Could more have been done to preserve a potential crime scene?

[slartibartfast]

Slarti you are not nit picking again are you?


Maybe you dont know, cos you haven't been here that long, but continual unecessary demands on me to prove stuff, which everyone knew was true, caused massive reading for me.  The tiny font has damaged my eyesight.

I now rarely refer to the files but rely on my memory.  I have a mass of stuff stored there.  Because of possibly not remembering properly, I prefer to not state things as fact unless I am totally sure.

I know it is not as good, but I aint ruining my eyesight any more.  Hope you understand.

Not good enough, you make statements all the time with 'I think', 'If I remember', 'Good bet' and expect and hope that casual readers will take it as fact then ask for sympathy for your failing eyesight.

If you don't want to ruin your eyesight use a larger font or stop being online as much.

[Jean-Pierre]

Preservation of the crime scene is the responsibility of the police - they are the once with the training and competence to do so.  To expect victims, bystanders or others to do this job is not realistic.

[Brietta]

Preservation of the crime scene is the responsibility of the police - they are the once with the training and competence to do so.  To expect victims, bystanders or others to do this job is not realistic.

Most sensible people realise that, Jean-Pierre, even professionals must sometimes disturb a crime scene either through necessity or before it is realised that it is a crime scene.

The criticism the civilians have suffered because the police failed to secure the area would defy belief in any case other than Madeleine McCanns.

As soon as professionals came on scene the responsibility to preserve the scene was theirs from that time onwards.

[faithlilly]

Most sensible people realise that, Jean-Pierre, even professionals must sometimes disturb a crime scene either through necessity or before it is realised that it is a crime scene.

The criticism the civilians have suffered because the police failed to secure the area would defy belief in any case other than Madeleine McCanns.

As soon as professionals came on scene the responsibility to preserve the scene was theirs from that time onwards.

Absolutely Brietta but it seems by the time the GNR arrived the 'scene' was already fatally compromised with much of the forensic evidence destroyed.

[Brietta]

Absolutely Brietta but it seems by the time the GNR arrived the 'scene' was already fatally compromised with much of the forensic evidence destroyed.

Hmmm ... not quite clear on precisely what evidence you think had been fatally compromised, it would be helpful if you could elucidate.

I know about the dog hairs and the ash dropped from the cigarettes the officers were smoking.

I also know that technicians were able to take samples which as a result of their inexperience were useless for analysis ... Dr Amaral excusing their ineptitude by saying they were a small force who lacked the resources for this.
Wonder what level of destruction was wrought on forensics which might have been of use if harvested properly?

I wonder if you can confirm that people and translators were brought into 5a to have statements taken.

[faithlilly]

Hmmm ... not quite clear on precisely what evidence you think had been fatally compromised, it would be helpful if you could elucidate.

I know about the dog hairs and the ash dropped from the cigarettes the officers were smoking.

I also know that technicians were able to take samples which as a result of their inexperience were useless for analysis ... Dr Amaral excusing their ineptitude by saying they were a small force who lacked the resources for this.
Wonder what level of destruction was wrought on forensics which might have been of use if harvested properly?

I wonder if you can confirm that people and translators were brought into 5a to have statements taken.

Unfortunately because of the compromised state of the apartment we will never know what the forensic team may or may not have found. That is the bald truth.

[Jean-Pierre]

Squarely down to the Portuguese authorities.

[Alfred R Jones]

Don't take Brietta's word for it, take the word of a detective with Surrey Police's Paedophile Unit:



"It was, without doubt, the worst preserved crime scene I have ever seen. In all, I spent a week in Praia da Luz as an analyst employed by broadcasters because of my years of experience as a detective with Surrey Police's paedophile unit".

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-457120/It-doubt-worst-preserved-crime-scene-Ive-seen.html#ixzz37RtYgaXy
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

[ferryman]

Squarely down to the Portuguese authorities.

Either down to the Portuguese authorities or no one to blame.

The McCanns and their friends, firmly in "find Madeleine" mode rather than "preserve a crime scene" mode naturally searched franticly and without heed to thoughts of 'preserving a crime scene' for a missing little girl.

I suspect the vast majority of adults without police training in identical circumstances would have done the same.

Perhaps, by the time the GNR arrived, it was too late to think about those things.

Dunno!

It was unpardonable to re-let the apartment before the first enquiry was shelved ...

[faithlilly]

Don't take Brietta's word for it, take the word of a detective with Surrey Police's Paedophile Unit:



"It was, without doubt, the worst preserved crime scene I have ever seen. In all, I spent a week in Praia da Luz as an analyst employed by broadcasters because of my years of experience as a detective with Surrey Police's paedophile unit".

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-457120/It-doubt-worst-preserved-crime-scene-Ive-seen.html#ixzz37RtYgaXy
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Heaven preserve us from another Mail article and ex-policeman who makes his money writing to whatever angle the newspaper wants that week.

Now if you have any official confirmation of Brietta's claim written after the files were released I'm all ears.

[faithlilly]

Either down to the Portuguese authorities or no one to blame.

The McCanns and their friends, firmly in "find Madeleine" mode rather than "preserve a crime scene" mode naturally searched franticly and without heed to thoughts of 'preserving a crime scene' for a missing little girl.

I suspect the vast majority of adults without police training in identical circumstances would have done the same.

Perhaps, by the time the GNR arrived, it was too late to think about those things.

Dunno!

It was unpardonable to re-let the apartment before the first enquiry was shelved ...

I'm not claiming it wasn't understandable that the McCanns acted in the way they did but simply that it compromised the crime scene.

[ferryman]

I'm not claiming it wasn't understandable that the McCanns acted in the way they did but simply that it compromised the crime scene.

I would argue that the point of principal relevance is that the apartment was re-let before the first enquiry was shelved.

That demonstrates how little heed the Portuguese paid to the importance of preserving a crime scene.

[faithlilly]

I would argue that the point of principal relevance is that the apartment was re-let before the first enquiry was shelved.

That demonstrates how little heed the Portuguese paid to the importance of preserving a crime scene.

The apartment was a private residence, what did you expect them to do ?

[ferryman]

The apartment was a private residence, what did you expect them to do ?

Treat it as a crime scene until completion of the shelved enquiry.

[faithlilly]

Treat it as a crime scene until completion of the shelved enquiry.

And do you really think that happens in the UK ?

 Do you think that if a crime is committed in the UK on private premises those premises are cordoned off until the perpetrator is found ? What if they are never found ?