The Media Has Swarmed Into the Killers' House Without Any Official Permission, Compromising the Crime Scene and the Investigation

Apparently CNN, MSNBC, and other outfits simply went inside the apartment and began showing live images of passports and other documents left in the place.

This is bad for the media. It's also terrible for the cops and FBI -- why was the crime scene left unattended?

Of course, it's bad for America too; if anything left behind could make a case against any third parties, those prosecutions are now jeopardized, because the defense can argue, very plausibly, that there is no chain of custody of the evidence and anything found on the site could have been tampered with or planted.

Oh God, They're Actually Handling the Evidence: MSNBC decided to put their greasy paws all over this drivers license left in the apartment.

Anderson Cooper defends the intrusion:

Video: Here's CBS reporting. At 12:30, the landlord says that he didn't permit anyone to come inside; the reporters had just rushed the door.

Who the Hell Is This Guy, And Why Is He Disassembling Things With a Screwdriver?

I'm told what he's doing there is prying the plywood down from the door. The door had been boarded by the cops; he's apparently pulling it down.

I think.

Who he is I don't know. He's not the actual landlord, who's an older guy. I guess it's possible he's some kind of property management guy.

If he's media... wow.

Why Did the FBI Leave Behind Shredded Paper?

"Dumfounded: Video of Anderson Cooper's coverage of his company's burglary.

Well, Toby Harndon, who I usually like, says it was he who took down the plywood with the screwdriver. He says the landlord was standing right next to him, I guess implying he had permission to... disassemble the boarding-up the cops had put over the door.

Um...

Wondering why the cops didn't have a man on scene here.

Update: I guess this is the last update. While local cops were stunned by this move, apparently the FBI did "release" the crime scene back to the owner. I guess they overlooked, or didn't care about, the shredded document in the shredder.

Wow. Done in just 48 hours.

posted by Ace at 01:09 PM

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