"No Stone Unturned"
It's not just some flashy slogan we throw around.
It's the determination of law enforcement to leave no stone unturned, to do everything possible to uncover the truth in a murder investigation.
Law enforcement agencies universally recognize that the first 48 hours of a murder investigation are crucial. The evidence and leads found during this time often play a decisive role in solving the case.
Because the higher-ups place such importance on the speed of solving homicide cases.
The efficiency and attitude of the local Detective Bureau towards handling homicides have increased significantly.
In fact, about 95% of homicide cases are solved within these first 48 hours, a period often referred to as the golden 48 hours.
With the increase in case-solving efficiency.
Naturally, it also makes many criminals who are hoping for a lucky break think twice before committing another murder.
...
A police car speeding down the highway.
Stops near the more secluded Newtown Creek.
Even though Gotham is a big city, there are still many sparsely populated suburbs.
Newtown Creek is one such place.
Apart from the locals and a few fishermen, hardly anyone comes here to hang out by the river.
At this moment, three officers step out of the police car.
From a distance, they can see a large area cordoned off with police tape by the river, and outside the area, there's a crowd of onlookers.
Pointing and speculating about this and that.
Lucas frowns and shouts as he approaches.
"What's the big attraction here, huh?"
"Gawking at a dead body? Move along now, don't interfere with police work."
His shout.
Makes the chattering crowd shut their mouths, though they don't seem to leave.
They just stand outside the police tape, craning their necks to see what's going on.
Lucas doesn't say much more, glancing at Ethan and Miles beside him, he speaks more softly, "After the body was found, the nearest patrol officers got here first to secure the area, and the recovery team has already retrieved the body."
"It's not in a body bag yet, we need to assess the likely cause of death and whether there's a need to start an investigation."
"If it's a suicide or an accidental fall into the water, we can just issue a statement and close the case."
"But if it's a homicide, then things might get a bit tricky."
Ethan nods in agreement, noticing the confusion in Miles' eyes, he explains, "Bodies found in water."
"The initial scene usually doesn't tell us much, after all, no one knows where it drifted from."
"We have to retrieve it first, determine the likely cause of death, and if there's a chance it was a homicide, then we'll have to start an official investigation."
"From the current environment..."
"I personally think the chances of an accidental fall are slim, given all these onlookers pointing and speculating, curious about who the victim is."
"This suggests that the victim isn't a local resident here, so we can probably rule out an accidental fall."
"As for suicide or homicide."
"We'll need to examine the body further to be sure."
Lucas nods appreciatively, impressed by Ethan's quick thinking in ruling out an accidental fall based on the reactions and comments of the onlookers, then gestures broadly, "Ethan, you've got a sharp eye."
"Let's do this."
"You and Miles take a preliminary look at the body and run some tests."
"I'll oversee things, and if there are any issues, we can call in the medical examiner for a detailed inspection later."
Medical examiners are always busy.
Not only do they help solve cases, but they also have to handle a lot of public injuries and perform autopsies to determine causes of death.
So, most detectives.
Have basic skills in examining bodies and analyzing clues, and only call in medical examiners when they're really stumped.
The trio stepped inside the police tape.
In their view lay a body, bloated and pale with a hint of decay, the face swollen and ghastly.
Overall, the corpse wasn't too gruesome yet, no signs of extreme decomposition like bloating to the point of bursting.
A recovery team member, soaked and wearing a fisherman's hat, pointed to a bag of construction debris nearby and spoke up first, "Officer."
"When we were trying to retrieve the body and couldn't get it up, I jumped into the water to check."
"And I found this unexpectedly."
"Someone had tied this sack of construction debris around the body's waist, which is why it didn't float up. If it hadn't been for a fisherman accidentally hooking it, I guess..."
He didn't finish, but everyone there understood that if it weren't for that fisherman, the body might have remained undiscovered until it completely decomposed.
At this point, suicide could be ruled out.
Lucas's expression turned serious, he glanced at the body on the shore and waved his hand, "Alright, got it."
"Let us examine the body first, see what's going on."
With that said.
Ethan and Miles exchanged a look, then without further hesitation, they pulled on rubber gloves from their kit.
To avoid any potential damage.
Before starting their examination, they took several photos from different angles with a camera, to aid in later review and case file preparation.
Then, Ethan took the lead in carefully searching for clues, while Miles, in perfect sync, crouched beside him with the camera, waiting for Ethan's instructions.
Back in the police academy, this had been their method of collaboration: Ethan would search for clues while Miles handled the detailed photographic documentation and file organization.
Each played to their strengths.
...
Ethan first gave the female corpse a general look, then proceeded from top to bottom, peeling open the tightly shut eyelids to carefully observe the color and size of the pupils.
Despite being waterlogged for several days.
The conjunctiva near the inner and outer corners of the eyes still showed distinct pinpoint-sized hemorrhagic spots, reddish-brown in color.
The pupils were an odd pale blue.
Both eyes were the same size, showing no signs of dilation or constriction.
Ethan then touched the eyeballs, feeling a plastic-like texture, and nodded thoughtfully.
Next, he used tweezers to lift the left nostril of the corpse and gently wiped it with a cotton swab for a few seconds, finding little residue of mud or algae.
He then pried open the corpse's mouth,the teeth showed little wear and no false teeth were present.
However, the gums of both the upper and lower teeth were a rosy red.
Ethan squinted slightly at this, then pushed the head of the corpse back to carefully examine the neck.
A clear, finger-width bruise, dark purple in color, appeared in his view.
Ethan maintained the position and signaled to Miles, "Miles, get a shot of this."
"There's not much mud, algae, or mucus in the nasal passages, which means she didn't drown while alive,she was unconscious or already dead when she entered the water."
"Plus, with the pinpoint hemorrhages on the eyelids, the rosy gums, and the bruise on the neck, we can preliminarily conclude..."
"The victim didn't die from drowning. She was strangled to death and then dumped here!!!"