The Bloody UNIDENTIFIED Fingerprint

The fingerprint in the photo above is the bloody unidentified fingerprint found on the sofa back table located at the north end of the "Roman" room at 5801 Eagle Drive, on June 6, 1996.

In the beginning, and throughout the trial Dallas County prosecutors, Greg Davis and Toby Shook have inferred, insinuated and outright professed this print to have belonged to either Devon or Damon Routier. At trial Retired Lt. James Cron, testifying as an expert, stated under oath the print originated from a "juvenile" (Vol. 35). He went on to state "It fits the criteria to be a younger person's prints." Over time Retired Lt. James Cron's expertise has been called into question as well as his conclusions.

My first response to his statement was to consider the fact that people come in all shapes and sizes despite age or gender. Thus his testimony was entirely unrealistic, unreasonable, and illogical, in my opinion. An expert of any caliber would not draw such a undefinitive conclusion or make that type of statement under oath in a capital murder trial. Or would they?

The following media snippets provide us with some insights into the Expert Fingerprint profession as a whole:

Media Snippet

When one bears in mind the lack of certification in the field of fingerprints it is no wonder an individual like Retried Lt. James Cron could be used by a prosecutor and testify under oath as has happened in this case.

With the question of the Routier boy's prints being left open to speculation and assumptions the Routier family was forced to endure the heartbreaking decision to exhume the bodies and acquire definitive answers on their own.

In the Spring of 2000 both Devon and Damon's fingerprints were collected, and numerous experts in different fields of science were employed. The following media snippets report those findings:

Part 1 Media Snippet

Part 2 Media Snippet

At trial Dallas County prosecutors informed Kerr County jurors that Mr. and Mrs. Routier, Rowlett law enforcement personnel, fire department personnel and paramedics had been excluded as the owners of this bloody unidentified fingerprint. Once the family of Darlie Routier proved these prints did not belong to either child, as Dr. Jant'z finding conclusively prove, Dallas prosecutors change their tune.

The following is Dr. Jantz's findings: click here. (PDF file, will open in new window.)

I suggest that the Dallas County District Attorneys Office, throughout the investigation and ongoing litigation of this case, has purposely discounted, disregarding, and completely ignored conclusive evidence that would lead to the apprehension and conviction of the murderer(s) of Devon Rush and Damon Christian Routier. In their haste for closure of a case, the media deemed sensational enough to make it high-profile, they rushed to judgment and targeted the easiest suspect to the exclusion of anyone else or evidence that lead elsewhere. In doing so Dallas County Prosecutor have lost the public trust and can do only one thing to regain that much need confidence. Otherwise, our communities are left at risk of a deranged lunatic that has not reservation regarding murdering innocent children in the safety of their homes.