Police collect shirt, letter from Huguely's apartment

Charlottesville police discovered a University of Virginia lacrosse T-shirt with a red stain on it and a letter addressed to Yeardley Love during a search of George Huguely’s apartment on 14th Street NW.

Huguely, a 22-year-old former midfielder for UVa’s men’s lacrosse team, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Love, who was a member of the women’s lacrosse team and Huguely’s ex-girlfriend.

Charlottesville police Detective Lisa Reeves filed documents Wednesday in Charlottesville Circuit Court that detail the results of her search of Huguely’s apartment Monday afternoon.

The documents do not provide the content of the letter addressed to Love and do not say identify the type of stain on the T-shirt.

In addition to the shirt and letter, investigators seized numerous pieces of potential evidence.

Police confiscated two white Apple laptop computers, a green spiral notebook, two white socks, a bathroom rug, a shower curtain, the apartment’s entryway rug, a pair of blue cargo shorts and a Bobby Jones brand polo shirt.

Investigators also took DNA swabs from a bathtub, from the kitchen, from the kitchen’s trashcan and from the entry door.

The search warrant authorized Reeves to confiscate “any paper, cloth, clothing, shoes or other item that may contain blood or other bodily fluid; trace evidence such as, but not limited to, biological fluids and fingerprints; photographs, writings and documents related to Yeardley Love; computers and electronic storage devices” during her search of Huguely’s apartment.

Love, a 22-year-old government major and Spanish minor who was slated to graduate from UVa this month, was discovered dead in her apartment around 2:15 a.m. Monday.

According to an affidavit filed Tuesday in Charlottesville General District Court, Huguely admitted to police that he kicked through Love’s bedroom door, shook her as her head hit a wall repeatedly and then took her computer and disposed of it.

A roommate found Love lying face down on her pillow in a pool of blood, the court records said. She had a sizable bruise on the right side of her face, her right eye was swollen shut and she had bruises and scrapes on her chin, according to the records.

The homicide investigation began to focus on Huguely in the hours after Love’s body was discovered. Huguely agreed to speak with investigators at Charlottesville’s police station and he was arrested and charged by mid-morning Monday.

Huguely, who is being held at Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail, appeared by videoscreen Tuesday morning in Charlottesville General District Court. His attorney, Francis McQ. Lawrence, told news reporters that Love’s death was “not intended but an accident with a tragic outcome.”

The medical examiner’s office in Richmond completed an autopsy of Love on Wednesday, but police and the medical examiner’s office said they were not yet ready to release Love’s cause of death.

Love’s body was released to her family Wednesday and taken to Maryland for a funeral to be held Saturday in Baltimore. Love grew up in Cockeysville, Md.

The court documents that list the items seized from Huguely’s apartment was obtained by The Daily Progress on Wednesday, but was sealed by court order after a story about the documents was posted online.

Investigators have also obtained search warrants to find evidence at Love’s apartment and on Huguely’s body. Results of those search warrants have not been made public.