Latent Bloodstains In Crime Scene Photos

An initial review of the crime scene photos indicates the possibility of latent bloodstains being present in certain areas. Looking closely at the snapshots suggests that certain areas have been cleaned. The door is clearly dirty in certain areas, yet a large portion of it is inexplicably clean and very white compared to the immediate surrounding areas of the door. On the floor, one can see something very similar with the metal plates. All of them are dirty and dusty to some extent – except the one in the lower left of the photo. It appears visibly clean compared to the others, particularly the one sitting to its right. Also, it seems to have been moved. The dark stain under it contains a void pattern that looks to match the side and corner

When an area in a suspect location has been partially cleaned, that should always raise a red flag for investigators. Something was there and has been removed that the offender did not want anyone else to see. Whether it is blood or not remains to be definitively tested, but it is still clear that something is present and raises suspicion. Void patterns indicating that an object has been moved also gives ample reason to believe something may have been there and cleaned up, especially when it is clear it has been sitting there for a long time. Identifying and collecting these latent bloodstains can easily be done with luminol in an interior environment such as this one. It is quick, simple, and most departments have easy access to the chemical. Interior rooms are easy to darken so that the luminol will show up in crime scene photography while still allowing enough light to get an ample visual of the scene. In this case, the floor stain required covering of the door window, as that provided too much light – and yet the door could be cracked open just a bit to allow enough light to get a decent