Recently in Brianna Denison Category

Earlier in the year I wrote extensively about Brianna Denison's murder and the search for her killer. He is still at large and law enforcement as well as Brianna's family are still trying to bring her justice.

I used to get a feed from the Journal-Gazette but apparently it's not working for me anymore because I just came across this article about the Denison Blue-Ribbon Campaign.

The foundation had a place flying on Labor Day with a banner that directed people to the foundation's web site which is the official site dedicated to Brianna Denison.

The vision statement for the Bring Bri Justice Foundation includes:

• Bring Brianna Denison's murderer to justice.
• Promote legislative and legal efforts to increase consequences preventing violent crimes.
• Promote public awareness assuring the safety of all women and children in Nevada

You can mail donations to:

Bring Bri Justice Foundation
PO Box 10892
Reno, NV 89510

Police are reporting that a second pair of panties found with Brianna Denison's body had DNA belonging to her, the man who killed her and a woman who lived at the house where Denison was abducted.

This was news because if you remember, originally they were saying that there was ONE pair of panties found near the body. Reno police have identified the second pair as belonging to one of the students that lived in the house Briana was abducted from on January 20th.

Police are reporting that they didn't immediately release the details about the second pair of panties because more investigation was needed and that it's pretty typical for investigators to not release information right away.

The City of Reno and America's Most Wanted teamed up and have released a video on the Reno web site with pertinant facts in the investigation.

If for some reason the video doesn't show up properly you can also try to view it at the City of Reno Briana Denison Investigation web page.

Several hundred people held a vigil last night in the same field where Brianna Denison's body was found last week.

According to CNN and a couple of other news sites I've stopped in at, pepper spray is a hot item in town right now. Doesn't surprise me. I would think that guns would be another hot item. I don't know what the personal carry laws are like in Reno but if I were a woman I wouldn't be caught without one right now.

...or perhaps it was just a bad mistake on the murderer's part.

Police have found a pair of thongs in the same field where Brianna Denison's body was located late last week. After testing they have found DNA from two different people on the underwear, that of the unknown rapist/murderer and an unknown female.

Police don't want to really speculate because it's possible that the underwear are stolen or they may have belonged to a victim that has not yet come forward or can't come forward. It's possible that the man either inadvertently dropped the thong when he was dumping Brianna's body, or it may be a horrible message to police that he's committed yet another crime and the police haven't found him.

The underwear itself was a black thong with the head of the Pink Panther on it. Police are saying that it did not belong to Brianna Denison.

Newscom also has the report up as well as CNN and other news outlets. From Newscom and Voxant:

If I get the chance this evening I will try and update this entry as I get more information.

I finally arrived home around ten last night, five hours late, but more on that later. Because of the storms that passed through Georgia my cable TV and Internet was out for about fourteen hours which meant I couldn't post at all. That was probably a blessing in disguise because knowing me I would have been up until three a.m. making up for lost time...

Early Friday afternoon I received a link to this AP video that reported Briana Denison's mother and uncle believed that the missing college student was still alive. At that point in time they had plans to process a backlog of 3,000 DNA samples in their search for her. It's weird that this video was released at 4:13 p.m. which was about four hours AFTER the body was found. Of course at that time she may not have been identified but I find it hard to believe that her family had not been informed.

I was browsing some headlines and came across this entry over at the Crime Scene Blog where they are reporting that Briana Denison has been found. Actually they found her body on Friday while I was in the Bahamas and out of the news loop, which is why I haven't written anything about it over the weekend. Stephen McCaskill has this to say about it:

Someone who works in the nearby busy industrial center noticed a body lying in the field on Friday and called the police to report it at 12:13 p.m. Reno police found the site six minutes later and cordoned off the area around the site, which is 2-3 acres.

The story is of course also being reported on KVTN Reno/Tahoe news and there are several videos over there. Mainly press conferences and a couple of interviews as well.

The Reno police are assuming that they are dealing with a serial rapist and have at least two cases, possibly three, that are linked with DNA. How weird. Not really weird, just that I finished reading Cross byt James Patterson, dealing with a serial rapist/murderer on the flight home last night. I have never read any of the Alex Cross books and it started out somewhat dry but I enjoyed it and now have a series to start reading (when I get the free time). I digress, back to the subject at hand...

There really isn't anything other than a recap of the story at any of the news sites and I will pretty much repeat that here.

Briana was a student at Santa Barbara City College in California but was visiting Reno, where she is from, over winter break. She was last seen sleeping on a couch at a friend's house just off the University of Nevada Reno campus on January 20th. From CNNs report on her body being found there is a partial description of the abductor based on descriptions from previous victims:

Briana Denison's mother issued a statement on Saturday thanking police and the community for their help in searching for her daughter. "On March 29, 1988, Bridgette and Jeffrey Denison were given the incredible gift of their daughter Brianna. On January 20, 2008, she became the daughter of our entire community," Bridgette Denison also asked that every woman in the community "be diligent about their own safety".

The Washoe County Coroner's Office did an autopsy on Saturday, which is when they officially identified Briana, and they announced it at a news conference. According to Police she had been strangled. Her body had been in the field for at least a week and was concealed there by heavy snow. The full autopsy report won't be available for a few weeks because they still have pending toxicology reports as well as other stuff. All of that crap you see on CSI and other shows are pretty much a lie as to how quickly this stuff gets done, including the fact that the CSI guys are the ones out there solving the crimes.

While the manhunt for the serial rapist continues, the community is mourning the loss of a young woman that some say was like family.

I haven't been able to find any confirmation for it (yet) but one of the commenters over at Websleuths stated that during the press conference one of the reporters asked about cameras on surrounding buildings and it was stated that local businesses are volunteering their video that may help in the case. That pretty much sounds like standard operating procedure to me and not something that would generally be reported unless something was seen, which is why I don't have a link for it.

Brianna's body was found in South Reno at the intersection of Double R Boulevard and Sandhill Road and since Friday hundreds of people who have never met Brianna Denison have driven there to pay their respects and mourn the loss. The are is no surrounded with blue balloons, flowers, notes, candles and stuffed animals. Blue was apparently Brianna's favorite color.

America's Most Wanted also had an update on the case (same info as above) and apparently the crew is currently in Reno as well.

There is also a timeline (with no links) of key events in the Brianna Denison case over at Nevada Appeal.

CBS News has this video out this morning which discusses the fear that Reno residents are facing as a result of the serial rapist turned murderer.

Technorati: Brianna Denison, Reno, Murder, Rape, Missing Persons, America's Most Wanted, Nevada

Updated - Brianna Denison's Body Found!

...as well as others.

Washoe County authorities are asking for help from the private sector for $150k to help with a backlog of around 3,000 DNA samples from convicted sex offenders to be processed and compared with the DNA of the suspect who abducted Brianna Denison and assaulted two other college students.

The search continues and even Nevada's first lady Dawn Gibbons has joined the search...

Updated - Brianna Denison's Body Found!

It was a pretty long day at work and I have to go back soon so I thought I would just post a bunch of the different headlines I found interesting tonight. Here are a few:

Mother Defends Dog After Attack On Son - A two year old in Australia was bitten on the face by the family dog. The mother has vowed to keep the dog, blaming the attack on the child. Apparently he was pulling the dog's ears repeatedly after his mother told him not too.

I can relate to this and think it was right for the police to leave it up to the owner. I had this very thing happen to me as a toddler. My grandmother had an old poodle and if there was ever a dog that needed it's ears pulled, it's a nasty old poodle. I was told several times to leave the dog alone or I would get bit, I kept pulling it's ears and I got bit on the side of the head, ending up with butterfly stitches. Sometimes kids have to learn the hard way. I hate that the child in the news story will end up with scars but it doesn't change anything.

Perhaps the cooks at this Slovenian hospital have been reading some of Velociman's recent bloggage, leading to Human Tongue 'Accidentally' Served Up In Hospital. Damn but that is just nasty. I can barely stomach chicken as it is. That would be sure to put me off of it for life.

Body Parts Found in Eight Bags Along Interstate 80 in northeastern Pennsylvania. Authorities believe that the parts all belong to the same woman whose head was found in one of the bags. As of yet she has not been identified.

Dog the Bounty Hunter Won't Face Charges in Mexico. I like Dog but don't watch the show very often due to the fact that I find his wife extremely irritating and too much like 90% of my employees to stand when I'm not at work. Good news for Dog though after he did the right thing by capturing serial rapist Andrew Luster. Maybe Dog and the guys could find Cesar Laurean since the U.S. and Mexican authorities damn sure don't seem to be having too much luck.

And it goes on. and on. and on. It will never stop. An inquest in the Bahamas is probing the death of Daniel Smith, son of Anna Nicole Smith. So far they don't think that any foul behavior was involved in his death but if the jury were to find evidence that points to any wrong doing they can recommend criminal charges be brought. It's weird because I was just watching an episode of Law & Order the other night that was quite obviously based on the deaths of Daniel and Anna Nicole.

Rudy Giuliani is finally dropping out of the race and has endorsed Senator John McCain and John Edwards has dropped out of the Democratic side of things but is not endorsing anyone so far.

Ralph Nader is talking about running again and while I think he is a moron I like what he says about the accusations that he spoiled the 2000 election for Al Gore: "Political bigotry will be the label on anybody who uses the word 'spoiler,' he said. "Because 'spoiler' means minor candidates are second class citizens. Either we have an equal right to run for election, or we are spoilers for each other trying to get each other's votes." You know it dude.

Some Catholics are getting their panties all in a wad over a fitness club ad that shows some nuns sketching a naked man. As someone married in to a Catholic family, lighten the fuck up.

There aren't any new leads in the Brianna Denison search and the search efforts were somewhat shortened today because of snow and high winds.

Two international search groups have joined the effort to find 19-year-old Brianna Denison. Police believe the college student was abducted by a sexual predator from a friend's home a week and a half ago.

Global Warming is just kicking ass and taking names. It snowed in Jerusalem today. Check out the pic.

Updated - Brianna Denison's Body Found!

Updated 2-2-08 - America's Most Wanted will be featuring the Brianna Denison case tonight at 9 p.m. in an effort to bring her home.

Police have also released a composite sketch of what the man may look like. You can see it over at ABC News on the web. Police are calling the man a serial rapist and saying that he may be responsible for four attacks now.

Update 2-1-08: The Washoe County crime lab has established a link between the Denison case and the sexual assault in December as well as another one in the area in November 2007.

The Reno Gazette-Journal has been an invaluable source of information on the Brianna Denison case over the last few days. Here are some facts about the suspect:

THE SUSPECT
# White male, 28-40 years old.
# Long face with a square chin, facial hair about a quarter to a half an inch long below his chin that was soft and not prickly like stubble; brown hair; shaved pubic area.
# Slightly taller than 5-foot-6
# Firm stomach with an "innie" belly button.
# Strong but not overly muscular
# No accent when he spoke
# No alcohol or cigarettes on his breath; no cologne
# He wore a red short-sleeve shirt of a jersey material described as silk/nylon or polyester, with a medium blue neckline and possible embroidery on the upper left breast area. He wore a shirt underneath extended to his wrists.
# He wore smooth pants with an elastic waist similar to basketball warmups.

THE VEHICLE
# An extended cab pickup or sport-utility vehicle with a dome light above the windshield and a step to get inside.
# Floor-mounted, skinny console that opens in front. The LED read-out on the radio was blue and red, the vehicle had cloth seats and an automatic transmission.
# A baby shoe was on the front seat floor board, and white pieces of paper about eight and one half by 11 inches with typing on them were on the floorboard of the front seat.

HOW TO HELP
# Anyone with information can reach the Reno police hot line at 745-3521, detectives at 334-2115 or Secret Witness at 322-4900.
# The family is offering a $100,000 reward for information. Secret Witness is offering a $2,500 reward for anonymous tips that lead to an arrest and prosecution.

PREVIOUS UNR-AREA ATTACKS
# About 5 p.m. Nov. 13, a 21-year-old UNR student was walking to her home and was in the parking lot of her apartment complex in the 400 block of College Drive when a man grabbed her and fondled her. He ran away after she kicked him and screamed.
# About 2 a.m., Dec. 16, a 22-year-old UNR student was walking to her apartment in the 1400 block of North Virginia Street when a man grabbed her from behind and rendered her unconscious. She woke up inside his pickup and was forced to commit a sexual act on him before he drove her home.

Head over to the Reno Gazette-Journal for more information as well as online chat about the case.

This video was released by CBS this morning...

I can certainly see why students in the area are still worried. Police are concerned that if not caught, the kidnapper will strike again.

CBS news is reporting a break in the case of missing Brianna Denison and according to the blurb that was attached to the video they are closing in on a suspect. Julie Chen spoke with Brianna's mother, grandfather and Commander Ron Holladay of the Reno Police Department.

In reality it doesn't seem to be much more information than I presented quickly last night. They do seem to have a better description, provided by one of the other sexual assault victims, but shouldn't they have already had this information from December?

There's nothing new over at the Reno Gazette-Journal other than this story about two volunteer groups helping out in the search for Brianna. They have been right on top of the story and as soon as there is another break in the case I would expect to see it here.

I also came across this video from the Associated Press which gives a general description of the suspect that Police are looking for.

Technorati: Brianna Denison,Reno,University of Nevada,Kidnapping

Updated - Brianna Denison's Body Found!

There is new DNA evidence which links the disappearance of Brianna Denison in Nevada to another sexual assault and kidnapping.

Reno Police are saying that the suspect they are most likely looking for is white, in his mid-thirties, drives a truck or SUV, has facial hair and is in good shape.

Police are saying that the DNA links the disappearance of Denison and the December assault of a college student in the area and leads them to believe that a sole attacker was responsible for both cases.

Police believe that the man lives in the area or knows the campus well and are asking for help from anyone that may have seen someone acting suspiciously or perhaps their behavior has changed radically over the last few weeks.

This map from the Reno Gazette-Journal shows the locations of the abductions that might be related to this case over the last three months.

During the kidnapping on December 16th the suspect knocked the 22-year-old student unconscious, made her perform a sex act on him, and then drove her back to her apartment.

According to the police his DNA profile does not yet match any of the convicted offenders entered into the national DNA database, but apparently scientists have been complaining that the database is severely backlogged. Just how behind they are I am not sure.

They are saying now that the fluid found on Brianna's pillow was her blood and that they also found her attacker's DNA at the scene. They are saying that the pillow could have been used to restrain or smother her.