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Probe bungled, cop admits

The Toronto Star

February 23, 1995, Thursday, FINAL EDITION

Probe bungled, cop admits

BYLINE: AP)

SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A4

LENGTH: 596 words

DATELINE: LOS ANGELES

One of the detectives in charge of the O. J. Simpson case conceded yesterday the investigation was marred by failures to collect blood from a gate, preserve the contents of Nicole Simpson’s stomach and test blood splattered on her back. Testifying for the third day, Detective Tom Lange told the jury in the former football star’s double murder trial that blood spots on Nicole Simpson’s back were washed off by coroner’s assistants even though he had asked for them to be analyzed.  

In addition, he said, the contents of her stomach, which could have helped establish the time of death, were destroyed instead of being preserved.

Lange made his statements under cross-examination as Simpson’s lawyers pressed their theory that the investigation into the murders of Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman was slipshod and inadequate.

Simpson has pleaded not guilty to stabbing his ex-wife and Goldman to death last June 12 outside her condominium.

Meanwhile, in a setback for the defence, the only witness Simpson’s lawyers can use to portray Detective Mark Fuhrman as a racist doesn’t want to testify because of heavy publicity surrounding the case, prosecutors said in court pa-pers.

The defence has suggested Fuhrman planted a bloody glove on Simpson’s prop-erty.

The development involving the witness, Kathleen Bell, raises doubts as to whether the defence will ever be allowed to question Fuhrman about allegations of racism.

According to the defence, the Los Angeles-area woman contends Fuhrman ex-pressed hatred of mixed-race couples and used the word “nigger.”

Judge Lance Ito has disallowed other allegations of racism on Fuhrman’s part.

But Bell’s lawyer, Taylor Daigneault, said later Bell would testify if sub-poenaed.

During Lange’s cross- examination, defence attorney Johnnie Cochran suggested a photo of a cup of melting Ben & Jerry’s ice cream might have helped establish the time Nicole and Goldman were killed.

But Lange said he doubted a picture of the ice cream, found on a banister in Nicole’s home, would have helped, and he saw no reason to have it photographed.

Likewise, he said he did not order photographs to be taken of some nine can-dles found burning in her living room, bedroom and bathroom.

“Did it ever occur to you that by taking pictures of the candles and their state of burning we could extrapolate backwards to the time of death?” Cochran asked.

“No. I know of no way to do that,” Lange said.

He acknowledged, however, that he asked forensic technician Dennis Fung on June 13 to collect blood from a rear gate of the condo and found out that it was not done until three weeks after the slayings - long after the police crime-scene tape had come down.

“If you had known that Fung had not collected blood spots on the back fence, you wouldn’t have released that crime scene, would you?” Cochran asked.

“No,” Lange said.

Lange acknowledged no test was performed to determine if Nicole had been raped, but defended his decision.

“Sex was the last thing on the mind of this attacker,” he said. “It was an overkill. It was a brutal murder.”

It also came to light today that a sealed envelope, possibly containing a stiletto knife Simpson bought weeks before the murders, will not be part of the trial.

Newsday reports that transcripts of discussions Jan. 25 - out of the hearing of the jury or the public - Deputy District Attorney William Hodgman argued that the knife was a moot point. “Your honor . . . we don’t intend to introduce any-thing about the knife or anything,” he told Judge Lance Ito.

LOAD-DATE: February 24, 1995

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

GRAPHIC: AP PHOTO: Members of O.J. Simpson’s legal “dream team” examine a docu-ment in court yesterday. Fron left, Robert Shapiro, private investigator Bill Pavelic also known as William Bill Pavelic and Zvonko Bill Pavelic, Johnnie Cochran and F. Lee Bailey. PHOTO: Tom Lange: Detective testi-fied that crucial evidence was destroyed.