An upscale apparel store in Bethesda, Md., is the site of a gruesome scene when an employee is killed and her co-worker is battered and tied up, but surveillance video and blood evidence shed further light on the crime.
Eight days after she disappeared on her way to a family ski trip, an 18-year-old woman's partially nude body is found floating in a river in Wyoming; years later, DNA technology uncovers dark secrets that led to her demise.
California police are baffled when an innocent man's DNA is found at the scene of a deadly home invasion, and authorities team with the man's defense attorney.
A young Colorado mother suddenly vanishes on Thanksgiving, but when police trace her cell phone, it leads them to a surprising character with an even more surprising story.
A young mother is found murdered in her home and there are two suspects with ample motive, but an unusual interview and security camera footage have investigators puzzled.
After the discovery of the brutal murder of an 18-year-old desk clerk of a beachfront condo, analysts use brand-new mitochondrial DNA technology to prove the killer's identity.
July Fourth weekend leads to tragedy for a California family; to catch a killer, detectives utilize an unorthodox technique -- analyzing bug fragments -- to help put a murderer behind bars.
When the 20-year-old clerk of an Atlanta-area smoke shop is gunned down during a robbery, investigators have only descriptions of the killers and the make of their getaway car; investigators use a videotaped confession to smoke out the killers.
A massive explosion claims the life of a California farmhand, and authorities think it's an accidental death, but analysis of debris shows it's a bomb; investigators have few suspects until they hear ominous rumors about a jealous rage.
When a beautiful college student is stabbed to death in her Knoxville apartment, suspicion immediately falls on her roommate; a bloody shoe print left by the killer exposes a murderer with no history of violence and no reason to kill.
An Illinois mother and her two young children are brutally murdered in their beds, and lurid threats are spray painted all over the walls of the crime scene.
A young Texas teenager and her boyfriend are brutally attacked on Valentine's Day; she is found dead while her boyfriend escapes; the case goes cold for nearly 50 years before a new forensic test exposes a family man with a dark secret.
A Texan who vows to live a reformed life after being released from prison is subsequently convicted of murder, despite insisting his innocence, so he uses forensic science from behind bars to try to prove his case.
An extremely successful California career woman keeps falling ill and doctors can't determine why, then after she dies they still have no explanation until they find a key figure in her life has been lying about his past.
The body of a 24-year-old criminology student is found wrapped in a blanket alongside a desolate road in Brooklyn, N.Y.; police discover that the bouncer at a bar is her killer.
When a 79-year-old woman is found shot to death in her home, investigators initially suspect her husband or a violent neighbor; shell casings recovered at the scene and a high-tech database reveal an unlikely killer.
A young single mother is abducted from a gas station and is later found stabbed to death near an oil field; the detectives use shoe and tire impressions to weed out numerous suspects.
When a 23-year-old Marine dies in his bedroom, doctors initially believe a heart attack is to blame; when arsenic is found in his organs, his wife is charged with murder; a sharp attorney and toxicological testing uncover the truth.
When an 18-year-old girl is abducted while talking on a pay phone, forensic evidence found on her clothing points police in the direction of a suspect who shockingly confesses that he didn't act alone.
Patients at the VA Hospital in Clarksburg, W.Va., keep dying after experiencing shockingly low blood sugar levels; an investigation into their deaths reveals an overnight nurse was injecting patients with lethal doses of insulin.
A 70-year-old retired veteran is found dead on his boat after a bad sea storm; detectives discover he was killed during an attempted robbery after winning $400 in keno.
The murder of teacher's aide leaves a hole in the heart of her small community; as rumors spread about suspects, the actual perpetrator slips further away.
A single mom vanishes without a trace; foul play is confirmed when a truck toolbox opens with her body inside; homicide detectives investigate men she matched on dating sites, men from work, and a lover with a violent past.
A 20-year-old woman sets out on her bike and never returns; her body is found a few miles from her house with a gunshot wound to the head; years go by without any evidence or leads, until new investigators and technology breaks the case.
A navy lieutenant is murdered while deployed out to sea; arsenic poisoning is the cause of death; investigators discover he had more than his fair share of enemies, but it takes years before investigators discover what really happened to him.
A building manager finds the lifeless body of a young woman in the bathtub; when questioned, an ex-con living downstairs lies to police; the lies do not prove murder and the case goes cold, then a new forensic tool examines the evidence.
A wounded woman crawls to call 911; her husband, who wants a divorce, gets a hard look from police, but he has an airtight alibi during the murder; forensic science of ballistics draws a direct connection.
A murder victim's final moments are caught on tape; the crime scene looks like a clear robbery-murder; text evidence at first points to a jilted lover, but police identify a second suspect with a possible motive of deadly revenge.
A religious woman is shot execution style in the suburbs of Michigan; surveillance video reveals it was trio of killers; eventually, detectives get a break: a handwritten note.
When a house fire kills the only doctor in a small town, an arson investigation leads to the son of the doctor's nurse; when his alleged accomplice walks free, the prosecutor worries this might have been a miscarriage of justice.
A young woman is found murdered on the side of a rural driveway; the victim had been out with friends; the investigation would remain unsolved; until three decades later, when forensics from an unrelated crime helps break the case.
He is a sex offender and a murderer who attacks in a terrifying rage; this predator manages to evade capture for years, but he leaves evidence behind, his palm print; detectives are determined to put a face to the print.
A hearing impaired 77-year-old on a road trip is shot to death because the man cannot hear his assailant's demands; random murders are among the hardest crimes to solve, but investigators are determined to bring this case to justice.
A young woman's naked body is discovered in a remote area leading forensic investigators on a search for clues to her identity and the identity of her killer.
An insurance agent is shot execution style in his office, but the killer leaves no fingerprints, and there are no murder weapon found at the scene; then investigators discover a critical clue invisible to the naked eye that cracks the case.