This month, The Witching Hour is once again showcasing murders. Murders are interesting because the only person who knows what REALLY happened was the murderer. In most cases, the victim of the crime is deceased and cannot give their side of the story. Though, that is changing a little as forensic science develops and new evidence on cold cases is found. The most recent development in forensics is to use the blood of convicted murderers to match DNA of cold case crimes fitting the profile of the crime to evidence gathered at these unsolved crime scenes.
This photo taken Friday, Nov. 30, 2012, in Chicago shows three vials of mass murderer John Wayne Gacy’s blood recently discovered by Cook County Sheriff’s detective Jason Moran. The sheriff’s office is creating DNA profiles from the blood of Gacy and other executed killers and putting them in a national DNA database of profiles created from blood, semen, or strands of hair found at crime scenes and on the bodies of victims. What they hope to find is evidence that links the long-dead killers to the coldest of cold cases and prompt authorities in other states to submit the DNA of their own executed inmates and maybe evidence from decades-old crime scenes to help them solve their own cases. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)
Serial Murderer John Wayne Gacey, the widely traveled Clown Killer, left behind vials of blood which police are trying to get permission to use for the purposes of seeing if Gacey left behind any other victims that were not credited to him. If police are allowed to create a database of serial murderers’ DNA, it might assist police in reducing their cold case files– at least for more recent crimes. As it is, police are extremely lucky to have vials of Gacey’s blood which they can use. Blood collected as evidence cannot be used. The blood must be or have been collected by a coroner or medical examiner. Police have already used this technique to connect one unsolved murder to John Wayne Gacey.
It’s almost fitting that we here at Witching Hour celebrate the month of May with stories of murder. This afternoon on Wednesday, May 8, 2013, Jodi Arias was convicted of the first degree murder of Travis Alexander (June 4, 2008). This may not be interesting to some, but the whole thing happened in my backyard. Arizona is a death penalty state, so it is possible that Arias will not be spending life in prison.
Live News Feed- Jodi Arias Interview (May 8, 2013 ONLY)
Sources:
* AP News Break: Gacey’s Blood May Solve Old Murders
I admit it. I am a history nerd. I love exploring the past because the present is always, well, present. I like exploring the way things used to be done and wondering if we really do it better now. However, my history focus leans heavily toward the Medieval Period and Ancient British history. There’s not much about 19th and 20th century history that interests me, yet I do find the exploration of early 20th century abandoned buildings a fascinating endeavour, though one I’ve never participated in myself. I don’t know exactly what the attraction is to viewing these once great monuments to society and all its trappings, but I’ve come to realise that my interest – and that of others – is perpetuating illegal activity. One that is also taken up in the name of paranormal investigations.
