starcasm.net

Menu
  • TOP CATEGORIES
    • 90 Day Fiance
    • Love After Lockup
    • Below Deck
    • True Crime
    • Real Housewives of Beverly Hills
    • Movies
    • My 600-lb Life
    • YouTube
    • Sister Wives
    • Unexpected
    • Teen Mom 2
    • Before the 90 Days
    • Real Estate
    • Seeking Sister Wife
    • Teen Mom
    • Love & Hip Hop
  • About Us, Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Article submission
  • Home
  • About Us – AUTHOR BIOS & CONTACT INFO
  • Privacy Policy
  • Article Submission

DATELINE ‘Evil Was Watching’ How forensic genealogy cracked a cold case

Amelia Cunningham April 5, 2019 Dateline, True Crime

Tonight’s episode of Dateline, “Evil Was Waiting,” explores how a 30-year-old murder cased was cracked in 2018 with the help of forensic genealogy – a relatively new scientific tool to link DNA to names.



13-year-old Jennifer Bastian was raped and killed on August 4, 1986 at Point Defiance park in Tacoma, Washington while she was riding her bike. The details of her death were very similar to that of 12-year-old Michella Welch, who had been murdered while riding her bike at another park four months before, and for a while the two girls were suspected to have been killed by the same man. In 2016, however, DNA evidence revealed that different people had murdered each girl.

In May, 2018 60-year-old Robert Washburn, who had long been a suspect of both murders, was charged with the murder of Jennifer Bastian. Back in 1986 Washburn told police that he saw a man near the area of where Michella was murdered, which raised their suspicion of him. He also told police that he had noticed a “foul smell” in Point Defiance Park near where Jennifer’s body was eventually found.




When his ex-wife Cindy Stephens found out her ex-husband was charged in the 30-year-old murder, she was completely shocked. “They put my ex-husband up there [on TV,] and I just about died,” she said. “This is raw for me. This is upsetting. All I know is that was my ex-husband, all right? We never saw this coming. He was always gentle.”

Dateline spoke with Colleen Fitzpatrick, Ph.D. about how DNA, especially DNA with a y chromosome, can be used to find a killer’s name. There is now a voluntary website called GEDmatch that allows people to share their genealogical DNA data they receive from any company like Ancestry.com or 23andme in a database specifically set up for genealogists for genealogists.

There are now about a million people in the database, which is enough to get valuable forensic information. If they have DNA information for a male criminal, forensic genealogists can use the y chromosome to track down their potential family name. This type of forensic science is now being more widely used and even helped track down the identity of the Golden State Killer.




Amelia Cunningham is a Starcasm writer and editor @AmeliaStarcasm



shopify
analytics


Related

Tweet
Pin It

Related Posts

DATELINE Cara Rintala retrial in Massachussets murder hinges on cold premeditation

TRUE CRIME The Turpin children went from one house of horrors to another

VIDEO Detective Rod Demery explains the ‘closure’ he got from forgiving his mother’s murderer

About The Author

Amelia Cunningham

Popular Posts

  • RHONJ What has Teresa Guidice’s fiancé Luis …
    May 17, 2022 •
  • Teen Mom Young and Pregnant Kiaya Elliott arrested
    TEEN MOM Kiaya Elliott arrested on firearm …
    April 27, 2021 •
  • Seeking Sister Wife Christeline Peteresen accuses Ashley and Dimitri Snowden of domestic abuse, gets restraining orders against both
    Seeking Sister Wife’s Christeline says Ashley & …
    April 27, 2021 •
  • Teen Mom 2 Jade Cline's baby dadd Sean Austin as Seanye West
    TEEN MOM 2 Jade Cline’s ex Sean …
    April 28, 2021 •
  • Seeking Sister Wife Tayler and Tosha show support for Christeline after Snowden abuse allegations
    Seeking Sister Wife’s Tayler & Tosha show …
    April 28, 2021 •

Recent Posts

  • RHONJ What has Teresa Guidice’s fiancé Luis …
    May 17, 2022 •
  • 911 dispatcher hung up on Buffalo shooting …
    May 17, 2022 •
  • Justin Long has a harrowing story about …
    May 17, 2022 •
  • Whitney Way Thore returns for My Big Fat Fabulous Life Season 10 on August 9 2022
    My Big Fat Fabulous Life Season 10 …
    May 16, 2022 •
  • Teen Mom Young and Pregnant Kiaya Elliott's son Amour's dad X'Zayveon released from prison
    TEEN MOM Kiaya Elliott’s baby daddy X’Zayveon …
    May 16, 2022 •
starcasm.net Copyright © 2022.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT