#bloodstain pattern analysis

[givehimthemedicine]

a few more bloodstain thoughts: Brenner / Test Room 2 edition

(this is an easier one and there's no crime scene pics, fear not)

TLDR; main takeaways: 1) the blood on Brenner is screwy and 2) there's possible evidence of two unknown players entering Test Room 2 while Brenner was unconscious

I don't get Brenner's shirt blood any more than I get One's shirt blood

sir, why and how are wounds on the right side of your face bleeding onto your left collar? you don't appear to be injured there. like at all.

"maybe it dripped when his head was turned-" he hasn't bled enough for it to even run down to his chin. also, he woke up like that.

he would've had to be vertical when these drips happened. but the door knocked him right down, and he hasn't stood up yet, and the blood is already there.

"what if those aren't drips, but transfer?"

ok sure. could be. he does hug Ten's bloody face, after all. that's a great way to transfer blood.

but he hugs Ten into his right shoulder. and, we see it doesn't transfer any blood.

but those stains are sooo transferry. suspiciously like he already did hug Ten on his left side when the blood was fresher. blood tracks down his face and dripped onto his chest would line up decently with the Brenner shirt blood.

no matter how you explain it, the events that put that blood on Brenner's shirt are missing.

and something about them both having blood on their left collar is. idk. I mean One's is spatter and Brenner's is either passive or transfer so they def happened differently but still. I'm itchy

whose blood is on the EEG machine?

obviously, somebody fell and hit the sharp metal corner of this EEG machine.

but we saw Brenner get hit straight on by the door. his face wounds should just be from the door. he didn't spin around and hit his face on this thing too.

arrow pointing to the corner that winds up with blood on it. just to understand its position in the room.

it's possible the door knocked Brenner back and the cart spun a little and he hit his head on that corner of that thing. but the back of his head isn't bleeding. his hair is white enough that we'd see it easily.

could be Ten's blood I guess, although he wasn't very directly in the blast path. I suppose the blood puddle under the EEG net is a vote for that - OOPS no, wait, we get a very good look at Ten's head and it's not bloody, nor is the back of his gown.

can that EEG tell us anything else?

the paper feeds out continuously, in fact it's still on and feeding out a flat line reading when Brenner wakes up.

we know it flatlines when you take the thing off your head.

I'll bet some smart person could take the rate at which that paper comes out and approximate how much paper is coiled up on the floor and do the monster math about how much time has elapsed. not me tho

I'd like to know another means of measuring how much time has elapsed. because according to the RR clock, 45 minutes pass between Brenner taking Ten for lessons and Brenner coming into the RR to say "what have you done". but that clock doesn't always tell the truth. so idk.

Test Room 2 and the cat room

there is that cage in the background.

and that is the same EEG as El's in the cat scene. like the exact same one, you can tell by these dings in the paint:

@henrysglock you've just been all over Test Room 2 - what do you think about this being the same room?

I mean, It's Not. the hallways outside these two rooms aren't remotely the same, and the whole s1 and s4 labs are wholly different. but I mean like, in a timelines way...? is there anything here?

(no point really, I'm just throwing things at the wall. I don't know why but I want this to be the room El drew)

Test Room 2 doorway blood stain

in pondering james' creature attack theory I was wondering whether I could blame the same impact that blew the door in for leaving that blood stain. in other words, could a creature have physically busted that door with a swipe of a bloody hand.

I'm gonna say no, separate event, because

the door looks bent in the middle (looks at the sparks fly off that center hinge), not so low to the ground. if force at the bottom blew the door off it wouldn't have flown in top-first when it hit Brenner

if the blood goes as far in as the stop moulding, it would have touched the door too, had the door been closed when that happened. I don't see any blood on the door

so this blood got transferred after the door was off.

I wanna know who or what was bouncing from wall to wall all down these halls sooooo bloody but not bloody enough to leave blood trails on the floor.

say you're mortally wounded and dragging yourself aaaggh down the hallway, leaning against the wall because you can't stand upright, and you pass across an open doorway - wouldn't you tend to kinda fall into it?

maybe no one slid across it. maybe it fits better with someone getting dragged into it, kinda like this:

of course then we're missing other evidence that should go along with that idea though (you'd think there might be bloody hand streaks on the floor; Ten's and Brenner's hands aren't bloody) (can I blame this on El's bloody hands?)

this other doorway-oriented bloodstain also looks like someone with bloody hands being dragged towards the doorway/into the room, but once again the dead occupant's hands are clean:

we know SOMEBODY entered Test Room 2 and killed Ten while Brenner was knocked out. but the killer wouldn't be the bloody hands person, because the bloody hands person was dragged in there against their will. the killer would enter freely, voluntarily.

so if those are hand-grab-smears on those doorways, that gives us TWO unknown entities entering those rooms.

why are there no footprints?

boy they really wanted me to see what it looks like for a demodog to bust down a metal door. and granted the prison door is probably a lot heavier than the lab door, but it took him a few tries and the door didn't seem to dent.

anyway going to get that gif to compare to the Test Room 2 door caused me to notice this demodog leaving its bloody footprints on the floor. Russian demogorgon also has very bloody hands and face after killing.

we can conclude from the massacre stains that at least one person, somewhere, is VERY injured and catastrophically bleeding. if I blame this on a creature, that means said creature is also very bloody. which made me realize I don't see any creature tracks in the lab.

this is not anti-creature-theory though, because there are other creatures besides demodogs, and because whatever dragged Billy didn't leave tracks, and because I also don't see bloody shoeprints even though we know there were many people present.

like, especially this splatter in the RR for which the easiest explanation is that somebody stomped in it. where did that person's next step land?

(lol 007 please come to a full and complete stop. you are dead.)

NOBODY stepped in ANYTHING? this feels staged. I mean, it is. but staged-by-the-lab or something too.

[simplyforensic]

Bloodstain Pattern Analysis in Microgravity: A New Frontier in Forensic Science

Introduction As humanity boldly ventures into space, forensic science is expanding to meet new and unprecedented challenges. One such challenge is understanding how bloodstain patterns behave in microgravity environments. This study, conducted by Zack Kowalske, George Pantalos, Abdulrahman Oleiwi, and Graham Williams, explores the dynamics of bloodstains in space, shedding light on crucial…

[ivetried27nameswhataboutthis1]

Enid: You need to do me a favor and join the decorating committee for the dance.

Wednesday: I really don’t want to.

Enid: Please! I’ll make it worth your while, I will do anything you want.

Wednesday: … anything?

Enid, seductively: Anything.

Wednesday: No questions asked?

Enid: *starts to unbutton her shirt* I won’t even open my mouth, unless you want me too.

Wednesday: Okay, pretend to be the victim for my bloodstain pattern analysis research.

Enid: Oh my god, why?!

Wednesday: You said ‘anything’!

Enid: If you’d asked me to kill myself, I would have been more enthusiastic.

Wednesday: I am, kind of. Now button that shirt back up, the character is dead, not a slut.

Enid: I wish you were a slut.

Wednesday: Too bad. Get on the ground, I’ll get the fake blood.

[rapeculturerealities]

“Unreliable” Lung Float Test Still Being Used to Convict Women of Murder — ProPublica

In investigations across the country, the lung float test has emerged as a barometer of sorts to help determine if a mother suffered the devastating loss of a stillbirth or if she murdered her baby who was born alive. The test has been used in at least 11 cases where women were charged criminally since 2013 and has helped put nine of them behind bars, a ProPublica review of court records and news reports found. Some of those women remain in prison. Some had their charges dropped and were released.

But the test is so deeply flawed that many medical examiners say it cannot be trusted. They put it in the same company as the discredited analysis of bite marks and bloodstain patterns, 911 calls and hair comparisons, all of which lack solid scientific foundations and have contributed to wrongful convictions.

It is pseudoscience masquerading as sound forensics, they say. Some even liken the test to witch trials, where courts decided if a woman was a witch based on whether she floated or sank.

“Basing something so enormous on a test that should not be used, that has been completely discredited, is absolutely wrong,” said Dr. Ranit Mishori, the senior medical adviser for the nonprofit Physicians for Human Rights, which has been studying the test, and a professor of family medicine at Georgetown University School of Medicine. “You can send a person who is innocent to prison for many years.”

[crumblinggothicarchitecture]

I'd like to know your opinion on why ts songs are considered so good lyrically by her fans. That one line in cardigan is hailed as the peak writing skill by them. The one that says you drew stars around my scars. Am I missing something or are they just gaslighting me?

Hello- sorry it took me sooooo long to get back to you :) I am a busy little bee these days- but I love chatting with people too! <3

So, the line “you drew stars around my scars / but now I’m bleeding” is perhaps good writing, when we only compare Taylor Swift to her own work. It’s certainly a change from “the players gonna play, play, play,” but it is not somehow a gift to lyricism. I know that swifties tend to use lines like these to say that “look see, she is a talented writer” when the truth is that it’s just a boring metaphor that essentially goes nowhere in the song.  

Yeah- They are literally gaslighting you. It’s an alright line- but it’s not genius. The reason swifties think this line is amazing is because of the alliteration between "scars" and "stars." Apparently one alliteration is enough to make someone into literary genius? Just one repetitive sound- and they think she’s pulling off something amazing.

Compare this line to a full narrative arc in an alliterative verse epic poem from early Germanic Literature- and Swift's writing is basically loose change on the dashboard compared to gold bar- lyricism.  

So, her line "you drew stars around my scars / but now I'm bleeding" is mostly incoherent. She's honestly saying word salad in most of her songs- with vague rhymes at the end of each phrase- but I digress.  

I think you're keying into a thoughtful observation here. Putting aside my comment on its general incoherence, let me first speak to the fact that this line is an attempt at metaphor.  

She is saying "you drew stars" in effort to merge the conceptual point of "drawing stars" to someone reaching out- or creating interpersonal connection. She continues "around my scars" to showcase how this new connection sees her past, the “scars,” and is encapsulating it with a drawn star instead of, for instance, marking it out with a black mark or something. The connotative value of the word star, in this case, calls forward the idea of goodness and since it is tied to her connotative value of "scars" as a past hurt- the line ultimately means that some new interpersonal connection is viewing her past and approving of it rather than hating it.  It's meant to ring as a redemptive arc- yet nothing in the song actually needs redemption or ever mentions it again. The theme drops immediately after the line finishes.

The line finishes, "but now I'm bleeding" which is meant to mean that the scar is reopened- because the connection she made is no longer interested in her. This analysis, however, requires many leaps in logic. I cannot point to any specific linguistic markers that would denote the connection between "scar" and "bleeding." Though Swift clearly means to interconnect these two points, scars don’t bleed. So, she’s trying to say that the scar has reopened- perhaps because the person who drew the stars is leaving. However, there is nothing in the language itself that suggests this conclusion; rather she relies on audience reception to jump from point "a" to point "b." She never calls it a wound, she mentions "bloodstain" is a later line- but the connection between all the different phrasing is tenuous at best. I mean that there is no storyline within the line itself that is suggestive of the meaning Swift is attempting to lay out.  

Beyond this line- nothing in the whole song ever revisits the thematic purpose of the metaphor. She never mentions stars, or scars, and does not revisit the theme of redemptive love. She barely even lays out the idea of redemption in love in the first place- and further drops the imagery by never going back to the same theme again. She conjures up this image just to drop it immediately.

This is a pattern in her work- she writes one thing, and then drops the idea. 

I mean it sounds clever- without actually being clever.  

[aemiron-main]

THE BIG ANALYSIS OF HENRY'S JUMPSUIT BLOODSTAINS DURING THE MASSACRE: what the hell is up with the blood stains on henry during the 1979 massacre? why do they keep moving and changing and vanishing? there’s multiple henries.

So, this post has been in my drafts for MONTHS, ever since I discovered that his bloodstains change, and now it's finally ready to post! I’m also going to make another post about how the bloodstains on the wall and floor change too, and how Brenner and El’s bloodstains change, but for now, let’s focus on Henry himself and the blood on him, because it constantly disappears and reappears and changes patterns.

So, take a look at Henry’s face when El first comes into the room/the first time we see him during the massacre:

There’s no blood on his face except for his nose. Even long after Two has hit the floor, his face is clean, so the blood definitely didn’t come from Two’s eyes exploding or something.

But now look at these shots:

The blood just. Shows up. On Henry’s face. He turns around and suddenly it’s there, with no explanation. His hair is also slightly different between the no blood vs blood shots- it’s similar in both shots, being pushed back in both, but the bloodless shots have it pushed back a bit more neatly and slightly more sideswept, whereas the shots with blood lack the extra bit of sidesweeping and his hair seems to be messier.

And after the blood shows up on Henry’s face? It disappears entirely in the next shot (the one where he’s behind El when she opens the door) Not just from his face, but his clothes, too:

Look at that shot of Henry behind the door vs the shot that happens immediately after that- there SHOULD be visible blood across the front of Henry’s shirt during the scene with the doors, but there isn’t. It’s just gone. This is the first time this happens, but it will not be the last.

And now, let’s take a look at the blood on Henry’s neck. Look at the splotch on the skin on Henry’s left side of his neck and how it disappears and reappears:

Looking at those two above images, those are the same side of Henry/Edward's body even though he's on two different sides of the screen (this is because the second image is meant to be in the "mirror world"/mirrored), and yet, that splotch of blood on his neck in the second image is NOT present in the first image. Much like the face blood mentioned earlier, it just shows up. And as shown in the infographic, it's not the side with soteria either. So, we have blood randomly showing up at the same time as we're in the "mirror world," which is very interesting considering that the movie "Mirrors," about peoples' violent reflection twins in the mirror world is on the S4 inspo board. (and that movie is something I'm going to talk about at length in another analysis because it has signficant Henry and Edward and Creel family implications).

Now, moving onto the jumpsuits, here’s all of the different jumpsuit blood patterns side by side:

Now, let’s take a look at each pattern individually and which shots it shows up in.

How Many Different Jumpsuits/Different Henries?

So, how many different Henries are there/different bloody jumpsuits/jumpsuits that appear during the massacre? Right now, I'm seeing five different jumpsuits in the rainbow room.

I’ve named them all with a combination of “j” (for jumpsuit) and another letter. Let’s take a look at how many jumpsuits there are, which jumpsuits are which, and when they appear. We have:

1.) JA

Here’s a closeup of JA’s pattern and all the shots where JA appears:

2.) JB

Here’s a closeup of JB’s pattern (JB is bloodless) and all the shots where JB appears:

3.) JC

Here’s a closeup of JC’s pattern and all the shots where JC appears:

4.) JD

Here’s a closeup of JD’s pattern and all of the shots where JD appears:

5.) JE

Here’s a closeup of JE’s pattern (JE is mirrored/supposed to be from the view "inside" of the mirror/in the mirror world) and all the shots that have JE in them:

Comparing Each Suit

And again, here’s all of the different jumpsuits together, except this time, I’m going through and pointing out the differences incase you didn’t see them!

JA vs JB

JA vs JC

JA vs JD

JA vs JE (JE is mirrored in the show hence why it seems like a diff side)

JB vs JC

JB vs JD

JB vs JE (JE is mirrored in the show hence why it seems like a diff side)

JC vs JD

JC vs JE (JE is mirrored in the show hence why it seems like a diff side)

JD vs JE (JE is mirrored in the show hence why it seems like a diff side)

BTS and Deleted/Unreleased Footage Suits

Now, in addition to what we see in the show, let's look at some BTS and deleted/unreleased footage pictures and identify the different suits in the BTS and deleted/unreleased footage pictures. We've got JB/bloodless Henry in this "deleted"/unreleased footage:

We've got what seems to be JA having some blood splatters added to him with an eyedropper:

And we've got what seems to be JC with Jamie looking at a jar:

The Face Blood and The Hair

001/Henry/Edward's hair also changes, and, as mentioned in the beginning, the blood on his face also changes. Unfortunately, I've hit the image limit, so those are going to be a separate posts, and then I'm going to make a big post comparing the jumpsuit blood changes to the face blood changes to the hair changes.

It’s Not Just 001

But this all gets even weirder because 001 isn’t the only person with blood on his face and clothes that changes and vanishes between shots- Brenner has it too. I don’t have room for that in this post, but I’m going to make another full analysis of Brenner’s changing bloodstains and El’s changing bloodstains, and compare them to 001’s/find the pattern between them, and same with the changing bloodstains on the walls and floor of the rainbow room.

The Production Error Allegations So, I've already talked about the idea of production errors in the context of 001 during the massacre here, here, and here, however, let's go through it again.

As mentioned in this post, some of the jumpsuits even fit differently- look at how much bigger/looser. They're different jumpsuits. They aren't even tailored the same way. And we KNOW that the ST costuming team put bigger shirts on Will to make him seem smaller, so I don't doubt that they'd do the same for one of the Henries/Edwards.

And the focal length of the camera changes too (look at how different his face looks in each of the above shots- that's very very likely due to a focal length change which distorts his features, and caused by a focal length change or not, the change is THERE) And his hair changes (the first shot has his hair pushed backwards, more from the middle, the second shot has his hair pusehd backwards and to screen left). And the colour grading changes. (the first shot is much darker than the second shot AND than the shots before and after it, and there is a greenish colour grading present, and I've talked about HNL, NINA, and the green colour grading here.) All of these changes are happening at the same time. It's not just the blood, it's the blood AND the fit of the jumpsuit AND the hair AND the focal length AND the lighting and colour grading. And they gave us those two very similar shots (similar in the sense of him being in the same area of the rainbow room in the same sort of position doing the same sort of stare) so that we would contrast them and notice that things are different between them. Not only is the ST production team extremely meticulous about replicating stain patterns, they also don't just "accidentally" make multiple jumpsuits, and they don't just "accidentally" have multiple other aspects (hair, face blood, focal length, colour grading etc) change at the same time as the bloodstains and fit of the jumpsuit change.

They have specific guidelines for the age of the blood, and yet I'm supposed to believe that they can't replicate blood patterns properly?

They replicated El's milkshake stains PERFECTLY, and yet, supposedly they can't replicate Henry's bloodstains?

And to top it all off, El's bloodstains had to be PERSONALLY APPROVED BY THE DUFFERS, and they DRAGGED AMY PARRIS THROUGH PUDDLES OF BLOOD THE SAME WAY THAT 001 DRAGGED EL ACROSS THE RAINBOW ROOM SO THAT THE BLOODSTAINS WOULD BE PERFECT.

And, as mentioned earlier, this BTS pic has the costuming/makeup team adding blood to a jumpsuit with an eyedropper- why would they need to add extra blood to it if the jumpsuit was already made/bloodied? Oh, right, because they're intentionally adding multiple jumpsuits to the show. They did the same for the lab kids' gowns, too. It's all done extremely meticulously.

Honestly, the whole "it's a production error" argument makes zero sense and there's constant evidence to contradict it. Just because you don't think the show would do something doesn't mean they aren't doing it. It doesn't matter whether you or I thinks something would be good or bad in the show. What matters is the evidence we have. And there's no evidence to support the idea of these being production errors, but there's an absolute TON of evidence to support multiple Henries/Edwards during NINA.

So, yeah! There you go! The other blood analyses that I mentioned are incoming soon!

[95-6qrsk2rx9uq42069nnnnnjthewolf]

Afflicting tim with Gender and In Your Twenties because, well. (+ jaytim) (idea 1)

Tim is in her early twenties and fresh out of an identity crisis that she has a feeling she’s been putting off for almost a decade at this point. It’s a good feeling, but its also new and solely hers. She doesn’t feel like sharing. She wants to get acquainted with herself. (A few people know. Tam’s actually the first person she told. She helped pick out a cocktail dress and they went out to a fancy bar and had a few drinks and just hung out. Tam held her hand and didn’t say anything when Tim cried on the taxi ride home. Kon, Bart, and Cassie know. Their hugs are as tight and reassuring as ever.) 

Therese Dho has a modest, comfortable apartment the bats don’t know about, full of posters and comfortable furniture, strewn with piles of clothes and disassembled tech. It feels homey, like she can breathe, in a way that the nest didn’t and it's jarring to realize how contained she’d been keeping herself even in her own space. She’s about two months into her new job as a forensics technician at the GCPD, and thanks to her terminally untied converse and habit of tripping into cops wandering into the forensics labs, evidence tampering is on the decline. She’s sarcastic and blunt the way she couldn’t be at WE, letting her results speak for themselves rather than waste energy soothing egos that don’t deserve it. It’s not like she’s the only colorful character there, and she is happily absorbed into the department (not so)lovingly referred to as the lab rats, despite her relentless attempts to afflict her own organizational methods on the other techs. (It’s almost like you want samples to wander off she says, looking directly at the tech she knows is on Two-face’s payroll. He is sweating. Therese’s supervisor, who adores her new grumpy tech and does not want her new favorite to get shot, is also sweating.) 

The day she’s called into the commissioner’s office, she contemplates exiting out the window and making for the roofs right there in broad daylight. Closing the door to his office feels like the sinking pit in her stomach when a mission’s gone south and she’s failed to consider a crucial contingency. Between the lab coat, reading glasses and her hair being grown out long enough for the loose fraying braid its in, Therese is telling herself there’s no way Gordon recognizes her, but he’s also giving her a long hard look she doesn’t know how to interpret. And then he’s telling her that her supervisor is singing her praises and he has high hopes for her. And to maybe stop being quite so brazen about calling out her coworkers and just let Gordon know instead. There may or may not be a comforting hand on her shoulder, she’s slightly too lightheaded to tell. By the end of the meeting she still can’t tell if he knows who she is or not, but he’s not demanding she pack up her desk and get out so Therese will take it.  On her way back to the lab, the detective who occasionally brings her coffee and lets her ramble about the fallibility of bloodstain pattern analysis winks at her as she passes, and Therese feels herself blush. He’s tall and broad, more vanity muscles than somebody really putting their body to use all day, but not dirty according to what digging she’s done, and if he’s just flirting with her in the hopes of expediting his cases, at least he’s smooth about it. Her being attracted to men didn’t blindside her quite as badly as the whole gender thing did; less something she buried deep deep down and more so something she’d simply let herself glance past, though she would also like to be done Realizing things about herself. Not that she’d ever start anything with him anyways, for multiple reasons.

She’s making a life she thinks she can live with, though. The lab goes out for drinks and trivia night. She’s making time for friends and hobbies. Helping teach coding and computer literacy at her local library branch. Red Robin is still mostly a solo act; the person she’s shared patrols with most frequently in the past year, of all people, has been Red Hood. So long as she responds to requests for assistance, either in the field or behind the scenes (mostly remote), the bats seem content to leave her be. She doesn’t poke too hard at the question of whether her Major Life Changes have been noted or if, so long as she’s still providing support without a fuss, anybody has even noticed. She’s clear headed enough these days to know it's a two-way street and she’d been pulling back for years. She’ll probably always be involved with vigilantism in some way, but the network she’d put so much time into reinforcing around Batman and Gotham was always meant to keep on growing without her. She’s not hiding, literally underneath their noses every time one of them responds to the bat signal. If anyone really wanted to find her, they could. She’ll help whenever they ask for it, but the rest is for her now. She’s earned that.

And then one day on a coffee excursion she watches Jason Todd get hauled into the station, cursing up a storm, cuffed and incandescently angry between two nervous cops. She hears the grating voice of one of the more unpleasant cops in the station gloating that they caught this creep dealing to kids and he should be grateful that its the cops that got him and not the red hood, didn’t you hear that psycho kills people over shit like this? Therese deserves a medal for not bursting out laughing right then and there, though it gets less funny when Jason snarls that they know damn well they’d been the ones harassing the kids, and planted the bags on Jason when he got in between and told them to fuck off. She’s gotten behind the cop and plucked a little baggie from his back pocket very clearly not labeled as evidence by the time they’ve tried to slam Jason chest-down onto a desk. The whole bullpen is watching when Therese asks if this was the cop’s personal stash or that he’d decided to keep this guy’s product for himself. Jason is also watching, and possibly falling in love, when he sees this girl not even flinch as the cop tries to lunge at her before getting hauled back himself. It’s a big flurry then but he finds himself loitering awkwardly until he can talk to her, and asks if he can buy her a coffee as a thank you. He notices the styrofoam cup in her hand after the sentence is out and manfully doesn’t wince.

Therese is too focused on the high pitched ringing in her ear to figure out if Jason has already clocked her and is using coffee as an excuse to grill her on what the fuck she’s doing. She rolls her eyes and tells Jason he should check up on those kids. Excuses herself since her labs are almost done and she needs to dodge her supervisor because she refuses to fill out another incident report, leaving jason mildly heartbroken at the front desk and the secretary giving him a sympathetic look, saying ‘you know how those science types can be. Therese may not have even realized you were asking her out.’ And, well, maybe he can try one more time tomorrow. At least check in and make sure she’s not facing any retaliation from other cops.

So he shows up the next day at what he assumes is a reasonable time for a lunch break with a coffee and a few pastries in hand, receiving a thumbs up from the same secretary for his troubles. Except when Therese comes out to see why she was called to the front desk there’s such a clear flash of panic on her face at seeing him that Jason is already apologizing and turning for the door. He makes it out and is shortly followed by the sound of the door opening and closing again. Therese is there, wearing a very familiar steely expression, stomping past him with the curt order to follow her in a lower register that he’s heard before. She guides him to an alley and he’s pretty sure he knows where this is going but also what if he is actually about to get shanked?

“Jason” is the stern response to his hesitation, and oh yes, jason knows that tone.

“Look,” he says, joining her in the shade of the building, “if you’ve got an undercover thing going on in there, I swear I didn’t know. That trip to the station yesterday really wasn’t intentional.”

“I’ll read you in if you swear to not tell the others until I give the okay,” is the response and her expression is giving Jason absolutely nothing. He actually can’t remember the last time Tim was this blank with him and its unsettling. 

“Come on, baby bird, you're the only one of 'em I even talk to. How many times have you kept my shit off their radar? Of course I won’t go blabbing” Their rapport had only been getting better with each collaboration over the last couple years, built off of Red Robin’s stone cold professionalism that Hood could trust to see them through city wide crises in a way that he couldn’t working closely with Bruce or Dick. From there they’d gained a real respect for each other, Tim always willing to hear him out if Jason also promised to listen in turn. They’ve got similar mean streaks and senses of humor, with open invitations to any respective safe houses and first aid kits. Red Robin had given Jason a tenable source of backup in Gotham, in a way he hasn’t felt like he’s had since coming back. Jason had just been thinking last week that he hadn’t heard from Red in awhile, and that they were due for a check in. Tim shouldn’t have to ask Jason whether whatever this is will stay between them; it should be a given. He doesn’t hold onto those feelings of offense or fear for long as Therese starts explaining, though. This isn’t a case, it's her life. Of course this happens on her terms. Of course he’ll follow her lead and he says as such. 

“I do have one question, though, and if now isn’t the time you got full permission to dump this coffee on my head.” (I would not need permission but thank you, she mutters. Jason gamely plows on) “I didn’t recognize you yesterday. I just saw this little spitfire stand up to a cop almost twice her size on his turf to keep me out of trouble and not flinch. I came by today to ask if she wanted to go out for a coffee,” Jason is briefly reminded of the secretary’s previous comment as Therese stares at him. “I’m asking you out on a date, T.” And there’s the blush he’s managed to pull out of her once in a while, from previous light flirtations that were only mostly jokes she’d never seemed to reciprocate. But she is now, agreeing shyly to try it out. 

And it just, settles. Vigilantism is in their blood at this point, and they’re each other's backup. But they help each other be people too. There’s routine, bringing Therese her lunch at work, farmer’s markets and trivia nights and local theater productions. Kids at the skatepark who hassle Therese to teach them tricks. Jason comes home gushing about how well the kids he tutors are improving. They support each other through the bad days. An up and coming drug dealer gets it into his head that all the other entities in Gotham have someone on the payroll, a pet geek on the inside of the GCPD should be easy enough to bribe or intimidate. T kicks his enforcers’ faces in and while they’re trying to breathe through the blood pouring out their noses, Red Hood comes up behind them with a choice. Either they can deal with him, or he’ll drop them off at the police station, where they’ll spill everything their boss is up to. They can even say Hood did it and not a 5’6” nerd in a star trek hoodie. Once they’re among the other failed henches, they make sure everyone knows that this one is Hood’s insider and anybody who tries anything will not be living to regret it. 

They go home and Jason motherhens over Therese recovering from top surgery. T draws up new plans to reinforce Hood’s helmet. It’s all one and the same. They look out for each other.

[freelanceexorcist]

I love this analysis. I wonder if they're going to switch things up and instead of locking himself in a coffin for nearly 3 decades with only his nightmares to keep him company, he will have imprisoned himself in the mansion to atone (or to keep his four head beasties from going HAM on the general public). That's a fairly well-kept study that looks pretty lived-in. That would be interesting, because honestly, the original take is a little too melodramatic in this year of our lord 2023.

I also wonder if the outfit and the dramatic, antiquated speech is something he cooked up to scare away any local kids who got too brave and went exploring. I'll bet there were plenty of stories of The Red Man in the spooky old Shinra mansion going around Nibelheim back in the day.

And it'll be kinda funny, too, if the "Hark! A miscreant!" thing was an act and it didn't take much for him to revert to his Turk speech patterns.

Vincent: "WHO DARES DISTURB MY SLUMBER!"

The party: *blinks in silence*

Vincent: "BEGONE, YE CHICANEROUS AND DEPLORABLE KNAVES!"

The party: *blinking continues*

Vincent: *sighs and floats to the floor* "OK, let's try this: fuck off."

*LATER ON...*

Cloud: "so all this" *gestures to Vincent's outfit* "was just to scare the kids?"

Vincent: "My other choice was a bloodstained Turk uniform. I just wanted to keep you little shits out, not scar you for life."

[ephiesoul]

Chibi Professor Author 📚 Your Chibi Bloodstain pattern analysis Professor 🩸

If you enjoy my art please consider supporting me on Patreon 💕 or check out my Etsy 💕

[henrysglock]

Something about Vecna's Left Hand 🤔

This post centers around the patterns of handedness in the NINA sequence and Creel flashbacks as it relates to Henward's bloodstains.

Honest to God, though, I'm trying my damnedest to find a good way to organize all the pictures I've annotated about this guy. I decided it was best to just go by jumpsuit, so I'm using Em's current naming system (JA-JE) for cohesion between sources. I also decided to try to narrow the main shots down to ones that include hand use, since that's what I really care about in this post (even though some others will be included for speculation purposes). I'm not diving into injuries or bodies, even if there are annotations about those topics, because those aren't super applicable in regard to this analysis.

Also, Em just posted his big jumpsuit bloodstain comparison analysis:

HERE!!!

You can find all the details about this stuff on that post.

Here are the background posts for this analysis:

Changing Vecnas

Comparison Of MF And Vecna Suits

Comparison Of Vecna/MF Suits To The 5 Known Massacre Suits

Lefty and Righty vs Henry Creel

First, a TL;DR recap:

Righty (Henry):

Righty (Suspected Henry):

Lefty (Suspected Edward):

Good? Okay, let's get started.

JA.

He's not the Vecna we see in the transformation sequence from 4.07, nor is he the one we see in the Mindflayer shaping sequence.

He's a lefty, though:

JA is associated with El's initial eye blood pattern:

But not with her second eye blood pattern:

He also seems to be the gauntest of our Henwards, especially in comparison to JC:

Which...lots to think about there, considering this:

I won't rule out the possibility of him being a Vecna, of course. He's just not the thicker one we're shown concretely by the transformation sequence in 4.07.

Anyway. Moving on.

JC.

This is our guy. This is the jumpsuit that we're told goes with our main Vecna via the transformation sequence in 4.07.

He's a lefty.

JC is also the only bloody Henward we see doing hands-free moves, interestingly enough.

His Jumpsuit matches Vec-Ward's, as seen here:

JD.

JD's only appearance is at the very end. He does not appear before El slams him through the mirror.

He isn't shown using his hands, but his jumpsuit matches the guy who shaped the Mindflayer (as seen here):

Which means we can say he is also a lefty:

JD is associated only with El's second eye blood pattern:

A Quick Recap:

JA, JC, and JD are all lefties. We have seen no right-handed Massacre-Henwards so far.

The only bloody Henward I have questions about is JE, and that is solely because his sequence is shot through a mirror, presenting a lefty as a righty.

He's holding her chin in his left hand, but the camera choice presents it as his right hand. I can't, of course, rule anything out (especially given all the "mirror/holding up a mirror" stuff with him).

At the end of the day...it is meant to be recognized as his left hand, otherwise they wouldn't show us the mirror at all. They would just cut to him using his right hand normally. So, unless I have reason to think otherwise, I'm assigning him working-lefty.

I also can't concretely assign the bloodless JB suit.

This is because his only move is the hands-free one that we see JC do in the previous shot:

For now, though, I'm also assigning him working-lefty. This is based on the direction of his head tilt, which is the same as our other known lefty:

In conclusion:

Concrete Lefties: 3

Working-Lefties: 2

Concrete Righties: 0

I won't say that we don't have Henries in this sequence, because of course I can't say that. If he is shown on screen, though...he's either JB or JE, one of our two inconclusive lefties.

However: As it stands, we do not have any concrete righties, which would be an indisputable indicator of Henry's status as a mass murderer. If they wanted it to be indisputable, they would have made it that way.

[givehimthemedicine]

that massacre blood won't let me rest

(bloodstain pattern analysis)

warning, this will contain some graphic explanations of how blood stains get made and a couple pictures of real blood (no people) as I attempt to apply my modicum of education on this subject to the HNL massacre

I'm mostly focusing on that main blood stain that goes across One's chest, but toward the end I'll touch on other stains in the RR.

tldr: I think that chest stain leaves plenty of room for doubt about whether One was the attacker.

so. bloodstain analysis crash course.

your main types of blood stains:

active - blood flying and landing on a surface as a result of force/motion. this includes spatters, splashes, arterial sprays.

passive - blood falling from plain old gravity. stains like drops and pools.

transfer - a surface coming into contact with another surface with blood on it. smears, maybe a hand or shoe print.

two lovely volunteers to demonstrate:

One's neck bleeding on his collar is an example of a passive blood stain. if any of those larger vertical blood drops on his shirt are supposed to be nose blood, (his nose barely bled but his shirt looks like it dripped) that's also passive. victims' eye blood is passive.

One mopping the floor with El leaving her with blood smeared on her gown is transfer.

that main pattern of blood droplets across One's chest is an active type stain. all the blood on him, apart from his own, appears to have flown through the air and landed on him.

the costume dept clearly put effort into depicting those types differently, going as far as to actually drag someone around the floor to find out what El's gown blood should look like as a result of the actions that put it there. I think it's fair to expect a similar level of research went into designing One's stains.

but discussing those methods in the interview might have revealed too much.

some types of active blood stains

arterial spray is when a vein or artery is cut and blood squirts out, flies through the air and lands on nearby surfaces. it's not usually just a little blood. here are two real examples of arterial spray:

to me, it seems like a severed artery would produce a more blood than is on One.

impact spatter is created when an object forcefully hits exposed blood and little droplets fly. forward spatter is made in the direction of the force, backward spatter is thrown back toward the direction the force came from.

in many cases forward and back spatter look much the same, so the main distinguishing clue is location.

back spatter is, without us even thinking about it, the type of stain we assume is on One's chest, because we also assume that he is the attacker. that he did something violent to someone and their blood splashed back on him. that is one valid explanation, but not the only.

see, spatter flies in all directions from an impact, 360. it looks like this (simulation). not all spatter is automatically back spatter. if it's forward spatter, it suggests One was facing the impact from opposite where the force came from. it's hard to imagine a scenario where the attacker gets forward spatter on himself.

castoff is another type of spatter typical of repetitious stabbing or beating where a weapon that's covered in blood, when swung back for another blow, flings off an arc of small blood droplets.

examples:

the attacker virtually never gets castoff on themselves. rather they fling it on the walls/ceiling around them, depending on the arc of their swings.

telekinetic blows cannot possibly create castoff because there would be nothing for the blood to stick to.

so if the stains on One are castoff, A) there was a bloody physical weapon/object involved and B) he seems very unlikely the attacker.

to me, the main stain on One looks consistent with either impact or castoff spatter. let's consider some more characteristics:

blood velocity

droplet size can also tell the speed at which the blood was moving, which helps reconstruct what amount of force and therefore type of injury it came from. generally, the smaller the droplets the higher the velocity.

One's chest spatter looks medium velocity. no surprises here.

blood directionality

the shape of droplets helps determine the direction the blood came from.

a drop onto a 90 degree angle, like if you're just standing there and your blood drips on the ground, leaves a circular droplet. an elongated blood droplet shows that the blood was flying through the air at an angle.

blood tails are what you call the pointy end of an elongated blood drop, which points in the direction of the motion. the bottoms of these more acute examples are the tails, indicating the blood was moving toward the bottoms.

now look at One. he definitely has multiple spatters on him, but I'm focusing on the main spatter that goes diagonally across his chest.

note how blood tails go in a consistent direction (bottom screen left moving towards upper screen right). this creates a strong idea of the spatter having originated low around One's right hip and flown upwards across his body.

of course we can't get too into analyzing this as legit forensic evidence, because it isn't. but the fact that they kept consistent with the direction of the blood tails when recreating these stains by hand multiple times seems like that detail mattered to them.

(I don't wanna shoplift directly from em's jumpsuit blood post but that has the best collection of pics and you can see that all iterations are in agreement with the direction of motion suggested).

here's a quick video showing a guy creating a bloodstain that illustrates both castoff and blood tails:

how'd homeboy get blood on his back?

I wish I could get a clearer look, but those are absolutely active spatters and not transfer. do you wanna tell me how, if you are the attacker, you'd manage to get your victim's blood to spatter onto your own back? like, even if he can Vecna someone behind his back, why? was he showboating like shredding guitar behind his head?? was it like the champagne in that one kim kardashian photo??

whose blood is on him?

neither castoff nor impact spatter makes sense for the bodies we see.

as I've discussed in other posts, none of the ways we saw anyone get killed in the massacre, nor any of the dead bodies in the RR, should produce blood stains like the ones on One.

the only external bleeding that getting Vecna'd™ produces is passive drips from the eyes. nobody got stabbed or struck repeatedly. even the eyes getting sucked out (or whatever?) doesn't result in any spatter. you can watch One kill Two, and there's no new blood on his face or on the floor between them. you can watch him throw guards into walls without a speck of blood on the walls or on himself.

for the amount of blood around the scene, there should be at least one much, much bloodier wounded person around here somewhere.

what is telekinetic force shaped like?

I'm unclear on what kind of spatter to expect when the weapon is telekinesis because I have so many unknowns about the nature of the impact. it really seems up to the person what shape and force of power they want to use in each instance (think the brute force of flipping a van vs the fine motor skills of turning a tv knob).

what I want is to picture the telekinesis used in the massacre as an invisible physical object so I can draw conclusions about the impact spatter it might create, but I can't.

ST has given us a couple great visuals of what impression telekinetic force actually creates when impacting various substances, revealing its "shape," and it varies a lot. my ruling is that telekinetic force has no default shape, so this is kind of a dead end.

but regardless, here's the curious thing about spatter:

(and that IS spatter on One, whether it's impact or castoff): spatter is the result of force upon exposed blood.

and a bunch of blood is not exposed yet until after a victim has been struck/stabbed/whatever at least once. meaning the victim that One's bloodstain belongs to was likely struck in the same spot repeatedly. twice minimum.

"well, blood is already exposed from the eye thing, couldn't it just be that?" yes, but striking victims after the eye thing isn't the MO. watch Virginia, Two, Chrissy, Fred, and Patrick die - after the eyes, they simply drop in place. he doesn't throw or hit them in any way.

if that is castoff, what was the blood cast off OF?

if there was a physical weapon, it's either missing from the scene or not shown.

I'd love to finish this section by suggesting an object in the lab that would make a thematically fitting murder weapon, but nothing jumps out at me.

it would be unlike them not to have brought our attention to the murder weapon before it's revealed as such. like, we need to be able to go "ohhh, they killed everybody with the 8 ball!" or whatever later or else it's not as fun.

the blood being castoff from a weapon would tend to suggest that the attacker wasn't telekinetic (or wasn't currently able to use their telekinesis). I mean, would you bother doing the manual labor if you didn't have to?

I don't see any very bloody objects lying around the RR, but I do see extremely clear evidence that there were very bloody hands.

hands are absolutely a thing that can cast off blood.

and there's only one person I know of who was ever shown with bloody hands in conjunction with the massacre.

let's talk about hands, then

we've got a diagonal thing going on here:

this bottom-left-upper-right orientation that would tend to result from a right-handed person casting off blood from an upward swing of either a weapon or their bloody hand. a lefty's swing would most likely create a bottom right-upper left diagonal castoff.

so which lab folk are what-handed?

lefties:

righties:

(I found only 2 lefts from El: manipulating the helicopter and stopping Vecna from killing Max. I could do a whole post on that. stop me)

ok, but what if that's backsplash, not castoff? same logic.

One is left handed, and when he throws someone with telekinesis, say like if he slams them downward, he uses his left hand. the way the arm swings naturally seems more likely to create an impact on that same side of the body. but the spatter originates from his right hip.

(NOT saying otherwise is impossible, it's totally possible, just seems less likely. go ahead and pretend you have telekinesis for a sec and see what direction of arm sweeps feel most natural.)

this is why when I look at the stain on One, I'm not totally convinced it's back spatter.

so what are some possible scenarios that might be consistent with blood like that?

where One is the attacker:

One strikes Victim with either a physical weapon or telekinesis. either from the strike or from falling and hitting some surface, their blood back spatters onto his shirt.

where One is not the attacker:

Attacker is striking Victim with a physical object or telekinesis. One stands opposite Attacker. forward or sideways impact spatter flies onto One's shirt.

Attacker is beating Victim with a physical object. One stands opposite Attacker. blood is cast up onto his shirt on one of Attacker's upswings.

One stands near Attacker or Victim who swings a bloody hand upward and casts blood across his shirt. (I'm liking this best)

now that I've been serious for a whole post, let me go insane about the scene overall (I'M JUST BRAINSTORMING DON'T SNIPE ME):

what if, by timeline shenanigans or I don't know what, some versions of Henry, Edward, and El are all present in the RR during the massacre.

Edward is doing some or all of the killing in such a way that impact spatters are being sent onto Henry. the bloody face of one of Edward's victims hits the floor while Henry's back is turned, causing that small spatter on the back of his pant leg.

El's hands are covered with blood. she makes a sweeping motion like this, up and to her right, to throw Edward, and blood casts off her hand onto Henry's shirt.

if an action like the above gif happened, we'd expect to see damage and/or blood on the walls or ceiling of the RR. there are multiple drippy blood impacts on the RR walls. we assume them to have come from the kids (even though this is not consistent with their injuries). what if some or all of that is Edward's blood?

whoever hit the walls would have needed to already be bloody when they hit the wall. (we know from the hallway guards and Two that neither getting thrown against a wall nor Vecna'd up against a wall leaves blood.)

another explanation for already-bloody-Ed and Henry shirt castoff/forward spatter from a physical weapon is if Brenner comes in and tries to stop Edward by beating him with [?object]. but I feel like Ed would overpower Brenner too quickly to get very bloody. this isn't a strong one, I feel better about the bloody hands idea

re: the blood pools on the floor all being smeared even before El gets dragged... you know how El has some way-too-different-to-be-accidental variations in the blood transfer patterns on her gown? could we have multiple Els in play? like, by the time we see our El arrive in the RR, other-bloody-handed-El has already been mucking around the scene?

varying El blood and multiple El concept plays well with the way there are also at least two different crime scenes.

"Nat you idiot, that shot is filmed in the mirror, you're just confusing two different sides of the room. why are your green and purple circles on the same bookcase when they're clearly on two different bookcases on opposite sides of the room?":

YEAH I SURE AM CONFUSED! BC WHY WERE THOSE TWO BOOKCASE STAINS BOTH SHOWN ON THE RED-TOP-RAINBOW-BEND-ON-THE-WALL SIDE OF THE ROOM? the side with that pyramid thing and the plinko board has a red-top rainbow bend. the opposite side, with the benches and the drawing tables, has a purple-top rainbow bend (see below). like, whatever mirror tricks you wanna pull, shouldn't the side of the room with the bookcase corner stain be purple-top-bend? seriously, am I picturing this wrong??

anyway, many of those RR bloodstains could be explained by at least one unaccounted for person being thrown repeatedly around the room. telekinetic people really seem to like doing this to each other.

say El makes that hand motion, which makes One's shirt castoff and throws Edward. Ed hits that bookcase hard enough to get bloodied. Edward gets thrown around some more, leaving various stains around the walls and floors. El or Ed stomps in the blood puddle by the bookcase, resulting in the purple-circled splatter and the spatter on Henry's pant leg.

but if we're allowed to have multiple Els maybe some of the blood is other-El's too. or One's. or Brenner's

I DON'T KNOW. I'M DONE. END MY SUFFERING

[simplyforensic]

Introduction to Bloodstain Pattern Analysis

In the intricate tapestry of forensic science, Bloodstain Pattern Analysis (BPA) emerges as a crucial technique, illuminating the shadows of violent crimes with scientific precision. This analytical method transcends mere observation, enabling experts to interpret the silent whispers of bloodstains left behind. These crimson marks, each a piece of the puzzle, hold the potential to narrate the…

[wildly-empty]

@mr-snailman ive been tagged and now im it

Name : i go by creature

Pronouns : they / them

Where do you call home? still working on that

Favorite Animal : domestic? perritos y gatitos . exotic? maned wolves // lobo guará

Cereal of choice : something sweet with granola, maybe cinnamon . I mix my cereals for maximum taste + crunchy 

Visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learner : hands-on . I’d love bloodstain pattern analysis if it wasn’t so innacurate 

First pet : a little doggie

Favorite scent : some of em are; on a cold day when you play or run so hard it makes your inhales taste a little raw and you can smell what's kinda like a nosebleed + the smell on your skin when you come in from the cold wind outside

Do you believe in astrology? - no but im a saggytittyus

How many playlists do you have on your music service of choice? - I make a new one for every school year and separate ones for summers

Sharpies or highlighters? - highlighters . I like to feel fancy and studious 

Song that makes you cry: moon dogs - SALES // Hooves -Bowerbirds // Lovers - Kiltro

Song that makes you happy: eyes on the ground - Caro // neighborhood #2 (Laika) - Arcade Fire // Lovers - Kiltro

Aand finally, do you write / draw / create? - I make collages out of junkmail and scraps and I used to write a lot sometimes, strictly about marble hornets

@skune @tornets tag you're it

[nigthbreed]

The Shoe Prints: Avia, a Cinderella Story

“I need not look beyond this room to see all the liars, the haters, the killers, the crooks, the paranoid cowards. Truly the trematodes of the earth, each of one his own legal profession.”

Richard Ramirez, taken from transcripts during his court address prior to sentencing.

If you condemn someone to death, you’d better hope you’re in possession of all the facts. All of them, 100%, beyond any reasonable doubt. All evidence laid out, cast iron; irrefutable. You had better be sure.

But what if a jury is wilfully and deliberately misled? What if false testimony and unsound facts are presented? Expert witnesses who are not actually “experts” or fully trained in the intricacies of the subject in question? What if the defence counsel is so woefully inadequate, unequal to the task, lacking in experience, or indeed, sometimes not even present? Who defends the undefended?

In this item I want to discuss that most recounted pair of sneakers, the infamous black Avia aerobic shoes, model 445b, size 11 1/2. Model 445 came in white, and well, white aerobic shoes didn’t fit the profile of the so-called Night Stalker.

Avia Aerobic shoe. These, by the way, did not belong to Richard..

Those “phantom sneakers” have followed this case all the way from 1985. Footprints, partial prints and impressions were found at eight of the crime scenes and it was these prints that law enforcement used, along with ballistics to link the crimes together. More information can be found in in this post and also in this one.

The jury and the world have been persuaded that only one pair of shoes could possibly have made those prints, one shoe, one perpetrator. This, on the contrary, is incorrect.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo (document 7-16)

The information within this article comes from the Federal Petition of the Writ Of Habeas Corpus, filed by the Public Defenders Office in 2008, and in addition, the declaration of Forensic Specialist, Lisa DiMeo (document 7-9). Both of which are available through the PACER System, for any who care to look.

Lisa DiMeo is a forensic specialist, trained in crime scene analysis and impression evidence, including latent prints, footwear, tire treads and bloodstain patterns. She has repeatedly provided expert testimony in both Federal and State jurisdictions.

Additional access to evidence was denied by the government. You have to ask the question why? From the Federal Petition of the Writ of Habeas Corpus, 2008.

Oh, Those Avias…

The narrative that Richard Ramirez left a trail of footprints at eight of the crime scenes has been universally accepted. It’s true that shoe prints and impressions were found, but as for the truth of it, well, that’s a little more hazy.

From the Federal Petition of the Writ of Habeas Corpus, 2008

There is no proof, none whatsoever, that Richard ever purchased, owned, borrowed, danced a Tango, or ever wore a pair of Avia sneakers. No proof and no one who knew him ever said so, apart from law enforcement and counsel for the Prosecution.

We have also been led to believe that once Richard realised that they had his footprints, thanks to Mayor (now Senator) Dianne Feinstein’s San Francisco press conference of 23rd August 1985, that he, at 8pm that very night, strolled into the centre of the Golden Gate Bridge and threw those incriminating Avias into the bay.

Declaration of expert witness, Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Once more there is no proof, no evidence, no witnesses that this ever happened. Certainly, Richard never said anything of the sort! It was all so very convenient, perhaps to explain away why they failed to discover the shoes in question. This erroneous rhetoric has been accepted as gospel, retold and recounted, over and over, and, rather like a macabre Cinderella story; only one shoe is possible…

If The Shoe Fits..

Taken from the Federal Petition of the Writ of Habeas Corpus, 2008

Gerald Burke, a criminalist from the Sheriff’s Crime Lab, examined the prints and impressions. He had no previous experience in either shoe print or impression evidence, subsequently, he lacked the necessary training to enable him to compare evidence correctly.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Retained as an expert witness for the Prosecution, it was his testimony regarding shoe print evidence that contributed to the misconception that only one pair of Avia shoes could have made the impressions. For Burke, after comparing 97 brands of shoes, determined that the prints were made by an Avia shoe, size 11-12, and after a visit to Avia HQ, announced it was model 445b.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19. Gerald Burke was incorrect in telling the jury that only one model of shoe could be considered.

Furthermore, Avia Footwear data processing manager, Jeff Brewser, testified in court that in Southern California, from January to July 1985, twenty four pairs of Avia shoes, model 445b were sold. Of these, only one pair was size 11 1/2. This information led the jury to believe that only one pair of shoes in the whole of Southern California could have made those impressions and prints. This was simply not true. In addition, Jerry Stubblefield, designer of the Avia aerobic shoe, misled the jury into believing that the soles of models 445 and 445b were different.

Totalling tens of thousands of shoes.. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Here, as in the rest of the trial, Richard was badly let down by his Defence Counsel, who failed to challenge on any of these points. How this trial was allowed to continue, is mystifying. Everyone, no matter who they are are, is entitled to a competent defence, especially during a trial where a life is at stake. That is a basic right.

From the Federal Petition of the Writ of Habeas Corpus, 2008

“This trial is a joke!”

Richard Ramirez in court 1989

The Incidents

I use the word “incident” in lieu of “crime” as this is the wording used in the petition and other documents. Therefore, it is not to downplay, or distract from what happened in Los Angeles during 1985, nor do I wish to focus on the horror of it as that is not the purpose of this piece. Here expert witness testimony will be applied to misconceptions and misleading information delivered during the trial.

Of the eight incidents detailed below, one is referred to as the “uncharged incident”, however it still featured as part of the trial.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Continuation from above Zazarra incident. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

It’s not even limited to Avias here, due to lack of clarity. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

The impression in the carpet itself, cut out in 1985, had long disappeared by 1989. Photographs were used. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19

Continuation of the Cannon incident. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 9-17.

Attachment 20. Burke never found discernable shoe prints on the carpet. The overlay of an Avia sole attached to the carpet photo, led the jury into believing the print was there. Oh well, we’ll just make it fit!

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo. A deliberate misleading of the jury.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 9-17.

Note: There were two differing shoe prints found in the Bennet incident, more information on that can be found in this post.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 9-17

Continuation of the Nelson incident. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19.

Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 7-19.

In Conclusion..

The finding of expert witness and forensic specialist, Lisa DiMeo, refutes the Prosecution with regards to the incidents detailed above. Her expert testimony cannot be disregarded and shows conclusively that misinformation was deliberately introduced and fed to the jury in the increasingly circus-like atmosphere both inside and outside the court. Gerald Burke had neither the experience or training to be able to compare footprints and impressions. The casting impressions were distorted, measurements incorrectly obtained, and the lack of individual print characteristics rendered the prosecution findings scientifically unreliable and unsafe.

From the Federal Petition of the Writ of Habeas Corpus, 2008.

Had Richard Ramirez had a competent defence counsel, with an expert witness, such as Ms DiMeo, they could have challenged this unsound evidence, and presented to court evidence regarding the huge pool of possible shoes and testimony in regards to shoe measurement. Competent counsel would have done so but Arturo and Daniel Hernandez utterly failed in their duty to provide a proper defence. By any reasonable account it is clear that Richard was abysmally represented, indeed, several of the jurors made statements where they indicated that had they been in possession of all the evidence and mitigating facts, a different outcome may have been possible.

But that didn’t happen.

Conclusion. Declaration of Forensic Specialist Lisa DiMeo, document 9-17

And so..

I will go back to the beginning, and ask what if the person on the witness stand, swearing that the evidence they shall give is “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth”, isn’t delivering the facts?

“The worst form of injustice is pretended justice.”

Plato

And there it is..

Full article

[chadmspahn]

Unveiling the Enigma: The Intricacies of Criminal Investigations and the Path to Success

Criminal investigations are a cornerstone in the pursuit of justice, embodying a delicate interplay of logic, science, and human intuition. Contrary to the portrayal often seen in popular media, the reality of criminal investigation is far more intricate and demanding. It is a realm where every detail matters, and every clue potentially holds the key to unlocking the truth. In this exploration, we delve into the depths of criminal investigations, unraveling the mysteries of how crimes are solved and careers forged in this challenging yet rewarding domain.

The Investigative Spectrum: Navigating the Journey from Crime Scene to Courtroom

The journey of a criminal investigation is akin to navigating a labyrinth, fraught with twists and turns, challenges, and revelations. It commences at the crime scene, where investigators step into a world frozen in time, meticulously documenting every fragment of evidence. From bloodstains to fingerprints, tire tracks to fibers, each element holds significance, potentially weaving a narrative of events leading up to the crime.

As evidence is gathered, it undergoes rigorous scrutiny in forensic laboratories, where cutting-edge technologies and expert analysis breathe life into seemingly mundane objects. DNA profiling, once a revolutionary breakthrough, has now become a staple in forensic investigations, offering unparalleled insights into perpetrators' identities. Moreover, advancements in digital forensics have expanded the investigative toolkit, enabling the retrieval of crucial information from electronic devices and online platforms.

Yet, amidst the technological marvels, the human element remains paramount. Investigators must possess not only technical proficiency but also keen observational skills and the ability to empathize with victims and witnesses. The art of interviewing honed through years of practice, holds the key to unlocking hidden truths and unraveling the complexities of human behavior.

As the investigation unfolds, detectives painstakingly piece together the puzzle, connecting dots and discerning patterns amidst the chaos. Collaborating with forensic experts, prosecutors, and other law enforcement agencies, they embark on a quest for justice, tirelessly pursuing leads and following the trail of evidence wherever it may lead.

Finally, the culmination of the investigation arrives in the hallowed halls of the courtroom, where truth is laid bare and justice is rendered. Testifying as witnesses, investigators must eloquently convey their findings, navigating the intricacies of legal proceedings with poise and precision. It is a moment of reckoning, where the fruits of their labor are put to the test, and the pursuit of justice reaches its zenith.

Arsenal of Investigation: Leveraging Tools and Techniques

Tools and techniques are stalwart companions in a criminal investigator's arsenal, aiding in the relentless pursuit of truth and justice. Forensic science, with its myriad applications, serves as the cornerstone of modern investigations, offering insights into the most enigmatic mysteries.

DNA analysis, once confined to the realms of science fiction, has emerged as a potent weapon in the fight against crime, enabling the identification of suspects with unprecedented accuracy. Likewise, the advent of ballistics analysis, forensic anthropology, and other specialized disciplines has broadened the scope of investigative possibilities, empowering investigators to unravel even the most convoluted of cases.

Yet, more than technology is required. The human factor remains irreplaceable, with investigators relying on intuition, experience, and tenacity to navigate the labyrinth of criminality. From the art of interrogation to the delicate dance of building rapport with witnesses, the human touch often proves decisive in cracking the toughest of cases.

Moreover, the collaborative nature of modern investigations demands effective communication and coordination among diverse stakeholders. Interagency task forces, comprising experts from various fields, pool their resources and expertise, fostering synergy and maximizing the likelihood of success.

The Grueling Path: Trials and Triumphs of a Career in Criminal Investigation

Embarking on a career in criminal investigation is not for the faint of heart. It is a path fraught with challenges, where the pursuit of justice often takes a toll on the mind, body, and spirit. Long hours, sleepless nights, and the constant specter of danger—these are the companions of those who choose to walk this hallowed path.

Yet, amidst the trials and tribulations, there exists a profound sense of purpose, a driving force that propels investigators forward in their quest for truth. The satisfaction of bringing closure to victims and their families, the camaraderie forged in the crucible of adversity, the knowledge that each case represents a step towards a safer, more just society—these are the rewards that sustain them in their darkest hours.

Moreover, a career in criminal investigation offers ample opportunities for growth and advancement. From specialized units tackling organized crime and terrorism to international agencies combating transnational threats, there exists a myriad of avenues for those seeking to make a meaningful impact on the world stage.

Perpetual Evolution in the Art of Investigation

In conclusion, criminal investigation stands as a testament to the indomitable spirit of humanity, a relentless pursuit of truth and justice in the face of adversity. From the crime scene to the courtroom, investigators navigate a labyrinth of challenges, armed with a potent blend of technology, intuition, and sheer determination.

Yet, even as we celebrate the triumphs of the past, we must remain ever-vigilant in the face of emerging threats and evolving challenges. The landscape of crime is in a constant state of flux, shaped by advances in technology, changes in societal norms, and the ever-shifting tides of geopolitics.

In this perpetual dance between light and shadow, truth and deception, the role of the criminal investigator remains more vital than ever. By embracing innovation, fostering collaboration, and upholding the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, investigators can ensure that they remain at the vanguard of the fight against crime, building a safer, more just world for generations to come.

[333mots]

In sanitarium, Korean tanka poet ‘read’ braille with his tongue

By TOMOKO TAKAKI

KUSATSU, Gunma Prefecture--Kim Ha-il went to his death largely unmourned and largely unknown, yet he led an extraordinary existence.

A native of what is now South Korea, Kim spent more than 80 of his 96 years in Japan, where he faced discrimination on two fronts: for being ethnic Korean and later as a sufferer of Hansen’s disease.

Blind and unable to use his fingers, Kim taught himself to “read” by hovering over printed matter and running his tongue over the braille pages.

His great joy in life was composing tanka poems.

DYING WISH

When he died last summer, his ashes were buried in the grounds of the sanitarium where he spent the last decades of his life isolated from society. His dying wish, which his next of kin managed to honor last fall, was to be placed in a grave alongside his parents in his native South Korea. 

Kim was born into a farming family when the Korean Peninsula was under Japanese colonial rule. He crossed the Korea Strait to Japan when he was 13 years old.

His life was turned upside down when he was diagnosed with Hansen’s disease, or leprosy as it was known in those days.

Even the liberation of the Korean Peninsula following Japan’s 1945 defeat in the Pacific War brought no obvious benefit to his life in Japan.

HIDDEN FROM SOCIETY

Kim would soon become a patient at Kuriu Rakusenen, a sanitarium in this mountain town famous for its hot springs, where he spent the remainder of his life. His compulsory segregation was mandated by the Leprosy Prevention Law that held sway for just over four decades. The law was only repealed in 1996.

Kim’s illness eventually caused him to go blind. His sole source of solace lay in composing 31-syllable tanka poems in Japanese, such as this one: “The tip of my tongue feels slightly flushed/ As I finish reading a braille letter/ For the first time in a long while.”

Even though the disease robbed Kim of his eyesight and the use of his fingers, he was determined to teach himself to read to satisfy his craving for books.

Kim developed his own method after learning about a fellow blind person who had lost both hands in the war and was using their lips to read braille.

His tongue often became chafed and sometimes bloodstained due to the poor quality of paper he licked. Kim’s mastery of reading with his tongue inspired others to learn.

Under colonial rule, Kim was classified as “Japanese.” But after the war, his status changed to “ethnic Korean in Japan.”

Besides encountering discrimination as a Hansen’s disease patient, he was also treated as an outcast at the sanitarium for being ethnic Korean.

Marked for discrimination because of his cultural background and then his disease, Kim turned to tanka to reflect on the absurdity of his situation and as a way to unclutter his feelings for his native land.

POIGNANT POEMS

“There is no fingerprint/ On my alien registration card/ Because I have no finger/ With which I could be fingerprinted,” goes a piece he penned on the now-defunct alien registration system that was used to record information on foreign residents in Japan.

“Kim Ha-il expressed the adversity of being an ethnic Korean in Japan in the 5-7-5-7-7 syllable pattern of this traditional Japanese verse form of tanka,” said Kim Kwiboon, a curator with the National Hansen’s Disease Museum. “It was precisely like he was saying, ‘Here’s an ethnic Korean in Japan.’ He was a mild-mannered person, but his poems were poignant.”

Kim appeared to yearn for his homeland more and more as the years went by, the museum curator said.

Kim also composed poems about love.

“‘If you are sick/ I’ll wait until you are completely healthy’/ So you said/ And you are 76.”’

Social worker Junichi Matsushita said Kim was bedridden in his twilight years.

REACHING OUT

Perhaps aware of his approaching end, Kim entrusted Matsushita with a letter expressing gratitude to a severely disabled woman who had encouraged him, when he was younger, to seek to reintegrate into society.

“For Kim Ha-il, who was in the sanitarium all the time, she was probably an unforgettable person and an unforgettable memory,” said Matsushita, 48.

Kim Manri, an Osaka-based dancer to whom the missive was directed, said she was overcome with nostalgia when she received the letter.

She bravely opted to live away from the sanitarium despite her serious disabilities and had urged Kim to do the same more than 40 years ago when the segregation policy was still in effect.

“Why don’t you come and rejoin society, despite your disabilities?” she told him at the time. “We will support you together, with housing and finding work.”

Kim dreamed of living in Osaka, which has a sizable Korean community, but prevaricated.

He cited his blindness, inability to move his hands and the toll the disease had taken on his facial features. He feared he would face even more prejudice, Kim Manri said.

“I was reckless enough to invite him to reintegrate into society,” she said. “Perhaps he had never experienced anything like that before, and he found it novel. I am so happy I could cry, because I have learned that he kept the memory so dear to himself, even though we met only once.”

WISH GRANTED

Kim Ha-il died of natural causes on June 10, 2023.

Three of his family members, who had been entrusted with his dying wish to be buried beside his parents’ graves, visited the Kuriu Rakusenen sanitarium on Oct. 5 last year to collect his ashes.

Park Soon-ja, a 73-year-old resident of Maebashi, the Gunma prefectural capital, who befriended Kim and acted as his interpreter on occasion, received an email from one of the family members a month later.

The message said that Kim’s ashes were placed on a hillock in his native North Gyeongsang province in South Korea, just as he had wished in life.

The email went on to say: “Uncle was feeling lonely all the time, but I didn’t even have an opportunity to comfort him. I have come to think about Uncle’s life.”

“He was in the sanitarium, but his life influenced so many people,” Park said pensively.

Many of the Hansen’s disease patients who were forcibly segregated in sanitariums under the national policy were estranged from their family members and had no choice but to be buried in the grounds of their institutions where they lived out their days.

It was almost unheard of for a deceased patient’s remains to be collected by family members, and the act of repatriation to other side of the strait was extremely rare.

Kim Ha-il now reposes beside his parents’ graves. His close kin said they will plant fruit trees around the gravesite. Nearby stands a monument inscribed with a tanka he composed in Japan.

“The mountains are calm/ With cawing of crows reaching my ears/ From time to time from afar.” 

A CD with a Korean folk song titled “Arirang” was left in his sanitarium room, which is now unoccupied.