A classic in the true crime genre, Forensic Files focuses on forensic investigations in crimes like homicide, sexual assault, bombings, and non-criminal deaths and medical mysteries. The show premiered in 1996, during a time when various forensic techniques emerged, particularly the explosion of DNA testing. The show is so classic that it was brought back as Forensic Files II in 2020.
Featuring shorter episodes (about 22 minutes each), Forensic Files describes specific cases using techniques like fingerprinting, DNA testing, bite mark analysis, soil testing, forensic botany, forensic acoustics, handwriting analysis, facial reconstruction, and many more. One of the show’s strengths is how it brings on forensic specialists who explain these techniques and the processes involved. They are joined by detectives investigating the crimes, and victim’s loved ones.
One notable episode (Season 11, Episode 22) features the murder of Kathleen Peterson (before the documentary The Staircase) and includes an interview with since-disgraced blood stain analyst Duane Deaver.
Warning: Crime scene photos in the show are sometimes graphic and unblurred.
The Show Elements
Seasons: 14 (1996-2011)
Where to stream: Tubi, The Roku Channel, Peacock, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video
When a person is missing and foul play is suspected, finding a body is a priority, and forensic anthropologists can help
Katie East
In June of 2020, a team of investigators carefully searched the property of Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow in Salem, Idaho. The couple were under investigation following the disappearance of two children in their care. While scouring the backyard, officers noticed an innocuous four-by-two-foot patch of short grass that stood out against the backdrop of taller weeds. Below that patch of grass investigators found the remains of a young boy. The body was later identified as J.J. Vallow.
This discovery is an example of how the principles of forensic anthropology and forensic taphonomy can be used to locate human remains, even if they are hidden. Forensic anthropology is the study of human remains, while forensic taphonomy is the study of what happens to human remains after death. In addition to understanding the human body and how it decomposes, investigators must rely on their senses of smell, feel, and sight.
Smell
For years in the late 2000s, a rancid smell hung around the house of Anthony Sowell in Cleveland, Ohio. Although several women had disappeared in the neighborhood, investigators and neighbors assumed the smell originated from a nearby sausage factory. It was only after a victim escaped that investigators realized the smell came from the 11 decomposing bodies found inside the home.
Decomposing human bodies have a particular aroma; it is a bit like rotting meat and fruit. The smell comes from biological and chemical reactions, insects, and bacteria that release volatile organic compounds. Investigators can sometimes follow their nose to a corpse, but other techniques are required once decomposition is complete or the body is buried.
One common method of detecting human remains when they are not smelly enough for human noses is to use dogs. Dogs’ noses are 10,000–100,000 times stronger than those of humans. Dogs can also be trained to locate targets and alert when they do. Dogs have a reported success rate of 83%–100%. However, not all cadaver dogs are created equal. There are no universal standards for the training or certification of dogs or to measure the skill of the handler. One researcher summed up the use of cadaver dogs: “Their ability to detect [buried human remains], while poorly understood, uncharacterized, and unstandardized, is nevertheless impressive.”
Multiple researchers are working on creating machines or applying existing technologies to identify odors from decomposing human remains. Although promising, until they are perfected, dogs remain the preferred method of detection.
Feel
During the search of the Branch Davidian compound at Mount Carmel, Texas, investigators were directed to the basement, where bodies were said to have been buried. The area was 30 by 100 feet with a dirt floor. Investigators dug all day, and cadaver dogs were brought in without success. It wasn’t until investigators employed their sense of touch, through the use of soil probes, that they identified an area of disturbed soil in the northwest corner, where four bodies were ultimately uncovered.
Soil is mixed and aerated during the digging of a grave. Investigators can use a probe to differentiate between stable, compact soil and the disturbed soil of a grave. Soil probes are long sharp tools that will pass through the disturbed soil more easily. Investigators carry out a systematic survey of the area in this fashion, inserting the probe at regular intervals and consistent depths.
Touch can also identify differences in temperature consistent with a decomposing body. In the early stages of decomposition, a human body will cool down, eventually matching the surrounding temperature. However, in the later stages of decomposition, a body can actually heat up. Bacterial activity can warm a body up to 50°F higher than the surrounding environment. Blowfly larva, or maggots, can also generate heat. Maggots feed in groups, known as maggot masses, and can generate and insulate heat that may produce temperatures as high as 122°F. The heat generated by a body may be felt in the soil surrounding the body. However, new advancements use thermal infrared cameras, sometimes mounted on airplanes, to detect the heat of decomposing human remains.
Sight
In the summer of 2002, investigators searched 30 acres of the Pickton Farm for the remains of up to 69 women. They carried out a pedestrian search, excavated large sections, and sifted over 300,000 hundreds of cubic yards of soil to find any traces of human remains. Because the remains were likely dismembered, left to decay, or consumed by animals, all that was found were small fragments of bone. They collected 600,000 pieces of evidence and 200,000 DNA samples leading to the identification of several victims. Robert Pickton was convicted on six counts of murder.
One of the most effective ways of finding hidden bodies is a pedestrian survey, a fancy way of saying a walking search. Teams walk across suspected areas in a careful and controlled pattern, keeping their eyes glued to the ground. They are searching for evidence or pieces of bone as well as changes to the landscape.
The act of digging a grave, and the fluids of an actively decomposing body, can kill surrounding vegetation. At the same time, the loosened soil will not fit back into the grave. As decomposition progresses, however, new nutrients are introduced into the soil and the mixing of the soil may bring new seeds. A pile of bare soil also provides a clean slate for new species of vegetation. Consequently, the vegetation above a body may be different or lusher than surrounding areas. As the soil settles and the body decomposes, the grave may become depressed from its surroundings.
An investigator’s sense of sight can be enhanced using remote sensing technologies such as ground-penetrating radar or magnetometry. These technologies can reveal anomalies below the surface that differ in density or magnetic composition from surrounding soil. However, they do not work well in all soil types, and the devices will pick up any anomaly, which must then be interpreted by an analyst.
TL; DR
Despite how TV and pop songs might make it seem, successfully hiding a body is challenging. Anthropologists have an in-depth understanding of decomposition and can use smell, touch, and sight to locate hidden human remains. As technology improves, hidden graves will continue to get easier to find, helping to bring justice to more victims.
Katie East has been a professional forensic anthropologist since 2018 and received her PhD in 2021. By day, she analyzes skeletons, and by night (and weekends), she educates public audiences. With over a decade working in museums, laboratories, and field settings, Katie offers a broad range of insights about forensic anthropology to audiences from diverse backgrounds. In light of the widespread popularity of forensic anthropology, she believes that forensic anthropologists need to do a better job of educating the public about what they do and how they do it.
A forensics-based tour through murders and other crimes
About The New Detectives
Similar to Forensic Files, The New Detectives centers on the forensics behind solving homicide cases (including murders by serial killers) and other crimes like bombings, airplane crashes, sexual assaults, drug trafficking, missing persons, and arson. It showcases a variety of forensic methods, from DNA testing, to tire tracks, to footprints, to bite marks.
Forensic specialists demonstrate techniques related to profiling, forensic photography, forensic entomology and botany, toxicology, facial reconstruction, ballistics, forensic pathology, and forensic anthropology, creating a semi-educational tour through the field through specific cases.
Each episode features 2-3 cases, and the focus is on the forensic techniques involved, rather than a step-by-step account of the investigations. As a result, only some episodes include victims’ loved ones, and not much time is spent on trial aspects, usually just a summary of the verdict.
The true crime show is a bit dated, but still enjoyable for forensics buffs.
The Show Elements
Seasons: 9 (1996-2005)
Where to stream: Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Tubi, The Roku Channel, True Crime Network
More shows like The New Detectives: Forensic Files, Forensic Files II, Forensic Factor
A true crime show highlighting the work of forensic anthropologists
About Skeleton Stories
Some true crime shows include a case here or there that involves a forensic anthropologist, but Skeleton Stories devotes an entire show to the work of these bone specialists, who provide an expert eye for medical examiners in cases where bodies are unidentified or exhumed, or bones are found long after murders occurred.
This show details specific techniques used to solve murders and other mysteries through episodes featuring one to two cases, which are described by several forensic anthropologists who worked on them. They demonstrate the science behind decomposition, the identification of a body or cause of death, or how forensic anthropologists look for trauma from a weapon, really getting into the weeds of forensic examination.
Like some of the other shows from the same era, Skeleton Stories omits or changes some names, even those of killers. Be prepared to learn a lot from this show, especially about bones and anatomy. It’s a great watch for forensics enthusiasts and science buffs.
The Show Elements
Seasons: 2 (2005-2007)
Where to stream: Peacock, Tubi, The Roku Channel, Amazon Prime Video
A showcase for forensics and Canadian true crime cases
About Exhibit A: Secrets of Forensic Science
Hosted and narrated by actor Graham Greene, this forensics-based true crime show emphasizes one item or mistake the killer made in a homicide case: exhibit A.
Not to be confused with Netflix’s Exhibit A, this series focuses on cases in Canada—murder, sexual assault, bombings, and otherwise. Its use of the Dutch angle camera technique and noir-ish saxophone music lends a ’90s style that dates the show, but some of the cases will draw you in, such as those that detail exonerations from DNA testing and an art forgery case.
Exhibit A includes re-creations (which tend to be on the cheesy side) and discussion of investigations by the detectives and forensic scientists involved in the cases, but it excludes archival footage. Very few episodes incorporate surviving victims or their family members and friends, and they change the victims’ names. Most episodes are about 22 minutes in length.
The Show Elements
Seasons: 5 (1997-2001)
Where to stream: Tubi, Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, True Crime Network, The Roku Channel
More shows like Exhibit A: Secrets of Forensic Science: Forensic Factor, Forensic Files, Forensic Investigators, Forensic Justice, Forensics,The New Detectives, Solved: Extreme Forensics
Detectives solve cold cases through forensics and other techniques
Cold Case Files
About Cold Case Files
Cold Case Files comes in two flavors: the classic series narrated by Bill Kurtis (sometimes called Cold Case Files Classic) and the re-boot narrated by Danny Glover and later Kurtis. Kurtis’ mellifluous voice will make you sleepy, but the cases are too absorbing and the writing too deftly crafted to nap through.
From serial killers to serial rapists, episodes feature one to two stories each and focus on investigative techniques used to crack cold cases, particularly DNA and other forensics, including forensic anthropology, entomology, and even botany. Forensic specialists appear on the show and sometimes demonstrate the steps of the methods they used to help unravel a cold case, such as DNA testing, fingerprint identification, or sculptural reconstruction of the face, providing a fascinating look inside the field.
This true crime show doesn’t dwell on the victim’s background or suspect’s trial and instead leads viewers through the strategies used to solve long-unsolved cases. The newer version of Cold Case Files has more re-creations and less narration, allowing those involved to tell their stories in their own words. Convicted offenders sometimes offer their accounts of the crimes, and sometimes even fess up to them.
The Show Elements
Seasons: 9 (1999-2012, 2017-)
Where to stream: Amazon Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Hulu, Netflix, Peacock, and Discovery+
True Crime Docket 