Investigators Mishandled Blood Evidence at Missing TV Host's Mother's Home

Nancy Guthrie, 84, was reported missing after failing to attend a virtual church service on Jan. 31, prompting a Pima County investigation. Early responders failed to cordon off her Catalina Foothills residence despite finding dried blood on the front porch, mistakenly attributing it to a minor accident. The unsecured home attracted media personnel, social-media influencers and even delivery drivers over the next two days.

Sgt. David Stivers, who had recently taken over as head of homicide, arrived on Feb. 1 and gave little weight to the blood evidence, which later DNA analysis confirmed as Guthrie's and relevant to the kidnapping case. The department also lacked a deputy trained to fly the surveillance plane, leaving the aircraft grounded on the first day. The mishandling follows a prior reprimand of Stivers for poor judgment in another homicide investigation. Authorities later received two ransom notes demanding bitcoin payment, followed by a second note falsely claiming Guthrie had died.