See how experts put together the pieces of the crime puzzle. As each episode shows, every criminal leaves a clue behind. Each show features a different forensic technique.
Table of Contents
#1 – Shoe-in For Murder
Season 13 – Episode 42
Terrified, the young girl hid in her bedroom while her mother was attacked and stabbed to death. Investigators had a wealth of evidence: shoe impressions, distinctive blood drops, and the killer’s DNA. What they didn’t have was a basis for comparison. Originally aired as Season 13, Episode 41.
The episode was rated from 10 votes.
#2 – Grounds for Indictment
Season 8 – Episode 35
A drive-by shooting leaves one man dead and another seriously wounded. Cell phone calls and shell casings point to a suspect, but authorities are unable to place him at the crime scene. When a forensic geologist compared soil from the crime scene with soil found in the wheel wells of the suspect’s car, he proved that dirt is anything but dumb. Originally aired as Season 8, Episode 35.
The episode was rated from 24 votes.
#3 – Family Interrupted
Season 13 – Episode 43
The gunman opened fire as the family of four entered their home, killing two and wounding the others. He’d pulled open a few drawers to make it look like a robbery, but the scene was clearly staged. When police pieced together the clues, they discovered an unlikely suspect and a carefully orchestrated plot. Originally aired as Season 13, Episode 42.
The episode was rated from 12 votes.
#4 – Office Visit
Season 13 – Episode 40
A respected surgeon was stabbed to death in the parking lot next to his office. The most likely suspect is seen having dinner in a restaurant at the time of the murder. But a cryptic conversation leads police to believe that, while the suspect may not have wielded the knife, he could very well have hired the man who did. Originally aired as Season 13, Episode 40.
The episode was rated from 15 votes.
#5 – Saving Face
Season 9 – Episode 23
A woman disappeared without a trace, leaving two possible explanations: kidnapping or murder. Concern was heightened when police learned that two other women had similarly vanished. An investigation including DNA profiling and a talented forensic artist enabled police to link the crimes to a single suspect – an immigrant known to prey on vulnerable women. Originally aired as Season 9, Episode 23.
The episode was rated from 26 votes.
#6 – Moss, Not Grass
Season 10 – Episode 29
A young woman was found dead on a golf course in the Bahamas. The grass on that course was so distinctive that it had evidentiary value. The evidence led police to two suspects. Each blamed the other, and they had to find out who the killer was. Originally aired as Season 10, Episode 29.
The episode was rated from 16 votes.
#7 – Frozen In Time
Season 7 – Episode 22
A young woman stopped her car along a busy highway in California. She was never seen again. For three years, the search for her where-abouts continued, but the trail eventually turned cold. So cold that forensic scientists needed new techniques to solve it.
The episode was rated from 12 votes.
#8 – Needle in a Haystack
Season 13 – Episode 28
There was no apparent reason for a young, healthy college student to be dead. But when the medical examiner found a tiny clue during the autopsy, investigators were able to unravel a mystery of betrayal and revenge.
The episode was rated from 12 votes.
#9 – Northern Exposure
Season 9 – Episode 24
Hikers near Anchorage, Alaska discovered a body wrapped in sheets that were edged in orange stitching. Authorities hydrated the fingers and obtained a fingerprint, enabling them to identify the victim. Clinging to the sheet, they also discovered a tuft of red carpet fibers – threads of evidence that led them straight to the killer. Originally aired as Season 9, Episode 24.
The episode was rated from 26 votes.
#10 – Seperation Anxiety
Season 13 – Episode 39
Attempting to dispose of the body by incinerating it proved to be one of many mistakes… culminating in the killer’s grainy image in security video being brought into sharp focus by something ordinary and everywhere: a store discount card.
The episode was rated from 8 votes.