NZ police

I dont like to be critical of the NZ police but their handling of the 'pumpkin case' deserves some mention

Police say 'We did the right thing over car'
Police are staunchly defending their handling of the An An Liu homicide inquiry, but remain under fire for taking days to discover her badly beaten body in the boot of her husband's car. Deputy Police Commissioner Rob Pope commended the inquiry yesterday, saying it had proceeded "in keeping with best professional practice". During the 45 hours between the Police arriving at the home and discovering the body in the boot, many of the journalists were leaning on the car writing their notes and joking that the body was in the boot.

Now in their defence
1) origionally the case was not a homocide - it was a investigation of an abandoned child case on behalf of australia. That doesn't require boot searches of every car.
2) NZ police have many restrictions they need to obey in order to not spoil convictions (and not get fired) - probably too many.

But still. In missing children cases "always check the parents" and in murders - "Always look in the boot" (so always get the warrent for it).