The home of Dani Burch at 60 Lily Cove Ave. in Lakeport became a crime scene Wednesday night, after police found the bodies of a woman and a small dog inside the home. Photo by Harold LaBonte.

LAKEPORT – A welfare check turned into a death investigation at a downtown Lakeport home Wednesday night, with police reporting “unusual” circumstances surrounding the discovery of a woman's body.

Lakeport Police received a call requesting a welfare check at 60 Lily Cove Ave. at about 7:45 p.m., according to Lt. Brad Rasmussen.

“Officers investigated and located a deceased person at the residence,” said Rasmussen.

Rasmussen added, “I can say it appears to be a resident of the home.”

The home's resident is local artist Dani S. Burch, according to a directory search.

An officer at the scene confirmed that the bodies of a woman and her small dog had been found inside the house. He would not speculate about how long the woman had been dead, and police did not release her identity.

At about 9:45 p.m. officers put up tape around the home's exterior, with a Lakeport Police officer confirming that it had become a crime scene.

“We do have some unusual circumstances that we've discovered,” Rasmussen said just after 10:30 p.m.

He added, “I can't get into any details on what those circumstances are at this time.”

Rasmussen said four Lakeport Police personnel – among them Detective Norm Taylor – were at the home, processing the scene and evidence. A coroner from the Lake County Sheriff's Office later arrived at the residence.

“We're going to be on scene for an extended period of time, doing a thorough investigation to try to determine the cause what happened at the scene,” said Rasmussen.

Rasmussen said police would make an announcement about their findings as soon as they could.

Harold LaBonte contributed to this report.

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