using a process known as the charcoal tube method, arson investigator tom simpson placed samples of earl bramblett's stained blue jeans in a can and then heated it. the vapors were trapped in a tube filled with charcoal, then fed into a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer, a device that can analyze the precise chemical composition of a stain. even though bramblett's jeans had been submerged in water, simpson discovered the stains were diesel fuel, the same accelerant used to start the hodges' fire. the blacked-out entry on bramblett's timecard presented another challenge. forensic documents examiner gordon menses used a video spectral comparator with various light sources in an attempt to see underneath the black ink. slowly, the information came into view. >> i was able to come up with an original entry that was 5:08 m, which would have been 5:00 in the morning on monday, according to what i understand about the time clock. >> 5:08 in the morning was only 20 minutes after neighbors reported the fire at the hodges' home. coincidentally, bramblett's work place was only a 20-minute drive f