Trails of Evidence: True Crime Cases Revisited by Dr. Phil

When Maura first vanished, nobody could agree on what kind of story they were dealing with.

Had a crime been committed? Was Maura a runaway? Was this a simple car accident that somehow spiraled out of control? For the first 48 hours, police treated the case pretty much as routine.

Local officers and state police continued to conduct additional ground and air searches around the crash site.

Helicopters equipped with infrared kept scanning the surrounding woods.

Snowmobiles and K-9 teams swept the areas.

State troopers re-questioned neighbors along Route 112.

Detectives checked hospitals, motels, bus stations, and shelters across New England.

They also issued a statewide alert to other departments.

By week's end, the New Hampshire State Police Major Crime Unit took over.

The FBI was consulted briefly, but because there was no proof of a kidnapping or even evidence of a crime, they really could not stay involved.

Now, you can ask yourself why.

It wasn't that they didn't care, but they had zero proof Maura had been abducted or harmed, so hers remained a state case.

With the FBI, you need proof a crime occurred, and it has to have certain characteristics and qualities to qualify as federal.

Now, most people who have a loved one go missing want it to be in the hands of the capable FBI.

They have more resources, and you'd rather have that than be left in the hands of a small-town local law enforcement who maybe have seen one case like this, maybe no cases like this.

It's nothing against them, but they just don't have the experience.

They don't have the technology.

It's kinda like you come down south, and they have a snowstorm.

They don't have the equipment to clear the roads like they do in Chicago or New York or somewhere up north, so you don't have the experience or the expertise or the resources to clear the roads.

So you need somebody that does, and that's the way it is with a small-town police department.

If something happens that's outside the scope of their normal activity, they could be in over their heads right away, and early mistakes at a crime scene can compromise forensics that can create havoc a year later, two years later, 20 years later, because of problems created in the early hours.

Every hour that passed without a lead made the trail even colder and made the divide between Maura's family and these local investigators even wider.

Without any evidence, the investigation slowed quickly because they had nothing to pursue.

They had nothing to follow up on.

Cell phone records showed no outgoing calls were made from Maura's phone.

When Maura first vanished, nobody could agree on what kind of story they were dealing with.

Had a crime been committed? Was Maura a runaway? Was this a simple car accident that somehow spiraled out of control? For the first 48 hours, police treated the case pretty much as routine.

Local officers and state police continued to conduct additional ground and air searches around the crash site.

Helicopters equipped with infrared kept scanning the surrounding woods.

Snowmobiles and K-9 teams swept the areas.

State troopers re-questioned neighbors along Route 112.

Detectives checked hospitals, motels, bus stations, and shelters across New England.

They also issued a statewide alert to other departments.

By week's end, the New Hampshire State Police Major Crime Unit took over.

The FBI was consulted briefly, but because there was no proof of a kidnapping or even evidence of a crime, they really could not stay involved.

Now, you can ask yourself why.

It wasn't that they didn't care, but they had zero proof Maura had been abducted or harmed, so hers remained a state case.

With the FBI, you need proof a crime occurred, and it has to have certain characteristics and qualities to qualify as federal.

Now, most people who have a loved one go missing want it to be in the hands of the capable FBI.

They have more resources, and you'd rather have that than be left in the hands of a small-town local law enforcement who maybe have seen one case like this, maybe no cases like this.

It's nothing against them, but they just don't have the experience.

They don't have the technology.

It's kinda like you come down south, and they have a snowstorm.

They don't have the equipment to clear the roads like they do in Chicago or New York or somewhere up north, so you don't have the experience or the expertise or the resources to clear the roads.

So you need somebody that does, and that's the way it is with a small-town police department.

If something happens that's outside the scope of their normal activity, they could be in over their heads right away, and early mistakes at a crime scene can compromise forensics that can create havoc a year later, two years later, 20 years later, because of problems created in the early hours.

Every hour that passed without a lead made the trail even colder and made the divide between Maura's family and these local investigators even wider.

Without any evidence, the investigation slowed quickly because they had nothing to pursue.

They had nothing to follow up on.

Cell phone records showed no outgoing calls were made from Maura's phone.