DFIRL Episode 03: Murder of Laramie Cline
In episode 03 of Digital Forensics In Real Life (DFIRL) podcast we’ll be talking to Doug Estes about the senseless murder of Laramie Cline, a 23-year-old woman who was killed by her then-boyfriend David Houston-Harvey between August 10th and 11th, 2017 in Colorado. Estes is a former Senior Special Agent with the Arkansas State Police and a 28-year law enforcement veteran. He started doing digital forensics investigations in 1998, and you can tell how long he’s been in the game from his first Forensic Recovery of Evidence Device, or FRED. The serial number was “1”.
At Magnet, we love it when investigators find smoking gun evidence on digital devices. A text message or search query or transaction that proves a suspect is guilty. But a lot of law enforcement requires the tough jurisdictional work you don’t see in the movies: figuring out how to bring charges that will stand trial in a complex legal system.
That’s what’s interesting about this case. It shows how digital evidence can help investigators understand not just who committed a crime, but in what jurisdiction that crime happened. When it came to bringing Laramie Cline’s murderer to justice, that revelation made all the difference.
Listen now to hear the story!
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