No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door!
How Did DNA Solve an Oklahoma Murder after 48 Years? An Expert Explains (KOCO5 – 12/05/2024)
Oklahoma City police have solved a 48-year-old cold case using forensic genealogy and DNA technology.
Lela Johnston, 68, was found killed in her home in May 14, 1976.Oklahoma City police announce cold case homicide solved through DNA matching.
“I thought it would never be finished. It had been so long. It had been the little gnawing in the back of your head. Who did this?” Leslie Sullenger, the granddaughter of Lela Johnston, said.
Johnston was killed in her home in 1976. Detectives said they chased every lead and entered DNA years ago, but they never had any hits or matches.
“There’s a few different reasons why this can happen, either — especially with unidentified human remains — they don’t have any criminal past, so maybe they’re just not in the database,” said Dr. Rachel Oefelein, chief scientific officer at DNA Labs International.
In 2023, police tried again, and DNA Labs International in Florida took on the case.
“This particular case, it took about a year. We’ve had some cases that took four hours,” Oefelein said.
State Police, FBI Identify Child Found Deceased Over 30 Years Ago (New York State Police – 12/06/2024)
The New York State Police, Troop F BCI, in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), announce the successful identification of Slate Hill’s “Baby Jane Doe” through Investigative Genetic Genealogy, followed by an extensive joint investigation.
On February 10, 1992, the New York State Police responded to a report concerning the discovery of partially burned remains of an infant at a property located on South Plank Road in the Town of Wawayanda.
Investigators determined that the infant had been discarded in the winter of 1991 and was estimated to be between 7 to 10 days old at the time of death. For over 30 years, the identity of the infant remained unknown. However, through a partnership with the FBI and the application of Investigative Genetic Genealogy, both the biological mother and father of the infant were positively identified. The biological father of the infant has been identified, questioned, and thoroughly investigated; he is not considered a suspect in this case. The child’s mother is deceased, and the investigation is now closed.
DNA Doe Project Solves Two Cases of Unidentified Bodies in Austin (FOX7 Austin – 12/06/2024)
Two cases of unidentified remains found in Austin are now solved thanks to DNA technology.
The DNA Doe Project announced the identification of “Slaughter Creek Jane Doe,” who was found on April 12, 2020, and “Travis County John Doe,” who was found on March 10, 2021.
Austin Police say the decedent in the 2020 case is Sherry Brock, and in the 2021 case, the decedent is Leon Curtis. Neither had foul play suspected.
Matthew Waterfield, who lives in England, was the team leader on the Travis County John Doe case. He got involved with the DNA Doe Project as a university student. The nonprofit has about 90 volunteers around the world.
DNA Evidence Helps Identify Woman’s Killer 36 Years After Her Death (CNN – 12/08/2024)
Tracy Whitney was last seen leaving a Burger King after an argument with her ex-boyfriend in August 1988. Less than 24 hours later, fishermen found her body in a river near Sumner, Washington, about 12 miles east of Tacoma. She was 18 years old.
An autopsy revealed Tracy had been sexually assaulted and died of strangulation, according to a statement from the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office. Her death was ruled a homicide.
Detectives collected DNA samples from her body that presumably belonged to the killer, interviewed people of interest and administered polygraph tests. No suspect was identified, and the case grew cold.
In 2005, the sheriff’s office renewed efforts to solve the crime by uploading the DNA sample to the FBI’s national genetic database, CODIS. They decided to resubmit Tracy’s DNA swabs after new technology became available, the sheriff’s office said, but the effort yielded no results.
The first breakthrough came in 2022, after the sheriff’s office received a grant from the state attorney general’s office. With this funding, they sent the DNA sample to Parabons NanoLab in Virginia for genetic genealogy testing.
Thirty-six years after Tracy’s death, the sheriff’s office used lab data to identify John Guillot Jr. as her killer.
Kane County Sheriff’s Office, Utah OME, & Utah Department of Public Safety Team with Othram to Identify a 1994 John Doe (DNASolves – 12/08/2024)
In February 1994, the partial remains of an unidentified individual were discovered in Kane County, Utah near Big Water. Kane County is a sparsely populated area located on the Utah state line, bordering Arizona to the south. Hikers discovered a human skull in a rugged area approximately one-quarter-mile south of State Road 89 and alerted authorities. It was determined that the remains were that of a White male, who was estimated to be 6’0” tall and between the ages of 30 and 55 years. The man could not be identified and was referred to as “Kane County John Doe.”
Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons (NamUs) database as UP8514. While traditional DNA testing was performed, there was no match to a known individual. A forensic reconstruction depicting how the man may have looked during his life was developed and images were released to the public in hopes that it would generate leads about his identity. Despite investigators’ attempts, the man was unidentified for three decades.
Using funding provided by the Utah Department of Public Safety, the Kane County Sheriff’s Office teamed with Othram in hopes of identifying the man through the use of advanced DNA testing and forensic genetic genealogy. In 2024, forensic evidence was submitted to Othram’s laboratory in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the forensic evidence and used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile for the unknown man. Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team then used this profile to conduct genealogy research, ultimately providing new investigative leads to law enforcement. These new leads fueled a follow-up investigation into the man’s identity.
The follow-up investigation led to potential relatives of the man. A DNA sample was provided by a potential relative and compared to the DNA profile of the unknown man using KinsSNP® Rapid Relationship Testing. This investigation confirmed the identity of the man, who is now known to be James Howard Conklin, who was born in 1950. Investigators believe that Conklin died sometime after May of 1988. Prior to his death, he had been seen in the Flagstaff, Arizona area.
How Efficient is Your DNA Extraction Method? Tips to Maximize Profiling Success (Forensic – 12/10/2024)
The success of forensic DNA profiling starts with effective extraction and purification of samples to preserve as much DNA as possible while removing inhibitors to PCR. Increasing the quality and quantity of extracted DNA improves the chances of successful downstream PCR and genotyping, which is especially important for crime scene evidence with limited DNA.
Therefore, it makes sense to assess the efficiency of your DNA extraction method. Doing so, however, is not always easy and straightforward. This article shares information to assist forensic laboratories in the DNA extraction method evaluation process.
With Rise in Border Migrant Deaths, Forensic Volunteers and Students Work to Identify Remains (NBCNews – 12/10/2024)
Operation ID was formed at Texas State University in 2013 and uses both students and volunteers to aid border counties that have found themselves with a backlog of bodies.
Remains of migrants who might die from exposure or by drowning in the Rio Grande are often buried in county cemeteries or in the case of Maverick County, sometimes stored in a mobile morgue. The refrigerated trailer was originally used during the pandemic to hold the overflow of Covid victims.
The work requires specialized training in forensic analysis, given that the bodies can be in varying stages of decomposition when they’re found. Each corpse is carefully examined and documented. Tattoos, scars and other identifying characteristics are photographed. Fingerprints are taken, as well as bone samples, to be used for DNA analysis. Personal items such as jewelry, clothing and backpacks are also recorded as clues to who the person might be or where the person came from.
Cold Case Team Analyzing Evidence that May Link More Women to Serial Killer Warren Forrest (Forensic – 12/11/2024)
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) is seeking the public’s assistance in gathering information related to a series of disappearances and homicides from the early 1970s believed to be connected to serial killer Warren Leslie Forrest.
In early 2024, Clark County Sheriff John Horch re-established an active Cold Case team focused on crimes committed by Forrest, who is currently serving two life sentences for the 1974 murder of Krista Kay Blake and the 1974 murder of Martha Morrison. Forrest, 75, is suspected in the deaths, disappearances, and assaults of seven other women and girls in Clark County between 1971 and 1974.
Forrest has been incarcerated since 1974. In 1978, he was convicted of the murder of 20-year-old Krista Blake, and in 2023, he was convicted of the murder of 17-year-old Martha Morrison. Since then, investigators have been reexamining other unsolved cases that may be linked to Forrest, including the 1974 murder of 20-year-old Carol Valenzuela, whose remains were found in proximity to Morrison’s.
Rep Puts Forth Two Bills to Advocate for Rape Survivors in 2025 (Forensic – 12/11/2024)
As the 2025 legislative session fast approaches, State Rep. Victoria Garcia Wilburn (D-Fishers) has unveiled two of the 10 bills she intends to file this session, both supporting sexual assault survivors.
One piece of legislation would establish a sexual assault survivor bill of rights, which advocates called for during a 2024 Corrections and Criminal Code Interim Study Committee. One advocate testified during committee that her efforts to seek justice and receive a full investigation were met with hostility and additional trauma from not being supported by the criminal justice system. This includes provisions such as addressing Indiana’s rape kit backlog and guaranteeing that victims can obtain a copy of the law enforcement report concerning the sexual assault.
“From our extensive rape kit backlog to a reporting process that further violates victims, Indiana has work to do when it comes to truly supporting survivors of sexual assault,” Garcia Wilburn said. “The legislature has not been in session since March, and since then, I’ve focused on meeting with survivors and advocates, members of our very own community. One in every five Hoosier women has been sexually assaulted and I know we can improve the sexual assault investigation process in our state. I believe that a sexual assault survivor bill of rights that affirmatively states what promises Indiana must keep to survivors is a necessary step to ensure that we move past statements of support to implementing statewide change.”
The second bill would create a sentencing enhancement for sexual battery that is committed against a law enforcement officer. Under the bill, this crime would result in a Level 4 felony, whereas other instances of sexual battery incur a Level 6 felony.
Reanalysis of Evidence, Funded by Cold Case Grant, Leads to Suspect in 2003 Murder (Forensic – 12/11/2024)
Jason Cabello, 47, of Saginaw, has been arraigned for the 2003 murder and sexual assault of Jeanette Wilton, 57, of Saginaw, announced Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. He faces one count of First-Degree Premeditated Murder, one count of Felony Murder, and one count of First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct. Each count carries a potential life sentence.
On Feb. 22, 2003, Wilton was found dead in the Flint River near her Saginaw home. An autopsy concluded Wilton died of strangulation and multiple stab wounds to the neck. Wilton also sustained blunt force trauma to the head and face, contusions, and postmortem abrasions.
Cabello, who had previously been in a relationship with a relative of Wilton but was not otherwise known to be associated with her, was linked to the case earlier this year following further DNA evidence analysis.
The Michigan State Police (MSP) Third District Cold Case Team reopened the investigation in 2021, nearly 20 years after the murder of Wilton, to further analyze evidence in the case following advancements in DNA testing capabilities. Through collaborative investigative efforts involving Western Michigan University’s Cold Case program and the MSP laboratory, MSP was able to submit reanalyzed evidence to a private lab using a cold case grant to fund the reexamination, which developed new leads for MSP investigators.
Peterborough Police Service Teams with Othram to Identify a 1988 Homicide Victim (DNASolves – 12/11/2024)
In July 1988, a skull belonging to an unidentified individual was discovered in the Otonabee River in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Peterborough is located about 125 kilometers northeast of Toronto. Recreational divers made the discovery on the river bottom, south of Lock 19 near Lock and McKellar Streets. It was determined that the skull belonged to a White male who was likely between 40 and 74 years old at the time of his death. The man was missing most of his molars and his teeth were stained, likely due to being a smoker. Aside from finding hairs suggesting that the man may have worn a beard, no other identifying information was available.
It was determined that the man’s head was dismembered from his body. Investigators also concluded that the man was a victim of homicide. An extensive air and underwater search was performed by police following the discovery, but the rest of the man’s body was not recovered. Traditional DNA testing was performed and a forensic sketch depicting the man’s likeness was developed and released to the public in efforts to identify the homicide victim. Despite investigators’ efforts to identify the John Doe, his identity was a mystery for nearly four decades, and he became known as the “Otonabee River Man.”
In 2021, the Peterborough Police Service teamed with Othram to determine if advanced DNA testing could assist in identifying Otonabee River Man. Forensic evidence was submitted to Othram’s laboratory in The Woodlands, Texas where DNA was extracted and used to build a comprehensive DNA profile using Forensic Grade Genome Sequencing®. Upon development of the DNA profile, Othram’s forensic genetic genealogy team conducted a genealogy search to provide new leads to law enforcement. These new leads fueled a follow-up investigation into the man’s identity.
The follow-up investigation led to a potential relative of the man, who provided a reference DNA sample. The potential relative’s DNA profile was compared to the DNA profile developed for the unknown man using KinsSNP® Rapid Relationship Testing. This investigation, along with subsequent confirmatory fornesic DNA testing completed by the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service, confirmed the identity of Otonabee River Man as 38-year-old Gerald Durocher. Durocher was born in November 1949.
Oldest U.S. John Doe Investigations: Historic Project to Identify America’s First Veterans Begins This Month (PR Newswire – 12/11/2024)
FHD Forensics is pleased to announce a multi-agency collaboration with Historic Camden Foundation, South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust (SCBPT), Richland County Coroner’s Office (RCCO), South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (SCIAA) and South Carolina Department of Natural Resources on a forensic identification project of great historic significance. As a continuation of the Camden Burials campaign begun in 2022, the company is now undertaking the genetic genealogy analysis of some of the ‘The Fourteen’ as they became known.
In 2022, skeletal remains and artifacts of 14 Revolutionary War soldiers from the Battle of Camden were unearthed after shallow battlefield burials were being exposed by many years of erosion and relic hunting activity.
“The burials were very cursory in nature,” explained SCIAA archaeologist James Legg. “Prisoners of war were likely made to bury the dead in extremely shallow graves — we’re talking 12 to 14 inches deep. Some of them even showed evidence of plow marks from 20th century farming, that’s how poorly these soldiers were treated.”
“This was a humanitarian recovery preventing these individuals from being further damaged,” commented Dr. Bill Stevens, deputy coroner at RCCO. “The biological anthropologists in our office worked for months to x-ray, clean, examine and re-assemble the remains before reburial.”
It was the deep respect and reverence exhibited by everyone involved in the Camden Burials project that FHD Forensics’ founder and genetic genealogist Allison Peacock says inspired her team to get involved.
Genetic profiles from the ancient DNA of the first two Revolutionary War soldiers of thirteen have been successfully sequenced by Astrea Forensics in order to undertake the challenge of identifying them using genetic genealogy. The 14th, probably a North Carolina Loyalist, was determined to be Native American and was not sampled.
Peacock believes these are the oldest John Doe investigations in the country.
Historic Camden Foundation is the steward of Camden’s colonial and Revolutionary War history. As owners of the largest portion of the battlefield, they provided funding for the identifications.
“As property owners, we are the caretakers of not only the resources we can see above ground, but also to the rich history below ground,” explained Cary Briggs, executive director, Historic Camden Foundation.
The late Doug Bostick, former CEO of SCBPT, summed up the importance of the groundbreaking effort. “They are truly America’s first veterans. We have a responsibility to honor their sacrifice by ensuring their remains are protected in perpetuity and their stories of bravery are shared.”
