Four Corners: Oct 10
How DNA caught the 'Golden State Killer' and how genealogy research service is solving crime.
- Published by David Knox
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- Filed under Programming, Video
On Monday’s Four Corners, “DNA: The End Of Crime? ” looks at how genealogy databases around the world are being used to solve crimes and cold cases.
This looks at the ‘Golden State Killer’ who was also profiled in the trume crime doco, I’ll be Gone in the Dark.
He was a predator that was very sophisticated, highly intelligent, he employed tactics that most serial rapists or serial killers don’t employ.” US investigator
Joseph DeAngelo – known as the Golden State killer – was one of America’s most prolific serial killers, responsible for more than 50 rapes and 13 murders. He’d gone undetected for 40 years until investigators decided to try something different. They sent his DNA to an online genealogy research service.
“Think about this, the Golden State killer case, for 44 years, 15 different law enforcement jurisdictions. With the genealogy tool, it took six of us four and a half months!” Cold case investigator
Since this case was solved, genetic genealogy has been used to catch hundreds of killers in the United States. On Monday Four Corners examines how genealogy databases around the world are being used to solve crimes and cold cases.
“The hiding places are taken away; they can no longer hide and do their horrible deeds because we will find them and they have to know that.” US detective
The program also looks at the emergence of a new form of private investigator: the DNA detective.
“I don’t need everyone’s DNA; I really just need a very small percentage of the population. It’s somewhere between 1 and 3 per cent of the population. That would be enough to solve many of the cold cases.” DNA detective
As DNA databases continue to grow, law enforcement agencies are becoming increasingly confident criminals will eventually be exposed.
“Anyone who has left their DNA behind at a crime scene should plan on being identified. It might be next week, it might be next year, it might take a little more time but there is no doubt that they will be identified.” DNA detective
Monday 10th October at 8.30pm on ABC.
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- Tagged with Four Corners, I’ll Be Gone In The Dark
2 Responses
This is an odd one for ‘4 Corners’ to cover, even as an import doco-the story of it was extensively covered at the time several years ago.
4 Corners’ new Executive Producer –
once again raiding the Sunday Night files for story ideas.