Murder Mystery
The Murder of Carleton Comet
In this project, we did a series of experiments on 5 suspects to see who murdered our victim.
Date: January 11, 2020
Location: Chalk Hill at the edge of San Marin High School
Time of Murder: 7:35pm
Situation: 5 of Carleton Comets “friends” met for a picnic dinner to celebrate his release from jail. He was killed by a knife that was stabbed in his neck.
Guests: Theresa Terra, Fred Flimmer, Sam Sophomore, Glen Glee, Nancy Normal
We extracted a fingerprint from a pair of glasses that were found near the body. We did this by lightly dusting the oily print with black powder and then by placing a clear peace of tape and extracting it from the surface. We then compared the fingerprints and found it to match that of Nancy Normals. The types of fingerprints that occur are Arch, loop, and whirl. We found Nancy’s to be an arch over a whirl which matched the fingerprint on he glass.
Evidence #1 - Fingerprint
Belongs to: Nancy Normal
Evidence #2 - Note
Belongs to: Nancy Normal and Sam Sophomore
We found a note with the words "U Are A Dead Man". We used ink chromatology to see who wrote it. Ink chromatology is the system used to identify different types of ink by separating the different colors in the ink. In order to set up this test you put the paper the ink is on in a little bit of isopropyl alcohol without submerging the ink in. The alcohol will rise up the paper and dissolve the ink and leave the different parts behind separated. The pattern and types of colors left behind can be used to identify the pen. After you conduct the experiment you find each separated color’s Rf value which is the ratio of the distance of the solute relative to the solvent, or the dye to the alcohol. We compared the ink on the note to the ink in the pens that we found on the scene of the crime.
Blood is a co-dominance gene that, like all genes, you get from both of your parents. Co-dominance means that there isn’t a blended phenotype. There are 4 blood types (that we learned about). The phenotypes are A, B, AB and O. Each phenotype has a Genotype, which helps you see what blood type you can pass on, Antigen on RBC, Antibodies in the blood and Donation Status.
Evidence #3 - Blood
Belongs to: Carleton Comet and Nancy Normal
Evidence #4 - Pedigree
Pedigrees are similar to family trees. They show the ancestors in a family, who is married, who has died, siblings, engagements, miscarriages, etc. Pedigrees are important to see what genes are shared throughout families, similar to Punnett Squares. This pedigree shows how all of our suspects are related and what diseases they have. We were given information on each family to make a huge pedigree.
The Karyotype most closely matched Nancy Normal, Sam Sophomore, and Carleton Comet. Nancy had an XXX while Sam and Carleton had xxy. These were the two mutations found in the blood on the knife. This means that Sam and Nancy could have both bleed on the knife but highly unlikely so we should assume that it is Nancy's blood on the knife.
Evidence #5 - Karyotype
Belongs to: Nancy Normal and Carleton Comet
Evidence #6 - DNA Gel Electrophoresis
Belongs to: Carleton Comet and Nancy Normal
Gel electrophoresis is a system used to isolate DNA pieces as indicated by their size. DNA tests are stacked into wells (spaces) toward one side of a gel, and an electric flow is applied to get them through the gel. DNA pieces are negatively charged, so they move towards the positive end. This sorts them and we can view the similarities in the blood almost like the ink chromatography.
Motive
Why did Nancy Normal kill Carleton Comet?
Nancy Normal killed Carlton Comet out of devotion. We were told that Fred Flimmer is the one she adores. Fred flimmer is son of Thomas Sandstone who he hated because he killed his aunt and sister Peebles. Nancy then killed Thomas sandstone, who was Carlton Comet, to try to prove herself to Fred Flimmer, who is now engaged to Theresa Terra, to try to win him over. We have also found that Nancy has Huntington's which can present itself with impairment in cognitive function which can also explain her actions.
Reflection
The first good thing about this project was that most of our group worked very well to get everything done. We only had a certain amount of time to get tasks done and we managed out time very well to make sure that we got everything done. Most of the time we got our projects done the day of to keep us on a steady pace to finish in time. Another thing our group did really well was communication. When someone needed help with something, all of us were able to help. For example someone would need help with one part of the project and someone would help them, while the other person was getting help by another person. It just helped us move quickly.
One thing our group could have done better was equalize the workload a little bit. A lot of the work was done but mainly by a couple people. If everyone helped more we could have gotten the project done much faster and it would have been so much easier. Plus it would be a lot less stressful for the people who did most of the work. The two people that did the work got good grades, but the one person who didn't do the work didn't get as good of a grade.