Will Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapping be treated as a homicide? Search continues for 84-year-old man, experts share shocking latest news
Nancy Guthrie was reported missing on February 1 and has not been found. More than 100 days have passed and the Pima County Sheriff’s Office and FBI have yet to report any significant progress in the pursuit. Guthrie.
Recently, she made a statement Body found in Mexico It caused a stir, but it turned out to be false. As the search progressed, some began to wonder whether Guthrie would ever be found, although members of Guthrie’s family — including the “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie –Keep hoping. Now, experts have explained what to do if a body simply cannot be recovered.
Experts speaking to Newsweek explained that the case could still be a prosecutable homicide, in which case the family might get justice from the perpetrator. However, some conditions need to be met for the case to be heard.
The publication said the missing person case would still be viable if investigators managed to amass a strong enough set of circumstantial and forensic evidence to prove the 84-year-old was dead and that a crime had led to her disappearance. report. So far, authorities have released doorbell camera footage showing a man wearing a mask and carrying a backpack on Guthrie’s porch the night before he was reported missing. The current assumption is that he is a suspect in her disappearance.
What experts say about the Nancy Guthrie case
Criminal defense attorney Michael T. van der Veen noted that early “distractions” such as blood on the porch, a sudden disconnection of a pacemaker and videos of a man known as “the Porch Guy” on the Internet were attempts to help the case.
“Prosecutors can prove it indirectly because the judge gives instructions to the jury…Circumstantial evidence is just as strong, if not stronger, than direct evidence. Through circumstantial evidence, prosecutors can prove the facts of a crime, or the ‘subject of the crime,'” he told Newsweek. The attorney added of Guthrie, “She is 84 years old, wears a pacemaker and needs to take daily medication…The likelihood that she disappeared voluntarily is very low.”
Meanwhile, Daniel K. Maxwell, a former police officer and professor of criminal investigation, noted that investigators must first prove that a homicide occurred, even if they do not have a body, and must link specific people to the case.
“The essential element of proof… is that a crime has been committed and that the person arrested is responsible for the crime. This also includes the elimination of all non-criminal causes,” the expert told the publication.
“Any physical evidence is important. Direct evidence includes photos, videos and eyewitness testimony. Indirect evidence includes fingerprints, blood, hair, fibers. Indirect evidence also plays an important role… including the suspect’s behavior before and after his disappearance,” he added.
