Crime

Did Police in Renisha McBride Case Conduct a Sloppy Investigation?

July 25, 2014, 7:06 AM

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Theodore Wafer

The defense team for Dearborn Heights resident Theodore Wafer, the man accused of murdering Renisha McBride on his porch, went on the attack Thursday at trial, accusing police of sloppy investigative work and contaminating evidence.

Defense attorney Cheryl Carpenter, during her cross-examination of Dearborn Heights police officer Mark Parrinello, an evidence technician for the department, questioned why investigators waited 10 days before dusting the scene of the shooting for fingerprints, Orlandar Brand-Williams of the Detroit News reported.

“Days after this incident is when you dusted for fingerprints,” she said to Parrinello as he sat in the witness chair Thursday. “Would you agree with me that that dusting for fingerprints is so important?” Carpenter asked.

Parrinello responded that command officers didn't instruct him to dust the scene immediately.

The News wrote:

Carpenter also asked the police officer about possible contamination of McBride’s clothes and the discovery of maggots on them while they were at the Dearborn Heights Police Department but Parrinello shot back quickly that the contamination occurred at the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office where deer meat was being stored near her clothes.

Mary Mazur, a spokeswoman for the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office, said “we do not store deer meat at the medical examiner’s (office).” Mazur said the contamination may have been the result of a natural occurrence with flies and could have started at the crime scene.

The defense also questioned Parrinello as to why he didn’t discover possible blood in McBride’s car when he looked for her cell phone on Nov. 4. It was discovered days later in the tow yard, the News reports.

-- Allan Lengel


Read more:  Detroit News


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