Opinion ID: 2671522
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Murder of Kimberly Lyttle

Text: Kimberly Lyttle worked on Main Street in Lake Elsinore. On June 28, 1989, her body was discovered in a rural area near Lake Elsinore. Among the clothes on her body were socks and a shirt that did not appear to be hers. The cause of death was asphyxiation due to strangulation. In her neck area were numerous scratches that appeared to have been caused by fingernails, both of the person compressing her neck and by the victim trying to free herself. There was bruising on the skin and in the muscles of her neck, and a hemorrhage and fracture of the hyoid bone. In addition, hemorrhaging in her scalp was indicative of blunt force trauma, and round red abrasions on her arms and other parts of her body were indicative of cigarette burns. 4 Two kinds of tests were performed on DNA found in a vaginal swab from Lyttle‘s body: restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). No results were generated by the RFLP test. PCR testing on the male fraction of DNA established one type that matched defendant. The probability of finding that type would be one in nine in the Black population, one in 11 in the White population, and one in five in the Hispanic population. 2 The small amount of DNA available prevented further testing. On a towel draped over Lyttle‘s body were hairs that were similar to defendant‘s head hair, and pubic hair similar to defendant‘s pubic hair. Also on the towel were fibers similar to the carpeting, the sidepanel upholstery, and the seat fabric in defendant‘s van. Other fibers on the towel were similar to the blue nylon exterior, the red acetate lining and the white nylon insulation of a sleeping bag found in defendant‘s van. Sisal rope fibers found on the towel were similar to the sisal rope found in defendant‘s van.