Cold Cases: Famous Unsolved Mysteries, Crimes, and Disappearances in America

This book explicitly chronicles 40 cases of unsolved murders and disappearances over a period of more than 160 years, tracing the evolution of criminal investigation and forensic techniques.
Murders and other violent crimes often leave an indelible mark on society. The 18th-century murder of "Beautiful Cigar Girl" Mary Rogers helped the then newly emerging tabloid papers become a fixture in the United States. The Federal Aviation Administration was spurred into requiring electronic screening of passengers and carry-on luggage by a series of highly-publicized hijackings. Abductions of youth gave birth to Amber Alerts and advertising missing children on milk cartons. And popular TV shows like Law and Order, CSI, and Cold Case document our fascination with police investigations, heinous criminals, and the complicated aftermath of their actions.

This book examines 40 well-known cases of unsolved murders and suspected abductions over a period of over 160 years. Cases are organized chronologically to give readers insight into the evolution of criminal investigation techniques and forensics in the last century and a half. Later chapters detail how modern forensics were used in attempts to solve old cold cases or helped generate new leads.

• 40 chapters document all the major unsolved murders and disappearances of the 19th and 20th centuries
• A complete chronology of unsolved murders and disappearances from 1841 to 2003, illustrating how murder investigations and forensic science have advanced
• 31 photographs depict the victims of unsolved murders and disappearances portrayed in this book
• Bibliography of books, magazine and newspaper articles, and websites about unsolved murders and disappearances
• Includes an appendix detailing milestones in the development of forensic techniques, from a Chinese text from 1248 explaining the differences between death by drowning and by strangulation, to the modern use of DNA