Citation

Brown KM, Keppel RD. J. Forensic Sci. 2012; 57(2): 353-363.

Affiliation

Department of Criminal Justice, Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, American Society for Testing and Materials, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1556-4029.2011.01970.x

PMID

22103801

Abstract

This study examined 733 child abduction murders (CAMs) occurring from 1968 to 2002 to explore the influence of forensic evidence on case solvability in CAM investigations. It was hypothesized that the presence of forensic evidence connecting the offender to the crime would enhance case solvability in murder investigations of abducted children. This study examined the impact of CAM of different types of forensic evidence and the impact of the summed total of forensic evidence items on case solvability by controlling for victim age, victim race, victim gender, and victim-offender relationship. Time and distance theoretical predictors were also included. Binomial logistic regression models were used to determine whether forensic evidence was a critical solvability factor in murder investigations of abducted children. This research indicated that, while forensic evidence increased case solvability, the impact of forensic evidence on solvability was not as important as other solvability factors examined.

Language: en