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!
California’s Monterey County Cold Case Taskforce Teams with Othram to Identify a 1994 Baby Doe (DNASolves – 10/18/2024)
In December 1994, the body of a Baby John Doe was discovered in the Las Lomas area of Monterey County, California. A man who was collecting aluminum cans on the side of Garin Road made the discovery when he picked up a paper grocery bag and found the infant inside, wrapped in a blanket. It was determined that the child’s body had been left on the roadside several weeks prior. An autopsy revealed that the infant was born alive and was likely several days old at the time of his death.
The infant became known as “Baby Garin,” named for the road on which his body was discovered. For years, investigators were unable to determine the identity of the child. In an effort to finally identify the infant and the person responsible for his death, the Monterey County Cold Cask Task Force team with Othram to determine if advanced DNA testing could help to resolve the decades-old mystery.
In November 2022, evidence was submitted to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram’s scientists successfully developed a DNA extract and used Forensic Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile for the infant. This profile was provided to the Monterey County Cold Case Taskforce so that a forensic genetic genealogy search could be performed for the development of new leads in the case.
Using these new leads, the investigation into the infant’s identity continued. This investigation led to likely family members of Baby Garin. Follow-up interviews were conducted and reference DNA samples were collected, leading to the identification of Baby Garin’s mother, 60-year old Pamela Ferreryra. Ferreryra, a resident of Watsonville, California, was arrested on October 17, 2024 for the infants’ death.
Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Cold Case Unit Helps Solve Decade Old Homicide in Texarkana (Ken Paxton Attorney General of Texas – 10/18/2024)
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit assisted the Texarkana Police Department in solving a 2014 homicide, leading to the arrest of 27-year-old Cameron Cheatham for the murder of Xavier Rollins.
On June 17, 2014, Rollins was found shot to death outside his apartment located on the 1000 block of College Drive in Texarkana. Numerous witness interviews were conducted at the time and evidence collected at the crime scene underwent DNA testing but the case remained unsolved. In March 2024, the Texarkana Police Department requested assistance with forensic testing from Attorney General Paxton’s Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit.
The OAG collaborated with Texarkana detectives throughout the 2024 investigation and provided resources including expedited forensic testing, assistance in the location and arrest of the suspect, and additional investigatory assistance.
Attorney General Paxton established the Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit in 2021 to assist local law enforcement agencies in investigating and prosecuting unsolved cases. In 2023, the Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit received a federal grant from Bureau of Justice Assistance to help solve cold cases that have DNA profiles development from crime scene evidence which have not been linked to a suspect. Because forensic testing can be cost prohibitive for many agencies, the federal grant allows the Attorney General Paxton to provide testing at no charge to police departments across the state of Texas. The grant also funds a full-time investigator for the Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit to assist agencies with their investigations that fall under the terms of the grant.
If you have additional information about the Xavier Rollins case, contact Crime Stoppers at 903-793-STOP, or Texarkana Detective Thomas Shaddix at 903-798-3151.
DNA, Genealogy Search Provides Lead in 2008 Murder (Forensic- 10/22/2024)
Grand Prairie Police Cold Case Detectives, with the assistance of the Texas Department of Public Safety, have solved a 16-year-old cold case.
On Aug. 8, 2008, at around 6:15 p.m., the Grand Prairie Police Department responded to assist the Grand Prairie Fire Department with a structure fire in the 2600 block of Channing Drive. Inside the residence, firefighters located a deceased male who was identified as Raymond Hernandez, 45 years of age.
Autopsy results determined Hernandez was the victim of a homicide. DNA from a possible suspect was collected at the scene and entered into the CODIS in November 2008. At the time, there was no matching DNA in CODIS to identify the potential suspect, nor were there any other cases where this suspect’s DNA profile matched any other victims.
In February 2022, Grand Prairie Police (Texas) Cold Case Detectives began collaborating with the Texas Department of Public Safety – Texas Rangers to utilize the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI). Forensic genetic genealogical testing of the potential suspect’s DNA was searched through a third-party laboratory.
In September 2024, an investigative lead was developed through the genealogical search. Detectives were able to obtain a DNA sample and confirm the lead.
On Oct. 4, 2024, Grand Prairie Police Cold Case Detectives, with the assistance of the Texas DPS-Texas Rangers and the Lufkin, Texas Police Department, arrested Jerry Lee Gardner, 44 years of age, at his residence in Lufkin, for the murder of Raymond Hernandez.
New Cold Case Team Solves 2017 Murder (Forensic – 10/22/2024)
On Aug. 17, 2017, Newport News Police Department (Virginia) responded to the 7400 block of River Road in reference to a shooting. Upon arrival, they located Eric Blackshear, who was suffering from at least one gunshot wound. He was 27-years-old at the time. Later, he succumbed to his injuries at a local hospital.
On Aug. 24, 2017, Donell Anthony Howard was arrested for Blackshear’s murder and charged with second degree murder, possession of a firearm by a felon and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He was 25-years-old at the time. The case was ultimately nol prossed (essentially a dismissal of charges by the prosecution).
However, due to new information about Blackshear’s murder, the NNPD Cold Case Team recently reopened the case. On Oct. 15, 2024, the Grand Jury of Newport News issued indictments for Donell Howard including: first degree murder, possession of a firearm by a felon and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Howard was taken into custody on Monday, seven years after the murder .
Situational and Developmental Approaches to Prevent Sexual Violence (Forensic – 10/22/2024)
Awareness about sexual violence has grown over time, sparked in part by the passage of the Violence Against Women Act in 1994 and continuing more recently as victims share their stories and garner more media and public attention. Funding for programs to protect victims and hold individuals accountable for their crimes has also increased during this same timeframe. However, focus on how to prevent sexual violence has lagged.
Research demonstrates that sexual abuse and assault can have lifelong impacts on the emotional and physical well-being of the victim and their family, and justice is often elusive. There is also a substantial financial cost. Research estimates that the lifetime cost of rape is $122,461 per individual harmed. This equates to a population economic burden of almost $3.1 trillion, based on estimates that more than 25 million U.S. adults have been victims of rape. Investments in prevention could not only increase public safety but also realize significant cost savings.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Teams with Othram to Identify Suspect in a 1994 Homicide (DNASolves – 10/22/2024)
In August 1994, two men discovered the remains of an unidentified individual on Lake Mead Boulevard near the entrance to the Lake Mead Recreation Area. The area is a short drive to the city of Las Vegas, Nevada. The men were hiking when they made the discovery in a dirt turnout. It was determined that the remains were that of a White female. The woman’s body was found in a wash. She had been dragged to the area. On the following day, the Clark County Coroner’s Office determined that the remains were that of Melanie White. It was White, who was 27 years old, had died by homicide due to strangulation and blunt force trauma.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department led the investigation, and many leads were received and tracked. None were successful in identifying the person responsible for Melanie’s death. In 2010, the department’s Cold Case Detectives reviewed the case and submitted evidence from the crime scene for traditional DNA testing. An STR profile was developed for an unknown male suspect. The profile was uploaded to CODIS, but there was no match to a known individual.
In 2021, using funding provided by Vegas Justice League, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department submitted evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas to determine if advanced DNA testing could finally identify the person responsible for Melanie’s murder. Using Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing®, Othram scientists developed a DNA profile for the unknown male suspect. This profile was used in a genealogical search by Othram’s forensic genetic genealogy team to develop new leads in the case.
These leads were returned to detectives with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and a follow-up investigation was conducted. This follow-up investigation led to the identification of potential relatives of the suspect. Comparison DNA tests were conducted, leading to the positive identification of the suspect as Arthur Lavery, who was born September 7, 1955. Lavery grew up in the Las Vegas area. He was 38 years old when he murdered Melanie White. Arthur Lavery died in 2021.
St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s & Coroner’s Offices Team with Othram to Identify a 1986 Homicide Victim (DNASolves – 10/22/2024)
In June 1986, a fisherman discovered the remains of an unidentified individual weighed down in Lake Pontchartrain near Slidell, Louisiana. Slidell is located northwest of New Orleans. Members of the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Water Patrol Division responded and located the deceased individual approximately forty yards from the eastbound lanes I-10 and thirty-forty yards from the end of a pier off Howze Beach Service Road. The individual was relocated to the end of Lakeview Drive (Rats Nest Road), near a restaurant.
It was determined that the individual was a pregnant white female estimated to be in her early twenties. The woman’s remains were transported by the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office for autopsy. Following the post mortem examination, her death was ruled a homicide. The woman was estimated to be between the ages of 20 and 30 years old, stood 5’4” tall, and weighed 126 pounds.
In February 2008, details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP852 and she became known as Slidell Jane Doe, also commonly known as Lake Pontchartrain Jane Doe. The Louisiana State University (LSU) FACES Lab developed a forensic approximation of what the Jane Doe may have looked like during her life. The case information and the victim’s profile were aired on the “America’s Most Wanted” television show in hopes that it would generate new leads about the woman’s identity. The Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory and St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s DNA laboratory also conducted traditional DNA testing. Despite extensive efforts by law enforcement investigators to identify the woman, no matches were found, and the case went cold.
In 2022, the St Tammany Sheriff’s Office submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas to determine if advanced DNA testing could help identify the woman. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the evidence and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile for the woman. Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team used the profile in a genetic genealogy search to develop new investigative leads that were returned to law enforcement.
Using this new information, a follow-up investigation was conducted leading investigators to potential relatives of the woman. Reference DNA samples were collected from the potential relative and compared to the DNA profile of the unknown woman. This investigation led to the positive identification of the woman, who is now known to be Pamela Lee Hupp, who was born April 28, 1958. Pamela was twenty-eight years old and pregnant with her second child, at the time of her murder. The investigation into Pamela’s death is active and ongoing.
Department of Health, State Police, Fusion Center, and Marshall University Announce Commission to Identify Remains (West Virginia Department of Health – 10/23/2024)
he West Virginia Department of Health’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, alongside the West Virginia State Police, the West Virginia Fusion Center, and Marshall University, has made significant strides in forming the West Virginia Forensic Genealogy Commission. This initiative aims to expedite the identification of unidentified human remains, offering hope and closure to families statewide.
The commission is the culmination of efforts led by state legislators, including Senators Vince Deeds and Tom Takubo, who championed the enabling legislation.
Secretary of Health Sherri Young emphasized the commission’s importance: “This represents a crucial step in restoring hope and closure to families facing the pain of uncertainty. We will leverage the latest forensic technology to treat unidentified remains with dignity.”
Matt Izzo, Chief Administrator of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, noted, “This collaboration provides a more efficient avenue for submissions, addressing the backlogs created by previous processes.”
An agreement with Marshall University and the West Virginia State Police Forensic Lab allows for DNA profiling of unidentified remains. To date, over 32 cases and multiple samples have been processed, enabling potential matches through the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) or direct familial comparisons via the Marshall University Forensic Science Center. Law enforcement will assist in collecting reference samples from family members when leads arise.
Barnegat Man Convicted in 25-Year-Old Murder Case (The SandPaper.net – 10/23/2024)
A Barnegat Township man was convicted of kidnapping, sexually assaulting and murdering a 17-year-old Sayreville teen in a case that dates back 25 years.
On Oct. 17, a jury in Middlesex Superior Court found 52-year-old Bruce Cymanski guilty of killing Nancy Noga. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 6.
Cymanski was initially arrested in August 2021. At that time, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said that on Jan. 7, 1999, Noga, who was then a senior in high school, was reported missing after she did not return home from work. Five days later, her body was discovered in a wooded area behind what was then Mini-Mall Plaza Shopping Center on Ernston Road. An autopsy later determined Noga had died from blunt force trauma after being struck with a blunt object.
For more than two decades, the case remained open and active as investigators continued to investigate Noga’s death.Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said the arrest was made possible by a joint investigation conducted by Detective Mark Morris and Sgt. Deon McCall, both of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, in conjunction with Sgt. Daniel Ellmyer of the Sayreville Police Department and retired Det. Sgt. Richard Sloan, formerly of the Sayreville Police Department.
Cymanski was in part identified through the use of genetic genealogy conducted by the chief genetic genealogist of Parabon NanoLabs, CeCe Moore.
North Aurora woman’s 1979 murder solved, linked to serial killer Bruce Lindahl (ABC7 – 10/23/2024)
Authorities confirmed this week that DNA testing solved a 45-year-old cold case in Kane County.
The Kane County State’s Attorney, along with the mayor of North Aurora, the police chief and others, shared new details connecting long-dead serial killer Bruce Lindahl to a 1979 cold case murder Wednesday.
Authorities say DNA proves Lindahl killed North Aurora’s Kathy Halle.
Halle was the picture of youth in the late 70s, with bright eyes under glasses, overalls and feathered hair.
She disappeared from her apartment complex, and her body was later discovered in the Fox River.
In 2020, DNA linked Lindahl to the murder of Pamela Maurer of Woodridge in 1976.
Investigators said it was that breakthrough that opened the door in North Aurora.
In 2022, authorities found evidence that Lindahl frequented the Northgate Shopping Center, which is where Halle worked.
After learning about the M-Vac System DNA technology, investigators worked to get Halle’s case reopened and eventually solved.
In January 2023, officials worked with DNA Labs International out of Florida and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office to get the best piece of evidence that would likely get a result.
DNA Doe Project solves 1988 Jane Doe Case (DNA Doe Project – 10/24/2024)
After 36 years of anonymity as a Jane Doe discovered buried in a shallow grave near Florence Junction, Arizona, Evelyn “Dottie” Lees has been identified by the DNA Doe Project. Born in 1898 in Salt Lake City, Utah, Lees was living in Scottsdale before her disappearance. The investigation into the circumstances of her death was handled by the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office.
At the time of the discovery of her remains in 1988, authorities estimated that the unknown woman was between 50 and 99 years old at the time of her death, but believed that she would be on the younger side of that estimate. In actuality, she was 88 or 89 years old when she died. Her father was British, and her DNA relatives were spread across a broad geographic area.
Dr. Bruce Anderson, Forensic Anthropologist with the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner, brought the case to the DNA Doe Project in 2023, hoping that genetic genealogy analysis of the remains would yield leads to her identity. “I responded in 1988 to the desert clandestine grave and have been trying to get her identified for nearly 35 years,” he explained in an email to the non-profit group’s Director of Case Management.
Like many DNA Doe Project cases, the work to identify Dottie Lees was funded by donors to the non-profit, who contributed nearly $5,000 toward the lab fees and case management costs.
The process of investigative genetic genealogy involves creating a DNA profile for the unidentified person, then analyzing the lists of people whose profiles are a partial match to the unknown person to build a family tree. Using traditional genealogy techniques and records, researchers typically go back many generations and sometimes hundreds of years to identify common ancestors before they start to build forward in time to find the identity of the Jane or John Doe.
After bone samples from the remains were processed to produce a DNA profile uploaded to GEDmatch Pro and FamilyTreeDNA.com, it took a team of expert volunteer investigative genetic genealogists a matter of hours to find Dottie’s branch of the family tree.
A team of nine investigative genetic genealogists worked on the case together during a weekend retreat. “The case really started to heat up when we identified a married couple from the 19th century who shared DNA with the Doe,” said Lance Daly, team co-leader. “The Doe’s estimated year of birth was about 1900; therefore, we knew we were looking at the names of her possible grandparents.”
“Her recent British heritage meant that her DNA matches came from all over the world,” said team co-leader Matthew Waterfield. “Although they were fairly distant relatives of hers, our team quickly found connections between them, and they led us to Dottie within hours.”
The DNA Doe Project is grateful to the groups and individuals who helped solve this case: the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner, who entrusted the case to the DNA Doe Project; Astrea Forensics for extraction of DNA from bone and sample prep for whole-genome sequencing; Azenta Life Sciences for sequencing; Kevin Lord for bioinformatics; GEDmatch Pro and FTDNA for providing their databases; our generous donors who joined our mission and contributed to this case; and DDP’s dedicated teams of volunteer investigative genetic genealogists who work tirelessly to bring all our Jane and John Does home.
