Forensic Files

A woman was reported missing, presumed dead. A clue inside the suspect’s watchband and a popular television show helped solve the case. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A 1986 case of sexual assault and serial murder marked the first time DNA was used as evidence in a court of law. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Three seemingly unrelated deaths proved to be serial murders.   The killer had been careful; he used poison which has no taste or odor.  Fortunately for investigators, it also had a unique chemical signature.    To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A twelve-year-old girl claimed she had been abducted and sexually assaulted.  She recounted what happened in such a flat, unemotional voice that police found it difficult to  believe her.  Fibers on her clothing would prove she was telling the truth, and help police to find her attacker. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Two suspects living in the same apartment were linked to a murder by a gun and a pair of bloodstained boots – items that belonged to the one who claimed he'd never even met the victim. Investigators hoped the manufacturing code stamped on six beer bottles would be distinctive enough to prove who was telling the truth, and who was a cold-blooded killer. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

It's usually easy to determine how a criminal entered the crime scene. But in this case, it was far from clear. It looked like the killer vanished into thin air...and perhaps he had. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Early one morning, a woman went missing on her way to work.  A strand of hair in her hairbrush led investigators to unravel the mystery. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Twenty-four years after the death of a 15-year-old in California, forensic scientists discover enough microscopic evidence to finally bring the killer to justice. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

The media dubbed him the “Last Call Killer” because he targeted men in gay bars who were obviously intoxicated.  His MO involved dismembering the bodies and wrapping the parts in plastic bags, which he then carefully washed to remove all incriminating evidence.  He eluded capture for almost ten years... and then new technology revealed fingerprints no one knew were there. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Bruce Miller was shot to death in the office of the business he owned. When a computer expert examined the computers owned by the victim’s wife and by her lover, he found the evidence needed to convict the person responsible for the crime. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A serial killer in Arlington, Va., leaves the same clues behind at each crime scene. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A young mother is murdered after years of domestic abuse.  There are clues at the scene:  bloody footprints and DNA from the victim’s rape kit.  But the evidence which will  conclusively tie the killer to the crime is on a freshly baked hamburger bun.  To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

One warm summer afternoon, the town of Verona, Wisconsin, faced its first triple homicide. To solve the case, investigators had to delve into the world of high rollers and offshore betting. With the help of forensics, they were able to bring down a killer who gambled, and lost. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A little girl disappears from a Christmas party. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Women in a small Louisiana city live in fear of a rapist who leaves no clues to his identity.  But computer technology and behavioral science combine to give police a new forensic tool: geographical profiling. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

When a woman is found murdered in a bar. Investigators believe the best evidence is the bite mark found on the victim. A postman is convicted of murder, but he maintains his innocence. Ten years later, improved technology yields new information. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Children at a Texas hospital seem to be dying at a higher rate than at any other US hospital.  Investigators look to a suspicious nurse. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A girl was found dead in her backyard. Her parents claimed she was attacked and killed by the family dogs, but police disagreed. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

When a mother and her child are abducted during a carjacking, the crime is reported within minutes. Police know they have a small window of opportunity to find them... and the clock is ticking. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Arson is suspected when a Seattle policeman's house burns down. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

When a young mother and her infant son are found dead in a cornfield, the obvious suspect is the husband and father of the victims.  But some insects found on the bodies reveal a vital clue, as does a long, blonde hair found on the victims. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

A talented television news anchor was shot to death outside her home; it appeared to be a crime of passion, perpetrated by an obsessed fan. A police dog tracked the scent of the killer through the adjacent woods and back to the crime scene. Could the murderer be one of the onlookers, watching the police conduct their investigation? To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

When their trailer catches fire, the young husband heroically rescues his wife and infant son.  A month later, his wife is beaten to death in a bedroom of his parents’ home.  The cut window screen points to an intruder, but the lack of supporting evidence compels investigators to look beyond the obvious.  To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Two years after a girl was murdered, a tiny drop of blood and burned bones lead police to her murderers. To learn more about how HLN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Several high-powered legal officials are victims of mail bombs. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When a hit-and-run boating accident caused the death of a popular young man, investigators faced the daunting task of searching for one boat among 1,200 others. They asked anyone who had seen the accident to come forward. The man who responded did much more than witness the crash; he was a passenger in that other boat. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A mother used her knowledge from murder mystery shows to determine who severely injured her young daughter in a hit-and-run accident. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Fire sweeps through a mansion, killing two children, and all evidence leads to the mother. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

The investigation of the disappearance of a woman leads police to a suspect. But police could not find the victim’s body. Finally, police discover a charred tooth. Superimposed images and a dental filling give investigators the proof they need. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

When a college co-ed vanished without a trace, her fellow students were concerned about her safety… and their own. Weeks later, the body of an unknown female was discovered 700 miles away in the ashes of a barn fire, and an alert police officer realized the two crimes might be connected. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

A young woman is found dead in her apartment.  There’s little evidence at the scene, leads don’t pan out and the case turns cold... until police discover a link between their prime suspect and an unsolved murder committed six years earlier in different state.  See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

How unlucky could one man be?  His wife had taken her own life, and his college sweetheart had killed herself in much the same fashion fourteen years earlier.  Investigators had to determine if this was a bizarre coincidence, or an attempt to get away with murder... twice. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

In 1984, a couple set off for a camping trip but got lost and fell asleep at a scenic overlook in Virginia See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

After he got into the home, the assailant used an axe to kill the husband and critically injure his wife. Nothing was taken, so this wasn't a robbery. A DNA profile from skin cells collected hundreds of miles away would reveal the killer's identity and his motive for murder. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

A chemist suddenly starts to suffer from foot pain, partial numbness, and hair loss, and eventually dies. Could he have been poisoned? See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

The woman in the back of the truck was flailing her arms, screaming. They thought she was doing something dangerous for the fun of it. But when they found a jacket near a pool of blood, they knew what they'd seen wasn't a joy ride; it was an abduction.

Doctors don't know why the young scientist is gravely ill. When tests finally reveal the cause, it's too late to save him. Police hope that lab analysis of his hair - showing when attempts were made on his life and what was used - will lead to the killer.

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.  It turned out neither was true.  Her body was discovered 10 days later;  she’d been shot twice at close range, and sexually assaulted.  A tip from an eyewitness led police to a suspect, and trace evidence found at the crime scene convinced a jury of his guilt.

A nurse experienced flu-like symptoms. She visited the doctor for a check-up and learned she was HIV-positive. In the end, science was able to determine not only how she had been infected, but also by whom. The worst part: It wasn’t an accident.

A security guard disappeared from his post without a trace; his remains were found a year later in a remote camp site. More than a decade would pass before a phone call breathed life into the cold case, and a paint smear on the bottom of the victim's boot helped scientists determine what happened during the last hour of his life.

For years, a woman suffered from what appeared to be the unpleasant side effects of lithium, a drug prescribed to treat bipolar disorder. When she died, investigators had to determine if her death was due to natural causes, suicide, or murder.

Time of death becomes pivotal after a pregnant woman is found murdered in her air-conditioned bedroom. A similarity between her death and an HBO movie gives forensic examiners the clues they need to thaw out the alibi of a cold-blooded killer.

In 1984, hundreds of people in The Dalles, Oregon became ill with food poisoning.  Local, state and federal disease detectives slowly unraveled the medical mystery.  Along with a unique strain of bacteria, they discovered a religious cult's bizarre plot to overthrow the government -- using germ warfare.

The man suffered a slow, agonizing death over a period of days.  His wife maintained he killed himself, but police were skeptical... especially when they learned her first husband died when he was only 38-years-old, and she refused to consent to an autopsy.

When a dedicated, well-respected teacher disappeared, police had to determine if she’d gone on vacation without telling anyone, or if she was the victim of foul play.  Investigators turned to forensic science, hoping to find the answers they needed.

Between the years of 1967 and 1972 over 300 commercial airplanes were hijacked worldwide, with over 130 of those happening in the United States alone. This period would become known as "The Golden Age of Hijacking." American Skyjacker is the tale of a small-time crook named Martin 'Mac' McNally, who dreamed of the ultimate mile-high score: hijacking a plane and getting away with $500,000 in cash; but Mac's hijacking is just the beginning of a truly epic and incredibly wild true-crime saga.

A behavioral profile is helpful in a murder investigation, but it's not a road map to the killer.  One such profile caused the Baton Rouge Police Department to search for the wrong man.  They might not have made an arrest, had it not been for a DNA picture of the suspect, painted by a molecular biologist.

An Arizona surgeon is found stabbed to death. All signs point to a random attack until investigators uncover an unlikely suspect. Police work to unravel the mystery in a case of jealousy, rage and the almighty dollar.

The medical examiner ruled the death an accident, but the detectives investigating the case thought the evidence at the scene indicated otherwise. It would take three years, an exhumation and a second autopsy to determine who was right.

The autopsy on the badly burned body of Charles "Jack" Lynch led investigators to search for a couple of killers.

A couple embarks on a holiday but never return. Police suspect drugs are the reason behind their disappearance. Days later a random burglary breaks the case wide open. Police use ballistics and DNA to capture two unusual suspects.

A family interrupts a burglary in their suburban home.  The gunman kills two and wounds two more. Police suspect the crime is related to a string of thefts in the area, but a closer look at the crime scene reveals the real motive and killer.

Denise Johnson was found dead in an Arizona forest with little forensic evidence around her. Could history be made in a courtroom with the utilization of plant DNA as evidence?

A woman is murdered on a jogging trail in the middle of the day.  The leads from cell phone records and search dogs go nowhere.  Nine days later, a witness tells police about a chance encounter, and cigarette butts which may contain the killer’s DNA.

Twenty-four hours after her face-to-face meeting with a man she met online, the woman and her soon-to-be ex-husband were shot to death.  Only the computer had been taken from her home, and with it, the means to identify the killer.

Police discover a decomposed body had been stuffed in a barrel 30 years earlier.  An address book was found with the body.

The story of how a routine missing-person case became a murder inquiry involving a love triangle.

Forensic scientists provide authorities with evidence that a death deemed accidental 20 years ago was actually murder.

A mother was convicted for the death of her four-month-old.  An explanation for his death would come from his newborn brother.

A wealthy man and his wife were attacked by three men outside their luxurious Louisiana home. He was shot dead and she was forced to open their hidden safe. The woman could not describe the men because they wore masks. To solve the case, police would have to find out who knew about the concealed safe, and who would benefit from the crime.

The investigation of an exotic dancer’s disappearance led police to an isolated 75-acre site where someone had been shot and cremated.  The destruction of the remains was almost complete... almost, but not quite.   Soft tissue attached to a piece of a foot provided enough DNA for a genetic profile, and positive identification of the victim.

A man kills two people with bombs in an effort to get investors off his back and is sentenced to life with no chance of parole.

When a real estate developer is shot to death, his wife becomes the prime suspect.  Police have a wealth of evidence against her, but it’s circumstantial.  The case will turn on a .25 caliber bullet fired 20 years ago from the now-missing murder weapon.

A woman dies suddenly at home. Investigators are unable to determine the cause of death until they receive a call from the ex-wife of the dead woman’s husband. The sensitive nose of a toxicologist ends up sniffing out murder.

The victim had been stabbed more than a hundred times and her bedroom was soaked with blood. While her body was positioned in a suggestive way, she hadn't been sexually assaulted. Was this a sex crime, or the random act of a man with an intense hatred of women?

A 12 year-old is the only witness to her mother's death and is unable to provide many details. Little did they know 12 years later, forensic evidence would lead the investigation right back to where it started.

An investigation into threatening letters sent to a popular elementary school teacher.

There was no apparent reason for the young, healthy college student to be dead. But when the medical examiner found the tiniest of clues during the autopsy, investigators were able to unravel the mystery of betrayal and revenge.

The victim was a self-made man who never minced words. Perhaps he was murdered by a disgruntled client or employee. Perhaps the racy photos in his safe held the clue to solving the crime. Or perhaps with the help of the IRS, investigators could follow the money and find the killer.

The victim was brutally murdered.  Police learn her fiancé was having affairs with other women, and he becomes the prime suspect... that is until a man comes forward who not only believes he owns the murder weapon, he also knows who used it.

A serial killer was on the loose and police had to find him before he struck again. Their most promising lead was an unusual one: a bloody fingerprint on the body of one of the victims.

The victim was discovered in a landfill, stuffed into a suitcase.  She resembled another woman, missing for 18 months.  Sure they were dealing with a serial killer, police faced the daunting task of combing through 225,000 tons of trash to find her body.

The body of a young girl was discovered on isolated farm land near Delano, California. She had no ID, but police found mailbox and house keys in the pocket of her jeans. With no other clues, they checked the mailboxes of every apartment building in Delano… and their persistence paid off.

Peter Bogdanovich was a young cinephile who quickly rose to become one of Hollywood's top directors. But he soon found himself a victim of jealousy, hubris, public scorn – and a devastating crime.  Now, he looks back on a life of fame and failure, and through it all, an enduring love of the movies. A new seven-part documentary podcast from Turner Classic Movies. Subscribe today!

In little more than a month, two women who lived in the same apartment complex were brutally murdered. The similarities of the crime scenes led police to conclude they were dealing with a serial killer who harbored an intense hatred of women... and they had to find him before he struck again.

A mapmaker was surveying the grounds of a boy scout ranch when he came across a human skull.

Four young adults are brutally murdered in an affluent Texas neighborhood, and the crime scene yields little evidence. The next door neighbors see two young people dressed in black walking nearby, and their descriptions are used to create composite drawings which become a key element in solving the crime.

A couple is found dead in their Washington home and all signs point to a professional hit. A palm print and two distinct shoe impressions help police separate fantasy from reality and expose a fatal flaw in one state's inmate release procedures.

The woman hadn't shown up for work in two days, and her boss reported her missing. When her body was found, the evidence pointed to suspects who claimed they had nothing to do with the crime. The victim, herself, would help police to prove they were lying.

Hikers near Anchorage, Alaska discovered a body wrapped in sheets which were edged in orange stitching. Authorities hydrated the fingers and obtained a fingerprint, enabling them to identify the victim. Clinging to the sheet, they also discovered a tuft of red carpet fibers -- threads of evidence which led them straight to the killer.

For 18 years, a man who murdered his entire family eluded the FBI. Investigators used art and forensic science to find the killer.

When a teenaged girl goes missing, no one knows if she ran away or if she was the victim of foul play. Everyone's worst fears are confirmed when a body is found at the bottom of an isolated ravine. Police scour the crime scene, hoping to find enough evidence to identify the killer.

A woman was ambushed in her driveway and shot to death. During their investigation, police learned that a co-worker half her age was in love with her, and that she'd spurned his advances. They now had to determine if love had turned into obsession... and a motive for murder.

A possible false confession forces investigators to reopen the case of a missing six year old. A decade later, a fresh look at new evidence leads them to someone hiding in plain sight.

The bodies of three women were found floating in Tampa Bay. The water washed away any evidence, but police hoped a handwritten note found in the victims' car would lead to the killer - so they posted huge copies of the note on five highway billboards.

The victim had been sexually assaulted and stabbed to death on the beach, just ten yards from the hotel where she was staying. A pair of men's tennis shoes was discovered near her body. Police were sure that if they found the man who fit the shoes, they would also find the man who committed the crime.

A mysterious computer crash pushes a thriving manufacturing company to the brink of collapse, jeopardizing the jobs of hundreds of employees. There is no apparent cause and no obvious clues. Forensic investigators must determine if the crash was the result of a computer defect, human error, or sabotage.

A Texas woman claims an intruder killed two of her sons but detectives question her story upon discovering inconsistencies.

When a young single mother was brutally assaulted and murdered, her brother promised he'd find out who was responsible and bring the killer to justice. It would take more than 30 years, but the young man kept his promise, and in doing so, brought closure to his family.

A young woman suddenly becomes critically ill; her symptoms worsen over time, eventually leaving her unable to walk. Then a bone marrow test reveals the cause; arsenic. Investigators now had to determine if the poisoning was caused by groundwater contamination or something much more sinister.

Now it's not only a fingerprint which can link a killer to a crime; a shoe print can be just as telling. Armed with little else, police hoped the show impressions found at a Lansing, Michigan crime scene would put their investigation back on track.

The woman had been sexually assaulted, stabbed repeatedly, and left for dead. She survived and gave police a detailed description of her attacker. When someone who fit that description practically turned himself in, police were sure they had their man... until the DNA evidence proved them wrong.

A man is found shot to death in his home. Determining the time of death becomes critically important to solving the murder, and in order to do so, investigators need to know when the victim ate his last meal.

A 13-year-old girl went missing from her Colorado home, and the only evidence the kidnapper left behind was three fingerprints on a window screen. Two years later, a latent print examiner, new to the county and the crime lab, changed the course of the investigation by sharing a little-known fact with his colleagues.

A man tells police he shot an intruder who had attacked and murdered his wife. The husband is dubbed a hero for his valiant attempt to save his wife. Four years later, new evidence leads police to re-examine the motives of this so-called hero.

A young couple was murdered during what appeared to be a drug deal gone awry. The victims' dog eventually led police to the killer.

Abby and Libby - two young girls murdered. Investigators are searching for the killer using their biggest clue: a recording of his voice from one of the victims' phones ordering the girls Down the Hill. Almost three years later, it's a mystery that still haunts the small town of Delphi, Indiana...and the police say the killer may walk among them.

An investigator must think quickly to find a way to capture a shoe impression left to melt in the snow.

Police investigating the 1984 murder of a college student had plenty of suspects, but no conclusive evidence linking any of them to the crime. More than a decade later, sophisticated technology would breathe new life into a case grown cold with the passage of time.