TRACE EVIDENCE: The Hunt for the I-5 Serial Killer by Bruce Henderson Read Free Book Online Page A

cut open the throat and removed the neck organs as a block, then carefully dissected them in layers.
    “There are several half-inch to three-quarter-inch glistening purple-black hemorrhages in the strap musculature in the supraclavicular area,” he droned on with both precision and detachment. “There is also hemorrhage in the strap musculature over the left lower thyroid area. There are also multiple glistening purple-black hemorrhages in the retro-esophageal area.”
    When he had finished, the pathologist pulled off his rubber gloves and turned to the sink. “Your cause of death is asphyxia with evidence of ligature strangulation,” he told the detectives as he washed. He sounded more conversational now that the tape recorder was off. “I didn’t find any gross signs of rape. No tears or bruising in the vagina or anus.”
    “What’s your opinion on the time of death?” Rosenquist wanted to know. That was, he knew, one of the weakest areas of forensic medicine because there are so many variables. The rule of thumb was to figure a drop in the body’s normal temperature of about 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit per hour after death. That could vary, however, depending on the surrounding environment. In this case, the body had been partly submerged in water, which could have drawn out the warmth much quicker.
    “I’d estimate she died sometime between late last night and early this A.M. ,” said the pathologist.
    That was as close as they would get.
    B ERTOCCHINI and Rosenquistinterviewed Stephanie’s roommate at 8:30 P.M. that night at the faded-brown duplex with a postage-stamp front lawn that the two young women shared on Centennial Way.
    At the time, the detectives were still waiting on positive identification of the body. They did, however, tellPatty Burrier that Stephanie’s car had been found on I-5 south of Sacramento, and also that they had strong reason to believe that her body had been found at another location some distance away.
    “We think she got lost,” Rosenquist explained, “and was abducted, then murdered.”
    The color drained from Patty’s face.
    “I know you’ve already beeninterviewed at length about what happened last night,” Bertocchini said sympathetically, “but please start from the beginning.”
    Although she looked shaken and exhausted, Patty recounted the details of the previous evening.
    When she was finished, Bertocchini asked if Stephanie was carrying a purse when Patty last saw her.
    “I don’t remember. But I know she always took it whenever she went out.”
    Bertocchini asked Patty to describe what Stephanie had been wearing when she had last seen her. It all checked out with what Jane Doe had been wearing, with the exception of the missing top.
    “You say it was a blue top,” the detective said. “Can you give me some more detail?”
    “It’s a sleeveless tank top with a flower design on front,” she said, pointing to just below her neckline. “With lacy edges.”
    “Did Stephanie have a current boyfriend?”
    “She doesn’t have a steady boyfriend,” said Patty, who seemed unwilling or unable to talk about her roommate in the past tense. “She used to go with a guy namedRandy. I have his phone number if you want.”
    Bertocchini took the number.
    “How long did they date?” he asked.
    “About a year and a half. They lived together a few months before Stephanie and I got this place.”
    “They were still on friendly terms?”
    “Oh, yes. They’re friendly.”
    The phone rang and Patty answered it.
    “It’s for you guys.”
    Rosenquist went to the phone. After a brief conversation, he hung up and said solemnly, “The prints match.”
    Bertocchini nodded, and closed his notebook. They would need to notify the parents right away.
    “Before we go,” Bertocchini said, “I want to ask you something, Patty. What do you think Stephanie would have done if she had been confronted by a stranger or found herself in a dangerous situation?”
    Patty’s brow