Evidence collected in the missing persons cold case of Cleashindra Hall has tested negative for blood and will now be evaluated for DNA evidence, Pine Bluff Police Chief Brenda Davis-Jones said Monday.
The evidence is still being tested by the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory, which has different departments that specialize in different types of forensic evidence, Davis-Jones told the Pine Bluff City Council Public Safety Committee on Monday.
After being tested by the blood department and coming back negative, the evidence will now go to the DNA department, she said. No final forensic report has been completed, Capt. Greg Shapiro said.
The evidence was collected on March 29 on property at 5309 Faucett Road, where Hall worked in a home office for Larry Amos. The site was the last place the 18-year-old Watson Chapel High School senior was seen before she disappeared on May 9, 1994.
Four items of evidence, listed as being taken from the west wall of the living room, were collected during the search, according to an inventory list prepared by Detective Lt. Bob Rawlinson after the search. Police have not made public statements that are more specific about what types of items were recovered.
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In May it was revealed that the evidence was not sent to the Crime Lab until May 8, despite public comments by Davis-Jones that it had been sent and the Pine Bluff police staff called “at least once a week” to check on the evidence.
On Thursday, a department spokesman said the internal affairs investigation into why there was a delay in sending the evidence to the Crime Lab has been completed and the report is under review by Davis-Jones. No more information was released about what the investigation revealed, pending any possible disciplinary decision by Davis-Jones.
Meanwhile, Cleashindra Hall’s mother Laurell Hall has held vigils for her daughter and repeatedly spoken publicly about her frustration with the police department’s handling of the case. Hall could not be reached for comment late Monday evening to see if she has been given regular updates in the case, as Davis-Jones and Deputy Chief Kelvin Sergeant said at the last council meeting that they would begin doing.
Davis-Jones’ comments Monday were part of a larger discussion about cold cases. Shapiro told committee members Alderman Bill Brumett and Wayne Easterly that two detectives have been assigned specifically to cold cases.
Shapiro said the work involves going through files, re-interviewing witnesses, identifying the potential for reanalysing evidence with modern forensics and generally “giving a 2012 look” at the evidence.
Shapiro also said the department has been calling in former employees who helped investigate some of the cold cases to see if their memories can aid in the investigations.