CASE HISTORIES OF THE USE OF INSECTS IN INVESTIGATIONS
Wayne D. Lord
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington, DC

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THE IMPORTANCE OF BLOW FLIES, Cases 02-03

Fly species differ in abundance from region to region, from habitat to habitat, and from season to season. In the northern United States for example, a blue bottle fly, Calliphora vicina, is more abundant during the cooler parts of the year, whereas a green bottle fly, Phaenicia sericata, dominates corpses during the warmest parts of the summer. Another green bottle fly, Lucilia illustris, frequents corpses located in open, brightly lit habitats, whereas the black blow fly, Phormia regina, prefers shade.

Case No. 2

The remains of a murder victim were reportedly thrown down an open well on a small farm in a rural area in south-central Indiana. Then the well was completely filled with junk, tires, and rocks. The exact location of the well where the remains were deposited was unknown, but as the investigators drove into one of several wooded farm yard sites being investigated, it was obvious they had found the right location. Several thousand flies were hovering over a pile of old tires. The remains were found at the bottom of the well under the debris. Decomposition was advancing in the body, but there were no insects found on it. Access to the body by the blow flies was prevented by the intervening material, but odors were still capable of attracting multitudes of insects.

Case No. 3

Recently, in New England, the fully-clothed body of a young adult woman was found in a parking lot located behind an urban industrial complex. The victim had died from a single, 9mm bullet wound to the right temple, and a substantial pooling of blood was noted beneath the victim's head. The body was discovered initially by employees reporting for work at approximately 6:00 a.m. No insect evidence was observed on or around the body during the preliminary crime scene survey. As the investigation proceeded, however, and the body was warmed by the morning sun, small numbers of green bottle flies (Phaenicia sericata) were observed feeding at the bullet wound. By the time the corpse was removed from the scene, patches of eggs were present in and around the wound. Knowing that the previous day's climatic conditions were ideal for blow fly activity, that adult blow flies are not typically active at night, and that blow flies would be highly attracted to the pooled blood, entomologists concluded that the victim had been killed during the hours of darkness preceding the discovery of the body. It was later determined that the young woman had been last seen alive around midnight of the previous day.