Forensic Files
When a man's story of a killing contradicted physical evidence, investigators turned to forensic science.
When a man's story of a killing contradicted physical evidence, investigators turned to forensic science.
In 2000, teenager Tara Munsey went missing after a work shift at a Virginia restaurant. Did she run away, or was she the victim of foul play?
In 1999, Patrick McRae was found dead in his Des Moines home and the crime scene was awash with blood.
Police arrested a suspect for the death of a girl. But new technology proved the wrong man was behind bars.
When the number of bloodstains at a scene were abnormal, it was up to forensic scientists to find out why.
In 1989, the dead bodies of Joan Rogers and her two teenage daughters were found floating in Tampa Bay.
The medical examiner ruled a death an accident, but the detectives thought the evidence indicated otherwise.
In 2006, Nevada politician Kathy Augustine died mysteriously during a hard-fought re-election campaign and the medical examiner could neither isolate the cause of death.
The body of an attractive young woman was found a mile from her abandoned car. Police were especially concerned when they realized the victim had come to them for protection just two weeks earlier.
In 1969, phone operator Diane Maxwell is murdered. Her brother promised he'd find out who was responsible.
A bomb, constructed to cause as much damage as possible, kills a victim with deadly force and flame. When a search yields some tiny clues, police are able to identify the killer.
In 1997, Kelly Eckart's car was found, with her belongings still in it, after she worked a late shift in Franklin, Indiana. Days later, her body was found in an isolated ravine.
In a tragic twist of fate, just days after the woman sold her home and moved to a modest trailer, a fire took both the trailer and her life. But the autopsy proved this was no accident.
A young woman is stabbed more than 100 times. The killer leaves DNA behind, but investigators must play a cat-and-mouse game to obtain a suspect's DNA to match.
Responding to a 2008 garage fire, Illinois emergency response discovered a man crushed beneath a truck.
Police are able to create a composite sketch of a man burnt beyond recognition. But tracking the killer is more challenging.
A brutal murder, lots of suspects and conflicting evidence but the forensics were clear on one thing: The killer knew his victim. And that alone gave investigators a head start.
The body of a young girl was discovered on isolated farmland near Delano, California. She had no ID, but police found mailbox keys in the pocket of her jeans.
In 1996, Derrick Duehren returned to find his Oregon home burned to the ground. His wife's charred remains were later found in the rubble.
A girl claimed she had been abducted. She recounted what happened but things didn't add up to police.