Forensic Files
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Forensic Files
While Earl Morris was vacationing in California, he learned his wife Ruby Morris had gone missing from their home in Arizona. The results of the investigation surprised everyone...especially Earl Morris.
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Forensic Files
The flu-like symptoms of a mother and her children proved to be something more serious: thallium poisoning.
Forensic Files
In a quiet village in Great Britain, a farmer came upon a chilling sight. Impaled on his fence post was a severed lamb's head along with a note which read, "You next."
Forensic Files
An infant was rushed to the emergency room with serious breathing problems. Within months, there were more than 30 cases. Doctors searched frantically for the cause and a cure.
Forensic Files
Shortly after daybreak in Vancouver, British Columbia, a fire was set in a dumpster. No one saw either the arsonist or the fire, and it burned for hours in the deserted parking lot.
Forensic Files
Two people in Seattle, Washington died after taking an over-the-counter pain reliever. Lab analysis of the pills showed they were tainted with a lethal concentration of cyanide.
Forensic Files
For more than a year, hateful letters were sent to a school teacher in Pennsylvania. DNA analysis would eventually help seal the perpetrator's fate.
Forensic Files
On October 15, 1985, two bomb explosions rocked Salt Lake City and resulted in two deaths. A third explosion occurred the next day. This time, the victim was injured but survived.
Forensic Files
After a day of fishing in a small, quiet village in Switzerland, a teenage boy did not return home as planned. The investigation revealed some important microscopic evidence in the water near where he was last seen.
Forensic Files
Heavy rains and snow run-off carried manure into Milwaukee's water supply in 1993, leading to an epidemic of gastrointestinal illness affecting 400,000 people.
Forensic Files
Eleven-month-old Chad Shelton was admitted to the hospital with unexplained bleeding and later died. Investigators and scientists frantically searched for a cause when others from the same house fell ill.
Forensic Files
In the mid-1980s, bodies of nude women were found on a remote hill of California. The police got a break when a known prostitute escaped an attacker and was able to identify him and his automobile.
Forensic Files
In 1987, a human skull and some bones were discovered at a boy scout camp near Farmington, Missouri. A facial reconstruction aided the investigators in this case.
Forensic Files
A serial bomber was waging a vendetta against the legal profession. A judge, two attorneys and even a courthouse had been targeted. Employing a range of forensic techniques, investigators used evidence from the bombs to lead them to the perpetrator.
Forensic Files
Robert Sims returned home after working the night shift and found his wife, Paula, unconscious on the kitchen floor. Their two-year-old son, Randy, was asleep in an upstairs bedroom, but their six-week-old daughter, Heather, was missing.
Forensic Files
Stephen Scher and Martin Dillon went skeet shooting on a beautiful spring day and Martin was shot dead.
Forensic Files
When four-month-old Ryan died under suspicious circumstances, his mother was convicted of his murder.
Forensic Files
In 1992, Laura Houghteling disappeared from her Bethesda home and was never seen again. Laura's bedroom was searched and forensic science was used to direct them a to prime suspect.
Forensic Files
Edward Honaker was sentenced to three life terms in prison, but he steadfastly maintained his innocence.
Forensic Files
On September 17, 1984, in a suburb of Tucson, Arizona, eight-year-old Vicki Hoskins left home on her pink bicycle to mail a letter for her mother. She never returned, but her slightly damaged bicycle was found nearby.
Forensic Files
A two-year-old boy was rushed to the hospital suffering from brain seizures and breathing difficulties.
Forensic Files
On a cold December night in 1993, Rose Larner stopped in a convenience store on her way to her boyfriend's house. She was never seen or heard from again. A tiny clue found years later revealed a tragic tale of drugs, romance and revenge.
Forensic Files
A mother claims that an intruder murdered her two sons, but lacking a motive, police use blood-spatter analysis and behavioral profiling to reconstruct a different scenario.
Forensic Files
Scott Dunn was missing and when the police sprayed his bedroom with Luminol, a scene of horrific violence emerged. Now investigators faced a daunting task.
Forensic Files
A 1995 fire razes the mansion of a Kansas doctor, killing two of her three children; disturbing accounts from an ex-husband lead investigators to believe the doctor set the blaze herself.
Forensic Files
A husband confesses to his wife's murder, only to be found not guilty a year later when a phone tip and forensic evidence point to another.
Forensic Files
Sometime during a neighborhood Christmas party, five-year-old Melissa Brannen disappeared. Investigators turned to forensic science to help them see what the witnesses missed.
Forensic Files
When a Pennsylvania man checks into a hospital for leg pain and later dies of thallium poisoning, police investigate his wife and find her in the process of collecting an insurance payment for her previous husband's death.
Forensic Files
Who was the sexual offender who murdered two boys in Nebraska? The key to stopping him would be the unique composition of the "junk rope" he used to tie his victims.
Forensic Files
Police exhume the body of Karla Brown, murdered in her home in 1978, to study bite wounds, which eventually lead to the killer.
Forensic Files
Janice Johnson was found dead at the foot of her stairs. Police in Nova Scotia had to answer the question: Was it an accident or murder?
Forensic Files
A beverage company pleads guilty to violating federal safety laws when a baby dies from E. coli after drinking apple juice.
Forensic Files
A woman who survived a deadly childhood fire sends police a letter charging that her father killed her mother 30 years ago.
Forensic Files
After more than 20 people on a Native American reservation die suddenly from a flu-like disease, Navajo medicine men provide a clue that leads to a most unlikely killer.
Forensic Files
While at a real estate conference in St. Louis, a man finds his wife drowned in the bathtub in their hotel room.
Forensic Files
Women in a Louisiana city live in fear of a rapist who leaves no clues to his identity. But technology and behavioral science combine to give police a new forensic tool.
Forensic Files
When the wife of a well-known dentist is found dead, police struggle to identify a suspect. Some fibers and a study of the weather patterns on the night of the murder break the case open.
Forensic Files
When Joann Katrinak is found dead in a corn field with her son, the obvious suspect is her husband. But insects found on the bodies reveal a vital clue which uncovers a twisted story.
Forensic Files
When a decomposed body is found stuffed in a barrel, it's easy to presume murder. One of the few clues was an address book found along with the body.
Forensic Files
When a policeman's house goes up in flames, experts suspect arson. The officer whose home was torched arrests a low-level drug dealer, who confesses. But then the suspect vanishes.
Forensic Files
Dianna Green was brutally attacked in her own home and her unborn child was killed. After coming out of a coma and regaining her memory, she is able to identify her husband as the perpetrator.
Forensic Files
Nancy Newman and her two daughters are found brutally murdered. The crime scene has no shortage of evidence.
Forensic Files
When police find the body of an 11-year-old, there are few clues to the killer's identity. But authorities are intrigued by unusual orange fibers embedded in clothing found near the victim.
Forensic Files
Police charge a mentally unstable man with his wife's murder, but a medical examiner discovers that she died of natural causes.
Forensic Files
An investigation of a pediatrician, prompted by the death of one of her patients, leads to a Texas hospital where the pediatric mortality rate is higher than at any hospital in the country.
Forensic Files
When the decomposed body of a teenage girl is discovered, police have no clues to her identity. To solve the case, investigators turn to bug larvae found on the body.
Forensic Files
Police suspect Dr. John Boyle in the disappearance of his wife when he buys a new house with a woman pretending to be his spouse. The police later find a body in the basement of his new house.
Forensic Files
Survivors of Nazi atrocities recognized Archbishop Trifa as having led an attack against Jews during WWII.
Forensic Files
When a popular teacher is found dead of what appears to be an accidental gunshot wound, his family is suspicious. A tape recorded by the victim before his death provides clues to what happened.
Forensic Files
In this international case of extortion, murder and stolen identities, scam-artist Albert J. Walker assumes the identity of co-worker Ronald Platt.
Forensic Files
When a surgeon is found dead in his home, police assume it was suicide. The investigation reveals otherwise.
Forensic Files
A child was killed in a hit-and-run. The prosecutor has an accident reconstruction expert come to trial.
Forensic Files
When a convenience store employee is found dead, police find the murder has been caught on a security camera.
Forensic Files
Police investigate a missing college girl and discover her double life: attending school by day and working as a call-girl by night. Her body is found and investigators find her killer.
Forensic Files
A woman was reported missing after a fight with her husband. Police were suspicious of a suspect who reported a fire in his car. Two tiny drops of blood were found in the interior. A tiny clue inside the suspect's watchband helped solve the case.
Forensic Files
In 1991, Maine resident Pearl Smith is missing after an argument with her husband Bill Bruns. But when an investigation turns up a blood trail that leads to the couple's basement, police are sure they'll find the victim's body.
Forensic Files
In 1989, 4-year-old April Loveless was found dead in the backyard of her Texas home. Her mother Debbie Loveless and stepfather John Miller told police that she was attacked and killed by the family dogs. Investigators did not agree.
Forensic Files
In 1995, police in San Diego, California are baffled by a pair of hands found in a dumpster. Through further investigation, they determine that the hands are those of missing person Don Hardin.
Forensic Files
In 1993, Marie Robards suffered the loss of her father due to a heart attack - but it was more sinister.
Forensic Files
In 1996, 17-month-old Josh Hinson died in a fire which a federal agency ruled was intentionally set by Josh's mother Terri Strickland. Using the then-emerging resources of the Internet, Terri Strickland undertook her own investigation.
Forensic Files
In 1988, when a patient dies unexpectedly in the office of California neurologist Richard Boggs, police begin what they think will be a routine investigation. Soon they uncover a bizarre story of corpse stealing, fake identity and sexual perversion.
Forensic Files
One investigator's quick thinking helps him capture a shoe impression made in snow before it melts away.
Forensic Files
In 1992, 22-year-old Dawn Bruce is brutally murdered in her Virginia apartment. Investigators notice a blood smear on a pillowcase that appears to have been made by one of the killer's fingers.
Forensic Files
In 1981, six-year-old Cassie Hansen disappeared from her St. Paul, Minnesota church during an evening service.
Forensic Files
Professional photographer Charles Rathbun claims model Linda Sobek died during a consensual sexual encounter gone wrong, but Sobek's corpse and some high-tech digital imagery tell a more sinister story.
Forensic Files
In 1998, an evening out at a Maryland murder mystery theatre performance turns into a real-life whodunit when the badly burned body of Stephen Hricko is discovered in his hotel room after a fire.
Forensic Files
In 1980, Michigan resident Shannon Mohr died in what was reported to be a horseback riding accident by her new husband David Davis. After her death, Shannon's family reported to police their suspicions that Davis seemed far from grief-stricken.
Forensic Files
For 15 months, a serial killer was strangling prostitutes in Florida then taunting police by leaving the bodies in plain sight. The only clues were a tire impression and some threads.
Forensic Files
When police in the Great Plains are called about a dead body, they do a background check on the victim.
Forensic Files
In 1994, a human skull retrieved from an Ohio pond reveals a ghastly crime. Markings on the skull indicate that the victim had been stabbed multiple times and that the teeth had been removed with needle-nose pliers.
Forensic Files
In rural Canada, Dr. John Schneeberger is accused of sedating and sexually assaulting one of his female patients and his stepdaughter. DNA tests demonstrate that the doctor is innocent, but the patient insists that he sedated and raped her.
Forensic Files
In a search for the killer of two teenagers in Texas, a behavioral profile led to suspect Jason Massey, and hard science proved the profile was correct. Massey was executed by lethal injection on April 3, 2001.
Forensic Files
A suspect's former lover comes forward with a tale of murder, mutilation and cremation, but there's no way to test the story's validity until a plant pathologist and a dendrochronologist conduct tests where the cremation supposedly occurred.
Forensic Files
Susie Mowbray was charged for her husband Bill Mowbray's death, but her son was convinced of her innocence.
Forensic Files
In 1991, San Francisco pornographer Artie Mitchell was murdered in his home. His brother and business partner Jim is found near the scene carrying a rifle and later confesses to shooting Artie. The question is whether the shooting was premeditated.
Forensic Files
In 1981, New York correctional officer Donna Payant disappeared and was later found in a landfill. The medical examiner not only identified the cause of death but also found an important clue.
Forensic Files
In 1995, when off-duty Maine State Trooper Vicky Gardner is attacked by Steven Fortin during a routine stop, it triggers a chain of events which jumpstarts a stalled murder case in New Jersey.
Forensic Files
When 19-year-old Lori Auker left her Pennsylvania home for work and never arrived, it took space-age technology, cat hairs and insects to pinpoint the image of the woman's abductor.
Forensic Files
Forensic computer analysis, blood spatter analysis and a painstaking investigation lead police to a lawyer husband Michael "Mick" Fletcher with a motive to kill his wife since he was having a sexual affair with judge Susan Chrzanowski.
Forensic Files
A fan of murder mysteries and forensic science shows uses what she learned from TV to determine who was responsible for the accident which permanently injured her 4-year-old daughter.
Forensic Files
Lisa Manderach and her daughter Devon left their Pennsylvania home to go shopping but didn't return home.
Forensic Files
Exploring how an American hit single from 1966 -- "The Cheater" by Bob Kuban and the In-Men -- foreshadowed the demise of the group's lead singer, Walter Scott.
Forensic Files
When Chris Ochoa confessed to the 1988 rape and murder of Nancy DePriest, the case was closed. 8 years later, Achim Marino confessed to the same crime. Can DNA evidence identify the real perpetrator?
Forensic Files
When two boys are brutally attacked, investigators rely on evidence fished out of a nearby pond. It became the first case where diatom analysis was used to place a suspect at the scene of the crime.
Forensic Files
In 1988, the body of a young woman was discovered in an Ohio river. Most of the evidence had been washed away, but the victim's 6-year-old son unwittingly told investigators all they needed to know - without saying a word. The clue was in his genes.
Forensic Files
In 1991, a high school girl vanished after attending a party. The prime suspect had two alibi witnesses for the night she disappeared. A solid alibi can often overcome circumstantial evidence, but forensic evidence is another matter.
Forensic Files
When police discovered the body of Douglas Beamish's estranged wife, authorities linked 20 cat hairs found on her jacket to a cat owned by Beamish's parents. It was the first time animal DNA was used to solve a criminal case.
Forensic Files
When more than 700 Oregonians contracted food poisoning from a unique strain of salmonella in 1984, investigators uncovered a secret plot to influence local elections.
Forensic Files
A woman is found dead from a gunshot wound and police suspect her husband, however, forensic teams prove what really happened, and the truth is stranger than fiction.
Forensic Files
In 1995, the founder of American Atheists disappeared with one of her sons, her granddaughter and $500,000 in gold coins. The police investigated several suspects, including David R. Waters, who worked for American Atheists.
Forensic Files
Two people witness a truck driving over an unconscious man and flee into a nearby bar, but when the police turn up, the truck, the man and the witnesses are gone.
Forensic Files
In 1984, a passerby finds the torso of a woman in a cardboard box. A forensic entomologist analyzes nearby insect activity to determine when the victim was killed.
Forensic Files
The investigation into the kidnapping and rape of an 18-year-old Ohio woman is aided when the victim returns hours after the incident occurred. With her help, the police are able to track the assailant to his front door.
Forensic Files
The police investigate when a severed leg is discovered among garbage. Conventional means of identifying the victim are impossible, leading investigators to rely on DNA, forensic anthropology and toxicology.
Forensic Files
A coroner finds telltale clues on the badly burned body of a murder victim, sending police in pursuit of a couple of killers.
Forensic Files
In 1996, Indiana police identified Richard Alexander as the "River Park Rapist" who assaulted four women that year. Later, DNA analysis casts doubt on his conviction.
Forensic Files
After the murder of Seattle residents, evidence from the couple's dog eventually ties a murderer to the scene.
Forensic Files
Soon after becoming pregnant by Dr. Maynard Muntzing, firefighter Michelle Baker's health quickly deteriorates. Eventually, she raises suspicions that Muntzing is doing her harm.
Forensic Files
In the 1980s, a trio of unsolved murders occurred in Wichita Falls, Texas. Later, a fourth murder from the same time period provided the police with far more than they realized.
Forensic Files
The disappearance of Philadelphia college athlete Aimee Willard is investigated after her car is found on the roadside. When her body is found, the police find unusual marks and DNA evidence that eventually lead to her killer.
Forensic Files
While investigating an apparent overdose suicide, detectives recover incriminating files from a computer.
Forensic Files
A woman disappeared along a California highway in 1991. Three years later, the case was solved when a man's refrigerated truck was looked upon with suspicion.
Forensic Files
The 1987 disappearance of Houston resident Tracy Jo Shine is recalled. The investigation went cold until 2000 when a "cold case squad" learned that the woman's ex-boyfriend Michael Neal had bragged about killing her.
Forensic Files
When a 62-year-old man opens a car restoration business and becomes seriously ill, his doctors cannot find the cause, but forensics can; identification of a highly toxic metal in the victim's blood leads to his poisoner.
Forensic Files
After 6-year-old Michelle Lee Dorr went missing, her father confessed to murdering her. But investigators soon poked holes in his story, leaving the case unsolved for 14 years.
Forensic Files
The 1996 investigation into 48-year-old Martha Hansen's murder is helped by a legal requirement that bars have video cameras installed on the premises.
Forensic Files
When the mail-order bride of a former army sergeant goes missing, investigators look into the deaths of the man's previous two wives.
Forensic Files
The murders of an elderly couple leave police stumped until, two years later, they receive a major break.
Forensic Files
While investigating the murder of 9-year-old Jessica Knott, police use a garbage bag to connect a suspect.
Forensic Files
An investigation into the murder of Katie Poirier is stymied by the lack of a body. Finally, investigators use a single tooth found among some charred remains to identify her.
Forensic Files
Janet Overton died suspiciously in 1988, and the investigation hit a dead end when the autopsy indicated no foul play was involved. A telephone tip and the sensitive nose of a forensic examiner indicated otherwise.
Forensic Files
Discovering that an assault suspect is left-handed is crucial to a police investigation dating back 16 years.
Forensic Files
The only clue recovered from a shooting is a twelve-guage shotgun. Scientists use unique methods to lift the serial number from the weapon to trace it to its owner
Forensic Files
A serial arsonist starts several fires that cause millions of dollars worth of damage and the deaths of three people. He is discovered, partly through the use of forensic hypnosis.
Forensic Files
When a serial killer was terrorizing the city of St. Louis, the FBI didn't need lab tests, fingerprints or any of the usual methods. All they needed was a computer.
Forensic Files
In the case of the Center City Rapist and the murder of Shannon Schieber, Philadelphia authorities use an anonymous letter and geographic profiling to hone in on a suspect.
Forensic Files
A three-year-old develops a respiratory condition. His father has Alzheimers. An investigator reveals that their ill health is due to mold in their modern home.
Forensic Files
A murder investigation in Florida crosses jurisdictions from New York and Jamaica. The police rely on cell phone mapping, wiretapping and a host of forensic evidence to link a suspect to a murder.
Forensic Files
In 2002, the eyes of the world were on Virginia and Maryland. A serial sniper was on the loose, killing innocent, unsuspecting citizens. Just how was he caught?
Forensic Files
A woman convicted of killing her mother in a car fire is granted a new trial. An expert witness has a different opinion as to how the fire started and, if proven, would clear the woman of any culpability.
Forensic Files
Authorities track a kidnapper who let his victim write a last will and informed the family of her murder.
Forensic Files
A man died in his home after a history of heart disease. Rumors surfaced that the death was no accident.
Forensic Files
In 1999, a 12-year-old was found murdered in her home in Minnesota. Despite a meticulous search of the home and an exhaustive investigation, police had no suspects.
Forensic Files
In 1962, the people of the small town of Hanford, California lost their sense of peace when one of their own, 15-year-old Marlene Miller, was murdered.
Forensic Files
A mother of two vanishes after a shopping trip. Her body is discovered a month later. Witnesses say they saw the victim being forced into a car by an unknown person.
Forensic Files
A woman is shot to death in her store just one day before she is to testify against the man accused of robbing her. The robber becomes the prime suspect, but he has a solid alibi.
Forensic Files
In 1993, the state of Florida was known for more than just Disney World. Worldwide attention focused on a rash of robberies which targeted tourists.
Forensic Files
At a murder scene, investigators find a shoe-print, several foreign hairs, and unknown fingerprints. But they believe the most telling piece of evidence is the bite mark on the victim.
Forensic Files
A woman's death in Pennsylvania triggers a homicide investigation into another woman's death in North Carolina.
Forensic Files
A nurse experiences a variety of flu-like symptoms. None of her doctors are able to discover the cause, until she visits the gynecologist for a routine check-up.
Forensic Files
Time of death becomes pivotal after a pregnant woman is found murdered in her air-conditioned bedroom.
Forensic Files
Police were puzzled by an obscure print found at a crime scene where one man had been killed and two teenage girls were seriously injured.
Forensic Files
A man is found dead in his home, and his ex-wife has a perfect alibi. To determine time of death, investigators need to know when the victim ate his last meal.
Forensic Files
A union official is executed in his home not long after a strike by the union membership. Neither his wife nor anyone in the neighborhood heard any gunshots.
Forensic Files
A man tells police he shot an intruder who killed his wife. Forensic evidence disproves that story later on.
Forensic Files
A police officer accused of killing his estranged wife insists she committed suicide. Investigators say it was murder - that it was physically impossible for the woman to have shot herself.
Forensic Files
When Firefighters found an entire family dead inside their home it looked like a murder-suicide, but there were several inconsistent clues in the rubble.
Forensic Files
Two men were murdered in their beds. The next night, arson destroyed a family planning clinic. Investigators find a link between the two separate crimes.
Forensic Files
With no forensic evidence inside a murder scene, investigators were baffled. But they suspected that the victim's dog had witnessed the crime.
Forensic Files
A young TV news producer is raped and murdered in her apartment. Investigators turn to the Commonwealth of Virginia's DNA Databank.
Forensic Files
Police are dispatched to the scene of a shooting, and discover the victim's husband is one of their own: a homicide detective who says his wife accidentally shot herself in the head.
Forensic Files
A woman who suffered from mental illness is found dead. Was it due to natural causes, suicide or murder?
Forensic Files
A woman is found dead in a ravine, but crucial crime scene evidence had been washed away by severe thunderstorms. Almost 20 years later, an old hat brought the killer to justice.
Forensic Files
When an 11-year-old girl disappeared from a small town in a remote area of Alaska, investigators wondered if she'd been attacked by a bear or become lost in the dense woods.
Forensic Files
Just weeks before a witness is to testify against the man accused of sexually assaulting her, she is murdered.
Forensic Files
For six years, a serial killer prowled NYC. He wrote letters to police indicating he would kill twelve people.
Forensic Files
A healthy young man dies mysteriously in his sleep, and toxicology tests reveal a lethal dose of lidocaine in his blood.
Forensic Files
In the summer of 1986, Kathleen Lipscomb's body was found on a deserted road outside of San Antonio. Months passed, then years, and the crime was never solved.
Forensic Files
A cop is found dead. His wife first says the motive was robbery; then she tells police it was suicide.
Forensic Files
A suspicious fire swept through an apartment killing two young women. A closer look at the fire scene revealed something hidden in the ashes.
Forensic Files
Two men called police to report the same murder. The investigation uncovered more unusual circumstances.
Forensic Files
The body of a wealthy American businessman was found in his rental car. Bone fragments were the only remains.
Forensic Files
When a pipe bomb rips through a rural home, killing a young man and seriously injuring his mother, detectives hope that the remnants of a mailing label will lead them to a killer.
Forensic Files
No one in a residential community saw anything the day one of their neighbors was brutally murdered. Fingerprints found at the crime scene helped investigators to apprehend the presumed killer.
Forensic Files
Bruce Miller was shot to death in the office of a junkyard business. When a computer forensics expert examined the computers owned by the victim's wife, he found all the evidence needed.
Forensic Files
A drive-by shooting leaves one man dead and another seriously wounded. Cell phone calls and shell casings point to a suspect, but authorities are unable to place him at the crime scene.
Forensic Files
When Rosemary Anderson is found dead on the side of the road, her boyfriend becomes the prime suspect. He eventually confessed to her murder, but so did another man - serial killer, Eric Edgar Cooke.
Forensic Files
A high school gym teacher gives his friend a ride home but never returns; his wife and friend receive letters saying he started a new life, but they suspect foul play despite no body being discovered.
Forensic Files
A teen was killed by her parents in what they said was self-defense, but forensic evidence told otherwise.
Forensic Files
A computer crash pushed a manufacturing company to the brink of collapse. Investigators must determine if the crash was the result of a sabotage.
Forensic Files
On the way to Yosemite National Park, a car carrying three Secret Service agents collided with another car.
Forensic Files
In 1993, the Amtrak Railroad experienced the deadliest train crash in United States history when the Sunset Limited derailed while crossing Alabama's Big Bayou Canot bridge.
Forensic Files
A fire erupted in Kings Cross Station, killing 31 people and injuring dozens more. Investigators pinpointed the cause of the fire with state-of-the-art technology.