Types of Forensic Evidence
Table of Contents
Question 1: What types of forensic evidence were recovered?
Answer: At Simpson’s home:
1. Blood drops on the driver’s door of Simpson’s white Bronco.
2.Blood splatters in Simpson’s foyer and master bedroom.
3.Pair of Nicole’s bloody socks.
4. Blood-stained right-handed glove.
5. Trail of blood from the Bronco to Simpson’s front door.
At the crime scene:
6.Blood-stained left-handed glove.
7.Blood drops near and in a Bentley and a Saab.
8. Footprints in the dirt.
9. Hair’s from Goldman’s shirt.
10.Bloody envelope containing a pair of Nicole’s glasses.
11.Goldman’s shirt and cap.
12.Blood pools around the house.
13.Nicole’s body.
14.Goldman’s body.
Question 2: Was the evidence recovered in the proper manner?
Answer: No. The evidence was improperly recovered when:
- The bloody glove and blood samples were recovered without a warrant from Simpson’s home.
- The crime scene was improperly secured.
- A blanket was placed over Nicole, possibly contaminating any evidence.
- Nicole’s and Goldman’s bodies were not removed until 10 hours later.
- At the crime scene, Goldman’s cap and shirt were placed together in the same bag containing the hair and fiber samples.
- Blood pool evidence was swabbed with wet cotton swatches then packaged together in plastic bags and loaded into a hot truck. These samples would later be handled by a technician wearing gloves already soiled by Simpson’s voluntary blood sample.
- Some blood pools were missed at the initial collection and not collected until 3 weeks later.
- Blood on Nicole’s socks went unnoticed and uncollected until 3 weeks later.
- Junior Detective Andrea Mazzola collected most of the samples unsupervised. She was filmed wiping tweezers off with her dirty hands, and dropping several blood swabs on the ground.
Question 3:What types of forensic evidence were introduced at trial?
Answer: The prosecution introduced the following evidence at trial:
- DNA analysis of blood from Nicole’s socks.
- DNA analysis of blood found around, on and in Simpson’s Bronco.
- African-American hair strands found on Goldman’s shirt.
- Coins with fresh blood on them found in the parking lot behind Nicole’s condo.
- DNA analysis of blood taken from the left-hand glove.
- Gloves with hair fibers consistent with Goldman’s and fiber samples from the Bronco that were found in Goldman’s cap.
- The right hand leather glove found at Simpson’s home and the left hand leather glove found at Nicole’s home matched.
- Prior arrest report of Simpson for beating Nicole.
- Bloody footprints.
- Photographs of crime scene.
- Photographs of Simpson’s home.
Question 4: If the case were tried today, would new forensic technology be used and possibly change the outcome of the trial?
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Answer: No. By proving that the evidence was improperly collected and stored, and that the evidence testing, especially the DNA testing, was conducted improperly, the defense was able to create enough of a reasonable doubt in the jury’s mind for O.J. Simpson to be acquitted. Today’s new forensic technology would not be enough to overcome the evidence collection mistakes.