Invisible Evidence
Rating 50
Warrick is blindsided in court when a bloody knife he recovered from a suspected killer's car is determined to be inadmissible, leaving the CSIs only 24 hours to find new evidence before the accused murderer is set free.
Warrick: "Impound towed the vehicle to the garage. Michael Fife's outstanding warrant was for marijuana possession, so that's what I was looking for. I swabbed the knife and I sent the blood sample to Greg."
Greg: "I ran it through CODIS and matched it to another case."
Catherine: "My case. Rachel Lyford, 19. Murdered in her apartment. The assistant coroner examined the body. Based on the vaginal introitus, he suspected rape. I processed the scene. There was nothing probative. There were no prints, no DNA. Everything I collected is in the vault."
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
Sara: "Now, once Warrick found the knife, the D.A. thought there was sufficient probable cause and rushed the prelim."
Gil walks to the doorway, standing there as he listens to the team discuss the details of the case.
Catherine: "Further processing of the evidence became a low priority, pending the trial date."
Gil: This is a rush case. Everyone's in the pool for 24 hours. Warrick, you need to see Robbins. Have him walk you through his notes on the autopsy. Nick, Sara, the judge issued a warrant for Fife's vehicle. Detail is towing it back to our garage."
Nick: "Hold on. Warrick's already searched the car and the knife's been excluded. What exactly are we hoping to find?"
Gil: "I don't know. But the knife and the towel are invisible evidence. The jury will never see them. So we have to find something that's visible."
Sara: "Uh, listen, I recognize the importance of this, but I'm in the middle of my own homicide investigation."
Gil: "I'll talk to your detective. Explain the deal."
Sara: "Well, it's not about the detective. It's about my own responsibility."
Gil: "I'm handing out assignments, Sara. It's not a negotiation."
Catherine: "I'll go back to the scene and look at it with fresh eyes."
Gil: "Deadline's 4:00 P.M. Tomorrow. 'Once more into the breach.'"
Catherine: "DNA on the toilet flusher."
Greg: "On the three-ten, we're five seconds out. Three, two, one."
Greg reaches for the paper and looks at it.
Greg: "Sorry."
Catherine: "Suspect's DNA is inconsistent with the semen found at the scene."
Warrick: "Great."
Nick walks in the lab, joining the others.
Nick: "Hey, Grissom, the Sheriff checked with just about every tech in the lab looking for you. He's bugging for an update."
Warrick: "I suggest you avoid him."
Nick: "Why? What happened?"
Catherine: "Our only suspect may be innocent."
Sara: "You're saying that the DNA results excluded our suspect, but couldn't the semen have come from a prior sexual encounter with another man?"
Nick: "Fife still could have raped and murdered Rachel."
Catherine: "Well, the toilet bowl was clean. The semen belongs to whoever flushed the toilet last, there was a drop, not a smear."
Gil: "Look, we have no evidence that he raped her, no evidence that he killed her, and even if we consider the invisible evidence, it still doesn't give us enough to put him at the scene of the crime during the commission of the crime. Our trinity of evidence is incomplete."
Catherine: "Okay, so, for argument's sake, let's assume that Fife didn't put the knife in the car. How did it get there?"
Sara: "Okay, um, does he live alone?"
Warrick: "Yeah. Recently separated. His wife moved back to Albuquerque. And no one else had access to his vehicle."
Nick: "Was there any sign of forced entry?"
Warrick: "No sign of forced entry."
Catherine: "And what evidence is still outstanding?"
Gil: "The wax. What's-his-name is still analyzing it."
Catherine: "Well, I know that there was wax on the sheets and the victim's body. How about the murder weapon?"
Warrick: "I didn't notice, but I wasn't looking."
Nick: "Doesn't matter. Knife's excluded."
Gil: "The exclusionary rule only applies to the person whose constitutional rights were violated. If we have another suspect, then the knife is back into play."
Catherine: "Grissom?"
Gil turns towards the direction Catherine nodded and sees the sheriff. Sighing heavily, he stands up and leaves the room to meet with Atwater.
Gil: "Axion wax is industrial grade. It's sold to car washers for commercial use only."
Warrick: "Yeah. Fife's an electrician. I doubt he would come into contact with that at work."
Gil: "Then, we need to know where he gets his car washed."
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
Catherine: "Except, if we ask him, we show our cards, and his lawyer will know that we're looking in another direction."
Warrick: "Yeah, then he'll petition Judge Brenner for Fife's immediate release."
Gil: "How do you feel about letting him walk?"
Warrick: "We've got, what, less than seven hours. Let's not pull any punches. If the evidence is leading us away from Fife, I say we go with it."
Gil and Catherine are standing in the observation room, wathcing Warrick and Brass interview the suspect.
Catherine: "So, I liked your tough act yesterday."
Gil: "Huh?"
Catherine: "'I hand out the assignments. This isn't a negotiation.'"
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
Gil: "What, too much?"
Catherine: "Not enough."
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
They continue watching the interview room, neither saying anything.
Impressions, Bits of Insight and the Pics that Don't Fit
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller
picture courtesy of CSI Storyteller