The first 24 to 48 hours are crucial to a homicide investigation, says Maine State Police Detective Herb Leighton.

That’s one reason why Leighton helped create the State Police’s Evidence Response Team. He’s the team’s overall leader.

Team members investigate the “howdunit” rather than the “whodunit.”

They gather the evidence of what happened, methodically document it, package it, store it and take it to the state crime lab in Augusta.

“Our job is to evaluate scenes. We’re not crime scene investigators, because it’s not crimes that we respond to. It’s evidence,” he said.

Forensic scientists at the lab analyze the gathered evidence, compare it to other evidence and make conclusions. They provide these to investigators for use in solving the case.

The response team draws on 40 specially trained troopers, detectives and sergeants, who also have other duties; a chemist at the state crime lab; and deputy medical examiners.

They are assisted by the Fire Marshal’s Office and the Maine Warden Service, along with the wardens’ K-9 team.

The K-9 team has 10 specially trained search dogs and about four or five cadaver dogs – canines trained to find bodies or human remains on, under or above the ground and in the water.

The team can also draw on associate members, specialized forensic science consultants who are intrigued by police work.

“We really benefit from our close relationship with them,” Leighton said.

Among these associates are pathologists like Fred Jordan and Marcella Sorg.

Jordan recently retired to Maine after 22 years as Oklahoma’s former chief medical examiner. He’s co-director of forensic science at Colby College. Other than the Oklahoma City bombing case that he handled, Jordan would typically do 250 to 300 homicide cases a year.

Sorg, a renowned medical and forensic anthropologist and author, teaches anthropology at the University of Maine at Orono. She is a consulting forensic anthropologist with the Maine Medical Examiner’s Office and other states.

“We can flood a case with resources like we have now. That’s why we have a lot of municipalities that want to be a part of this,” Leighton said.