A Kentucky woman was arrested after police found dismembered body parts partially cooked in her home.
The gruesome discovery was made by a man who had been hired to work on Trudy Fields’ home in Mount Olivet on Wednesday.
When the worker arrived at the property he couldn’t find the homeowner but then came across a dismembered body in the backyard, authorities said. At first, he thought the remains were Fields’ and called the Kentucky State Police.
Officers attended the property and found a woman’s body on a blood-stained mattress. Troopers then spotted a second blood-stained mattress that had been dragged toward the back of the house, according to the Louisville Courier Journal, citing an incident report.
After discovering another woman inside the house, troopers attempted to speak with her, but she allegedly refused to acknowledge them or allow them entry, forcing them to procure search warrants.
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SRT members were eventually forced to remove Fields from her home, but they reportedly did so without incident. After taking her into custody, troopers discovered that parts had been removed from the body outside and were stuffed into a folded-up mattress.
When troopers finally took Fields into custody, she had blood on her face, hands, and clothing. They entered her house and reportedly found a stainless steel pot contained body parts that appeared to have been cooked in an oven. Troopers noted in their findings that the pot was hot to the touch.
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The construction worker who discovered the body told troopers that Fields had been on the property during one of his previous visits and had been “casting spells on them and was being confrontational”.
So finding a corpse in the backyard isn’t probable cause and they had to return with a warrant? Surely I’m not reading that correctly.
Nope, that’s the way it’s supposed to be. You need a warrant to enter unless there’s exigent circumstances, which doesn’t include evidence of a crime outside the house.
Well, there is precedent for wider interpretations of need, but so far, it is still limited to a reasonable suspicion of a crime being in progress, or of evidence being destroyed.
Which, I would say that bodies on the ground would be enough to stand up to scrutiny later, but it’s still better to cover your ass, and get the warrant while observing by legal means. You already know it’s going to be a murder case, so you don’t want to fuck up admissibility.
Mind you, that’s from multiple conversations with family that practice law, or work in law enforcement, and having a friend that’s a sheriff. Most of the time, policy is to make sure the case is solid if nobody is in danger, with those people I’ve talked to.
Thank you! Makes sense now.
It is probable cause. Probable cause to go get a warrant issued to allow them to search the house. America has some very strong protections for people suspected of criminal offenses.
Perfect reply! I get it.