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Pathfinder Topic: Justice Denied
Message: Kilroy, a few bits on blood & chain-of-custody . . .
Author: [Themis] Date: Sep 1 1997 12:37AM

Excerpted from Black's Law Dictionary

*** "chain of custody" is proven if an officer is able to testify that he or she took control of the item of physical evidence, identified it, placed it in a locked or protected area ***

See Plaintiff Goldman's Motion in Civil Trial

to establish chain of custody of evidence.

In actuality this Motion was intended to avoid getting into the specifics of 'chain of custody.'

Also see: http://www.uchastings.edu/plri/fall95/oj.html, Public Law Research Institute Report, Proposed Reforms to the Criminal Justice System as a Reaction to the Simpson Verdict. By: Eric C. Johnson

From the various research I did, it was the responsibility of the nurse who drew the blood to make sure he filled out all the information as to what he did, etc. on the envelope and seal it. The have specific forms for that information.

I very much doubt that the nurse would have volunteered the information related to what he did with the syringe. Since he didn't use a vacutainer which would have been self contained including the needle, it stands to reason the syringe and needle were of some importance.

Collection and Preservation of Evidence

by George Schiro

"Victim and suspect's known whole blood samples will have to be collected in yellow, red, or purple top "Vacutainers." Contact the lab to which the samples will be submitted for specific information."

Web Page: Steven Staggs, Police Department, University of California, Riverside, CA. 92521-0218
RECOMMENDED READING: "Evidence Handling Guide" LA. Dept. of Public Safety and Corrections, Office of State Police, Crime Laboratory

Evidence Collection Guidelines

This information was adapted from the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training's workbook for the "Forensic Technology for Law Enforcement" Telecourse presented on May 13, 1993. Please see the acknowledgments.

Handling and Storage of Physiological Fluid Evidence

(Obligation under People vs Nation and Hitch that a reasonable and good faith effort be made to preserve perishable evidence)

Source: http://police2.ucr.edu/csi.htm

See People v. Nation (1980) 26 Cal. 3d 169, 179)

THE COURT: No. No. I've heard enough, guys. Thank you. All right.*** I believe that 1291 does also allow for the presentation of the grand jury testimony. As to the foundational objection that Mr. Peratis is not competent to testify to the amount of blood that was actually drawn, the Court will overrule that objection. Peratis' testimony at the preliminary hearing was that he's been a jail nurse or registered nurse for 20 odd years, that drawing of blood is a routine thing that he does and that the--I assume that there will be some other foundation later in the record, and I'll allow this testimony subject to that later foundation that calibrated syringes are used for the purpose of drawing the blood, that the purple top tubes are the type that are marked--my recollection of the photograph that I saw, it's marked 10 ml at the bottom of the tube, is the type that was used in this particular case. *** [emphasis added].-July 31, 1995

The above was added into this post to save me from a further post related to how I knew the size of the edta tube. The prosecution didn't want Peratis' testimony from the preliminary hearing to be allowed.

Date: Sep 1 1997 12:48AM

In addition to my former post, Chain-of-custody was broken the minute Vannatter walked out of the room with that envelope containing the blood. The envelope wasn't filled out as to the nurse's portion and it wasn't sealed. It was blood evidence and required refrigeration as soon as possible. Vannatter also should have noted his part in the collection of the blood and gone directly to the lab and booked it in some manner, shape or form to make sure it was refrigerated as standard protocol. Needless to say, the syringe and needle should have been accounted for since a vacutainer wasn't used.

As to O.J. Simpson not saying anything, I doubt he knew what day it was. He was stupid enough to go have his blood taken without an attorney present. He had very little sleep and could not possibly have been in any right presence of mind. And it's not because it was O.J. Simpson, any human being in that position would have been more than a little out of it.