Every season of Forensic Files ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best seasons of Forensic Files!

The case of missing stewardess Helle Craft is recounted. Although her body was never recovered, police used forensic evidence to charge her husband with murder. It became the first murder conviction without a body in Connecticut.

The Disappearance of Helle Crafts

At the Dallas 'Pistol &amp; Revolver' club in 1991, Trey Cooley, a young spectator, was watching a shooting competition, seated behind an air gun range. He was struck and killed by a stray bullet. See how ballistics, lasers, and forensic animation solve the riddle of the "magic bullet".

The Magic Bullet

Caren Campano disappeared and her husband, Chris became the prime suspect -- especially after police found a huge bloodstain on the Campano's bedroom carpet. When they sprayed the bedroom with Luminol, they discovered it was awash with blood spatter. Complex DNA testing - 'reverse paternity' tests - proved it was Caren's blood. Now all they had to do was find her body.

The House That Roared

The first case to use DNA evidence is detailed. In 1983 Leicester, England, police were stymied by a rape/murder of a 15-year-old girl; three years later, faced with a similar crime, they turned to Dr. Alec Jeffreys, a molecular biologist with a revolutionary approach to solving the case.

The Footpath Murders

Single mother Denise Johnson is found dead in a deserted area outside of Phoenix, Arizona. Local investigators ask a molecular geneticist to pick out a tree in a 'lineup' when unidentified seed pods are found in suspect Mark Bogan's truck. The judge rules into evidence DNA profiles linking the pods to a tree near where the body was found. This is the first U.S. case where plant DNA was used to convict a criminal.

Planted Evidence

The U.S. criminal justice system's first use of DNA profiling in a serial murder case frees an innocent man after he spent two years in prison, and convicts the real killer. FBI psychological profiling and DNA evidence identify the man who raped and strangled five young women in Virginia.

Southside Strangler

Legionnaires' disease is one of the most famous medical detective stories, especially irritating for its missteps and frustrations. When 180 Legionnaires contract pneumonia-like symptoms after a Philadelphia Convention and 29 of them die, doctors and scientists are mystified. The determination of one scientist helps to determine the cause and likely vector of this deadly disease.

Legionnaires' Disease

On the night of May 22, 1992, Betty Wilson returned home after a meeting. She walked up the stairs to the bedroom and discovered her husband, Eye doctor Jack Wilson, beaten and stabbed to death, lying in a pool of blood with a baseball bat nearby. Jack Wilson had obviously been murdered... but how? And by whom? Even the experts couldn’t agree.

The Wilson Murder

Troubling clusters of deadly cancer cases strike concerned communities across the country. In a Phoenix suburb, too many children are fatally stricken with leukemia and, on a Connecticut street, there is a disproportionate amount of illness, including four cases of brain cancer. Modern environmental agents such as buried poisons and electrical substations are found... Could these be the culprits?

Deadly Neighborhoods

Between 1985 and 1988, 18 people were choked, molested and left for dead in the remote desert mountains of California. The only witnesses were the insects – and they also proved to play an important role in solving the crimes.

Insect Clues

Alarmingly high levels of thyroid hormones pump through the systems of South Dakota residents. Investigators study one family who all got sick, except their 12-year-old son who is a vegetarian.

Outbreak

In 1971, John List left a note with the bodies of his mother, wife, and three children in his mansion ballroom, funeral organ music blaring from a central sound system, and disappeared. Eighteen years later, all detectives had to work from is an outdated photograph of List. In 1989, the popular television series America's Most Wanted commissioned an age-scaled bust of List to aid viewers in identifying the confessed murderer. Dr. Frank Bender, nationally-recognized artist and sculptor, worked with forensic psychologist Richard Walter to develop a profile of the aging List.

The List Murders

Escherichia coli (E-coli) bacteria can be found in meats, milk and in water. When food is properly processed, prepared and stored, E-Coli are harmless. But in the absence of these simple precautions, E-Coli can have deadly consequences. Raw Terror tells the story of Damion Heersink, an eleven-year-old boy who almost died after eating an improperly cooked hamburger teeming with E-Coli, and the people who saved his life.

Raw Terror

The year was 1984, and a serial killer was on the loose in Florida.  Eight women had been found dead.  At each crime scene, investigators found tiny red fibers, fibers they hoped would lead them to the killer.

The Common Thread

In this classic episode of Forensic Files, the longest running true crime series in television history, Eileen and Derrick Severs disappeared from their home in the small village of Hambleton in Great Britain, and police found evidence which suggested foul play. Careful analysis of a soil sample would tell investigators not only what happened to the couple, but who was responsible for the dirty deed.

The Dirty Deed

It was the single, most deadly automobile accident in American history.  Almost a hundred vehicles were involved, twelve people died, and more than fifty people were injured.  It happened along a three mile stretch of highway long known for dense, thick fog.  Investigators set out to determine if the fog was a natural phenomenon, or the result of something else.

Killer Fog

While Earl Morris was vacationing in California, he learned his wife had gone missing from their home in Arizona.  The search for Ruby Morris involved dozens of investigators and  scientists, even the coast guard.  And the results of that investigation surprised everyone... especially Earl Morris.

Sex, Lies & DNA

The flu-like symptoms of a mother and her children proved to be indicative something much more serious:  thallium poisoning.  Investigators had to find the source of the poison... and when the mother died, to determine if the exposure was accidental, or if they also needed to find a killer.

Bitter Potion

In a quiet village in Great Britain, a farmer came upon a chilling sight.  Impaled on his fence post was a severed lamb’s head along with a note which read, “You next.”  The author of the note didn’t elaborate on why the farmer had been targeted, but between the lines, he’d said plenty.

The Blood Trail

An infant was rushed to a Cleveland emergency room with serious breathing problems.  The baby’s lungs were bleeding, a life threatening, extremely rare condition.  Within months, there were more than 30 cases – an incidence more than a thousand times higher than anywhere else in the world.  Doctors had never seen anything like it, and searched frantically for the cause and a cure.

Fatal Fungus

Shortly after daybreak in Vancouver, British Columbia, a fire was set in a dumpster.  No one saw either the arsonist or the fire, and it burned for hours in the deserted parking lot.  But there was more than garbage in the container, and it would take sophisticated science to find the evidence in the ashes.

Charred Remains

Two people in Seattle, Washington died after taking an over-the-counter pain reliever;  lab analysis of the pills showed they were tainted with a lethal concentration of cyanide.  The investigation which followed led police to a suspect with a motive for murder and a callous disregard for others.

Something's Fishy

For more than a year, angry, hateful letters were sent to a first grade school teacher in a small town in Pennsylvania. When scientists analyzed the letters, they found evidence that the stalker knew a lot about the victim - more, in fact, than anyone could possibly have imagined. DNA analysis would eventually help seal the perpetrator's fate.

Sealed with a Kiss

On October 15, 1985, two bomb explosions rocked Salt Lake City and resulted in two deaths.  A third explosion occurred the next day;  this time, the victim was injured but survived.  As the investigation progressed, police came to believe the survivor was more than an innocent by-stander.  When they  turned to forensic science for help, they uncovered an almost unbelievable story of forgery, fraud and murder.

Postal Mortem

After a day of fishing in a small, quiet village in Switzerland, a teenage boy did not return home as planned.  The investigation revealed some important microscopic evidence in the water near where he was last seen.  It was the only forensic evidence detectives had. But would it be enough for them to find him?

Micro-Clues

In the spring of 1993, an unexplained illness struck the residents of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  Four hundred thousand people developed a serious gastrointestinal illness, 4,000 were hospitalized and, by the time the epidemic was under control, more than 100 people were dead.  Health officials suspected it was influenza, but it proved to be more serious and more difficult to identify.

Deadly Parasites

In Omaha, the deaths of a child and a truck driver in the same hospital on the same day are investigated to see if there is a link between them.

Without a Trace

In the mid-1980s, bodies of nude woman were found in remote hill of California. The killer gags and molests prostitutes, cuts their clothes in random patterns and cuts off their hair; microscopic evidence helps solve the case.

Knot for Everyone

In 1987, a human skull and some bones were discovered at a Boy Scout Camp near Farmington, Missouri. A facial reconstruction aided the investigators in this case. Once the victim was identified as Bun Chee Nyhuis, her husband Richard H. Nyhuis, was no longer just a person of interest.

The Talking Skull

Between 1986 and 1989, a disease swept through British cattle herds, which came to be known as Mad Cow disease. Scientists began to suspect that this was somehow related to some human illness. A California neurologist said both humans and animals were suffering from a mutated prion. When defective prions are transmitted from an infected host to a new host, they convert any normal prions they come across into copies of themselves so it is possible for a mutated prion to be transmitted from a cow to a person by eating beef. Dr. Stanley B. Prusiner received a Nobel prize for his work with prion.

Foreign Body

A serial bomber was waging a vendetta against the legal profession: a judge, two attorneys, and even a courthouse had been targeted. Employing a range of forensic techniques, investigators used evidence from the bombs to lead them to the perpetrator.

Deadly Delivery

Robert Sims returned home after working the night shift, and found his wife, Paula, unconscious on the kitchen floor. Their two-year-old son, Randy, was asleep in an upstairs bedroom, but their six-week-old daughter, Heather, was missing.  Paula Sims was the only witness to a crime that baffles investigators to this very day.

'Sim'ilar Circumstances

The shooting of a man during a hunting trip is reopened years after the incident, and the victim's hunting partner becomes a suspect.

Grave Evidence

A possible case of Munchhausen syndrome is investigated after an infant dies of what appears to be toxic levels of antifreeze in his system.

Deadly Formula

Early one fall morning, Laura Houghteling left her Bethesda home and walked to the station to take a train to work.  She was never seen again.  A peculiar strand of hair found in Laura’s hairbrush enabled  investigators to unravel the mystery of her disappearance.

Beaten by a Hair

Edward Honaker was convicted of rape, sodomy and aggravated sexual battery; he was sentenced to three life terms in prison.  Honaker steadfastly maintained his innocence.  After years in prison and writing countless letters, he finally found someone who believed him, and was willing to pay for DNA testing which could prove he was telling the truth.

Crime Seen

On September 17, 1984, in a suburb of Tucson, Arizona, eight-year-old Vicki Hoskins left home on her pink bicycle to mail a letter for her mother.  She never returned, but her slightly damaged bicycle was found nearby.  Investigators turned to forensic science, in the hope it would tell them not only what happened to Vicki, but also who was responsible.

Speck of Evidence

When a two-year-old boy was rushed to the hospital suffering from brain seizures and breathing difficulties, doctors could not find the cause of his illness. Then the boy’s sister provided an important clue, and raised the possibility of a syndrome of which few had ever heard.

Broken Bond

On a cold December night in 1993, Rose Larner stopped in a convenience store on her way to her boyfriend’s house.  She was never seen or heard from again.  Rose’s disappearance remained a mystery, until a tiny clue found years later revealed a tragic tale of drugs, romance and revenge.

Out of the Ashes

In 1996, police received a call from Darlie Routier telling them of her two sons' murders. However, investigators were not certain about the validity of Darlie's story and began an intensive search of the crime scene. The police found out who the killer was by analyzing blood spatter, doing behavioral profiling and analyzing Darlie's 911 call.

Invisible Intruder

Scott Dunn was missing and when the police sprayed his bedroom with Luminol, a scene of horrific violence emerged. Now investigators faced a daunting task: to prove Scott Dunn had been murdered, even though they had no body, no weapon, and no witnesses.

The Killing Room

A 1995 fire razes the mansion of Kansas doctor Debora Green, killing two of her three children; disturbing accounts from her ex-husband, Mike Farrar, lead investigators to believe she set the blaze herself.

Ultimate Betrayal

In 1990, Shirley Andronowich's body was found one morning after she was murdered and mutilated. Eyewitnesses told police Shirley and her husband Ed were seen fighting in a bar the night before. Police first suspected Ed and even arrested him after he confessed to the murder. But all forensic evidence proved that Ed had actually nothing to do with the crime.

Cement the Case

Sometime during a neighborhood Christmas party, five-year-old Melissa Brannen disappeared. No one saw where she went or noticed anything unusual. Investigators turned to forensic science to help them see what the witnesses missed. The young girl was never seen again but fiber analysis led police to a suspect nonetheless.

Innocence Lost

When a Pennsylvania man checks into a hospital for leg pain and later dies of thallium poisoning, police investigate his wife and find her in the process of collecting an insurance payment for her previous husband's death.

Til Death Do Us Part

When a sexual predator murders two young boys in Nebraska within three months of each other, an obscure style of rope and forensic analysis lead to his arrest and conviction.

Ties That Bind

Mark Fair left for work and his fiancée Karla Brown stayed home. Later, Mark found Karla dead. Karla's body told police that she was a victim of sexual assault. During the autopsy, they were able to re-examine bite marks on her body. A computer gave a view of the marks and forensic odontology identified the killer.

Body of Evidence

Clayton Johnson, a Nova Scotia schoolteacher, left for work on the morning of February 20, 1989. At 7.40 AM, the school bus arrived to pick up the Johnson children. At 7.51 Mrs. Molloy arrived to drop off her child at the Johnson home. She found Janice Johnson lying at the bottom of the basement stairs in a pool of blood.

A new life-insurance policy sparks suspicions of murder.

Accident or Murder?

In 1996, more than a dozen children in Seattle, Washington, were fighting for their lives. Each one of them had contracted a serious illness, and no one knew what it was. When one of the children died, investigators knew the clock was ticking and they needed to isolate the cause and find the cure before time ran out.

Core Evidence

Lori Keidel, her two sisters and her brother were left home alone while their father went to a nearby laundromat. Suddenly, a large fire engulfed their brick ranch home. Only a few months earlier, the children's mother had disappeared and made no effort to contact them. Lori found the courage to tell police that she had witnessed her own mother's death.

Haunting Vision

Young Navajos on a reservation in the Southwest were dying at an alarming rate. CDC officials had never seen anything like it; the mysterious illness had claimed the lives of more than 20 people. The tribe's medicine men provided investigators with a critical clue which would lead halfway around the world to a most unlikely killer.

With Every Breath

Edward Post left the Omni Hotel and went for a forty minute run. Before leaving, he said that he drew a bath for his wife. When he returned, he found her in the bathtub, not breathing. She was dead by the time emergency response arrived. Police considered accidental death, until they discovered that Ed had a large life insurance policy on Julie.

Slippery Motives

For more than a decade, women in a small Louisiana city lived in fear of a serial rapist.  Fortunately, computer technology and behavioral science combined to give police a new forensic tool:  geographical profiling.  Police narrow their search to one man, but to prove he’s the perpetrator they turn to an unlikely piece of evidence--- a discarded cigarette butt.

Badge of Deceit

When the wife of a well-known dentist is found dead, police are unsure who killed her.  Some fibers and a study of the weather patterns on the night of the murder break the case open and reveal the real killer.

Dew Process

When a young mother and her infant son are found dead in a cornfield, the obvious suspect is the husband and father of the victims.  But some insects found on the bodies reveal a vital clue, as does a long, blonde hair found on the victims.

A Woman Scorned

When a decomposed body is discovered inside a barrel, police immediately suspect foul play.  But the body had been placed there 30 years earlier.  One of the few clues was an address book found along with the body but years of moisture had washed away the ink.  Scientists desperately searched for a way to unlock the secrets of that address book.

A Voice from Beyond

In this classic episode of Forensic Files, the longest running true crime series in television history, a Seattle policeman’s home is destroyed by an arsonist. One month later, the officer arrests a low-level drug dealer, who confesses to the arson. But when the suspect vanishes, investigators begin to question the authenticity of his confession.

Burning Ambition

Dianna Green was just 20 years-old and pregnant when she was brutally raped and beaten in her apartment.  The assault caused the death of her unborn baby.  When Dianna came out of a coma 3 weeks later, she told police she knew the identity of her attacker.  But was her memory accurate?

Memories

A mother and her two young daughters are found brutally murdered. The crime scene yielded a good deal of evidence, but no conclusive link to the prime suspect. To solve the puzzle, an FBI analyst designs a unique experiment.

Trail of Truth

A young girl is found dead, the victim of an apparent sex-killer.  Authorities are intrigued by unusual orange fibers embedded in clothing found near the victim.  Months pass and the case goes cold, until a van turns up with what appear to be the same orange fibers.

Material Evidence

In the back woods of Georgia, in a dilapidated house, a 49 year old recluse named Virginia Ridley was found dead.  A medical examiner ruled the death a homicide.  But who would murder someone who seldom ventured out of her home?  Investigators found some clues in the notes she had written shortly before her death.

Kill'igraphy

Why do children at a Texas hospital seem to be dying at a higher rate than at any other hospital in the country?  Medical investigators have no answers until they discover that one nurse seems to be on-duty in almost all the fatal cases.  But proving the connection seems impossible until an international team of doctors uncovers an unlikely murder weapon.

Nursery Crimes

When the decomposed body of a young girl is discovered, police have no clues to her identity.  But days earlier, a stabbing victim told them she thought she might have witnessed a murder.  Police think the cases might be related, and to prove it, they turn to an unusual piece of evidence:  a tiny wad of chewing gum found near the victim’s body.

Lasting Impression

At the age of 12, a boy's testimony helped convict the man who murdered his mother.  Five years later, discrepancies in the autopsy lead him to question if the murdered woman really was his mother.  If it wasn't, an innocent man had been sent to prison.

Foundation of Lies

Some of the refugees who sought asylum in the United States after World War II lied about the atrocities in which they’d participated.  Years later, when a high-ranking religious figure was suspected of war crimes, there seemed to be no way to prove his guilt or innocence... until a postcard allegedly written by him 40 years earlier was found in a German archive.

Unholy Vows

When Russ Stager, a popular gym teacher, is found dead of what appears to be an accidental gunshot wound, his family becomes suspicious. They think his wife may have planned his murder. When police find that her previous husband died in questionable circumstances, they re-examine the crime scene and uncover evidence that the death was no accident.

Broken Promises

A Canadian financier assumed the name of a co-worker as part of a money-laundering scheme.  The man turned up dead in the ocean, with an anchor tied around his torso.  Police hoped to identify him with a tattoo and the watch he was wearing.  But it would be the ten-pound anchor which enabled them to crack the case.

Time Will Tell

Cincinnati heart surgeon Dr. Darryl Sutorius had a second chance at love when he married a pretty, young divorcee, but happiness is sometimes elusive.  Dr. Sutoruis fell into a serious depression and apparently commited suicide with a .38-caliber pistol.  But why did he fire a test shot into the sofa cushion before killing himself?

Second Shot at Love

When a prosecutor discovers evidence linking a habitual drunk driver to a hit-and-run in which a child is killed, he combines the talents of an accident reconstruction expert with a video specialist.  This case was the first in which video in the courtroom withstood an appeal, and helped make “video testimony” viable in other cases.

Journey to Justice

In 1998, a convience store clerk in Lansing, Michigan, was shot to death during a robbery.  No one else was in the store at the time.  But there was an eye witness, a security camera.  Unfortunately, the story it told was far from clear.

Video Diary

When 23-year-old college co-ed Tina Biggar goes missing, her boyfriend and family fear she has been murdered. A police investigation reveals details about her past that no one, not even her closest friends, suspected: She was a student by day and a $100-an-hour call-girl by night. Her many clients were all suspects in her disappearance, as was her boyfriend. But when her body is discovered, investigators gather evidence that implicates her killer.

Deadly Knowledge

A young woman was reported missing after a fight with her husband. She was presumed to be dead and her husband was the prime suspect. Police were suspicious of a secondary suspect when he reported a suspicious fire in his car. Two tiny drops of blood were found in the burned interior. Traditional DNA testing was difficult, since there was no body for DNA comparison. But a tiny clue inside the suspect's watchband and a popular television show helped solve the case.

Missing in Time

In 1991, Maine resident Pearl Smith is missing after an argument with her husband, Bill Bruns. Despite pleas from her children, police treat it as a routine missing person's case. But, when an investigation turns up a blood trail that leads to the couple's basement, police are certain they'll finally find the victim's body.

Missing Pearl

In 1989, 4-year-old April Loveless was found dead in the backyard of her Texas home. Her mother Debbie Loveless and step-father John Miller told police that she was attacked and killed by neighborhood dogs, but the injuries on her body didn't match their account of what happened. Investigators believed April's wounds were slashing injuries, consistent with a knife wound. John and Debbie were found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Five years later, the parent's prayers were answered when a forensic scientist saw something in the crime scene photographs that had been missed the first time around.

Man's Best Friend?

In 1995, police in San Diego, CA, are baffled by a pair of hands found in a dumpster. Through further investigation, they determine that the hands are those of missing person Don Hardin. With this knowledge, the police focus on local homeless man Dale Whitmer, whom had lived with Hardin around the time of his disappearance. However, they can find no solid, forensic evidence on Whitmer and the case goes cold. About a year later, investigators receive an anonymous letter with information about the crime that had been withheld from the press – information only the killer (or someone close to the killer) would know. Laser technology helps to identify the state, city, street address and even the office number from where the anonymous letter was mailed.

Hand Delivered

In 1993, 16-year-old Marie Robards suffered the devastating loss of her father Steve Robards. The death was ruled the result of cardiac arrest. One year later, she won a part in her high school production of Shakespeare's Hamlet. The lines she was required to recite onstage were more than the thoughts and feelings of her character; they struck a chord, and hinted at her own inner turmoil, from the secret she had been hiding.

Death Play

In 1996, 17-month-old Josh Hinson died in a fire in his North Carolina home. A federal agency ruled that a fire was intentionally set and Josh's mother Terri Strickland was charged with murder. Using the then-emerging resources of the Internet, Terri Strickland undertook her own investigation. An independent fire investigator was able to poke enough holes in the government's scientific conclusions to raise serious questions about whether the fire was intentionally set.

Fire Dot Com

In 1988, when a patient, later identified as Gene Hanson, dies unexpectedly in the office of California neurologist Richard Boggs, police begin what they think will be a routine investigation. What they find throws doubt on the time of death, the identity of Hanson and raises questions about the doctor's role in his death. Soon they uncover a bizarre story of corpse stealing, fake identities and sexual perversion – all part of an elaborate insurance case that will center on what actually caused the victim's death: a sex act gone wrong or premeditated murder?

Mistaken for Dead

In 1992, two masked gunmen enter the Canadian home of Ward and Diana Maracle to rob them, but Ward was shot in the head. If a perpetrator leaves a shoe print in the mud, investigators use established techniques to make a mold of the shoe impression for later identification. In this case, the impression is left in the snow. Here's the story of one investigator, whose quick thinking and knowledge of science enabled him to capture a shoe impression made in snow, before the evidence melted away.

Frozen Evidence

In 1992, 22-year-old Dawn Bruce was brutally raped and murdered in her Virginia apartment. The killer left very little evidence, but investigators did notice a blood smear on a pillow case that appeared to have been made by one of the killer's fingers. New technology enabled investigators to identify a fingerprint from the cloth surface of the pillow case.

Soft Touch

In 1981, six-year-old Cassie Hansen disappeared from her St. Paul, Minnesota church during a Sunday evening service. After a tip from a witness that an older man was seen carrying a small body, Cassie's body was found in a dumpster. The FBI created a psychological profile of the perpetrator, but are still unable to find the killer.

Church Disappearance

In 1995, California model Linda Sobek goes missing. A park employee discovers photographs and some vital pieces of information in a dumpster, which eventually led investigators to professional photographer Charles Rathbun. Rathbun claims Sobek died during a consensual sexual encounter gone wrong, but Sobek's corpse and some high tech digital imagery tell a more sinister story.

Photo Finish

In 1998, an evening out at a Maryland murder mystery theatre performance turns into a real life whodunit when the badly burned body of Stephen Hricko is found in his hotel room after a fire. Upon initial investigation, it appeared to be an accidental fire. Lies, greed and medical trickery can't match the skills of forensic scientists, who pull the curtain down on the real killer.

Whodunit

In 1980, Michigan resident Shannon Mohr died tragically in what was reported by her new husband, David Davis, as a horseback riding accident. Upon deeper investigation, police uncover a thread of lies in Davis' background after his suspicious behavior prompts a closer look.

Horse Play

For 15 months, a serial killer in Tampa, FL, taunts police by strangling prostitutes and leaving their bodies in plain sight, but tire marks and fibers lead to the culprit.

Treads and Threads

When Missouri police in the Great Plains were called to retrieve a dead body, they did a background check on the victim. The trail guided them into a strange thread of homeless drifters, cattle auctions and bad checks.

Killer's 'Cattle' Log

In 1994, a human skull found in an Ohio pond uncovers a ghastly crime. Markings on the skull indicate that the victim had been stabbed many times and that the teeth had been removed with needle-nose pliers in an attempt to keep the victim's identity a secret. Forensic scientists use DNA matches to indentify the skull.

Skin of Her Teeth

In 1996, when a fundamentalist group is accused of robbing banks in the Spokane, WA area, authorities know immediately they are dealing with experienced criminals. A tip leads them to the alleged perpetrators and the evidence found at their homes is extensive. But in court, this wealth of evidence must withstand a well-funded defense.

Line of Fire

In 1992, in a rural Canadian community, Dr. John Schneeberger is accused of sedating and sexually assaulting two of his female patients. DNA tests show him to be innocent, but the women persist with their claims; 7 years later, a private investigation leads to a surprising discovery.

Bad Blood

Creating a “profile” of a serial killer is part science and part intuition. The science involves studying criminals who have committed similar crimes, to see what characteristics they have in common. In a search for the killer of two teenagers in Texas, a behavioral profile led to a possible suspect - and hard science proved the profile was correct; it shows a behavioral study on how most serial killers also have a history of abusing animals.

Pure Evil

In 1981, Charlotte Grabbe, the estranged wife of prominent Illinois farmer Fred Grabbe, disappeared from her farm without a trace. His former lover comes forward with an outlandish tale of rage, murder, mutilation and cremation. The tests of a plant pathologist and a dendrochronologist lead to a surprising revelation.

Root of All Evil

In 1987, Susie Mowbray was charged for her husband Bill Mowbray's death, which had the appearance of suicide. Her son was so convinced of her innocence that he enrolled in law school to try and clear her name.

Where the Blood Drops

In 1994, 67-year-old grandmother Rhoda Nathan was found murdered in a Cincinnati hotel room. When a patient in a hospital emergency room said he cut his hand on a dumpster, the doctor treating the injury recognizes it as something else -- and soon because the chief witness and a murder case.

Punch Line

In 1991, San Francisco pornographer Artie Mitchell was murdered in his home. His brother and business partner Jim is found near the scene carrying a rifle and, later, confesses to shooting Artie. The question for investigators is whether the shooting was pre-meditated. A 911 call in which the fatal shots can be heard, and a computer reconstruction of the crime scene, provide the answer.

Sibling Rivalry

In 1981, New York correctional officer Donna Payant disappeared and her body was later found in a landfill; investigators suspect the prisoners in the facility where she worked. The medical examiner uses a "signature" clue to link her death to a murder the same examiner investigated 10 years earlier.

Pastoral Care

In 1999, 9-year-old Valiree Jackson vanishes on her way to school near Spokane, WA. The entire community helps with the search; detectives believe her long-lost mother might be connected to the disappearance. The Secret Service finds a hidden fingerprint that helps detectives seal the case.

Bagging a Killer

The investigation of a murder case in New Jersey is stalled until a strikingly similar attack occurs in 1995, to off-duty Maine State Trooper Vicky Gardner during a routine stop.

Double Trouble

In 1989, 19-year-old mother Lori Auker left her Pennsylvania home for work, but never arrived. It takes space-age technology, cat hairs and insects to help build an image of the woman's abductor.

Cats, Flies, and Snapshots

In 1999, expectant mother Leann Fletcher is reported dead in her Michigan home of an accidental gunshot wound to the head. Was the wound self-inflicted, and if it was, why would this young mother, with so much to live for, kill herself? Forensic computer analysis, blood spatter analysis and a painstaking investigation leads police to the truth.

Naked Justice

In 1980, 4-year-old Vicky Lyons is found unconscious in a parking lot with severe head trauma. Police concluded it was a hit-and-run vehicle accident and closed the case. But Vicky's mother, Crystal, suspected there was more to the story and was determined to find out exactly what had happened.

The Best Seasons of Forensic Files

The Best Seasons of Forensic Files

Season 3

Season 4

Season 14

Season 5

Season 13

Season 9

Season 6

Season 10

Season 1

Season 11

Season 12

Season 7

Season 8

Season 2