Using Genetic Genealogy To Identify Unknown Crime Victims, Sometimes Decades Later

The latest DNA technology combined with the study of family history has given law enforcement agencies across the country new ways to solve decades-old crimes.

In at least two high-profile cases, the combination has identified killers who have gone undetected for decades. Most famously, Joseph DeAngelo, the so-called Golden State Killer, was arrested in April 2018 and now faces multiple charges of murder and rape that go back decades. DeAngelo was arrested after police used public genealogy databases to link him to DNA from the crime scenes.

In a second case, in Fort Wayne, Ind., police used genetic genealogy to arrest and charge John Miller. He murdered and sexually assaulted 8-year-old April Tinsley in 1988. Police initially recovered DNA samples at the scene, but were unable to do much with the samples.

Thirty years later, Fort Wayne investigators were able to make genetic matches to two brothers living near Fort Wayne. Officers then ran a DNA test, and yielded an exact match with one of the brothers, John Miller. They arrested Miller, who pleaded guilty. He was sentenced in December and is now serving an 80-year prison sentence.