Crime Scene Investigation You walk into the home of Sue Ellen Miller, the victim. Sue Ellen is a middle-aged, unmarried woman who lives alone. She has very long, black hair and is short and petite. She has no pets, children, or roommates. She worked as a museum curator at the local museum.

You notice a pool of blood next to her body on the pink rug. The blood looks almost dry, as if it had been sitting there for several hours. You cannot identify any wounds where the blood may be coming from without moving the body.

Her body is splayed out in the middle of the living room floor. She is lying on her back, with her arms and legs bent at awkward angles.

All the lights are off in the room; the TV is still on, however the screen is simply black, no picture or menu is showing.

As you carefully walk around her body, you notice a thin trail of dirt leading from the back door to her body. You make a mental note to check the yard for soil. You also notice broken glass near her left leg and fresh flowers laying on the floor. There is a note on the table indicating that the flowers were a gift. The card is signed, “Your Loving Boyfriend, Ben.”

You get closer to the body and notice several short, brown hairs stuck to her pants.

On the coffee table, there is a pile of museum comment cards that appear to be only partially read through. The card on the top of the pile catches your eye, as it has large, angry doodles decorating the page. Written at the bottom of the page, in big letters is, “I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE ME ALONE!”. You note that the card was filled out by a Michael Wilcox. You write down his name and wonder if it was his real name.

Next to the cards on the table is a pizza delivery box, slightly open, but with an untouched pizza inside. The receipt next to the box shows that the pizza was delivered yesterday evening at 5:15pm. Sue Ellen’s signature is on the receipt.

On the sharp corner of the table, there is a bloodstain. It looks dry and is the only apparent bloodstain aside from the puddle next to the body.

You move away from the body and begin to look around the room. You notice a bloody fingerprint near the back door on the doorframe. You also notice that the lock on the door appears to have been tampered with.

You head outside and examine the backyard. There is a tall wooden fence, a well-tended rose garden with a water fountain in the center, and freshly cut grass.

You examine the garden and spot another bloody fingerprint on the water fountain and a footprint in the garden soil near the fence. Upon closer inspection of the fence, you find one medium length blonde hair caught between the wooden planks.

You return to the house and notice a man has arrived on the scene. He identifies himself as Ben, the boyfriend. He explains that he was on a flight back from a business trip in DC and just arrived home this morning. He claims to have the plane ticket stub at home to prove it.

Moments later, a female neighbor arrives on the scene and claims to have seen a tall, blonde man or teen loitering in the garden yesterday evening when she was walking her dog. She did not speak to the man, but he was wearing a black jacket and black jeans.

You get your Investigative Journal out and start taking notes to make a plan for your investigation.

PART I

Investigation Lab Journal: The Basics

(Notes, rather than full sentences, are fine)

What do you see when you walk on the scene? What are your observations?

What questions do you have based on what you observe?

What physical evidence will you attempt to collect from the scene? Is there evidence to collect that is NOT at the scene? If so, what?

What tools will you need to collect the physical evidence?

What tools or scientific processes will you use to analyze the evidence collected?

Who are some possible witnesses/suspects to interview?

What do you need to know more about in order to make sense of this scene? (This is what you will research online or find out from witnesses/suspects)

Reflection Questions:

Was the information that you used to research your investigation reliable? How do you know?

Summarize your final scientific theory regarding this case based on your investigation. Support your theory with evidence from your investigation.

Why are scientific theories often so powerful?