The Defense requested independent testing on Dylan’s coat & blanket… Then Talbott immediately pulled both items and sprayed them with Bluestar on June 8, 2023 before turning them over to the Defense!
This is absolutely wild! The Defense requested independent testing on Dylan’s coat & blanket… Then Talbott immediately pulled both items and sprayed them with Bluestar on June 8, 2023 (8 months later) and before turning them over to the defense as ordered.
Direct from the ISP forensic file: Rylene Nowlin receives a call from Talbott on (06/08/2023):
“Received call re: additional items for testing. Per Talbott the defense requested items be sent to a private lab. He pulled the requested items and he sprayed them with bluestar. Two items, a coat and a blanket both from Dylan had a positive reaction.”
Note: Talbott also confirmed that both items tested positive with Bluestar (a presumptive test for blood).
Rylene Nowlin immediately responded:
“I asked what the request for examination was and he stated foreign DNA. I expressed application of bluestar on these types of items was not the ideal first step and I would need to speak with my DNA unit prior to submission to see what could still be done on these items.”
After Rylene Nowlin received both items from Talbott on 06/14/2023 she immediately called Bill Thompson:
“Per Bill these were items identified by the defense expert Matt Noedel during his crime scene examination. The defense provided a list of the items they wanted sent to Noedel’s lab and their office and D2 investigations discussed and decided it would be beneficial for Det. Talbott to first examine the items and do a presumptive test.”
Rylene warned about the serious limitations:
“I stated we are limited in what we can now do. Bluestar is a chemical designed for use in crime scenes after all other testing is done. 1 stated it has poor specificity for blood so it is not typically used in lab as a presumptive test. Studies have shown Bluestar does inhibit presumptive blood tests performed in lab like pheno and o-tol. We can examine for blood but it is likely any stains we test will be negative and there is no way to determine at this point if there is blood on the item. Also discussed DNA. I said there are studies that say Bluestar has no negative impact on DNA. However, those studies were done with undiluted blood in concentrations known to produce a full DNA profile. Studies with diluted blood are less certain. Most obtain no DNA profile but unknown if that is because stain is so dilute or Bluestar is causing an issue. The application of the liquid Bluestar to these items also dilutes any stains/ DNA that may be present. I was not able to find studies on Bluestar's impact on forensic lighting techniques like IR and ALS. I said if we don't see anything with our lighting techniques again I could not say if that was because of the Bluestar or because nothing is present on the item.”
Then Talbott calls Rylene Nowlin: “Called to ask if we had any questions or needed anything additional from them at this time. I said I talked to Bill and Ashley this morning to discuss the limitation we have given these items have been processed with Bluestar and I did have some questions for them. I asked the following of Det. Talbott and listed are his responses:
Were photos taken of the items prior to Bluestar application?--No, unsure if Moscow did that:
Were photos taken of the Bluestar reaction?-- Yes but they did not turn out;
Were gloves and mask worn while handling items?-- Yes;
Was examination surface sprayed with bleach and clean paper placed and changed between items?- Yes;
Were the areas of fluorescence circled?--Blanket yes, coat was zipper could be reacting with the metal;
Was a sterile or single use marker used to mark on the item?--Yes;
Were both sides of the blanket sprayed?--Yes;
Was the inside and the outside of the coat sprayed?-- Yes;
They stated these items were ones that were deemed personal items and released back to Dylan. The court ordered they get all items from the crime scene that had been released back into custody I asked if Dylan had washed the items while they were back in Dylan’s custody. They said they did not know.”
So let’s take a second to think about this!
Both items were NEVER sprayed nor tested at the original crime scene in November 2022. They sat untouched for 8 months and were possibly given back to Dylan! Then only after the defense asked for independent testing by Matt Noedel did Talbott pull them and spray them with Bluestar which completely ruined them from being fully tested! Why spray them after the defense asked to examine them? What the hell is going on here!? Why didn’t Anne Taylor go nuclear on this?
This isn’t “routine crime scene processing.” This is police altering potentially exculpatory evidence after the defense formally requested to test it themselves.
Google Drive with the full ISP reports:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14kz\_lKTzfil54XB4FhXN50ik4Y9xvwfd