Forensic Files

Authorities are able to apprehend a kidnapper because he allowed his victim to write a will on a telltale pad of paper.

Time of death becomes pivotal when a pregnant woman is found murdered in her air-conditioned bedroom.

A woman wins her release after being imprisoned for allegedly killing her mother in a car fire.

A random serial sniper is plaguing Virginia and Maryland, with no profile of their victims.

After a man's body is discovered a few miles from his home, authorities trace the crime back to his house and question his wife.

Police in St. Petersburg, Fla., use cell phone mapping, wiretapping and a host of forensic evidence to find a surgeon's killer.

When a nurse starts experiencing a variety of flu-like symptoms, she discovers that she is HIV-positive; she learns that her infection was not accidental.

Technology able to analyze human bite-marks yields information on a woman's death.

Computers aid the police and FBI in solving a string of crimes.

A bite mark is all the evidence needed to convict a suspect who was robbing tourists in Florida.

Authorities track a kidnapper who allowed his victim, 17-year-old Shari Smith, to write a last will on a notepad and then informed the family of her murder, as well as the later murder of a 10-year-old, Debra May Helmick.

Sheila Bryan, who was convicted of killing her mother in a car fire, is granted a new trial. A fire expert witness's opinion on how the fire ignited differs from the prosecution's theory. If verified, it would clear Bryan of any culpability.

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?

The wife of a murdered horse rancher explains that the last time she saw her husband was when he was leaving the house to go jogging. Police become suspicious when forensic evidence eventually leads investigators back to the ranch.

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.

When the mail-order bride of a former army sergeant goes missing, investigators look into the deaths of the man's previous two wives.

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.

Detectives use a forged signature to find a woman's abductor.

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 scientists work with the only clue recovered from a multiple-victim shooting: a 12-gauge shotgun. Scientists use unique methods to lift the serial number from the weapon to trace it to its owner.

In 1981, an 86-year-old California woman was murdered, and her house was ransacked. The crime would remain unsolved for sixteen years, until DNA profiling and new fingerprint technology helped identify the killer.

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.

A murder investigation is stymied by the lack of a body, but police find a few charred remains, including a tooth whose filling contains properties that help investigators identify the corpse.

The murder of 9-year-old Jessica Knott is investigated. Investigators use a garbage bag to connect suspect James Edward Crow Jr. to the crime.