2021 National Forensic Science Week Murder Mystery Event

Following the hard work of the forensics laboratory, detectives received additional information regarding the evidence in the case. John Doe’s personal firearm was reportedly a 9mm, just like the cartridge case recovered from the scene and the projectile recovered from the autopsy. John was known the keep the firearm in the bedside table, near where the holster was found. Although no murder weapon was recovered from the scene, the combination of the firearms evidence and the location of the empty gun holster led detectives to believe that the victim may have been shot with his own weapon. They also believed the perpetrator mostly likely left the scene with the weapon.

The bloody fingerprint near the bedroom door was identified to Trey Myers. However, during his initial interview, Trey stated that he ran towards John’s body without thinking and touched the victim. After realizing John was dead, Trey staggered backwards in shock and touched the wall for support before collapsing on the floor and calling emergency services. Detectives determined that this was a reasonable explanation for his print in the bedroom, since he was the one who found the victim.

A fingerprint belonging to the roommate, Kerry Powers, was found on the beer bottle recovered from the victim’s bedside table, next to the holster. When questioned by detectives, Kerry stated that he was the last person to restock the beer in their shared home, so it was not surprising for his fingerprints to be found on objects in the home that he and the decedent both had access to. Without additional evidence, detectives determined the roommate’s fingerprint did not have much probative value.

A fingerprint belonging to Kate Bishop was found on a holster inside the bedroom. This holster was similar to the one that housed John Doe’s personal firearm, which was missing from the residence, and was normally stored in his bedside table. Kate’s DNA was also found under John’s fingernails indicating a possible recent close encounter between the two. This was slightly corroborated by the state of the bed and John’s lack of clothing.

Through a search warrant on John’s phone, detectives found several missed calls from Trey in the days leading up to when the decedent’s body was discovered. They also found texts between John and Kate on February 19, 2017, in which Kate asked to come over to John’s residence to reconcile. However, in Kate’s first interview, she said she had not spoken to John since he told her Trey was going in her place on their hiking trip, which was around Valentine’s Day.

As a result of the fingerprint and DNA evidence along with the inconsistency in her last statement, Kate was brought in for additional questioning. When presented with the evidence, Kate retracted her story and admitted to going over to John’s house on the 19th. However, she claimed that she left the decedent’s house a little past midnight on the morning of the 20th after another lovers’ quarrel. She claimed that the victim was still alive when she left.

When detectives asked Kate if she knew that the victim owned a firearm, Kate said, “Everyone knew he kept one by the bed for security reasons.” Detectives then asked if she knew what kind of gun John owned. Kate responded, “I think it was some type of handgun, but I don’t know much about guns.” When detectives followed up with if she saw the weapon while she was there or if she knew what happened to it, she said, “No.” However, when asked how her print got on the holster, she broke down in tears and asked for a lawyer.