Judge Approves Accused Serial Killer's Request for Expert DNA Analysis

A judge this morning approved accused serial killer Joseph Naso's request to have an expert analyze the pantyhose of one of his alleged victims for DNA evidence.

The forensic analysis of the pantyhose found on the body of 18-year-old Roxene Roggasch of Oakland will be conducted at the Serological Research Institute (SERI) in Richmond, Deputy District Attorney Dori Ahana said.

Naso is charged with the murder of Roggasch in January, 1977; Carmen Colon, 22, in Contra Costa County in August 1978; Pamela Parsons, 38, on Sept, 19, 1993 in Contra Costa County; and Tracy Tafoya, 31, in August 1994, in Yuba County.

Roggasch's body was found on the eastern slope of White's Hill near Fairfax on Jan. 11, 1977.

She was wearing a pair of panty hose inside out, another pair was found around her neck, a third pair was found in her mouth and a fourth pair was wrapped around her mouth.

At Naso's preliminary hearing in January, Contra Costa County sheriff's Deputy Tuan Nguyen, a criminalist who processed and examined the panty hose for DNA evidence, testified semen from two males was found on the inside of the pantyhose Roggasch was wearing. He said one of the sperm samples "likely" came from Naso.

"You are likely the source as Male B. We can never say you are, just likely are," Nguyen testified on cross-examination.

Nguyen also testified DNA found on the pantyhose wrapped around Roggasch's neck matched that of Naso's former wife Judith Naso.

The pair of pantyhose wrapped around Roggasch's mouth contained "contact" DNA from at least four individuals, Nguyen testified. It was of poor quality and he was unable to develop individual DNA profiles from it, he said.

The Marin County District Attorney's Office is alleging Naso, a self-employed photographer who took photos of scantily-clothed women who appeared dead, asleep or unconscious, strangled the four women who worked as prostitutes.

Earlier this year, Judge Sweet approved Naso's request to view the
four pairs of pantyhose, but prohibited him from physically handling the
evidence.

Naso is representing himself, but he retained attorney Bill Fazio as advisory counsel. He also told the judge he has hired Everson Thomson as an investigator.

Naso did not say, and the judge did not ask this morning, whether Fazio is still advisory counsel.

"I want to make sure that if you want advisory counsel, including publicly-funded advisory counsel, you have it," Sweet said.

"I don't want you to say later, 'I wish I had advisory counsel,'" Sweet said.

Pretrial motions are scheduled to be heard Oct. 18-19 and if needed on Nov. 5. Jury selection is scheduled for Nov. 7.

Bay City News Service