MA - Bella Bond, 2, found dead, Deer Island, Boston Harbor, June 2015 - #2

[FiveFelines]

No new info, but a good recap of a few other Massachusetts UIDs:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/ma...g69PhKih0MjN/story.html?p1=feature_stack_1_hp

 

[jillybean51]

What about Evelina Freikha?
http://www.myfoxphilly.com/story/28546506/missing-father-and-daughter

 

[SleuthMom]

I just don't understand how come no one said anything about a child missing. I am assuming a few people know what happened to this child or the sketch is off. Think about it, if you know a child similar to the one in the sketch and you ask her guardians and they tell you a story about why the child is not with them, wouldn't you find it suspicious and try to find out if it is really true?

 

[cobalt sky]

I just don't understand how come no one said anything about a child missing. I am assuming a few people know what happened to this child or the sketch is off. Think about it, if you know a child similar to the one in the sketch and you ask her guardians and they tell you a story about why the child is not with them, wouldn't you find it suspicious and try to find out if it is really true?

I know, it hurts just thinking that we don't even know this little girl's name.

I wouldn't be surprised if Doe is an only child of a young single mother who passes her around to be watched by everyone and anyone who is willing to take her in. She could have bounced around from relatives homes to friends homes to babysitters homes, nobody would think twice if Doe's mother said "oh she's staying with Nana for a few weeks", then told Nana "oh she's staying with my friend and her kids for a few weeks", then told the friend "oh she's staying with my sister for a few weeks" and so on. Nobody would realize that she is missing. Or maybe someone suspects something but then brushes it off, thinking "oh, it can't be her!". Or maybe they don't want to get involved. Maybe this Doe doesn't have a Cindy Anthony who is willing to get involved and demand answers, let alone contact LE. I keep thinking about Caylee and have a feeling we might be dealing with the same scenario here with little Doe. It's possible that Doe's mother is involved in drugs or other nefarious activity and people who might recognize Doe are afraid to get involved, figuring/hoping someone else will. There just aren't many scenarios that would explain why she hasn't been reported missing by now. It's possible that her parent(s)/caretaker were also killed and that's why they haven't reported her missing, but wouldn't someone have noticed that the parent(s)/caretaker were missing by now and reported it??? This case is so frustrating and sad

 

[eileenhawkeye]

I don't think someone would have dumped Baby Doe, if there were a lot of people who would recognize her (at least in the Boston area). Or perhaps they didn't expect the case to get the attention it has, and have just been very lucky so far. But I will be very surprised if it turns out Baby Doe's family has a big social circle. If they do, how much longer can you go w/o no one seeing your daughter and not becoming suspicious? Maybe people who know the family just haven't put it all together yet.

 

[LisaB]

I wish they would let us know about her teeth. Were they baby teeth? Any gaps? Are the gaps due to natural loss or decay? Were any of them noticeably chipped or discolored? If they are estimating her age at 4, I suspect she still has her baby teeth. But a smile would tell us a lot. Surely the artist can reconstruct a smile based on the face and lips already drawn, adding in the teeth as they appear now. And is there a reason they depicted her wearing a blue top? I'd have thought they would use white. Was her hair tied back when she was found, or is that just for the purpose of the reconstruction? Can they draw her with other hairstyles? Loose maybe? Ponytail? Pigtails?

 

[Steleheart]

Smothering will often show no outward signs. That's how at least two women (Marybeth Tinning and Waneta Hoyt) have gotten away with killing multiple babies: they smothered them to death but the deaths were attributed to SIDS.

If the person doing the smothering does it hard enough, though, the forensic pathologist may find indentations from the victim's teeth on the inside of their upper and/or lower lip. That tells you there was a weight that stayed for a fairly long time on the child's mouth and probably their nose too.

I had thought of SIDS but is that possible with a 4 year old? Not that it was SIDS but smothering must have forensic implications in a toddler as you say. I would think that would show as trauma, which is not the case here?

 

[eileenhawkeye]

Besides releasing the COD, I am not sure what else LE can say to keep the case in the national media. They need sensational developments to continue reporting about the case. For the past 3 weeks, it's just been "Who is this little girl?" and "Millions of people have seen her picture". The case is starting to fade out of the media, as they aren't going to bother to say "Who is she?" for much longer. The news about the tiplines got very little national coverage, so it shows that unless the development is deemed newsworthy enough, it's not going to be reported on.

http://interceder.net/latest_news/Baby-Doe

It's tragic case that needs publicity, but I don't think the national media is going to "make room" for it, unless something sensational happens. "Who is she?" isn't going to cut it for much longer.

 

[Steleheart]

Perhaps they meant to say "digitally altered" instead of reconstructed, which means something different altogether. I have also used Photoshop professionally for over a decade. I use it every day in my newspaper job. I stand by my assumption that these are the actual items. Either that or someone in LE had the same items, brought them from home and used them to photograph (unlikely). They are NOT store bought or downloaded from the manufacturer site or anything like that. IMO

I just don't think the artist needed to clean the blanket "as much as" the pants.

I think they wanted her to depict how the child would look alive with her blanky and those pants. She did it in 4 hours from morgue photos.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...mBMaJEZWJ53ksZy4Q&sig2=nhiOr0_x8Wn-vuPLwhUvvg

"This was a rush request," said Andrews, who works for the Virginia-based National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. "I tried to get this out as soon as possible."


MOO

 

[Ironside]

Surely the artist can reconstruct a smile based on the face and lips already drawn, adding in the teeth as they appear now. And is there a reason they depicted her wearing a blue top? I'd have thought they would use white. Was her hair tied back when she was found, or is that just for the purpose of the reconstruction? Can they draw her with other hairstyles? Loose maybe? Ponytail? Pigtails?

Forensic artists don't tend to reconstruct smiling faces for the same reasons I can't smile in passport photos - there are many different types of smile a person can do which can change the face dramatically. Using a plain closed mouth makes it much easier to identify someone. Chances are this kid didn't have anything to ever smile about anyway....

 

[Steleheart]

Besides releasing the COD, I am not sure what else LE can say to keep the case in the national media. They need sensational developments to continue reporting about the case. For the past 3 weeks, it's just been "Who is this little girl?" and "Millions of people have seen her picture". The case is starting to fade out of the media, as they aren't going to bother to say "Who is she?" for much longer. The news about the tiplines got very little national coverage, so it shows that unless the development is deemed newsworthy enough, it's not going to be reported on.

http://interceder.net/latest_news/Baby-Doe

It's tragic case that needs publicity, but I don't think the national media is going to "make room" for it, unless something sensational happens. "Who is she?" isn't going to cut it for much longer.

I don't watch Nancy Grace, but she does get attention. Did she do a spot on this case does anyone know?

 

[eileenhawkeye]

I don't watch Nancy Grace, but she does get attention. Did she do a spot on this case does anyone know?

She covered the case on two episodes.

ETA: Actually, on one episode, it just got a very brief mention.

http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1507/06/ng.01.html

http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1507/14/ng.01.html

From the producer's perspective, it's hard to do more than one episode on the case, when very little information is being released. It would just be a complete repeat.

 

[Steleheart]

Finally getting an opportunity to "catch-up"! Read the thread & made a few notes that might help us stay the course:

Drowning: frequently there is a foam/froth @ the mouth, fluid is within the resp. tract, often seen only in the alveoli of the lungs(either "visible" or on microscopic analysis. For a reference: (http://www.ask.com/science/function-alveoli-e29b3e12a34439f)

"shaken baby": or another term, brain injury! Trauma is evident when the brain is dissected/or even overtly visible when the brain is exposed! The contre-coup injury causes dural hematomas (bruising & blood clots within the brains lining), brain swelling and frequently/usually issues within the ocular area/cavity. Sometimes the external bruising is not noticed until hours later, even days!

chemical ingestion: Foreign substances may/can present as oral cavity, esophageal damage, each depending on the caustic nature of the substance. Fingertip & skin damage may also be present if the victim attempts to "claw out" or vomit the substance. Liver & kidney tissue damage might be evident on gross but definitely on microscopic analysis, depending on the substance and/or duration of exposure.

CO poisoning: "cherry red" coloration of the skin, elevation of specific hemoglobin type in the blood, significant changes in cardio-thoracic tissues on microscopic examination.

Medications (legal or otherwise!): Possible vomitus present in the resp. tract, possible residual material in the gastric contents but frequently NO external visible clues other than sometimes a "frothing" @ the mouth. Testing of body fluids & tissues for classes of drugs via screening techniques and/or GC-MS.
PS: urine screens: Testing for a OCME customized panel or for "routine" drugs of abuse like the DOT or employment screens, usually done immediately after/or during internal autopsy examination, has specific "cut-off" levels within the testing protocol therefore a secondary or tertiary protocol was probably used in this case. The urine screen is exactly that, a "screen" that results in presumptive positive reactions which require a more specific test for confirmation. Other body fluids & tissues are tested by more specific, time intensive testing protocols.

Phosphine gas/meth. exposure: IF the meth product had been ingested, it will show up in the routine drug testing as a metabolite. The phosphine gas produced while making the "stuff" does require a highly specialized collection method & testing equipment (HS-GC/NPD).


IMHO: Both the blanket & leggings are shown on "butcher paper" backgrounds, butcher paper being the surface upon which evidence envelopes/bags are opened in order to preserve & collect any ancillary evidence material present within the clothing.


Regarding the time required to complete body fluid/tissue studies: here's a news feature regarding another NE case: http://www.ask.com/science/function-alveoli-e29b3e12a34439f

And YES, a "rush" was put on the laboratory analysis (aka it "bumped" other cases & folks did OT!)

I wanted to find out about froth and foaming in drowning. Would that be evident only in recent drowning or would water submersion over time obliterate that evidence? It was estimated she was 4 to 7 days, I think. Not much water but some decomp, so I wonder how decomp affects the lung tissue in the drowning analysis.

I can't seem to find out, but thank you for your excellent post.

:cow:

 

[TheMothership]

I would like to know if her fingernails and toe nails were neatly clipped or were they long? Were her teeth brushed often or were they scummy? Was her hair clean or greasy? I guess the question is was she well cared for or showed signs of neglect?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[LisaB]

I would like to know if her fingernails and toe nails were neatly clipped or were they long? Were her teeth brushed often or were they scummy? Was her hair clean or greasy? I guess the question is was she well cared for or showed signs of neglect?

Very good questions. Did she have freshly painted fingernails, chipped and worn polish, or natural nails. Did she bite them? Were they trimmed? The teeth are a real significant thing for me. I know some people feel a picture with a slightly open mouth won't help, but to see her teeth would. I considered myself a good mom, but my daughter had teeth extracted due to bottle-rot when she was about 4. Was her hair pulled back that way when they found her? Or was that artistic license? Since we don't know how she wore her hair normally, it would help to see some other styles on her.

 

[Steleheart]

BBM:

Without going into some absolutely boring calculations, the general answer would be YES as each medication has a "half-life". Some medications are weight-based dosages and the medication should be processed in relatively standardized time frame. Since the human organism is deceased, there should be no effective changes in concentration due to decomposition EXCEPT in the alcohol post mortem level (use of vitreous humor level is compared to the concentration in the femoral blood sample). However, possibly in this case IF alcohol were involved as COD or a contributory factor, then there might be a dilution effect from sea water osmosis.
(See isn't this scientific inquiry fraught with ifs, and, maybes, and possibilities; so NOT "Black & White" EVERY TIME!)

BBM's; Yes it is.

Trying to follow,,, LOL SO they compare the eye sample with the venous blood for alcohol?

So in other drugs like meth, for instance, there would be no change in the blood level due to decomp?

I know the tox results can take months but I always wondered why.

Thanks for your info, it is appreciated.

ETA: more questions, sorry. Is the drug or alcohol based on percent concentrations or in weight as like mg/dcl? Since the liver is not metabolizing, why is alcohol different, if you know. Thanks.

:moo:

 

[mommylicious]

I can't help but think that the break will come later this summer. Right now so many people are on vacations, kids are at camp, visiting grandparents, etc. If someone told me that their daughter was off visiting grandma and grandpa for a couple weeks, I probably wouldn't think to question it - unless I had some reason to be suspicious of them. I'd probably just pass off the similarity in appearance as Baby Doe having a pretty generic look to her. Until a vacation at grandmas turned into a trip to camp and a visit to the cousins or whatever. I think Baby Doe's absence will eventually be noted but it may take time.

Anyone know if they can/are running DNA through various databases including criminals and family tree sites?

 

[Lovemymnmnbren]

What if "guardian" cant/wont come forward due to Le (on the run) or immigration (undocumented) or other reasons unbeknownst to us and lives quietly under radar (baby doe is under school age) and baby Doe had an unknown genetically or aquired disease like autoimmune hemolytic anemia? Say she Starts a fever and passes quickly.
Could that be seen immediatly during autopsy or ME would have to wait on blood/tissue samples to come back?

 

[cvaldez1975]

im glad to know they will put her DNA in codis

No new info, but a good recap of a few other Massachusetts UIDs:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/ma...g69PhKih0MjN/story.html?p1=feature_stack_1_hp

 

[cvaldez1975]

thats what i said yesterday.

they can actually post a pic of her actual teeth, they have done that in the past. a pic of the teeth and a smiling recon may do a world of good.

I wish they would let us know about her teeth. Were they baby teeth? Any gaps? Are the gaps due to natural loss or decay? Were any of them noticeably chipped or discolored? If they are estimating her age at 4, I suspect she still has her baby teeth. But a smile would tell us a lot. Surely the artist can reconstruct a smile based on the face and lips already drawn, adding in the teeth as they appear now. And is there a reason they depicted her wearing a blue top? I'd have thought they would use white. Was her hair tied back when she was found, or is that just for the purpose of the reconstruction? Can they draw her with other hairstyles? Loose maybe? Ponytail? Pigtails?