The Forever Witness By Ed Humes

 

I am not afraid to say that I have a thing about True Crime - whether it is documentaries, podcasts or books.  I love it.  Which can be weird considering what I do for work and really not letting me have a break from what I do but whatever, who cares, it's fun.  This book seemed fascinating in light of how the Golden State Killer was found.  So I got it.  And it was worth it. Ed Humes won the Pulitzer Prize for this, I'm pretty sure. 

In this book, Humes looks at the 1987 killings of two *really* young Canadians in the Seattle area (which is like serial killer Mecca - thanks Ted Bundy) and how DNA genealogy led to the capture and conviction of the killer. I was captivated about the crime and families themselves.  The story was captivating and sad and gripping. It is also the story about a dogged detective who was dedicated to solving a decades old offense. 

This book is truly unique. It has it all: true crime, forensics, police procedural and yet, it remained captivating and easily accessible. I was worried that I would get lost in the mud that can be DNA and science, but Humes didn't do that.  He kept it simple and interesting for all of us peons. I had to keep reminding myself that in 1987, the Internet wasn't a thing and neither were cell phones or Ring doorbell cameras or anything like that.  Neither was the DNA evidence that was big before our most recent spate of DNA testing. There was certainly no GPS tracking. Border crossings were a joke in the pre-9/11 world.  Information exchanges between departments moved as quickly, MAYBE, as a fax.  

Perhaps the most important takeaway from this book was the ethical discussion that comes into play related to DNA collection.  So many people use sites like Ancestry.com and 23 and Me. Those companies, therefore, have massive databases of stored information from which to compare and contrast DNA samples then from different crime scenes. There is inevitable tension between the desire to solve a crime and the last bits of privacy that someone might have in their most prized bodily possession -- their DNA. What's the right answer? Is there a right answer? Who makes that decision?  This part of the book fascinated me to no end. 

Definitely a must read. You can find this book on Amazon, or at your local retailer or library. Definitely recommended.