> "police who were near incompetent in their investigation, the forensics people who could barely maintain chain of evidence"

Are you sure they were all bad at their jobs? It's certainly possible. But it's also possible that you simply had unrealistic expectations for what the process looks like, exemplifying the "CSI Effect".

This is why I find these sort of pseudo-anonymous anecdotes very difficult to judge; I know neither the details of the case, nor you personally. It's like trying to get reviews for headphones online... suppose I read a review from somebody who says the headphones sound worse than a skinned cat. Is that review from a typical headphone user with reasonable expectations for sound quality? Or is it from an audiophile with very high, perhaps fanciful, standards? I have no point of reference for determining where that person is coming from.