A B.C. Supreme Court jury heard Monday about various aspects of crime investigation through the testimony of RCMP Cpl. Kimberley Tremblay, a specialist with forensic investigation services.
Tremblay described her role in police investigations, including taking photographs, conducting tests and making comparison analyses of pieces of evidence seized in the case.
Cody Alan Legebokoff, 24, has been charged with killing four area women: Jill Stuchenko, Cynthia Mass, Natasha Montgomery and Loren Leslie. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Tremblay, a 10-year RCMP veteran, said she was present when Mass’ body was recovered and that she assisted another officer with the collection of insects (important in helping to determine time of death.) Oct. 9, 2010 she took aerial photographs of the area (L.C. Gunn Park.)
The officer testified she was also on scene Nov. 28, 2010 in the area off Hwy. 27 where the body of Leslie, 15, was found. Her role was to photograph and record the scene and any evidence found at the scene, she said.
Tremblay told the court she noticed a trail of blood and she found, at the entrance to the path leading to Leslie’s body, there was a tree with a freshly broken branch. There was a broken branch lying on the ground, at Leslie’s feet, she said. Later on in the investigation, she was able to compare the whole tree (it was cut down) break site with its jagged edges and the broken off branch and reunite them.
“All the pieces fit together,” she said, adding that the injury site to the tree was “fresh and green” when she first saw it.
The officer also described comparing footwear impressions in the snow with footwear seized in the police investigation, a USA size 11, one-piece, molded shoe, DVS brand, with two red circles and other shapes on the sole. In one of her tests, the officer said she put her foot into the “suspect” shoe and stepped into a styrofoam block to create a three-dimensional model to better show any “distinguishing features” or wear marks.
After looking at the various characteristics, Tremblay said she concluded that a shoe of “similar size and shape” could have created the shoe impression in the snow at the scene, therefore, she could not exclude it as being the “donor” shoe.
She also compared tire marks believed left by a front passenger (side) tire at the scene with ones left during her tests of a tire and rim turned over to her by another investigating officer for that purpose in 2011 – the tire and rim was from a vehicle first photographed and searched in November 2010.
Details like size of lugs (units of tread,) wear and tear are compared and other features are looked at, she said. Tremblay said she concluded that while the two tire marks were of similar size and shape (and therefore could not be excluded as “the source” of marks found at the scene) she did “not have enough to make a positive identification.”
The trial which began June 2 is expected to continue Tuesday with Tremblay still on the stand. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Glen Parrett is presiding in the case.