Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Breaking news, Savannah Guthrie's mother, Nancy Guthrie, missing day 26. This after a flurry of activity at Nancy Guthrie's home, including federal prosecutors, one in a blacked out SUV that drives into the garage and is never seen. What's going on inside of Nancy Guthrie's home? just a few hours ago.
This, as we learn, DNA found in the home does not match Nancy Guthrie or her friends and family. So whose is it? And what does a digital blackout have to do with catching the kidnapper? I'm Nancy Grace.
Chapter 2: What recent developments have occurred in the Nancy Guthrie case?
This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being with us.
Intruder or intruders came into the home, snuck into her room, awakened her out of a dead sleep, and took this 84-year-old grandmother out of her own bed.
A little old lady dragged out of her own bed. Hi there. I'm coming on to say it is day 24 since our mom was taken in the dark of night from her bed and every hour and minute and second and every long night has been agony since then of worrying about her and fearing for her and aching for her and most of all just missing her just missing her
Savannah Guthrie, you can see her deteriorating with every missive, with every video plea that she issues. That reward is full of implications. For instance, earlier, up until that time, the... REWARD HAD BEEN PREDICATED UPON THE ARREST AND OR CONVICTION OF THE KIDNAPPER. NOT SO ANYMORE. THE FAMILY BEGGING FOR INFORMATION TO BRING NANCY GUTHRIE HOME.
THIS AS WE LEARN A DNA SAMPLE FOUND IN THE HOME. is absolutely, definitively stranger DNA. Where was it found? When was it found? Can it be isolated and identified? A lot happening straight out to special guest joining us, Mary Coleman. She is the 13 Evening Anchor at KOLD. If you will recall... That was one of the stations that got a ransom note. Mary Coleman, thank you for being with us.
Mary, what is the latest?
Well, Nancy, talking about the ransom note, a lot of people have questioned why there's been silence.
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Chapter 3: What evidence was found at Nancy Guthrie's home?
We personally haven't received any notes for a while now, and a lot of people are still questioning the legitimacy of those notes. Law enforcement still hasn't said one way or another, but it was clear when the family started coming out with those videos that they were taking these notes very seriously because of some of the contents of them.
There was a flurry of activity at the home yesterday, including federal prosecutors on the scene. You're seeing that video now from our friends at Fox News. Mary Coleman, can you confirm those were, in fact, federal prosecutors as we assumed last night?
Yes, we can. We have confirmed that FBI agents along with the U.S. Attorney's Office were out there. And a lot of people had some questions about that. You know, if there's no one to prosecute yet, why are they out there? And I feel like you might be able to shed some light on that.
Guys, take a look at what we saw yesterday. This is from our friends at Fox News. To you, Dave Mack, Crime Stories investigative reporter. You and I closely... combed through the video to determine what we were seeing yesterday. Again, a flurry of activity. They were there throughout the day, on and off, on and off.
One of them shielded from view by taking the blackened windowed SUV into the garage, closing the door, going in, and then coming back out without ever being seen. What did you observe, Dave Mack?
You know, Nancy, it was very secretive with that one vehicle. Now, as all the vehicles pulled in, we could see the different investigators getting out. They were dressed differently than what we had seen with deputies and other investigators. We're talking about suit and tie here. Those are your federal prosecutors that were looking over this entire scene.
But, Nancy, they spent a lot of time, they being the investigators on scene yesterday, the federal prosecutors, spent a long time At the front door where the blood was found right there in front of that nest camera location, they spent almost an hour in that one area. Investigators also looked just inside in the foyer, spent a large amount of time there.
But as you mentioned, we did have multiple vehicles pulling in. They all stayed in order except for one. And that was a blackened out SUV. You could not see through the windows. It pulls in. They waited in front of the garage door. Garage door opens. The vehicle pulls in. Garage door shuts before anybody gets out. We don't know who was in the vehicle. We don't know who got out.
It was there for about an hour and then it left the same way it came in. No sign of who was in that vehicle. But it was a very active day on site yesterday.
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Chapter 4: How does the presence of federal prosecutors impact the investigation?
What was she thinking? But certainly at that point, confusion, shock, and disbelief.
Straight back to Mary Coleman joining us, K-O-L-D, Crime Files. Is it Crime Files Investigator? Files, F-I-L-E-S. Okay. I'm sorry. I thought that must've been a typo. Sorry. Crime files investigator, Mary Coleman. We now know that DNA in Nancy Guthrie's home is stranger DNA, but yet we are also hearing that there are problems because it's mixed DNA. What do you know?
Yeah, we're hearing the same thing, Nancy. We've been told that it's going to take a longer amount of time, even up to a year, to get some of this back to let us know whether this person is in a system or whether they have a relative who we can trace this to or anything of that nature, which is obviously concerning. Time is of the essence right now.
We've seen this technology used in so many other cases. To hear that it's mixed and that it might not be as reliable as some of the other DNA that we've seen in previous cases is alarming for the community and especially for the family. As you can imagine, they just want answers here.
Who is it that is saying that it's a problem because the DNA is mixed? Did Nano say that?
This is coming from the Sheriff's Department. I don't know if he specifically said that, but we received that in a press release that they had released.
I don't understand why they had to blurt that out. That said, straight out to Tammy Ballard joining us. Tammy is a crime scene investigator and reconstructionist, former DNA criminalist for the San Diego Police Department Crime Lab. Tammy Ballard, in this day and age— Mixed DNA is to be expected and is actually routine. Explain exactly how.
Well, first of all, what is mixed DNA, deoxyribonucleic acid, and how exactly mechanically is it evaluated and analyzed? How do you do it? How do you handle mixed DNA?
Mixtures of DNA are going to make law enforcement and attorneys very nervous. So in the DNA world, Mixtures are everywhere as technology advances the sensitivity increases. You're going to find mixtures in almost everything. Even blood stains that used to be single source. You might get that 1% contributor. That's going to make it a mixture. So that being said in this case.
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Chapter 5: What does the DNA evidence reveal about the case?
In this case, we're talking about this elite FBI unit that comes out using top of the line professional audio and video equipment. so that they can go over every part of this inside and out. And they can make measurements. They got digital measurements of everything so they can try to get the height of the suspect, which is what they did.
But also investigators are going to be taking photos and building videos that can be viewed probably 3D so that the trial or jurors in the future will have a look at it. But right now, Nancy, they've still got to find who did this. So it boggles my mind that they would return the home back to the family right now. There's no need to. Nobody else lives there. Nobody in the family lives there.
There's no reason to turn the house back over yet.
You know, those measurements that you mentioned can be so important to Brian Fitzgibbons, USPA, Nationwide Security, I recall a murder case I prosecuted that had been set up to look like a suicide. And when I got to the scene, I nearly did a backflip because there were three guys walking around in the bedroom where the murder occurred, believed to have been a suicide.
I'm like, who are you and why are you tromping around in here? Well, lucky for me, they're from the medical examiner's office.
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Chapter 6: What are the implications of the ransom notes received?
And they were taking measurements. One was down on all fours. I remember it was carpeted in the bedroom where she was killed. And they were taking measurements from the casing that, you know, blows out when you take a shot. And they were analyzing the distance from the bed.
Now the theory was the woman committed suicide, but there were no cases, there was no evidence on the bed where she was lying, practically in the middle of the bed. They were found on the floor and they were measuring it. And that helped me prove, along with blood spatter found under her pillow, that she did not commit suicide based on where they were found. So
The victim can't speak for themselves. You have to speak for them. And that can include very sophisticated DNA evidence like Tammy Ballard is telling us about, very intricate facts like Mary Coleman is telling us about, and measurements, measurements that I guarantee you they were taking inside that home. And they better take it before they release that home. I agree with Dave Mack.
I don't think they should release that home. Why release it?
Yeah, the length of the hold on this scene, certainly at the beginning of the case when it was originally released, was perplexing. And then when you saw the FBI get involved, it's made a lot more sense. They've had the scene locked down. You've had investigators in and out. And now when we see prosecutors there, that tells me a couple of things.
First off, that these prosecutors are new sets of eyes, and it could indicate that they are preparing an affidavit for arrest. So on the good side is, hey, this could be part of a good process that we don't know about. There's more information there that we don't know about. Or it is that they are indeed preparing to release the scene and that the FBI has done what they've needed to do with it.
And they want to make sure that those prosecutors get eyes on in-person view of that crime scene.
You're so right, Fitzgibbons. Remember the Parkland School massacre? That school stayed closed for seven years after.
Crime scene investigation is both an art and a science. I have been critical of the sheriff in this case from day one. This sheriff is not a trained public information officer. He's not familiar with media relations, and he just shouldn't be spouting out and blaming the media for overreacting and so forth.
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