Have you ever seen that show, The First 48?
It's a true crime series that first aired in 2004 and has covered over 450 violent crime
cases since its debut.
The premise is in the title, which is that the first 48 hours after a violent crime occurs
is the most critical and stands a better chance of solving the case if investigators get enough
leads through their own efforts, plus from the help of police officers, eyewitnesses,
and the general public.
According to the New York Times, it frequently takes more than 48 hours to even produce viable
leads.
What really helps to solve these crimes is to dedicate more manpower and investigative
hours to do so, which is not always easy to do.
Realistically, we know that resources are not always readily available.
In fact, Chicago, Illinois, which currently holds one of the highest crime rates in America,
only clears 14% of murder cases within those first 48 hours.
By clearance, I mean that investigators were successful in gathering enough evidence to
make an arrest.
This is just one example of how agencies are challenged with gathering evidence and putting
the puzzle pieces together in the first 48.
Hi everyone, this is Deb from Dying to be Found.
Before we get started, I just wanted to say that episodes contain disturbing discussions
on harmful acts and crimes against animals and or humankind.
Discussions are not intended for young or sensitive audiences due to the content nature
of this podcast.
Listener discretion is strongly advised.
Hi everyone, this is Deb, your host from the True Crime Podcast, Dying to be Found.
Welcome to DB2F's mini episode series called Dying to be Found The Dash where I bring you
short stories on true crime events.
Sometimes I go solo and sometimes I talk with fellow true crime podcasters or enthusiasts.
Things are getting a little busy around here and if you're listening to this episode,
you know that I've created a second podcast.
Be sure to search for Dying to be Found The Dash wherever you get your podcasts where
I'll bring you short stories.
You all know I like to tell stories, so be sure to DM me and let me know what you think.
Let's talk about a couple of past vs present crimes and how investigative methods occurred.
In days past, in contrast to how they are investigated today, I mentioned that the first
48 hours is critical, but we'll get back to that in just a moment.
While I was researching this episode, I found some additional information that is equally
important when it comes to solving crimes.
That brings us to solving bomb threats.
If you listened to episode 59, The Brian Wells Story on the Dying to be Found podcast, you
know bomb threats are uber time sensitive.
Back in the day, bomb squad teams were alerted, travel time to the scene would add to the
critical time factors, and assessments had to be made.
In Brian's case, the bomb was locked around his neck.
Let's just say that these types of bombs don't always work out in everyone's favor.
Fast forward to modern times, technology is used in various ways that cuts through some
of the time critical factors.
Robots come along for the ride with the bomb squad.
They're deployed close to the threat and take pictures that can be uploaded for further
analysis.
But what if the bomb threat is called in, say, in a busy city high rise or even a school?
Companies now use software programs similar to Google Maps to grid a city block and quickly
locate the coordinates where the bomb threat was issued.
They can also access digital floor plans to access bomb locations and conditions, plus
evacuate buildings quickly and efficiently.
So let's get back to the violent crimes that I talked about at the very beginning of this
episode.
According to the Marshall Project, violent crimes fall under various categories, including
homicide, manslaughter, rape, assault, and robbery.
Remember now, the first 48 hours of a violent crime taking place are the most critical in
clearing a suspect.
Clearance just means that a suspect is identified, but further investigations must take place
to determine if charges can even be filed.
Specifically, cleared murder related cases were at their lowest in 1997 and have not
dropped in that low ever since.
As of 2020, however, the national homicide clearance rates did drop, but this has contributed
to the many restrictions we experienced during the height of the COVID pandemic.
There are still ongoing challenges associated with violent crimes.
On the whole, murder cases are becoming increasingly difficult to investigate because the rate of
strangers committing these crimes is on the rise.
Whereas in decades past, a lot of these incidents occurred by someone we know.
Violent crimes involving firearms are the most difficult to solve due to the fact that
guns are used more frequently during the act of a felony where the perpetrator and victim
do not typically know each other.
On the other hand, stabbings are 39% more likely to be solved within that 48 hour mark
because many times these incidents occur during a heated argument and are not fully planned
out.
And this usually means that it's a crime of passion, if you will.
What this really boils down to is that investigators usually have to go back to the drawing board.
Modern technology and DNA advancements do help to bring a fresh approach to new and
cold cases, but it still takes well over 48 hours to collect evidence.
Investigators sometimes have to sift through decades old evidence, if there is any, to
conduct forensic testing and DNA analysis.
We've all heard that fresh eyes help to solve cold cases, and there's definitely some truth
to this.
However, it's just not that simple.
Local agencies face ongoing staffing shortages to investigate cold cases because we know
newer cases usually take priority.
Agencies also have hurdles to jump through when attempting to reopen cold cases.
Ultimately, they're responsible for collecting enough evidence to convince lawmakers and
other agencies that a cold case should be reopened and has a chance of being solved
this go round.
I came across an absolutely fascinating story of a forensic scientist by the name of Dr.
Angela Gallup.
Dr. Gallup is also known as the Queen of Forensics because she has solved crimes that nobody
else could.
In 1982, a man was discovered hanging from a bridge in central London, England.
This death was ruled a suicide, but family members did not accept this as the case.
Nine years later, they asked Dr. Gallup to review the case, and boy did she.
Dr. Gallup took a look at the evidence, reconstructed the scene in her own backyard, convinced her
husband, who was about the same size and build as the deceased man, to reenact the steps
that the man would have taken to his death, and came to the conclusion that this was,
in fact, a homicide.
In 1999, Dr. Gallup successfully provided evidence in a decade-old case where three
men had been wrongly accused of stabbing a sex worker to death and they were sentenced
to life in prison.
Dr. Gallup was asked to work on this case and identified a tiny, and I mean minuscule,
speck of blood inside the plastic wrapping that cellophane that cigarette packages have
around them.
This helped to prove that the men were not involved in this crime, and they were set
free.
Among several other forensic cases Dr. Gallup has helped to solve, the most notorious is
likely the case of Princess Diana.
Dr. Gallup was asked to take part in this investigation to eliminate conspiracy theories
surrounding Princess Diana's death.
Alright, so we're going to switch gears.
Let's take another right-hand turn here.
Albeit controversial, there is one method that is becoming increasingly popular when
solving violent crimes, and this is to access public databases.
Some agencies argue that these sites invade individual privacy laws.
However, some sites allow you to check a box that say you give permission to add your DNA
to a database to help identify potential suspects in violent crimes.
One example is how public DNA databases have helped to solve high-profile crimes such as
Joseph James DeAngelo, commonly known as the Golden State Killer.
DeAngelo went on a crime spree between 1974 and 1986, and his identity was not discovered
until 2018 when a distant relative had submitted to one of those genealogy websites.
Alright, you all, one more last right-hand turn.
If you're listening to this podcast, you obviously have a healthy obsession with true
crime.
I get it.
There are tons of careers out there in forensics.
If you're currently trying to figure out what to do with your life, there are jobs where
the occupational outlook is quite high.
I already mentioned that manpower is tested in numerous agencies.
Looking into these careers not only helps our communities, but will give you a sense
of reward when helping to solve crimes.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations, firearms are used in 70% of murder cases in
the United States.
As a ballistics expert, you can help process crime scenes by performing a forensic analysis
on evidence related to a firearm and start with an average salary of $50,000 US dollars
per year.
If you have the stomach for it, blood spatter analysts start off by making around $42,000
US dollars per year, you'll examine evidence on-site, collect trace evidence, take photographs,
and perform simulations like you see on that show Dexter.
If you serve as an eyewitness during a trial, your earning potential can go as high as $160,000
US dollars per year.
If you're like me, you kind of dig working with technology, but you won't always be working
with crime agencies.
More industries like healthcare, financial institutions, account, and law firms would
love to hire you at $89,000 US dollars per year as a computer forensics expert.
Your typical day will consist of monitoring hacking activities and protecting data from
security breaches.
You'll need a forensic degree and have working knowledge of information technology systems.
Local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies are ready to hire you as a crime lab analyst.
You'll analyze all that evidence brought to you from the crime scene.
You get to put together all of your findings into a report that will later be used in a
court of law.
Crime scene analysts earn around $56,000 US dollars per year if you have a chemistry
or forensic science degree.
There are also a ton of jobs to be found where you will process crime scenes such as being
that photographer, a forensic artist, and an investigator.
Opportunities are endless.
So if you are interested in pursuing a career in any of these positions that I mentioned,
look at your local colleges and universities to see what programs are available.
Many times employers will help out with tuition, so give it a shot.
Well that's the story of how crimes get solved.
We know that the first 48 hours are very critical, but not always conducive to clearing a case.
There is a plethora of reasons why law enforcement agencies run into roadblocks.
Manpower is low, witnesses need to be located, but this does not mean that criminal cases
should get shelved and forgotten.
It just takes time to investigate.
You know what that means eh?
If you are at a crossroads in your career, consider looking into some of those jobs I
listed.
There is a cool website out there called Occupational Outlook Handbook, which I'll add to my show
notes.
This website is sponsored by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics and is a great way to
search for careers through forecasted growth over the next 10 years.
Plan out your future guys.
So there you have it.
Be sure to give me a shout on Instagram at Dying to be Found and let me know what you
think of today's episode or if you have a storyline that you would like to hear specifically
on Dying to be Found the Dash.
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Remember the more people I interview, the less you have to listen to me.
Talk to you soon.
Thanks for listening to Dying to be Found True Crime podcast and our Dash mini series.
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