by bubbles Fri Sep 18, 2009 3:45 pm
Investigators haven't decided whether the theory will ultimately lead to a motive but don't believe they'll need to establish one when Clark goes to trial because of strong forensic evidence, the official said.
Authorities would not discuss a motive, largely because Clark has not been talking to police, the official said. They also would not disclose the DNA test results or how they connected Clark to the slaying.
Security guards continued their street patrols Friday and news crews set up for another day of staking out the college's medical complex. A makeshift memorial of candles and flowers was arranged at the entrance to a park across the street from the lab building, in an area of squat, utilitarian buildings about a mile from the majestic main campus.
Kristin Dugan, who works in the building where Le was found dead, said she did not fear for her safety there before Le's killing or afterward.
"Things happen; you can't stop evil," she said. "If evil's going to happen, it's going to happen anywhere."
Le's work at the university involved experiments on mice that were part of research into enzymes that could have implications for treatment of cancer, diabetes and muscular dystrophy, while Clark's technician job involved cleaning floors and mouse cages.
New Haven Police Chief James Lewis has called Le's death a case of workplace violence. He would not elaborate except to say reports that the two had a romantic relationship were untrue.
Clark appeared in court with two public defenders. Joseph Lopez, one of the defense attorneys, said he still was reviewing the case and declined to comment.
Two friends of Clark's since childhood, appearing on CNN's "Larry King Live" on Thursday night, said they were stunned by the murder allegations and could not reconcile them with the young man they've known for years.
"That's not the Raymond Clark I've talked to my whole entire life," Bobby Heslin said.
"I just can't picture him doing something like this," Maurice Perry said.
The New York Times reported that Clark at times grew angry if lab workers did not wear shoe covers. "He would make a big deal of it, instead of just requesting that they wear them," said a researcher who asked not to be identified.
ABC News reported that Clark sent a text message to Le on the day she vanished requesting a meeting to discuss the cleanliness of mouse cages in the research lab.
Reached at their homes after work Thursday, several of Le's co-workers at the lab declined to comment.
The Connecticut medical examiner said Wednesday that Le died of "traumatic asphyxiation," which could indicate a choke hold or some other form of suffocation caused by a hand or an object such as a pipe.
Clark was being held at the MacDougall-Walker Correctional Institution, a high-security facility in Suffield, about 20 miles north of Hartford. His next scheduled court date is Oct. 6.
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