Breaking: Location of Blood Inside Nancy Guthrie's Home Revealed | Nancy Guthrie Missing Update
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖Blood was found inside Nancy Guthrie's front entrance, matching the pattern outside, confirming the bleeding began indoors.
- ❖The blood pattern suggests Nancy Guthrie was stationary at the front threshold for a 'not insignificant amount of time.'
- ❖The blood is confirmed to be Nancy Guthrie's, indicating she was the source of the bleeding.
- ❖Sheriff Nanos contradicted his earlier admission of releasing the crime scene too soon, now stating 'no regrets.'
- ❖Pima County Deputies Organization issued a unanimous 'no confidence' vote against Sheriff Nanos, citing a concealed 40-year-old misconduct record.
- ❖Forensic experts emphasize the difficulty of cleaning blood from a vehicle, suggesting latent blood would still be detectable if a suspect vehicle is found.
Insights
1Blood Location and Pattern Inside the Home
Nancy Guthrie's blood was found inside her front entrance, extending over the threshold and onto the front walk. This pattern consists of vertical, undisturbed drip stains, identical inside and out. Dr. Peter Valentin, a blood spatter expert, describes these as 'drip stains' with no associated energy, indicating gravity pulled blood from a source onto the surface. The consistent pattern suggests the source (Nancy Guthrie) was stationary at the threshold for a 'not insignificant amount of time.'
Host Ashleigh Banfield's sources confirmed blood inside the front entrance. Dr. Valentin analyzed journalist photographs of the exterior blood pattern and inferred characteristics based on the host's description of the interior pattern.
2Challenging Assumptions on Initial Injury Location
Despite Savannah Guthrie's statement that her mother was taken from her bed, blood was not found in the bedroom or other main living areas, only at the front entrance. Dr. Valentin notes that the first visible blood doesn't necessarily mark the attack location. Blood can take time to accumulate and drip, especially if soaked into clothing. The attack could have occurred elsewhere, with bleeding becoming apparent at the front door.
Host's source stating blood is only found in the front entrance. Dr. Valentin's expert opinion on blood accumulation.
3Sheriff Nanos's Contradictory Statements on Crime Scene Release
Sheriff Nanos publicly stated he has 'no regrets' about his department's handling of the investigation, including letting the crime scene go 'too soon,' directly contradicting a previous admission of regret. The host highlights Nanos's shift from admitting 'Monday morning quarterback, absolutely I probably could have held off on that' to now claiming 'no regrets.' This inconsistency raises questions about his leadership and transparency.
Direct quotes from Sheriff Nanos at and .
4Sheriff Nanos's Public Appeal to the Perpetrator
Sheriff Nanos made a direct appeal to the perpetrator, saying, 'Just give her up. Let her go. Take her to a clinic, a hospital. Drop her off. Just let her go.' The host interprets this as Nanos believing Nancy Guthrie is still alive, a different tone from Savannah Guthrie's recent statement about wanting her mother home for 'final rest.' The host criticizes this approach as weak and potentially ineffective.
Direct quote from Sheriff Nanos at .
5No Confidence Vote Against Sheriff Nanos
The Pima County Deputies Organization, representing 300 deputies, issued a unanimous 'no confidence' vote against Sheriff Chris Nanos, calling for his resignation. The vote stems from a reporter uncovering Nanos's concealed 40-year-old record as an El Paso police officer, including allegedly beating a handcuffed suspect with a flashlight, for which he was suspended and nearly indicted. This record was not disclosed during his hiring or election.
Sergeant Aaron Cross, President of the Pima County Deputies Organization, speaking at the Pima County Board of Supervisors meeting.
6Forensic Assessment of Injury Severity
Dr. Valentin suggests the observed blood pattern does not indicate a 'catastrophic' or 'lethal' injury, implying Nancy Guthrie could have survived it and would need medical attention. The nature of the drip stains, without high-velocity spatter or large pools, suggests a wound that bled steadily but not necessarily profusely or immediately life-threatening.
Dr. Valentin's expert opinion.
7Importance of Latent Blood in Suspect Vehicles
If a suspect vehicle is recovered, Dr. Valentin stresses the importance of searching for latent blood using specialized reagents, as visible blood would likely have been cleaned. Most people only clean until the red color is gone, but chemical components of blood remain and can be detected by forensic tools. This would be critical evidence linking a vehicle to the abduction.
Dr. Valentin's explanation as a forensic scientist.
Bottom Line
The undisturbed, vertical drip pattern of Nancy Guthrie's blood, both inside and outside her front door, suggests she was stationary at the threshold for a 'not insignificant amount of time' while bleeding.
This challenges the narrative of a rapid, violent struggle throughout the house and instead points to a specific, prolonged moment of vulnerability or restraint at the exit point, potentially indicating a more controlled abduction.
Investigators should focus on reconstructing the precise events at the front door, considering scenarios where the victim was held, repositioned, or waiting, and how this might align with the perpetrator's actions or vehicle positioning.
The Pima County Sheriff's department released the crime scene too early and failed to immediately collect critical trace evidence like the doorbell camera bracket and a welcome mat.
This likely compromised the collection of valuable DNA, fiber, or other trace evidence that could have linked a perpetrator or vehicle to the scene, potentially hindering the investigation significantly and contributing to its stalled status.
Future high-profile investigations must prioritize a methodical, comprehensive initial scene processing, holding the scene for as long as necessary, and collecting all potential trace evidence, even if its probative value isn't immediately apparent.
Lessons
- When processing a crime scene, prioritize methodical collection of all potential trace evidence, even seemingly insignificant items, as their value may become apparent later.
- Investigators should avoid rushing to conclusions about the location of an attack based solely on the first visible blood, as blood accumulation and dripping can take time.
- Public officials leading investigations should maintain consistent communication and transparency, as contradictory statements can erode public and internal confidence.
Notable Moments
The Pima County Board of Supervisors meeting where Sergeant Aaron Cross announced the Pima County Deputies Organization's unanimous 'no confidence' vote against Sheriff Chris Nanos.
This public rebuke from his own deputies, citing a 40-year-old concealed misconduct record, signifies a severe crisis of leadership and trust within the department, potentially impacting the ongoing investigation and public perception.
Sheriff Nanos's direct appeal to the perpetrator to 'Just give her up. Let her go. Take her to a clinic, a hospital. Drop her off. Just let her go.'
This statement reveals Nanos's belief that Nancy Guthrie is still alive, contrasting with Savannah Guthrie's more somber tone about a 'final rest.' The host criticizes this as an ineffective and inappropriate message to a perpetrator, highlighting a potential disconnect in investigative strategy or public messaging.
Quotes
"My mother disappeared, um you know, from her bed in the dark of night."
"Just give her up. Let her go. Take her to a clinic, a hospital. Drop her off. Just let her go."
"Motherfucker, we are going to find you. You can run, but you can't hide, but we are going to find you and we will tear you limb from limb, so to speak, in our system of jurisprudence in America."
"The verdict was unanimous. No confidence. He has lost the faith of his deputies and the community. His past renders him unfit to wear the badge."
"Most people when they clean a place where they think blood is, they only clean until the color red is gone. But the chemical components of blood stay there."
"Finding blood on the inside of the threshold doesn't mean she wasn't first attacked in the bedroom. I think everybody can remember a time that they were injured when it took some period of time for blood to accumulate for it to begin dripping."
"I don't think this is a, you know, a lethal injury."
"You only find the evidence you're looking for. And if you go to your scene with the wrong sense of what your scene is about, you could walk right past the evidence of what actually happened."
Q&A
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