RCMP Sergeant Tim Sleigh stood in the witness box at the Robert Pickton trial yesterday, speaking in a gravely monotone voice.
Referring to charts, police documents and photographs, the officer confirmed the identity of fingerprints of Mr. Pickton, his brother Dave and his friend Dinah Taylor on items found in Mr. Pickton's home and on the farm.
The jury followed along as he dryly testified about the numbers assigned to exhibits to keep track of them. He told the court about officers who identified the fingerprints and officers who verified the conclusions. He explained the intricacies involved in comparing fingerprints.
However, he was not asked and did not volunteer anything about the significance of the evidence. That was left to another time during the year-long trial.
Defence lawyer Adrian Brooks drew attention to the fingerprints of Dave Pickton and Ms. Taylor. Prosecutor Michael Petrie asked about fingerprints that turned out to belong to Robert Pickton.
Dave Pickton's right index finger was found on a piece of cardboard in a metallic toolbox that was on top of a freezer holding the partial human remains of two women, Andrea Joesbury and Sereena Abotsway, Sgt. Sleigh said.
Previously, the jury has heard that Dave Pickton was the subject of an investigation into the disappearance of prostitutes from Vancouver's skid row, but he was not a suspect.
Ms. Taylor's fingerprints were found at several places in Mr. Pickton's bedroom, including on a wooden headboard of a bed, on a spray can and on a piece of paper in the drawer of a bedside table. Investigators also found an application for B.C. assistance and a letter from the federal Department of Indian Affairs with her name and fingerprints.
Ms. Taylor had been arrested in February, 2002, two weeks before Robert Pickton, but was released without being charged. Earlier in the trial, Inspector Don Adam testified that Dave Pickton had told police that Ms. Taylor had done some of the killings. However, police did not believe him, Insp. Adam said.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070322.BCPICKTON22/TPStory/National
Referring to charts, police documents and photographs, the officer confirmed the identity of fingerprints of Mr. Pickton, his brother Dave and his friend Dinah Taylor on items found in Mr. Pickton's home and on the farm.
The jury followed along as he dryly testified about the numbers assigned to exhibits to keep track of them. He told the court about officers who identified the fingerprints and officers who verified the conclusions. He explained the intricacies involved in comparing fingerprints.
However, he was not asked and did not volunteer anything about the significance of the evidence. That was left to another time during the year-long trial.
Defence lawyer Adrian Brooks drew attention to the fingerprints of Dave Pickton and Ms. Taylor. Prosecutor Michael Petrie asked about fingerprints that turned out to belong to Robert Pickton.
Dave Pickton's right index finger was found on a piece of cardboard in a metallic toolbox that was on top of a freezer holding the partial human remains of two women, Andrea Joesbury and Sereena Abotsway, Sgt. Sleigh said.
Previously, the jury has heard that Dave Pickton was the subject of an investigation into the disappearance of prostitutes from Vancouver's skid row, but he was not a suspect.
Ms. Taylor's fingerprints were found at several places in Mr. Pickton's bedroom, including on a wooden headboard of a bed, on a spray can and on a piece of paper in the drawer of a bedside table. Investigators also found an application for B.C. assistance and a letter from the federal Department of Indian Affairs with her name and fingerprints.
Ms. Taylor had been arrested in February, 2002, two weeks before Robert Pickton, but was released without being charged. Earlier in the trial, Inspector Don Adam testified that Dave Pickton had told police that Ms. Taylor had done some of the killings. However, police did not believe him, Insp. Adam said.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070322.BCPICKTON22/TPStory/National