BACKGROUND INFORMATION

This crime scene critique involves the murder of one woman in Teller County and the finding of her body in Woodland Park, Colorado.  The murder was committed by two suspects John Cook and Thomas Baskerville on January 22, 1997.  This case was originally started as a missing person report by the Colorado Springs Police Department.  The husband Alvin Burk, called and reported his wife (victim) June Burk, had not returned for giving a massage in Woodland Park.  Mrs. Burk owned and operated her own therapist massage business.  The victim was later found in her vehicle parked in an empty lot, in the City of Woodland Park.  The case was primarily  investigated by Woodland Park detectives and the Fourth Judicial District Attorney’s Office.  Other agencies did assist in the investigation and included the Colorado Springs Police Department, Teller County Sheriff’s Department and the Colorado Bureau of Investigations.   This investigation utilized various evidence to establish guilt. The use of DNA analysis for both eliminating and developing suspects, the analysis of latent finger prints,  trace evidence, blood evidence examination and stress analysis on both suspects.

The geographic location of the City of Woodland Park is eighteen miles west of the City of Colorado Springs, located on U.S. Highway 24 in the eastern foothills of Colorado known as the “front range”.  Woodland Park, geographically is a “gateway” to ski resort communities, gaming recreation in the City of Cripple Creek, and water, and outdoor recreation.  The number of sworn officers at the time of the homicide was eighteen.  Three of them were assigned to the investigation section which investigated the murder, full time, until an arrest of the suspects had been made.  The demographics of the community cover the entire spectrum from hourly wage earners to executives of corporations.  Housing ranges from little single bedroom cabins to trailer courts up to multi-million dollar homes.  The population in and around Woodland Park is approximately twenty-two thousand.  Police services are provided by a small City police department, County Sheriff’s Office, approximately 50 deputies, and the Colorado State Patrol.

Both the arrestees in this case had prior records in the judicial system.  John Cook’s record started in 1969, with Grand larceny.  Through the years he has been convicted of Endangering the Welfare of a Child, Robbery, Assault, Burglary, Unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, Possession of a forged instrument and Kidnapping.  He was currently on parole from New York City on a kidnapping charge.  Thomas Baskerville started his criminal record in 1988 with assault and continued with, Resisting arrest, Trespass, Obstructing Governmental Operations, Menacing, Burglary, and several other assaults.  Both Cook and Baskerville met will in the Groveland Correctional Facility in New York.  Both were serving nine year terms and had been placed in a halfway house.  Both left the state without approval from the probation department.

 
 VICTIMOLOGY:

VICTIM:
June L. Burk W/F 04/25/68

June L. Burk was 28 y.o.a..  She had been married for four years to Alvin Burk.  They lived in the Colorado Springs area of Colorado.  She had been a massage therapist for the past four years.  The last two years she had operated her own business as a massage therapist. Mrs. Burk operated her business out of the basement of her residence.  Mrs. Burk would give massages at her residence and upon request, would travel to local motels and residences.  This is a common practice in the Colorado Springs area.

On Wednesday, 01/22/97, Mrs. Burk had received a message on her answering machine from a male requesting an appointment.  Mrs. Burk told her husband that she had an appointment in the Woodland Park area.  She advised that she would be home later in the evening.  Mrs. Burk was last scene leaving her residence at 5:30 p.m. on 01/22/97.

ACCUSED:
John H. Cook W/M 05/30/47

John Cook served in the U.S. Marine Corps 1966-1970.  While in the Marine Corps he was charged three times for being AWOL and once for possession of a stolen automobile.  His criminal record started in 1969. It was very lengthy and included charges of petty larceny, robbery, forgery, B&E, and kidnapping.  Cook was on parole in the State of New York.

Thomas J. Baskerville W/M 10/08/71

Thomas Baskerville has a lengthy criminal record starting in 1988.  His record consisted of assaults, resisting arrest, criminal mischief, trespass, and burglary.  Baskerville was on parole in the State of New York.  Neither Cook nor Baskerville were allowed to leave New York under the conditions of their paroles.
 

EVIDENCE

 The police and prosecution reports for this homicide were reviewed for police searches, evidence collection and preservation and laboratory analysis.  This case entailed eight searches of crime scenes or persons involving at least five law enforcement agencies in two states.  Although some mistakes were made, they were not fatal to the case.  However, they would have provided the defense attorneys with ammunition to raise reasonable doubt or at least question the competence of the investigation and investigators.  We will discuss each search in this case, outline the use of proper crime scene search techniques and point out some of the shortcomings during the search.
A list of evidence seized taken from the actual police report will be included under each search.

 THE VICTIM’S VEHICLE

The victim’s vehicle, a gray Chevrolet Corsica, was located in a dirt, gravel and grass parking lot in the town of Woodland Park.  The initial officer on scene was careful to approach the vehicle in a manner than would not disturb any evidence.  He also instructed other responding officers and crime scene technicians to approach the vehicle in the same manner and in his same steps.  The officers kept a log of officers responding and their assignments.  The search was methodical and well planned.  The entire parking lot was secured.

 The officers took color photographs and video tape of the vehicle and parking lot area.  The responding officers reported the position of the victims body in the vehicle and noted many of the initial conditions in the area of the crime scene.  They did not rely on photography to document the scene.  The officers took measurements and completed a crime scene sketch of the parking lot and vehicle.

 The officers worked with the Coroners Office to process the victim and the vehicle.  They decided to process the vehicle and the victim at the Colorado Springs Police Department indoor parking garage.   The was a very good decision and was based on the difficulty in processing the vehicle and the body in the extremely high winds.  They also decided to leave the victim’s body in the vehicle and dolly the vehicle to the garage.  To preserve the chain of custody an officer followed the tow truck to the garage.

 At the garage, a methodical search of the outside of the vehicle was conducted.  Hair, fiber, latents, dirt and grass were recovered from the outside of the vehicle.   The crime scene processing then moved to the inside of the vehicle.  This included the removal of the victim from the vehicle.  Again a methodical, well thought out technique was used.  They placed a clean sheet of paper under and next to the body as it was removed from the vehicle.  The body and the paper were placed in a body bag and taken to the Coroner’s office.    The lab also took color photographs of the body as it was being removed from the vehicle.  With the body removed,  the police continued their search of the inside of the victim vehicle.   This included a search of the trunk area of the victim’s vehicle.  Hair, fiber, dirt, grass, blood, papers, clothing, sheets and other documentation were seized and properly maintained by the police.  (See attached for a complete list of 46 items).
 

THE AUTOPSY - JUNE BURK

 The autopsy of June Burk revealed that the cause of death was blunt force injuries to the face, scalp, neck and left side of the larynx and skeletal muscle consistent with manual strangulation.  The examination was properly photographed and several items of trace evidence were recovered and are listed below:

hairs plucked from the nape of neck and eyebrow
fingernails were scraped and clipped
oral swabs were taken
pubic hairs were combed and plucked
vaginal and anal swabs and smears were taken
dirt were collected from her jeans

 The Coroner also noted that the victims pockets were empty, there was an abrasion on her left ring finger and she had scattered pettichial hemorrhages under her left eyebrow.
 

ALPINE VILLAGE TRAILER PARK #10

 It appears that the murder occurred in the trailer.  The responding officers obtained a signed waiver to search the trailer for the owners.  The two suspects stayed at the trailer for several days and then packed there belongings and went to Nevada.  The officer took color photographs of the inside of the trailer.  Later, the lab also took color photos.  Although you can never take enough photographs, we are not convinced that having this extra person walk through the scene prior to any trace evidence being taken was necessary.

  Many items of trace evidence were recovered from the trailer.
Hairs, fibers, and blood stain evidence was properly obtained and maintained.  Many picture frames were examined and collected for blood spatter evidence.  The lab also obtained swabbing of the walls of the trailer.

 The most damaging evidence in this case came from the trailer.  Many items were recovered that linked the victim to the trailer and to the suspects who were the only ones home at the time.

 A yellow pad with entries of telephone calls made showed that someone at the trailer called the victim.

 The US West telephone book had a page torn out of it.  The missing page had June Burk telephone number listed under massages.

 The caller id tape was recovered.  It was later learned that John Cook retrieved messages, but did not reveal that June Burk called the trailer.  He did not erased the phone number of a call from June Burk.

 The officers searched the trash within the trailer.

 The officers removed the toilet and discovered numerous papers indicating that June BURK was at the trailer.  These papers included a massage license, insurance papers, torn personal papers and a friendship bracelet.  Also, officers located the septic line and were able to search the trap outside the trailer unit.  It appeared from photographs that boots and hip boots were used to search the trap area.  Perhaps additional protection is in order.  The officers should be commended for their diligence in searching the toilet and the septic trap and tank.

 One area of concern in the trailer search involved the searching of the trash and trailer park canvas.  Although both of these searches were conducted, they did not expand far enough.  Several jewelry items and identification links were lost because the officers did not search trash receptacles within the trailer complex.  Two trailers down the suspects threw away evidence linking them to June BURK.
 

 THE VICTIM’S RESIDENCE

 The victim’s residence was searched with the consent of her husband.  the officers were able to obtain a copy of an insurance card, a weekly planner indicating the victims whereabouts, a copy of her business license and a massage brochure.  with the assistance of Mr. BURK, they obtained her cellular telephone bill.  These items did not require special handling or processing, however they help build at least a circumstantial case against Mr. Cook and Mr. Baskerville.
 

SUSPECT’S HOTEL ROOM--MESQUITE, NEVADA

The suspects were arrested in the Hotel parking lot and transported to the Mesquite Police Department.  A search warrant was obtained for their Hotel room, the Pickup truck they drove to Nevada and their belongings held at the jail.   The officers arrived at the Hotel and discovered that the evidence tape to the hotel door was broken.  The police reports summarized that the expansion and contraction of the door and door frame would account for the broken seal.  This may be a viable explanation, however no one could testify that the room was not entered with absolute certainty.  The scene should have been secured with an officer posted at the door.  The is a murder case and should be treated as such.  The interior of the room was photographed and many items were seized.  (see attachment for list).

1997 DODGE RAM PICK UP

The officers searched the above pick up that the suspects drove to Nevada from Colorado.  The search of the vehicle was uneventful.  A pair of brown gloves, a flashlight, and a map of the hotel complex were recovered.  There was no indication in the police reports that this vehicle was photographed or processes in any other way.
 

SEARCH OF THE PROPERTY OF THE SUSPECTS HELD IN JAIL

Many items were seized from the jail property of the suspects, however none of the items provided a direct link to the crime or to the victim.  (see attached list).   One very noticeable error occurred in securing evidence from the suspects.  Apparently, Tom Baskerville was wearing a pair of black running shoes at the time of the murder.  When he was taken into custody in Mesquite Nevada, he was allowed to wear the same shoes.  he was then transported to Colorado and advised by the lead investigator that the shoes were evidence and that they would be seized.  He was again allowed to wear the shoes in the Colorado jail and immediately threw them away.  The shoes were never seized during either booking procedure and the evidence was lost.  Although, the act of throwing away the shoes by Baskerville may make him look guilty, it is better to properly secure this item immediately and take responsibility for not seizing them.
 

SEARCH OF THE SUSPECTS AFTER ARREST

 The investigating officers obtained a Rule 16 Order for non testimonial evidence for Baskerville and Cook.  The Order was granted and hair, fingerprint, blood, saliva, handwriting and voice exemplars were obtained.  These were not obtained immediately upon their arrest.  The officers should have obtained these items immediately and should have also obtained full body color photographs of both suspects in their clothes and without clothes.  Since a struggle was involved in this death, there would be a possibility of scratches or bruises to the suspects body.  In a subsequent interview with Baskerville, he indicated that Cook had scratches and bruises on his chest from the struggle.

 It should be noted that investigators failed to obtain sufficient hair exemplars for the lab and no identification could be made.  This would require an additional motion to the Court and some embarrassment to the investigation.
 

LABORATORY ANALYSIS

DNA ANALYSIS

 The laboratory found DNA evidence linking John Cook to the blue bed sheet found in the trunk of the victim’s car.  The sheet was used by the victim to give massages along with the folding table.  The bed sheet showed presence of semen linked to John Cook.
 

FINGERPRINT EVIDENCE

 Although numerous latents were lifted from the car and the trailer, none of the lifts linked the suspects to the crime.

HAIR AND FIBER

 The presence of animal hair was detected on a bed sheet and on the victim.  Hair evidence as obtained from the driver’s seat, passenger’s seat, floor mat, seat  cushions, and an afghan in the victim’s car.  The lab indicated that one hair found in the vehicle was microscopically consistent with the head hair of Baskerville.  It also indicated that insufficient samples were submitted for both Baskerville and Cook.
 

BLOOD AND FLUID EVIDENCE

 The crime scene technicians found a limited amount of blood in the trailer.  They swabbed some of the stains and took sections of drywall to collect the other stains.  We could not find a report that confirmed that June Burk’s blood was found in the trailer.  The police reports indicate that an oil-like substance was found on the carpet of the trailer.  Several oil lamps were seized from the trailer, however there was not enough oil to compare the two.  In a subsequent interview of suspect Baskerville, he stated that the oil was baby oil from the massage.  This could have been detected with additional testing to determine the type of oil or to rule out lamp oil.  During the same interview, Baskerville stated that the blood on the carpet was cleaned with Pinesol or Lysol.  Again, a more detailed search or testing should have discovered this cleansing or the blood underneath the carpet.

 The crime scene technicians went to great lengths to establish whether or not the victim urinated in her pants in her vehicle.  Using alternate light sources and eventually cutting the seats, they were not able to establish that theory.  They did not go to those lengths to detect the urine in the trailer.  If they would have, they would have discovered that the victim urinated in her pants on the floor of the trailer where she was killed.

 The crime scene technician collected and preserved numerous cigarette butts from an area that Baskerville claimed he was smoking during the murder.  These were tested with negative results, although they were the brand that Baskerville smoked.

 One lead that was not developed in a timely fashion was pawn slip information.  In a case where robbery is a possibility and known jewelry is missing, pawn slips and pawn shops should be contacted as soon as possible.  The pawn slips were not reviewed until a year after the crime and most of them were already destroyed.
 

CONCLUSION
 
 On January 24, 1998, at approximately 11:45 a.m., Detective James Rocco of the Woodland Park Police Department (WPPD), Woodland Park, Colorado, was informed of a missing person report filed by the Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD).  Detective Perry Freeman of the CSPD called Detective Rocco for assistance in locating a lady by the name of June Burk, a resident of Colorado Springs, Colorado.
 
Mrs. Burk was a self-employed massage therapist who had an appointment in the Woodland Park area on the evening of January 22, 1998.  When Mrs. Burk failed to return home, her husband reported her as missing on January 23, 1998 with the CSPD.  The detective  (Freeman) of the Colorado Springs Police Department discovered that Mrs. Burk’s last known appointment was suspected to be with a man by the name of “John” who had left a message and phone number on Mrs. Burk’s answering machine.
 
Detective Freeman had also determined that the phone number left by “John” was registered to the residence of John “Mike” Fetterhoff and his wife, Mary, of Woodland Park, Co.  “John” was discovered to be the father of Mike Fetterhoff.  “John” was later identified as John Cook.  John Cook and a friend (Thomas “Tom” Baskerville) had been recently released from a New York State Prison.  They (John and Tom) were staying at the home of John’s son Mike in Woodland Park.  Through persistent questioning and pursuit, Detectives Recco and Freeman were able to form a pattern of events that would evolve into a brutal murder.
 
After obtaining statements from the Fetterhoffs that Mike’s father, John Cook, and his friend Tom had contacted a massage therapist, Detective Rocco had the presence of mind to check the business section of the phone book owned by the Fetterhoffs.  The evidence was now starting to point to this residence as a possible crime scene.  Detectives quickly discovered that name and number of Mrs. Burk was missing from this phone book.
 
The detectives were told that Cook and Baskerville had gone to Las Vegas and not yet returned.  While en route to the WPPD office, Detective Rocco continued to search for Mrs. Burk’s car of which all surrounding police agencies had a description.  Detective Rocco did find Mrs. Burk’s dead body in the rear seat of her vehicle.  He immediately began notifying allied law enforcement agencies of his discovery and now murder investigation.  Detectives returned to the Fetterhoff’s home for formal interviewing and searching of their mobile home.  Through various techniques, evidence was gathered from the mobile home, Burk’s car, septic sewer system, and witness statements of the Fetterhoffs to develop a strong case to prove that John Cook and Tom Baskerville conspired to rob Mrs. Burk then killed her and left her body in her vehicle in an abandon area.
 
Through multi-agency cooperation, Cook and Baskerville were found and arrested in Las Vegas and returned to Woodland Park, tried and convicted of murder.  Detectives utilized every technique of evidence gathering known to them.  This included removing the toilet in the Fetterhoff’s home to discover Mrs. Burk’s stolen identification and other document that had been flushed into the septic sewer system in and attempt to destroy any links to this location as a crime scene.
 
Clearly without the use of fingerprint, trace, blood, and DNA analysis to eliminate and develop suspects, two murderers would have been acquitted and set free to commit more of these and other crimes in a more careful manner to avoid future apprehension.
 
 

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