DASO’s Kim Stewart questions human remains in desert, says she needs to prioritize for crimes with victims
EL PASO, Texas ( KTSM ) – Volunteer group Battalion Search and Rescue (BSAR) said it has found human remains out in the desert outside of Santa Teresa on multiple occasions and have reported the sites to the Dona Ana County Sheriff's Office with nothing being done.
Dona Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart, however, responded to these claims that her office has not responded to these reports.
"I don't know where they (remains) come from, sir. I don't know how long they've been there. I don't know if they've been planted there. If (BSAR) are not going to stand by until we arrive, because (they) are too busy roaming the desert looking for I don't know what. Sir, we're not going to take these very seriously,"Stewart said.
On two separate occasions, BSAR has taken KTSM crews to two of more than 20 sites with human remains the organization said they discovered over the past year.
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At these sites, our crews have observed a cranium, a spinal column with ribs, at least two jaw bones, among other remains.
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In response to Stewart, James Holeman and Abby Carpenter from BSAR said that if they waited at every site they have discovered for the Sheriff's Office to respond, it would only slow them down.
"If we stopped at one site and waited, that would compromise our work. We give accurate GPS points, descriptions of the site, description of the location, photographs with forensic rulers. I mean, you can't ask for more information, and it's 100% accurate. We double-, triple-check our work," Holeman said.
"And if they changed their policy that we needed to remain at the site, why didn't they let us know? If that's the reason why they're not going out, then they need to talk to us because we're finding those remains" Carpenter said.
BSAR also responded to the allegation that they could have planted the remains.
"That's a horrible thing to suggest. All I can say is do your damn job. You're the law enforcement in this county. Get out there. Investigate. Recover. Document. Stop turning you back," Holeman said.
Stewart, however, said the coordinates they have received from BSAR are inaccurate. She added that because BSAR has been present at these sites, the scenes have likely been contaminated, and could nullify any investigation they were to conduct.
"From the pictures I saw, some of these sites were trampled. I'm not going to collect bones. We investigate crime. And if the scene's trampled, there's no evidentiary value in this. OMI (Office of the Medical Investigator) is in charge of picking up bones, " Stewart said.
When asked to comment on how their presence at these sites could have contaminated the scene, Holeman and Carpenter said they don't believe that is reason enough to ignore the sites.
"So if there's a concern that this site has been tampered with, we just leave a human being in the desert, then? These are missing persons. We don't know who they are," Holeman said.
"How does the Sheriff's Office know it's not a crime scene if they don't go out? How can they tell from afar?" Carpenter said.
Stewart said that solving a crime and figuring out the identity of these remains are two separate things. And that her office's task lies in the former.
She said there could be efforts and resources poured into trying to figure out who the remains belong to, but that her office does not have those resources to attend to all the reports they receive.
"I have crimes that need investigation where I know there are victims. So I kind of have to choose how I prioritize some of this don't I?" Stewart said.
Holeman said, however, that they have been told by the OMI that they cannot assess these sites without DASO having done so first.
"There are families out there on both sides of the border, I'm sure, looking for answers. And they're being robbed. Robbed of those answers. So that's all I have to say to that one," Holeman said.
