notwithstanding, I reveal how my husband and I are not the same. Grover’s morality is based on right and wrong. My morality is conditional. I often make excuses for twinkling eyes and beautiful smiles. Eventually…I don’t know how long I was able to put it off, but…eventually I had to ask Grover when he first became suspicious.

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INTERVIEW

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

What is Guided Chaos? Guided Chaos is the essence of what people expect to get, but often don’t receive when they study a martial art. It is a no-nonsense, reality based, non-sportive combat martial art created in 1978 by former Yonkers Police Officer and crime scene expert John Perkins. It is unique in that the focus is on principles of body movement dynamics that allow you to adapt and improvise to the ever-changing and chaotic nature of real life and death combat instead of using patterned, often unrealistic, techniques for saving your life. From an early age John Perkins was trained by his father and uncles in the fundamentals of what was known as World War II close quarters combat methodology. This training established the foundation of what would become a life-long odyssey to create the most effective self-defense system for surviving violence as it actually exists— not the way we’d like it to be or as it’s de-

picted in movies. Through the years, John would have the privilege to study under the likes of Hapkido Master Ik Jo Kang and Tai Chi Master Waysun Liao (author of “Tai Chi Classics”) along with others. As a young police officer in the early 1970s, John’s beat included some of the worst neighborhoods in the New York metropolitan area where he routinely worked backup units responding to the most violent crimes “in progress.” He eventually was involved in over 700 arrests, at least 100 of which were brutally violent arrest scenarios where people routinely ended up in the hospital or morgue. Having grown up in the area, I can attest to the nightly news broadcasts and police blotters of death and mayhem. For example, while the “Son of Sam” killer was garnering all of the headlines in the summer of 1977, there were neighborhoods in New York City that on a weekly basis averaged nearly the same number of total homicide victims Berkowitz had.

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Later under Dr. Peter Pizzola (former director of the NYPD Crime Lab--now retired), Perkins went on to work in the Yonkers, New York Crime Lab. There he became an expert in blood-spatter pattern analysis and the dynamics of violence. Working both in the crime lab and as a police officer reinforced his fighting experience, providing him the perfect crucible for creating Guided Chaos. Despite training in nearly a dozen martial art systems, he clearly understood that fights to the death were a far cry from the contrived notions taught by traditional martial arts. It was this understanding that became the impetus for breaking away from all classical and modern systems because of what he perceived as critical flaws in their perceptions of violence, and thus their survival solutions and training methods.

How did Perkins’ forensic work inform his views on self-defense? The insights that John gained from his work in bloodstain and spatter interpretation and other crime scene investigative experience reinforced his knowledge regarding how real life and death altercations went down. It didn’t take long for him to realize that fights to the death did not happen the way people thought. I can recall numerous conversations with Perkins as we compared notes based on things I had seen overseas with his experiences on the streets. Our early assumptions about violence were quickly shot down once exposed to reality. For example, the notion that all people go down after being shot once with a hand gun

or that knife fights are these cool-looking, fluid encounters like you might see in a Steven Segal movie were summarily disposed of. That you can easily disable, flip, or knock out an enraged attacker with one punch to the face even if they’re high on some sort of drug is just utter nonsense. However, striking people across the throat or neck or just behind the ear at the base of the skull in most cases takes the wind out of their sails, usually putting them down for the count. Of course this is assuming you are able to get those strikes off effectively, but the same is true for using a handgun. Sure you may be a good shot on the known distance pistol range--but can you gun fight? It’s sort of like the old military maxim that “no battle plan survives initial contact with the enemy.” The same is true when trying

INTERVIEW Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

INTERVIEW

his street fighting experience, qualifies his self-defense system above all others I know of. As a corollary to this I want to point out that just because someone has been exposed to violence does not mean that they understand the dynamic nature of violence. Context is also important when analyzing such things. While experience is usually the best teacher, if one does not understand the phenomena in proper context they can derive the “wrong understanding” as to how a violent act took place, as well as potential counters to such things. I also want to point out there is a school of thought out there that, while it at least acknowledges that you must damage your attacker because they understand some of the science as to how to damage the human body (i.e., scientific methods of fighting or target focused strikes), it erroneously asserts that all you need to do is strike the vulnerable areas and people just magically fall down. They are assuming in many instances that the bad guys are going to stand in front of you in order to set up your perfect throat chop. Okay, how do you do this when they are moving? This is a foolish assumption to make.

to apply many popularly taught martial arts in the real world. This is an important point because all too often many martial arts techniques are developed in a vacuum free from the unpredictability of a real altercation. The techniques are taught as if on some level cooperation can be expected from an attacker. Unfortunately in a real fight, whether in war or on the streets, the bad guy gets a vote and is probably not in sync with your plan. If you’re hoping that your techniques will work as they do in the dojo, I have bad news. Hope is not a plan. It is this understanding where Perkins’ knowledge of scientifically verifiable crime scene violence, along with THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

How did you get involved with Guided Chaos? I love telling this story because it really sums up the essence of what generally happens to people who consider themselves skilled fighters when they first experience Guided Chaos. It also reassures them that if they seek a truly complete system and martial art for realistic fighting they have come to the right place. My first brush with the martial arts came when I was in college. I always had a desire to learn a martial art, having wrestled in high school and done some boxing, so you can almost say that I was naturally drawn to the martial arts. Although I had instructed Marines in unarmed combat for my unit, and had the privilege to continue my studies when time permitted while stationed on Okinawa as well as see other arts while deployed to the Far East, I always had a sense that something was missing within my previous art. Granted, there was no question in my mind that the instruc-

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doing them, but that was about it. At one point I could swear I saw him crack a wry smile right before blasting me in the chest. Once he allowed me to catch my breath, he then demonstrated the “Drop Punch” on me. I don’t know which was more humiliating: being so out of breath in such a short time, or getting the breath knocked out of me from being hit literally from no distance or with what John called the “No Inch Punch.” What I didn’t expect was what happened next. He let me work with some of the female students. For the sake of my dignity, let’s just say that the harder I tried to hit them, the more elusive they became which only fueled my anger, causing their strikes with their little hands and pointy shoes to hurt even more. Okay, now people will say in a “real” fight I could probably take them (maybe). However, there was no question in my mind that even if I was victorious they would have gotten a piece of me that I wasn’t getting back (especially some body parts I won’t mention). When people half my size and physical ability from John Perkins’ school could strike me at will with “penetrating force,” yet remain elusive to my own strikes, I knew I had found the right self-defense system. I knew there had to be something to it because what happened shouldn’t have. Even though I’d traveled extensively with the U.S. Marines and trained

INTERVIEW

tors were skilled at what they did, but there always seemed a logical disconnect between many of the techniques they taught and their practical application. During my time in the Marine Corps, every time I was home visiting my Dad on military leave I would get together with a good friend of mine, Dennis Capalbo, who was also a martial arts instructor holding black belts in a number of arts. Dennis was an excellent instructor, but moreover he was a hard-nosed fighter who always sought out the knowledge of other fighting arts and was proficient in more arts than I can recount here. During the last few years while I was on active duty, Dennis would always tell me about this “new system” he had found and how skilled the practitioners were. He would make comments such as, “Al you cannot believe how well these people can fight, not just the instructors but even the students...” Granted, anyone who has been in the martial arts long enough has heard these fantastic tales of legendary instructors whose abilities seem to defy logic. If it came from anyone else besides Dennis, I probably would have ignored them and went on about my business. But after all of the glowing reports from Dennis, I told him that once I left active duty I would check it out with him at the first opportunity. Here’s where my story seems to slip into the realm of your classic “skeptic meets mysterious master, gets beat up and becomes a loyal student…” A few months after getting off active duty and settling down, I ran into Dennis at our local gym with another friend of mine. After hearing he was on his way to Perkins’ class we decided to tag along and see what all the fuss was about. When I first arrived it was not what I expected. Many of the people were generally older than what you see in a traditional martial arts school, and there was a very informal, casual, almost jovial atmosphere. While meeting with John Perkins, he gave a general overview of the art and then proceeded to give a demonstration. I’ll cut to the chase here: he basically let me try “anything” that I wanted on him, and he quickly showed me “what’s what!” None of my powerful athletic moves worked. Granted, I looked good

Co-author of the best selling self-defense book Attackproof: The Ultimate Guide to Personal Protection. Former forensic homicide expert.22 years law enforcement. Body Guard to Malcolm Forbes, Israeli Prime Minister Moshe Dayan. Former Pit Fighter. Trained with U.S. Marshall Thomas Loughnan, the fastest man in the world with a Colt 1911.

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with a variety of U.S. military and Asian martial arts instructors, my first thought was “if this works for Perkins’ students, it’ll work for me.” I resolved then and there to learn and, if possible, master this art. What is the mindset behind Guided Chaos? The mindset we try to instill in the Guided Chaos practitioner is one of “perfect moral clarity” with regard to the use of dead-

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ly force. We want people to understand that they have a basic right to self-defense and their life is worth something; no one has the right to take them away from their family and loved ones. You see the only thing we truly own are our lives. It is not a house, a car, or what is in your bank account, but your life and that of your family and friends etc… You take that away from a person, and you take away all that they have. Beyond that, everything else pales in comparison and quickly shrinks to insignificance. The first step in this process is to dispose of any preconceptions about being politically correct with the enemy/attacker, or the notion of training in a martial art, yet not being willing to use it when required based on some bizarre philosophy of “Budo” or some other self-limiting, convoluted way of thinking. People need to be prepared to utterly destroy the attacker, because anything less than possessing the “moral will” and mindset to take them out may get them killed. This includes sportive, grappling, classical or any other restrictive, stylized method of self-defense which in fairness may work if they’re not trying to kill you. Sportive techniques and skills are fine for what they are designed to do, and that is to be used in a sportive venue where there are rules. However, on the street there are any of a number of variables and unpleasant choices, such as going to the ground on asphalt or cement or “who knows what” else on the ground. This adds an additional dimension of lethality that enters the equation and negates a lot of cool-looking, flashy moves. Also, if weapons are introduced, they quickly multiply the potential danger by several orders of magnitude. In Guided Chaos, we have an analogy we like to use called the “Louisville Slugger” mentality. Think of it like this; if you were going to get into a fight and you could only choose from one of two weapons, a Wiffle Ball bat or a Louisville Slugger, which would you choose? Of course you would choose the baseball bat because you intuitively know regardless of skill level if you have to kill you can go for the “homerun,” or you can “bunt” with it if you

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For example, suppose you spot someone while walking toward them on the street and for some reason they give you a bad vibe. For whatever reason, you are both in each other’s path and finding another route is not an option. The skill that we teach is to maintain your “Sphere of Influence” and give them space as you pass, but keep an eye on them in your peripheral vision. This forces them to suddenly have to turn toward you if they are going to attack, thus giving away their intention while providing you enough space/time to react. This is just a small example of a multitude of possibilities, but the point is without the proper understanding of awareness, you’re already in trouble. The reality is that even when you do everything “right” you still may have to fight because the bad guys still get a vote in a confrontation. It’s sort of like football, you can be the best college football team in the country, but you know the other team, from time-to-time, is still going to make their plays. It is what you do about it that counts. One thing I do want to point out is that we try to stay away from complex “escalation of force” models or “escalation ladders” as they are commonly referred to because they are too complex even for trained professionals in the short time frame you may have to decide and act. We try to keep it simple so that you can focus your attention outward rather than contemplate some multi-step process when you should be looking at your surroundings. While many of our students are people involved in law enforcement, corrections or have prior military experience, the majority do not. So for many people the notion of using

force that can seriously injure or possibly cause death can be a little disconcerting. I’ve run into a number of people over the years when inquiring about the art, wanting to learn how to fight but not injure people. They leave a little disappointed to find out that such skill only exists on TV. Even the act of applying controlling techniques often involves causing pain to the person you’re controlling, and there is no guarantee that you will not permanently injure them while applying such techniques. This brings me to another concept we commonly refer to amongst our students that we define and explain in greater detail in the second addition of our book Attack Proof, which is “Ruthless Intent.” Ruthless Intent is but an extension of your will, and is more mental than physical. Providing that you have trained your body in the principles of Guided Chaos, it is totally achievable for the average person. This is not to say that if you solely practice the principles you will be able to levitate a 300lb prison-trained monster, but that you’ll have a chance of surviving a brutal confrontation with one. In a real fight when your life is on the line, you must be able to strike to penetrate people with the moral and emotional will to cut through them. Your intention must be to destroy them, and you must set it in your mind beforehand that no matter what you intend to take them out.

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only want to injure. However, I don’t care how proficient you get with that Wiffle Ball bat, unless you get lucky and poke them in the eye you’re in serious trouble. If you posses some real “martial skill,” you can always deescalate your self-defense, but you can’t ramp it up if you’ve never developed it in the first place. Second, we all need to accept the simple fact that all violence is chaos and any attempt to impose a stylized, patterned, or sportive solution against it will meet with disaster. For most people conditioned by television or trained in a technique-based martial art, this unorthodoxy is a mind-blower, because people have a near-religious view regarding their particular martial art or previous training. So with that, the next step is to help them develop their awareness in the proper context or mental framework to help focus their mind on what is real, but not in a manner that makes them paranoid. I want to emphasize that last point because I have observed over the years that there are a number of self-defense training programs that end up creating a lot of paranoid people rather than training people to have a healthy focus on a given threat. In the military we have a saying: “If you try to be strong everywhere, you are strong nowhere.” The same is true for self-defense awareness: if everything is a threat then nothing is a threat. In doing so they are able to develop a set of simple mental triggers or what I call “invisible trip wires.” In other words, as long as a person that they’re sizing up doesn’t cross a certain threshold then there are no issues. However, if they do cross the Rubicon then you will unleash hell, holding nothing back.

How does Guided Chaos differ from other styles of selfdefense and martial arts? First, Guided Chaos has no forms or set and sanctified techniques, no prearranged specific responses to a given number of specific Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

attacks, no learn-by-the-numbers choreography to clog the mind and the reflexes with unnecessary strategic calculations. I think this quote from President Lincoln pretty much sums up the philosophical difference:

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“Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” - Abraham Lincoln No greater words could have been spoken when describing what the vast majority of people think about when discussing the martial arts. For many people, even in this day and age of instant media and 24 hour news cycles where the most horrific crimes can be beamed into our computers and TVs on a daily basis, there are still people who cannot or better yet refuse to see the difference between real martial arts training and nonsense. As with the famous quote above from Abraham Lincoln you need to think of it like this: Guided Chaos is like “the tree,” firmly rooted in principles based on reality and based on the laws of physics and human physiology. You can touch it and more importantly “feel it.” As you nurture the tree (i.e., you) with proper training the tree not only gets bigger, but stronger, the roots firmer-deeper, the branches more expansive, more intricate and resilient. Whereas most martial arts systems, when it comes to training for real fighting are like “the shadow of the tree” yes, you can see it, but in truth there is nothing to it. There is no depth, and there is nothing solid about it. It has a form of substance, but in reality it is “pure illusion.” And for those who have experienced the reality of violence when the world of illusion collides with the real world, reality is often a cruel teacher. Something else I want to point out is that too many people want to put Guided Chaos in a box. They look at it and try to compare it to “this” art or “that” fighting system. They do this because they want to put it into a context that conforms to their mental template. The truth is, because we focus on principles more than techniques, “it isn’t anything.” It’s what you need, when you need it, where you need it.

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During a real fight for your life, it is virtually impossible to deliver a stylized technique effectively; the speed, chaos, viciousness, confusion, and utter terror associated with a real fight prevent this. Your nervous system simply becomes overloaded with the flood of sensory stimuli. You can’t treat your brain like an electronic dictionary of self-defense responses and expect it to select the right “technique” to counter a “matching” attack under extreme duress and help you escape. It simply doesn’t work that way. If you’ve been programmed by training a specific response to a specific attack, your self-defense will fail if the attack changes in the slightest from the way you’ve trained. This is true whether you know one technique or one thousand. It has been proven through exhaustive experience, countless police and morgue reports, and testimonials by police officers with high-ranking belts from various styles whose classical training failed them when the moment of truth arrived. On top of this, a major flaw of even the most popular systems out there today is that they fail to take into account the fact that even if you develop devastating strikes, no one is going to just let you hit them! In real violence, attacks change moment-by-moment. Guided Chaos teaches you to sense these changes and adapt accordingly by providing you a modality of training to develop this from the very beginning. Some of the other components of Guided Chaos include Modified Native American Ground Fighting (which emphasizes mobility, evasion and ground-kicking, completely different from modern MMA) and Combat Boxing (so-called “dirty boxing” using illegal strikes, targets, and delivery systems). Finally, Perkins teaches gun, knife, and cane fighting that are similarly based on practical skills rooted in the same concepts and principles of bare-handed combat. If Guided Chaos has no forms, no patterns, and no techniques, then how do you train? Most martial arts focus on teaching tools or techniques instead of developing the skills and attributes that would make them work. For

example punches, kicks, elbows, knee strikes, and blocks, along with all of the variations of them are tools. If techniques are taught, the method of how to use them is usually based on contrived assumptions of how they can be applied. However, they are often taught under static conditions and not dynamically. The question is will you choose the right tool or matching technique when required? Can you deliver it effectively on the move against someone who is resisting? Alexander the Great said it best when he stated, “The most well-made tools are worthless in the hands of those who are unskilled in their use…” In other words, owning a hammer doesn’t make you a carpenter. Simply put, there is a level of skill and touch one must develop in order to use said techniques or tools effectively. In Guided Chaos, we try to make people into carpenters, metaphorically speaking, so that whatever tool or technique they pull out of their toolbox they can use with effectiveness. This is accomplished by training in what we call the dynamic principles of violent movement, which accelerate learning and adaptability. There are five basic principles of Guided Chaos: balance (equilibrium control), looseness (or pliability), sensitivity (kinesthetic touch) and spatial (hand-eye, sub-cortical vision), body unity (proprioception) and spontaneity (anything goes or adaptability). By focusing on principles in their proper context versus a specific technique, they eventually lead to total freedom of action and creativity. There are other “sub-principles” or attributes that are developed through various drills and exercises such as “Drop Hitting” combined with the simple deadly strikes of Close Quarters Combat developed by Fairbairn, Sykes, and Colonel Rex Applegate and proven in World War II. Memorized motion as in “if you do that then I’ll do this” is eliminated--as well as the delay it causes. Through proper training in the principles of Guided Chaos you are able to develop the subconscious attributes of total freedom of action and creativity. One of the most critical exercises toward developing this is “Contact Flow,” which is designed towards developing spontaneous adaptive movement.

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The truth is both understandings are limited in that they rely on the same things: muscular strength, or that you will always have a physical advantage in some way over another person. However, balance is about developing control over your equilibrium so that you are always able to maintain balance in an everchanging environment. Speed as it relates to fighting is based more on neural muscular coordination and timing (Body Unity). What are the benefits of Guided Chaos? Aside from helping you stay alive in a real confrontation, Guided Chaos provides you with a training modality to develop lethal fighting skills and attributes within the body you already have. Sure, there is some development that is required, but nothing like doing a thousand knuckle pushups or breaking bricks with your head. Rather, you develop the ability to remain “unavailable” to the strikes of your attacker while for him your strikes are “unavoidable.” You are able to move and strike without set up or stance from virtually any position with little or no thought. The phenomena of applying the principles and skills are sort of like driving a car. When driving your car you generally think of where you are going, along with probably listening to the radio and five other things you probably shouldn’t be doing while driving. When you are first learning to drive, your movements are choppy and you tend to over steer the car and depress the break and gas pedal too hard. Once you learn the actual “physical act” of driving a car, it becomes totally transparent and subconscious without thought. When you drive you don’t think about driving but where you are going, and as you maneuver the car when turning the wheel you don’t turn the wheel all the way, but just enough to negotiate the turn. This is probably the best description of what it is like when moving and striking regardless of speed when applying principles of Guided Chaos. The same is true within Guided Chaos: after some time, when performing Contact Flow you just “know” where the other per-

son’s arms and weapons are in relation to your body without thought. There are some people who, from applying Chi Sao or Sticky Hands, achieve this on some level. However, from my observation it is rare. For many people who have applied the skills in real life, and in some cases deadly confrontations, they describe the feeling as if they were watching other people almost move in slow motion, while they could feel their own body go into action with little to no thought as to what they were doing. Through the development of the principles of Guided Chaos, what appears like a simple natural movement on the surface has the crushing force of an ocean wave crashing against the rocks, of lightning splitting a tree down the center. All systems that attempt to structure the fight through forms or rigid structure are actually moving away from the natural, wild, free-flowing motion of what your body is capable of, and barely scratching the surface. It is in this natural motion where the deadliest applications of human movement are found. Through Guided Chaos training, you are able to harness these lethal qualities and focus them with little or no thought. Since the principles of Guided Chaos are rooted in physics and human physiology, they are universal and always present; they are available to anyone to develop, provided they’re willing to put the time in to work at them. The key path toward developing them is through training, but even this must be done with the proper mindset. Over time one begins to develop a natural, relaxed way of moving. Each movement is fluid and free flowing, so while it may not look pretty it is often more efficient and powerful than the flashy cool looking stuff. Cool will get you killed. This is because the natural movement that is emphasized within the art is seamless and fluid, whereas structured movement as taught in many arts is stiff, choppy and predictable. Through the development of the principles one is able to be whatever they need to be when they need to be it. As Miyamoto Musashi would say in “The Book of Five Rings,” natural movement comes from “The Void” of limitless possibilities. The Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

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Contact Flow (as opposed to Wing Chun’s “Chi Sao” which it is often compared to) is a total free flowing exercise which, as described in Attack Proof, is designed to train your mind and body on a subconscious level to develop the feel or “touch” necessary for dealing with another person’s motion. What Contact Flow is not is a set of preordained patterned movements that only serve to “lock” your mind into one idea or type of movement (brain lock). Nor is Contact Flow the slap happy standoff movement that some have tried to imitate. It is close-in movement with another human being--in many cases in their most intimate personal comfort zone. Unlike other arts that rely on touch for development, Guided Chaos’ Contact Flow has absolutely no prearranged movements or drills. It is an exercise that allows your mind and body to develop an infinite number of possibilities within various body positions throughout your movement while dealing with another human being. It is this lack of preordained movements and freedom of action during the exercise that enables people to develop the adaptive qualities necessary for dealing with the ever-changing nature of a real fight. This is accomplished because your brain is now free to adapt and create on the fly, rather than look for the patterned matching response to a given movement. This occurs once you gain some proficiency in Guided Chaos which, believe it or not, takes months instead of years as in most other arts. As stated above, not only do we train people in principles, we ensure they are trained in the proper context. Everyone’s body is different and since size, speed, and strength do matter in a real confrontation, it is important that people understand how the principles work with regards to real fighting to ensure they train properly. For example, there are some who think that balance is just about leg strength, so they focus on just making their legs stronger to improve their balance. Some think that speed is purely about moving faster than the other person, so they do speed drills from here to eternity.

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• Guided Chaos principles are grounded in physics and tried-and-true reality and not some intellectual exercise or contrived nonsense • Guided Chaos is not concerned with theoretical combat or quirky moves from other arts but only in that which works • Guided Chaos is not for sport or fooling around with your friends to show them how “cool” you are • Guided Chaos is not designed to play around with bogus macho challenges, but is exclusively designed for life and death combat which is why we also train with guns, knives, and other improvised weapons

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more natural and coordinated the movement, the more likely it will work. The more structured or unnatural the movement, the less likely it will work. Structured techniques place limitations on movement, making the techniques unsuitable in an environment where the movement dynamics are virtually limitless. The bottom line is you don’t know what you have to do until you have to do it. While this sounds like one of those Yogi Berra sayings, regardless of the fighting system, all arts that train skills in the absence of the proper mindset are kidding themselves. In a real fight you have to be able to naturally move, improvise, and adapt. You don’t know what you have to do from one moment to the next until you have to do it. If you knew what another person was going to do before they did it, then you would be clairvoyant and wouldn’t need anyone’s system of fighting. Do you teach Guided Chaos to your troops? The services have their own programs, but I do teach many military members and law enforcement officers privately. You mentioned ground fighting. Why don’t you use submission grappling like they have in MMA? Grappling is a sport. Like all sports there is a certain expectation that as you enter into contact with an opponent they are not literally attempting to murder you. The whole purpose

of competitive grappling is to win by getting the opponent to “submit” without killing them. Although it may feel that way, no one is trying to fight for their lives—you’re both voluntarily staying within a ring and rules. By contrast, in Guided Chaos, we use our feet like sledge hammers: sweeping, cutting, and breaking in order to create the ideal opportunity to regain our feet or keep the person off of us long enough to get to a side arm or knife. In real violence there are no rules and your primary mission is to survive and escape. If that means killing to survive, then you want to do it as ruthlessly and efficiently as possible. Not to mention that if you grapple one person, don’t be surprised when his friends show up to kick your brains in. Another thing I want to point out is in order to sport fight, one must be fit as well as possess some measure of physical talent to succeed. A champion boxer, MMA pro or Olympic caliber wrestler might be able to make such techniques work for them in a real fight. But unless you’re one of them you’re going to have to figure something else out, because the speed and chaotic dynamics are just too great for such limited techniques to work for the average person. I also like to point out that to think that you can be like them without training as hard as they do is an insult to their hard work and God-given talent. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share our art.

We offer group classes, seminars, and a full range of DVDs on the art, but the best place to start is with our books Attack Proof and How to Fight for Your Life available on our website Attackproof.com.

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Al Ridenhour is a self-defense instructor in the greater New York metropolitan area. He holds a Seventh-degree Black Belt Close Combat Karate and Guided Chaos and is the Co-Author of Attack Proof: The Ultimate Guide to Personal Protection, 2nd Edition (Human Kinetics, 2009) and the Co-Author of Fight for Your Life (June 2010). He has lectured at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York and has been featured several times in Black Belt Magazine and Blitz Magazine, and has appeared on NBC TV New York with Chuck Scarborough for in-flight anti-terrorist defensive techniques with bare hands and common objects as well as Channel 12 News Long Island. Al Ridenhour is a member of the International Combat Martial Arts Federation (ICMAF), Marine Corps Association, Marines Memorial Association, Military Officers Association of America and the Marine Corps League of Westchester, NY. Al Ridenhour is a graduate of Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant, Oklahoma, with a B.A. in criminal justice. He has over 20 years of service in the U.S. Marine Corps and is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Al will be teaching a 5-day Guided Chaos Boot Camp May 2-6, 2012 in New York. For more information, please go to this website: http://attackproof. com/ny-seminar.html.

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FEATURE THE DETECTIVES’ CORNER

THEFEATURE DETECTIVES’ CORNER

Personal Baggage A flight attendant has to clear the air, when some valuable baggage gets waylaid … Joan Howard knew she was in for a bumpy flight when she heard the two women arguing at the check-in counter, and one of them yelled, ‘Flight 823!’ That was her flight, the four-hour non-stop from Los Angeles to Chicago. Joan was one of the flight attendants. She sighed, and walked over closer to the airline’s check-in counter to hear what the argument was all about. She quickly learned from their raised voices that the two women were sisters, heading home after the funeral of an aunt. “You see,” the red-haired sister explained to Chloe, the customer service agent, “Auntie Louise left me her jewelry collection, and I will not allow it to be lost by you airlines people.” Both women had two bulging bags-onwheels apiece. “As I told you, ma’am,” Chloe said, “each passenger is allowed only one piece of carry-on luggage. It’s airline policy.” “But Auntie Louise’s collection is in two separate jewelry boxes—packed in these two separate bags!” The woman pointed at the stuffed luggage at her feet. “Why don’t you just give me one of your bags, Mollie, while you carry the other one on board, and I’ll check all of my luggage?” the blonde-haired sister suggested. “Oh no you don’t, Mavis!” Mollie exclaimed. “Auntie Louise left all of her jewelry to me. Because she knew I’d take proper care of it.”

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

“Sell it, you mean,” Mavis gritted. “Why, that’s-” “Ladies, please!” Chloe interrupted. She looked at Mollie. “Ma’am, why don’t you just transfer one of the jewelry boxes into the other bag, so you’ll have them both together in one piece of luggage—to take on the plane?” Mollie threw up her hands. “Oh, all right! If it’s ‘airline policy’.” The woman spent the next 10 minutes opening up and rearranging the contents of her stuffed luggage so that she could move a red jewelry box from one bag into the other bag, where a green jewelry box was already packed. In the meantime an exasperated line-up of fellow travelers stood around and watched. An hour later, Joan greeted the two women when they boarded the aircraft, each with one bulging bag-on-wheels. They were still bickering, the subject still Auntie Louise’s jewelry collection and the distribution of same. Joan was relieved to see, however, that due to a full aircraft, Mavis was seated in 9A, Mollie in 22D. So at least the two women couldn’t continue their argument during the flight. Other crew members helped them cram their overpacked bags into the overhead compartments. Two hours into the flight, most of the passengers were either dozing or watching a movie or listening to music in the darkened cabin. That’s when Joan and her colleagues enjoyed a 15-minute break behind the privacy of a curtain they drew across the galley. It was raining when they touched down in Chicago. Joan smiled at the passengers as

they filed off the aircraft. Even at Mavis, now wearing a pillbox hat perched atop her blonde hair, dragging her bulging bag behind her. Joan was helping the woman lift the wheels of her luggage over the door lip, when Mollie suddenly shrieked from the rear of the plane, “Stop her! She’s stolen my Auntie Louise’s jewelry!” The frantic woman pushed her way down the aisle full of people and confronted her sister. “You took my red jewelry box out of my bag—the box with the most valuable pieces in it!” She unzipped her own piece of luggage, revealing a noticeably vacant, square-shaped spot in the otherwise full bag. “That’s ridiculous!” Mavis retorted. “Assuming you didn’t just misplace the box, any one of the other passengers—or crew— could’ve taken Auntie Louise’s jewelry.” She turned to Joan. “Maybe you should let my sister search everybody?” Joan looked at the woman and calmly replied, “That won’t be necessary. You did take the jewelry box, as your sister said.” n

ABOUT THE AUTHOR LAIRD LONG: Long pounds out fiction in all genres. Big guy, sense of humor. Writing credits include: Blue Murder Magazine, Orchard Press Mysteries, Futures Mysterious Anthology Magazine, Plots With Guns, Hardboiled, Thriller UK, Shred of Evidence, Bullet, Albedo One, Baen’s Universe, Sniplits, 5 Minute Mystery, Woman’s World, and stories in the anthologies Amazing Heroes, The Mammoth Book of New Comic Fantasy, The Mammoth Book of Jacobean Whodunits, and The Mammoth Book of Perfect Crimes and Impossible Mysteries.

How did Joan know that Mavis took the jewelry box? Solution: Mavis’ bag was still bulging full as she left the aircraft, despite having taken a hat out— the pillbox hat she was wearing. She took the hat out of her bag to make room for the stolen red jewelry box. An empty hatbox will no doubt be found under her seat, where she discarded it.

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al polypropylene spillage tray can be provided when required. The rear of the unit has lighting to illuminate the work surface.

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All mechanisms in the head section are on the clean side of the filter, with the switches and electrical components being isolated from any contamination. The patented filter clamping mechanism allows for the filter to be easily installed and ensures an even seal at the filter face at all times to prevent bypass leakage. The main filter can be chosen from 14 different types of carbon, which include specialty media for vapors of organics, solvents, acids, mercury and formaldehyde. HEPA filters for particulate filtration are also available to suit your application needs. Typical applications for the Purair 5 include histology, powder weighing and sampling prep work. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

BOOK REVIEWS BOOK REVIEWS

By Eugene R Bertolli, OD; Clifford D Brown, OD MPH CAPT PHS; Dominic R Pannone, OD; and Thaddeus W Bartles, OD

Mr. Rhode Island:

A Harrowing Courtroom Thriller Reviewer: Richard Skaff Edition/Binding: Hard cover-326 pages Author’s name: Seifer, Marc j. with Stephen Rosati Price: $27.99 ISBN: 978-1-931261-05-0

BOOK REVIEWS

A Tale of Injustice: The Rosati’s Case

There are many questions regarding “justice” and the people allegedly tasked to carry it out, including the following: Per example, are human beings capable of being totally objective and just? Is it possible that alleged protectors of justice—such as law enforcement and judicial systems—could seek and defend the truth without bias or ulterior motives? Is it the protector who often ends up being the offender? Does law enforcement attract individuals with proclivity to sadism, power mongering, and corruption? Were the law enforcement and the judicial system intentionally designed to discriminate against ethnic and racial minorities? Does the desire for control and ultimate power constitute a natural human tendency and a need that festers deep into the human soul and psyche and is brought out by circumstances? “Mr. Rhode Island” seeks to answer some of these questions. This book is about a young man from a wealthy Italian family who lived an idyllic childhood and an exciting adulthood. All was supposedly rosy until he was arrested for a crime he did not commit. The true story of Stephen Rosati, who was caught in a trap, but his resilience and ability to survive, empowered him to remain alive in a corrupt prison system. It is also the story of his undaunted and loving parents who paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to a cornucopia of attorneys to save the life of their innocent son. The author’s skillful story-telling ability transforms his book from a heartwarming family tale to a courtroom drama filled with deceit, agony, and torment. It is a frightening account about the injustice of our justice system, as an innocent person could be indicted and convicted at any time to satisfy the self-serving needs and political agenda of the local police and other involved law enforcement agencies. The fact is that convictions reflect competence, and as a result this alleged competence impels the need for additional funding and positions, as well as resources

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

and promotions leading to a massive expansion of the law enforcement-judicial complex. The presumption of innocence becomes insignificant, because the main goal would be to obtain convictions leading to political accolades. According to Seifer, the prosecutors, judges, FBI officials, and even a U.S. attorney general involved in Rosati’s case became willingful dupes and co-conspirators to make their case. In addition, Seifer’s book delves deeply into the world of co-optation and conspiration between drug dealers who will say anything to reduce their jail sentences and cops who will do anything to get a conviction. Seifer also addresses that perjured testimony was ignored by a governor and a board of state Supreme Court justices, and the word of a known lying drug dealer is believed over iron-clad documents and the testimony of a half-dozen law-abiding citizens. Seifer has written a thorough investigative volume that covers the actual 1,500-page police log, including the audio transcripts of witness depositions and author interviews of law enforcement participants and subjects in the case. The author attempts to elucidate that this story is not only about mistaken identity or lost truth, but it is about a justice system that has gone awry. The author has collected and shared a tremendous amount of information regarding this case. He has thoroughly and eloquently documented every moment, every aspect, every note, and every judgment with a fluent writing style and illustrations to make his book an impeccable record and an untainted research about a legal case that went askew. The book is intriguing, captivating, and entertaining; it will keep the reader flabbergasted and yearning for more. If you are interested in forensics, this book makes an excellent case study, as well as an edifying read about the intricacies and the obscurities of the legal and judicial processes. Mr. Rhode Island will also leave the reader wondering whether our legal system is about truth, or about revenge and politics. n

BOOK REVIEWS

WWW.ACFEI.COM WWW.ACFEI.COM •• (800) (800) 592-1399 592-1399

BOOK Reviews Delayed Justice By Jack Branson and Mary Branson 285 pages; ISBN 978-1-61614-392-3; $26.00 In 1988, a 29-year-old preschool fitness teacher, Julie Love, left the Atlanta home of her fiance and was never again seen alive. A year later her skeletal remains were found in a trash dump.

who reinvestigate and revive cases that others once abandoned, justice might never be served and lack of closure forever torment the families and friends of crime victims. Delayed Justice documents the heroic efforts of some of the nation’s most prolific cold case detectives. In collaboration with authors Jack and Mary Branson, these professionals share their insights, skills, and resources, using their most compelling cold cases as illustrations.

These are just two examples of cold cases—crimes that stymie investigators and sometimes remain unsolved for many years. But for the painstaking, dedicated work of law enforcement professionals

Both true crime readers and fellow law enforcement professionals will find the stories and expert insights described in this book to be fascinating and instructive. n

Advanced Interviewing Techniques

techniques that enhance the interview process and increase the probability of a successful outcome. Material from this book is drawn from numerous sources, including formal interviewing models and decades of social and psychological research, as well as the authors’ over 50 years of combined law enforcement experience. Chapter topics include planning for the interview, the interview setting, props, assessing the interviewee, establishing dominance, rapport, Miranda warnings, detecting deception, nonverbal behavior, verbal clues to deception, the interviewing tool box, the anger cycle, breaking the impasse and other problems, and the end game. This book contains the latest verbal and nonverbal techniques to identify, with greater certainty, when interviewees are lying or concealing information. Written in a style law enforcement professionals prefer, the information is presented quickly, authoritatively, and to the point. While law enforcement, military, and intelligence personnel are the primary beneficiaries of this book, attorneys, human resource professionals, and anyone who makes inquiries of others on a daily basis will also find this book a useful resource. n

In 1995, the body of 42-year-old Gary Clark was discovered in a wooded lot about three miles south of Madisonville, Kentucky. He had been killed at another location by a single gunshot wound and his body dumped in the woods.

By John R. Schafer, Ph.D and Joe Navarro, M.A. 192 pages; ISBN 978-0-398-07943-7; $33.95 This updated and expanded new edition continues the theme of the first edition of emphasizing the interviewing skills that are critical for solving criminal investigations, obtaining information, and developing intelligence. This book is structured to assist law enforcement officers and security professionals to become better interviewers. The enhanced outline format of the text and the extended table of contents provide for easy reference, reading, and comprehension. The reader is quickly immersed into the dynamic “theater of the interview” exploring methods and

BOOK FILLREVIEWS IN TEXT

In both cases, the police initially found no leads or physical evidence.

The authors examine how cold case investigations differ from standard investigations and why cold case detectives sometimes have success where earlier investigators failed. They also discuss some of the pitfalls of reopening long-unsolved crimes, such as lost or compromised evidence and the difficulty of getting accurate information from witnesses who must rely on fading memories. Looking to the future, the authors discuss new technology that may someday allow investigators to drastically enhance surveillance videos and create a facial recognition database as accurate as DNA analysis and fingerprints.

Send us your books for review! Mail your book to: Editor; The Forensic Examiner® • 2750 E. Sunshine St. • Springfield, MO 65804 • Include a press release. Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

FALSELY ACCUSED BOOK REVIEWS

WWW.ACFEI.COM • (800) 592-1399

The Dixmoor Five:

Exonerated After Nearly 20 Years

FALSELY ACCUSED

Robert Taylor, who was released from prison in November after DNA evidence revealed he did not commit the crime, greets a reporter at his home in Harvey, Illinois, on November 10, 2011. (Phil Velasquez/ Chicago Tribune/MCT)

The rape and murder conviction of Robert Taylor, one of the men known as The Dixmoor Five, was vacated in November of 2011. “After spending almost two decades in jail for a rape and murder he didn’t commit, Robert Taylor [now 34] walked out of an Illinois prison a free man” (Tarren 2011). The reversal was brought to the forefront by a long struggle by the Innocence Project, the University of Chicago’s Exoneration Project, and the Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth. These groups all fought forcefully to convince Cook County prosecutors to reevaluate the case in light of the fact that a different individual, and convicted sex offender, was identified as the singlesource of the DNA taken from the victim. In 1991, middle school student Cateresa Matthews went missing from her grandmother’s house in Dixmoor, Ill, a suburb of Chicago. Her body was recovered three weeks after she was reported missing. Cook County investigators determined the victim had been raped and suffered a gunshot wound to the mouth (Tarren 2011). Investigators collected DNA evidence from the scene, which would prove to be the key to the exoneration of the five young men—each of whom either plead guilty or were convicted of the monstrous crime. The Dixmoor Five, as they were dubbed by the press at the time of the tragic crime, consisted of James Harden, Jonathan Barr, Robert Taylor, Robert Lee Veal, and Shainne Sharp. The case had gone cold, but “nearly a year after the murder, the Illinois State Police interrogated Veal, a 15-year-old. After five hours in police custody, Veal signed a written statement implicating himself, Taylor, 15; Barr, 15; Harden, 17, and Sharp, 17.” Shortly after, Taylor also signed a written confession, and after 21 hours in custody, Sharp did the same (Chicago News 2011). According to the Chicago News, “In June 1994, before any of the teenagers were tried, the Illinois State Police crime lab identified a lone male DNA profile from sperm recovered from the victim’s body. Even though all five defendants were excluded as the source of the semen, the prosecution pushed forward, rather than seeking the source of the semen recovered from this young victim.” Veal and Sharp plead guilty and testified against the three other boys in exchange for a reduced 20-year sentence. They have both been released after serving approximately 10 years each. Meanwhile, their testimony was a critical factor leading to the convictions of Taylor, Harden, and Barr, all of whom remained incarcerated until Taylor’s release last November. Plans are

THE FORENSIC EXAMINER® Spring 2011

being made to vacate the sentences of the remaining four men, which will lead to the release of Barr and Harden. The Dixmoor Five case is just one of dozens of wrongful conviction cases in Illinois that has been made public in recent years. All of these teens knew each other from school, including the victim. Defense attorneys claim the teens who confessed were questioned relentlessly, and at least one suspect was told that he could see his parents if he signed the confession (Tarren 2011). Last year, Veal informed his defense lawyers that he repeatedly told police he was not involved in the murder but signed the confession believing that it contained the details of his denials. Veal has been diagnosed with severe learning disabilities, according to his attorney. (Grimm, Mills 2011). One month before Taylor’s release, a new round of DNA evidence testing was completed. When the profile was entered into the Illinois State database, it matched Willie Randolph, a 33-year-old man at the time of the 1991 rape and murder. In ’91, Randolph had already been convicted of a sexual assault and was paroled near the victim’s home. Still, State prosecutors argued against new trials for the men and stated in court that the DNA match to the convicted rapist did not amount to new evidence because the men were excluded by DNA at the trial (Grimm, Mills 2011). Craig Cooley, a staff attorney with the Innocence Project, stated, “After months of offering up disingenuous arguments to delay justice, we’re relieved the State’s Attorney’s Office has finally seen the light. This case is a classic example of tunnel vision. [All these] facts should have sent up a red flag 20 years ago” (Chicago News 2011). Randolph is currently under investigation for the 1991 rape and murder of the young girl. References Chicago News. Adapted from Adapted from a joint news release by the University of Chicago’s Exoneration Project, the Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth, and the Innocence Project. Law School’s Exoneration Project helps free wrongly convicted man. Retrived December 24, 2011, from http://news.uchicago.edu/article/2011/11/04/ law-school039s-exoneration-project-helps-free-wrongly-convicted-man. Mills, S., Grimm, A. Convictions vacated in ’91 rape, slaying of Dixmoor girl. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 28, 2011, from http://articles.chicagotribune. com/2011-11-03/news/chi-prosecutors-vacate-convictions-in-91-rape-slaying-ofdixmoor-girl-20111103_1_dna-tests-cateresa-matthews-murder-convictions. Tareen, Sophia. Convictions Vacated Against 3 In 1991 Dixmoor Rape, Murder. Associated Press Retrieved December 28, 2011, from http://www.huffingtonpost. com/2011/11/03/convictions-vacated-again_0_n_1074763.html.

CE ARTICLE 1: (Pages 32–39)

Mathematical and Statistical Analysis of Bloodstain Pattern Evidence Contuing Education credits are available to members only. For more information on becoming a member, call (800) 423-9737 and reference this article.

TO RECEIVE CE CREDIT FOR THIS ARTICLE In order to receive 1 CE credit, each participant is required to 1. Read the continuing education article. 2. Complete the exam by circling the chosen answer for each question. Complete the evaluation form. 3. Mail or fax the completed form, along with the $15 payment for each CE exam taken to: ACFEI, 2750 East Sunshine, Springfield, MO 65804. Or Fax to: 417-881-4702. Or go online to www.acfei.com and take the test for FREE. For each exam passed with a grade of 70% or above, a certificate of completion for 1 continuing education credit will be mailed. Please allow at least 2 weeks to receive your certificate. The participants who do not pass the exam are notified and will have a second opportunity to complete the exam. Any questions, grievances or comments can be directed to the Registrar at (800) 4239737, fax (417) 881-4702, or e-mail: registrar@acfei. com. Continuing education credits for participation in this activity may not apply toward license renewal in all states. It is the responsibility of each participant to verify the requirements of his/her state licensing board(s). Continuing education activities printed in the journals will not be issued any refund. If you require special accommodations to participate in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, please contact the Registrar at (800) 423-9737. CE ACCREDITATIONS FOR THIS ARTICLE This article is approved by the following for 1 continuing education credits: (ACFEI) The American College of Forensic Examiners International provides this continuing education credit for Diplomates and certified members, whom we recommend obtain 15 credits per year to maintain their status. KEYWORDS: bloodstains, evidence, analysis, errors, bloodstain patterns, manual, field book, hypothesis testing, fallacies TARGET AUDIENCE: forensic scientists, drime scene investigators, students, lawyers, police officers, investigators, consultants, educators PROGRAM LEVEL: Basic DISCLOSURE: The authors have nothing to disclose. PREREQUISITES: None

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After studying this article, participants should be better able to do the following: 1. Explain the mathematical techniques involved in bloodstain pattern analysis 2. Articulate the application of pattern recognition and anecdotal information in bloodstain pattern analysis and certainty 3. Define the properties of blood that facilitate bloodstain analysis predictive capacities 4. Provide an account of the information that can be gotten from bloodstains Abstract In the last several decades, advances in scientific methods have resulted in more precise and accurate techniques for analyzing bloodstain patterns. One important development is the use of probability and statistics to evaluate trace evidence that is collected, processed, and presented in criminal trials. Trace evidence, particularly bloodstains, can tell bloodstain pattern analysts what, when, where, and how a crime was committed. Bloodstain pattern analysts rely on mathematics to help them determine the movement and direction of persons or objects during bloodshed. Using triangulation, analysts can determine the position of persons or objects during bloodshed, movement of persons or objects after bloodshed, mechanisms or objects used to create specific patterns, direction a blood source is traveling at time of deposition, area of origin, minimum number of impacts occurring at time of incident, and sequence of events. Bloodstain pattern analysts rely on probability and statistics to determine the likelihood that a particular event was a deliberate criminal act and not just a random event. This paper will attempt to clarify the role forensic statistics play in crime scene analysis. POST CE TEST QUESTIONS (Answer the following questions after reading the article) tissue involv1. Blood is a specialized form of ing multiple cells suspended in plasma. a. connective tissue b. liquid that does not contain cells c. material that contains only red blood cells d. fluid that that conforms to Newtonian physics

c. non-Newtonian fluid d. gaseous material 3. Bloodstain patterns can provide information that can lead to the determination of the of an actor within a crime scene. a. gender b. weight c. race d. position 4. If a bloodstain on a vertical wall measure 3 mm wide and 6 m long, it is the case that the blood drop that caused the stain impacted the wall at approximately a . a. 45 degree angle b. 30 degree angle c. 90 degree angle d. 60 degree angle 5. A basic rule in using significant numbers when measuring a bloodstain is that one can only measure to the value of the nearest of the measuring instrument. a. ¼ division of the nearest gradation marks b. smallest value of the nearest gradation mark c. nearest gradation mark d. millimeter 6. Analyst was found to be pronouncing the angle of impact prior to measuring the length and width of the bloodstains. The measurements of the analyst always turned out to reflect an angle of impact identical to what he had pronounced without measuring. A peer review fund that the angles of impact were actual significantly different than those proclaimed by the analysts. This behavior by the analyst is an example of possible . a. cognitive biases b. slippery slope fallacious thinking c. errors in precision and accuracy of instrumentation d. compound self promotion 7. An analyst determining the origin of a bloodstain pattern produced as result of forward gunshot blood spatter looks for an area of with the knowledge that the technique has inherent error for determining the origin of the blood. a. contact b. concentration and convergence c. dispersion d. multiplicity

2. When blood leaves the body, it behaves like a fluid. a. non-viscous chaotic material b. Newtonian fluid

EVALUATION:

ATTENTION ACFEI MEMBERS: Journal-Learning CEs are FREE when taken online. Visit www.acfei.com.

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If you require special accommodations to participate in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, please contact the Registrar at (800) 592-1399.

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1. Information was relevant and applicable. ............................................................................. 1 2 3 4 5 2. Learning objective 1 was met................................................................................................ 1 2 3 4 5 3. Learning objective 2 was met................................................................................................ 1 2 3 4 5 4. Learning objective 3 was met................................................................................................ 1 2 3 4 5 5. You were satisfied with the article......................................................................................... 1 2 3 4 5 6. ADA instructions were adequate........................................................................................... 1 2 3 4 5 7. The author’s knowledge, expertise, and clarity were appropriate......................................... 1 2 3 4 5 8. Article was fair, balanced, and free of commercial bias. ........................................................ 1 2 3 4 5 9. The article was appropriate to your education, experience, and licensure level................... 1 2 3 4 5 10. Instructional materials were useful....................................................................................... 1 2 3 4 5

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Spring 2011 THE FORENSIC EXAMINER®

CE ARTICLE 2: (Pages 32–43)

The Forensic Psychology of Olfaction Evidence Continuing Education credits are available to members only. For more information on becoming a member, call (800) 423-9737 and reference this article.

CE ACCREDITATIONS FOR THIS ARTICLE This article is approved by the following for 1.5 continuing education credits: (ACFEI) The American College of Forensic Examiners International provides this continuing education credit for Diplomates and certified members, whom we recommend obtain 15 credits per year to maintain their status. KEYWORDS: dog scent lineups, differential psychology, olfaction, witness testimony, receptors TARGET AUDIENCE: Nurses and psychologists PROGRAM LEVEL: Basic DISCLOSURE: The authors have nothing to disclose. PREREQUISITES: None

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After studying this article, participants should be better able to do the following: 1. Have the ability to provide a structure or framework to use olfaction data as reliable evidence in an operational setting. 2. Examine the individual differences in psychophysical and measurement assumptions under which olfaction data are being analyzed and reported, and to evaluate their role in

building a credible solution to a forensic investigation. 3. Make a conscious effort to help witnesses organize the olfactory information presented to them and to perceive relationships based on that information. 4. Increase olfaction related behavior when in a situation, as measured by observation and data collection and identify olfaction responses when presented with alternatives, as measured by data collection. 5. Discuss the major structures of the olfactory system.

Abstract This review centers on sensation and perception literature regarding olfaction as relevant to forensic examination from the perspective of rules of evidence, differential psychology, and psychophysics. Many advances have been made in the past fifty years in the study of olfaction, probably more so than for any of the other senses. There is reliable agreement among experts on the definition, anatomy, and physiology of the olfaction sense and on how odors are learned and associated with events by conditioning. Because the olfactory bulb is part of the brain’s limbic system, an area closely associated with memory and feeling, a smell can call up conditioned responses instantaneously. The reliability and validity of olfaction has been underutilized as evidence. When used as part of a Bayesian analysis, olfaction can provide significant confirming evidence. Presented in a court as testimony, olfaction evidence can withstand the same rules of evidence and cross-examination procedures as other parts of witness reports.

POST CE TEST QUESTIONS (Answer the following questions after reading the article) 1. Which is NOT true about the procedures used to collect olfaction evidence? a. The procedures are public. b. The definitions are precise. c. Data collection is subjective. d. The findings are replicable. 2. Which of the following items is true about the olfactory system based on our current knowledge of olfaction? a. The mammalian sense of smell represents one of the simplest physiological systems in the body. b. Not all living organisms can detect chemical substances in their environment. c. Olfaction is responsive to chemical stimuli but also temperature and pain. d. Histocompatibility complex DHC and volatile steroids contribute to human body odor. 3. Which of the following items is NOT true based on the research that bears on our current knowledge of olfaction? a. The olfactory system is the last of our sensory systems that has been deciphered primarily using molecular techniques. b. Axel and Buck discovered a large gene family, comprised of some 1,000 different genes that give rise to an equivalent number of olfactory receptor types. c. The olfactory receptors are located on the olfactory receptor cells, which occupy a small area in the upper part of the nasal epithelium and detect the inhaled odorant molecules.

EVALUATION:

d. Each olfactory receptor cell possesses only one type of odorant receptor, and each receptor can detect a limited number of odorant substances. 4. Which of the following items is true about scents? a. Not everything with a scent is giving off molecules. b. A piece of steel has no smell because steel is a volatile solid. c. When you smell fruits or flowers, what you smell are organic molecule esters evaporating from the fruit or flower. d. Esters cannot be artificially produced. 5. Which of the following items is true regarding neurology related to olfaction? a. The olfactory bulb in the brain sorts sensation into perception and is part of the limbic system. b. The limbic system includes the amygdala, which is responsible for associative learning. c. The limbic system includes the hippocampus, which is responsible for processing emotion. d. About 7% of odors are said to stimulate the trigeminal nerve. 6. Which of the following items is true about olfaction? a. The study of pheromones is of special interest as it is assumed they always elicit a specific conditioned response. b. Sinus disease, growths in the nasal passage, viral infections, and head trauma do not affect the ability to smell. c. Smell can call up memories and powerful conditioned responses almost instantaneously. d. Pheromones influence behavior only when an animal is conscious of pheromone detection. 7. Which of the following items is NOT true based on our current knowledge of olfaction experiences? a. If the olfaction experience was during a traumatic episode as captured in memory it will have a cognitive and an affective component. b. The affective component of a traumatic episode, which is associated with the cognitive, damages cell assemblies. c. The traumatic episode reverberates in the cell-assemblies and each time it is relived more associations are added to it. d. Unless a traumatic episode is expressed, it grows in neural associations by developing inhibitory tendencies to prevent its expression. 8. Which of the following is true about olfactory tests? a. Olfactory tests are of two general types: Physical testing or Clinical Electrophysiological testing. b. The tests differentiate between central and peripheral causes. c. Physical testing includes Threshold tests, Identification tests, and Discrimination tests. d. Smell tests are now being used to detect many diseases, such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and schizophrenia. 9. Which of the following items is true based on our current knowledge on the canine team Canis familiaris and handler? a. The dog (Canis familiaris) and its handler are probably the most widely used, broadly sensitive, accurate, fast, mobile, flexible, and durable system available for many olfactory forensic assignments. b. Wind, cloud cover, temperature, terrain, amount of daylight, and amount of territory to cover do not affect the success of a canine team in following a scent. c. The odor discrimination skills of dogs are less than the abilities of laboratory machines for detection of mines. d. The Probability of Detection (POD) is about 58 % under ideal conditions for search and rescue. ATTENTION ACFEI MEMBERS: Journal-Learning CEs are FREE when taken online. Visit www.acfei.com.

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What’s on Our Bookshelf?

Last Summer with Oscar:

Culture Notes:

Getting Past Self-Absorption to Find Love By Larry A. Bugen, Ph.D.

An Adventurous True Story of Love and Courage By Jan Schwartz, Ph.D.

Essays on Sane Living By Irene Rosenberg Javors

Sometimes our love for others becomes blurred by a preoccupation with oneself. Carried too far, this self-absorption jeopardizes the love bonds we need to survive. Bugen critiques the pervasive narcissism of our contemporary culture, reveals the true nature of love, and presents Six Gifts that ensure its survival among the fittest. Paperback. 9780982212134 | 307 pages | $19.95

A heart felt, true story of a nine-year-old golden retriever’s response to cancer. A book filled with anecdotes that inspire love and a true belief in the potential of humanity. Hardcover. 9780983260127 | 196 pages | $19.95 Kindle ebook | $9.99

Have we all lost our minds? It’s a question we have all asked ourselves as we ponder such modern occurrences as “reality” TV, road rage, and terrorism. Javors’ collection of her columns from the Annals of the American Psychotherapy Association offers prescriptions for “sane living” in the face of life’s challenges. Paperback. 978098221141 | 144 pages | $14.95

Stuck on Me Missing You...

Who, When, Where, What, and Why comes last

Julia a. Mayo, PH.D.

Psychological Autopsy of Elvis Presley

In the Practice of Health Care

Mayo’s Way

The Search for Satisfaction By Ronald Hixson

Who, When, Where, What, and Why Comes Last By Julia A. Mayo, Ph.D.

Ronan examines the facts of Elvis Presley to reveal the truths of the legendary rocker’s life—and the root causes of his death. It is pragmatic, highly logical, exhaustively researched and well worth your attention. Hardcover. 9780983260103 | 349 pages | $24.95

Hixson, a psychotherapist, provides applicable insight into all aspects of practice management, from economics to ethics. Paperback. 9780983260110 | 190 pages | $14.95

Julia A. Mayo, Ph.D., is a Master Therapist and Diplomate of the American Psychotherapy Association. Her book of remedies and recipes for life are brought together by her own personal experiences as a wife, mother, and therapist. Dr. Mayo believes strongly in full pursuit of life, liberty, and laughter. Paperback. 9780983260134 | 112 pages | $12.99

By William J. Ronan

High-quality book designs at affordable publishing costs

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