Just to the south of the school grounds runs a wooded creek. This creek runs east to west behind the football and baseball diamond, and then along the backside of the open space adjacent to the school grounds. The trees and brush along the creek are normally lush and dense. Now that it is fall, none of the trees or bushes have leaves, but it is still difficult to see the creek through the dense brown branches of the now dormant foliage. A concrete walking/bike trail runs east and west along the creek and is often used by students who walk to school. A sidewalk runs north to south, connecting the back-courtyard area to this walking trail. Since smoking is not allowed on campus, some students go to this wooded area to hide while having a smoke, while others just go to sit along the creek bank and visit with friends. There are several benches in the grassy area, just north of the walking/bike trail.
Walker drives through the parking lot and gets as close to the open space as possible. The sun is just now rising and shadows from surrounding trees make it difficult to see. The detectives finally spot Sergeant Thomas standing along a bank of trees near the creek, and he is waving them over. Walker grabs the crime scene kit and they quickly start walking in the direction of the Sergeant. It takes them several minutes to walk the length of the baseball field and open area to get to where the Sergeant is.
“Don, the body is over here,” says Sergeant Thomas, as he points to a spot beyond a row of several trees and some bushes.
Being late fall, the sound of crunching leaves fills the air as they make their way through the trees and bushes to the bank of the creek. Frost is still on the grass from the cold evening. Other than their own, no footprints are visible in the frost. Upon arriving at the creek, Walker and Baker see the body of a young teenage female lying behind some bushes. She is lying on her back with her head toward the creek, about 5 feet from the edge of the bank, and her legs pointing toward the bushes. Her left leg is bent at the knee. It is obvious to both detectives that she has been dead for some time, as lividity has already set in. Her face is ashen, and she has long blond hair. She is wearing a white winter coat with a fur-lined hood, some type of yellow top, and jeans. She has one light blue New Balance tennis shoe on her left foot and white socks on both feet.
“Where is the other shoe?” asks Baker.
“I don’t know, haven’t found it,” says Sergeant Thomas.
“Okay then, do we know who she is?” Baker asks.
“We believe she is Wendy Spire, a junior student who was reported missing late last night by her parents,” responds Thomas. “She never came home Thursday night and certainly fits the description.”
Baker squats down to get a closer look at the body. He notes that her hair is tussled with pieces of dried grass and leaves intertwined in her hair. The top of her jacket zipper has been torn and he observes redness and bruising around her neck area, as well as some vertical scratches. In his mind, it appears as though she has been strangled and may have tried to get someone’s hands off her throat, resulting in the vertical scratches. Her pants appear to be undisturbed, so he doubts she has been sexually assaulted. A small brown leather purse with a long shoulder strap lies approximately six feet north of her left foot. Meanwhile, Detective Walker has gotten out his camera and begins to take crime scene pictures.
Baker tells Sergeant Thomas to cordon off the area with crime scene tape and start a search of the open space and courtyard area, looking for anything that could be evidence. Baker and Walker will handle searching the area immediately surrounding the body.
“You also need to call the coroner and get him out here to process the body,” says Baker. “And don’t forget to call the Chief.”
“We’re on it,” responds Thomas.
Baker takes care not to disturb the crime scene, knowing that any tiny piece of evidence can be important. After Walker is finished taking pictures of the body and immediate area, Baker puts on his latex gloves and picks up the purse by its strap, and resets it in an upright position. He then carefully opens the purse to find a student ID card tucked into one of the inside pockets. The name on the card is Wendy Spire and the photo looks like the girl lying at his feet. He also finds a cell phone, which he leaves in the purse.
“Steve” shouts Walker, “the Chief is here and wants to see the crime scene.”
“Walk her in, but don’t let her disturb anything. Bring her from
