The New Detectives

The New Detectives

Three hairs… microscopic fibers… a common trash bag ripped from a roll. Seemingly small and insignificant clues become a victim's silent witness.

The New Detectives

Some people do get away with murder…at least for a while. Flush with their success, serial killers murder again and again. But each time they kill, they leave behind a few more clues, which ultimately lead to their capture.

The New Detectives

Sometimes, the cause of death does not match the scene of the crime. When an untraceable poison is used to commit murder, homicide detectives turn to forensic toxicologists to follow a killer's tracks and expose a toxic death.

The New Detectives

A good coroner provides what's necessary to solve a crime. A bad one can spoil an otherwise rock-solid case. Cyril Wecht and Henry Lee, two of the country's most respected coroners, share their cases and insights into crime solving.

The New Detectives

Fingerprinting: The identification Division of the FBI relies on fingerprints as one of the most effective ways to identify criminals.

The New Detectives

Poisoners are the most devious of killers, relying on stealth or their victim's trust in order to steal their lives. They're the most dangerous creatures in the world: smart assassins. And they usually don't stop at one kill.

The New Detectives

In Columbus, Ohio, a woman is found shot in the head. The death is ruled a suicide, but something is not right and detectives refuse to let the matter rest.

The New Detectives

Toxicology: While drugs can cure disease and ease pain, they can also be agents of murder. Toxicologists can examine blood and tissue to uncover cases where death is not as natural as it may seem–from slow arsenic poisoning to quick cocaine overdoses.

The New Detectives

When killers are driven by jealousy and desire, their desperation is evident in both the crime and their efforts to avoid detection. But forensic science can reveal even the slightest mistake to solve crimes of passion.

The New Detectives

The forces of nature can reduce a body to bones in a matter of weeks. Using a unique combination of art and science, forensic anthropologists give victims a face long after they have been forgotten.

The New Detectives

Hairs and Fibers: The tiniest filament can become a mark of distinction in the most singular and intimate of ways. Investigators have come to rely on forensic evidence as fine as a carpet fiber or as innocent as an eyelash to crack difficult cases.

The New Detectives

In criminal investigations, a simple clue can provide the missing link by placing a suspect at a crime scene. Dirt left on shoes, tires or clothes, or even a tiny piece of plastic can pinpoint a crime scene.

The New Detectives

To the astute detective and forensic specialist, the biggest clues often hide in plain sight, and what seems trivial to some is in reality Critical Evidence.

The New Detectives

Investigators are always on the cutting edge of new forensic techniques that can help them solve cases more accurately. An experimental “brain fingerprinting” technique has already won the acquittal of a police officer accused of a drug charge.

The New Detectives

For some killers, murder can be a profitable business. And the scene of the crime can be both a source for clues, and puzzling questions. When a victim has been targeted for death, investigators must look beyond the obvious to uncover a murder for hire.

The New Detectives

A teenager is abducted on a shopping trip. Two hikers disappear from the Appalachian Trail.

The New Detectives

Photography has long been a vital tool in homicide investigations. A single image captures enough information to identify a suspect, and to preserve a vital clue long after a witness' memory fades.

The New Detectives

When lovers turn on each other, or marriages fail, some ruthless spouses find a grisly way to gain an uncontested divorce – with no paperwork. When murder tears lovers apart, forensic science must put piece together the mystery to catch the killer.

The New Detectives

A friendly Midwest lodge becomes the scene of a gruesome double murder. Two men are dead and a safe filled with cash is missing.

The New Detectives

Drug trafficking has spawned a violent and deadly criminal underground. It's providing a challenge to forensic investigators devoted to cracking drug rings.

The New Detectives

In Northern California, a fire rages in the middle of the night. A woman's charred body is discovered in the smoldering aftermath.

The New Detectives