AKA 137F Strikes Again (Brook Baker & Erika Norman)
How a Cold-Case DNA Match Reopened Vincennes University Murder Investigations
This episode follows a years-long investigation that linked multiple campus-era homicides through careful forensic work and dogged police persistence. A mysterious DNA profile labeled 137F haunted investigators until a DNA match finally identified Brian Jones as the contributor of semen in one victim, and subsequent trace evidence tied him to another missing student.
Discovery of trace evidence that changed the investigation
A routine apartment-check for running water led to missing-student reports and a search of last-known contacts. Forensic technicians found a thumbprint-sized reddish smear in the trunk of a suspect’s car and brownish streaks hidden in a shower frame. Laboratory testing confirmed the blood belonged to a missing woman, shifting the probe from suspicion to probable homicide.
Investigative techniques for cold-case DNA and trace evidence
Investigators used reverse DNA comparisons with parents, dental identification of badly decomposed remains, and exhaustive timeline reconstruction. The team revisited old crime scenes, served search warrants, disassembled fixtures for microscopic trappings, and prioritized small bits of material that often survive attempts to clean crime scenes.
Courtroom strategy and prosecuting without a body
Prosecutors structured the trial to emphasize scientific certainty. They built the case around the DNA analyst and pathologist as primary witnesses, used fingernail scrapeings and eyewitness scratches as corroboration, and leveraged a guilty plea in a separate murder to impeach the defendant’s credibility if he testified. The episode also explains the legal complexity of seeking life-without-parole and how prior convictions can influence sentencing phases.
Collaboration, timing, and the human cost
Federal, state and local agencies coordinated arrests and evidence processing, including a dramatic arrest arranged while a prosecutor was on military duty. The episode underscores the emotional toll on families, the endurance required by investigators to reopen cold files, and how one new lead can resolve multiple cases years later.
- Key investigative themes: trace evidence, reverse DNA, dental identification, coroner procedures, and strategic prosecutions.
- Operational lesson: small, overlooked materials in cars and shower frames often yield decisive human-identifying evidence.
Read on for a close look at specific takeaways and actionable insights from this multifaceted criminal investigation.
Key points
- Collect reverse DNA from relatives to confirm blood from a missing person in a small trunk smear.
- Search shower frames and metal gutters for drained biological material during forensic warrants.
- Use fingernail scrapings as corroborative DNA evidence linking a suspect to a violent struggle.
- Build trial narratives around the DNA analyst and pathologist as primary, factual witnesses.
- Impeach defendant credibility by using separate guilty pleas if the suspect chooses to testify.
- Reconstruct detailed timelines and last-seen accounts when no body is immediately recovered.
- Pursue interagency coordination quickly when cold-case DNA matches suggest an active serial offender.
