DNA evidence
Subject in True Crime
DNA evidence has come up in 20 episodes across 6 podcasts in TMT, including 20/20, Crime Junkie, Morbid. 11 people have made recorded remarks about it.
What people said
Ashley FlowersCreator and host of the true crime podcast Crime Junkie and founder of Audiochuck
Flowers argues that genetic genealogy from mixed DNA samples is difficult, and that underrepresented populations in databases can make identification slow or impossible.
“there are so many populations of people who are underrepresented in these databases that take forever to find if you find them at all”
Crime Junkie: EXCLUSIVE: Nancy Guthrie (Jul 22, 2026) · Listen from 37:58
Flowers reports the sheriff acknowledged DNA from the shower that does not belong to anyone who lived in the house.
“He acknowledges that there is DNA they're still looking at, that DNA recovered from the shower that doesn't belong to someone who lived in that house”
Crime Junkie: MURDERED: Brittany McGlone (May 4, 2026) · Listen from 53:28
Flowers reports that the underwear seized from Carr's residence appeared to have been washed, preventing a definitive link to Brittany.
“it seemed like the underwear had been washed by the time that investigators got a hold of them”
Crime Junkie: MURDERED: Brittany McGlone (May 4, 2026) · Listen from 41:12
John HeinzelmanScottsdale Police Department detective who led the Feldman murder investigation
Heinzelman said the test of Ian Mitchum's retained blood sample was a full match to the PMH stain and all scene DNA.
“This is a 100% match to our PMH, to all the DNA in the scene”
20/20: Home Alone (Oct 3, 2026) · Listen from 52:27
Heinzelman described the PMH stain on the dining room floor as the item that stood out from everything else at the scene.
“It was the sore thumb that sticks out amongst everything else”
20/20: Home Alone (Oct 3, 2026) · Listen from 24:26
Kathleen ZellnerAmerican criminal defense and wrongful-conviction attorney
Zellner said the key lesson of the case is to perform testing before making an arrest.
“If you want to take away one thought in this case is do the test before you make the arrest”
20/20: True Crime Vault: The Accused (Sep 22, 2026) · Listen from 53:30
Zellner said jurors will convict a defendant who has confessed unless there is DNA evidence.
“jurors are going to convict somebody who's confessed to something unless you've got DNA evidence”
20/20: True Crime Vault: The Accused (Sep 22, 2026) · Listen from 51:19
Matt MurphyFormer prosecutor quoted asking where the district attorney is in the Guthrie case
Murphy explained that modern sensitive equipment makes DNA mixtures common on nearly every swab.
“you get a DNA mixture on just about every swab. It's almost becoming rare that you'll have a single source DNA”
The Megyn Kelly Show: Judge Graf Shows ZERO Confidence Despite MOUNTAINS of Evidence in Tyler Robinson Hearing, Lance Twiggs DOWNPLAYS His "Trans" Identity, w/ Aronberg, Frei, Eiglarsh, Murphy & Spilbor | Ep. 1357 (Jul 10, 2026) · Listen from 59:38
Murphy said Twiggs's DNA on evidence is not sufficient to charge him without proof he helped before or after the crime.
“you really need to show that there was some sort of something beforehand or even after where he's helping. The DNA is not enough for me”
The Megyn Kelly Show: The Full BOMBSHELL Lance Twiggs Video, Plus New Robinson Texts Revealed, with Geragos, Murphy, Aronberg, Eiglarsh, and Frei | Ep. 1356 (Jul 9, 2026) · Listen from 1:06:17
Alaina UrquhartCo-host of Morbid, autopsy technician and author of the Butcher novels
Urquhart predicts that DNA will connect Bundy to additional victims.
“i wouldn't be surprised if we get more i think just with dna that he he's wildly prolific”
Morbid: The Rescue of Baby Jessica McClure (Apr 6, 2026) · Listen from 8:28
Urquhart says DNA testing definitively linked Ted Bundy to the 1974 victim through a single instance of male DNA found on her body.
“But now DNA has definitively linked him. They were able to find one, basically one instance of male DNA that matched him”
Morbid: The Rescue of Baby Jessica McClure (Apr 6, 2026) · Listen from 9:33
Tara AugustinMontgomery County Police cold case detective who reopened the Prier case
Augustin said the lab returned the DNA match from the water bottle within a week.
“we obtained the sample on a Sunday, and by Friday, we had a report saying that it was a match”
20/20: First Comes Love, Then Comes Murder (Rebroadcast) (Jul 25, 2026) · Listen from 1:04:35
Briana WhitneyBreaking news reporter for Crime Junkie, formerly a reporter at Arizona's Family in Phoenix
Whitney reports that the sheriff acknowledged investigators had discarded their own gloves at the scene while the public searched for the abductor's gloves.
“the sheriff basically came out and was like, oh, well, like, our investigators, like, disposed of gloves”
Crime Junkie: EXCLUSIVE: Nancy Guthrie (Jul 22, 2026) · Listen from 34:24
Megyn KellyConservative broadcaster and podcaster
Kelly says reports that Twiggs's DNA predominated on the towel and screwdriver were misinformation not supported by the testimony.
“people were running with a report that it was predominantly Lance Twigg's DNA on this towel and this screwdriver”
The Megyn Kelly Show: The Robinson-Twiggs DNA Evidence, and Assassination Culture, with Jack Posobiec, Sean Davis, and Sohrab Ahmari | Ep. 1355 (Jul 8, 2026) · Listen from 36:38
Jack PosobiecConservative commentator, Human Events senior editor and Turning Point USA contributor
Posobiec suggests that Twiggs's minor DNA share on the towel and screwdriver is unsurprising since the two were roommates sharing household items.
“they were roommates, had towels that had shared DNA from touch DNA or just towels that are in the same bathroom, that's something that's pretty common, I think”
The Megyn Kelly Show: The Robinson-Twiggs DNA Evidence, and Assassination Culture, with Jack Posobiec, Sean Davis, and Sohrab Ahmari | Ep. 1355 (Jul 8, 2026) · Listen from 40:39
Rick GoffDenise Lee's father, longtime detective with the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office
Rick Goff said Denise deliberately hid her ring and pulled out hair with roots in the car to leave DNA evidence.
“She pulled hair out by the roots and stuck them under the back seats. She knew about DNA, had to have the roots and stuff”
20/20: Her Last Call (Jun 20, 2026) · Listen from 1:12:22
Mark VeazeyFBI special agent who investigated Teresa Parker's disappearance
Veazey says the back of Teresa's SUV had been visibly vacuumed, indicating someone cleaned it.
“The back of the 4Runner had been obviously vacuumed. You could see the vacuum marks”
48 Hours: The Secret (May 27, 2026) · Listen from 17:21
Coverage over time
Podcasts
- 20/20 · 7 episodes
- Crime Junkie · 5 episodes
- Morbid · 3 episodes
- The Megyn Kelly Show · 3 episodes
- My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark · 1 episode
- 48 Hours · 1 episode
Episodes
Home Alone20/20 · Oct 3, 2026 · 1 h 26 min
John Quiñones reports on the 2015 murder of Allison Feldman in Scottsdale, solved through Arizona's first use of familial DNA and contested in court.
The Salem Strangler20/20 · Sep 26, 2026 · 1 h 27 min
20/20 recounts the 1986 strangling of Salem State student Claire Gravel and how a similar 2007 attack and DNA led to John Carey's conviction.
True Crime Vault: The Accused20/20 · Sep 22, 2026 · 1 h 24 min
David Muir revisits the 2004 murder of three-year-old Riley Fox, her father's coerced false confession, his DNA exoneration, and the FBI's identification of killer Scott Eby.
MURDERED: Joyce LePage Part 2Crime Junkie · Jul 27, 2026 · 47 min
Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat examine the remaining suspects in the 1971 murder of WSU student Joyce LePage, including her roommate Bruce Bierbaum.
First Comes Love, Then Comes Murder (Rebroadcast)20/20 · Jul 25, 2026 · 1 h 23 min
20/20 recounts the 2001 murder of Leslie Prier in Chevy Chase, Maryland, solved 23 years later when genetic genealogy and an airport DNA sting identified her daughter's ex-boyfriend.
EXCLUSIVE: Nancy GuthrieCrime Junkie · Jul 22, 2026 · 54 min
Crime Junkie reporter Briana Whitney and Ashley Flowers revisit the Nancy Guthrie abduction six months on: ransom notes, investigative missteps, and a 'wrench attack' theory.
Where Are You Jacob?20/20 · Jul 18, 2026 · 1 h 27 min
Deborah Roberts revisits the 1989 abduction of 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling with his parents, survivor Jared Scheierl, blogger Joy Baker and investigators who ultimately identified Danny Heinrich.
The Green River Killer - Gary Ridgway (Part 4)Morbid · Jul 16, 2026 · 1 h 42 min
Alaina Urquhart and Ash Kelley conclude their series on Gary Ridgway, covering his later victims, DNA identification, arrest, plea deal, confessions and sentencing.
- The Green River Killer - Gary Ridgway (Part 3)
Morbid · Jul 13, 2026 · 1 h 15 min
Morbid hosts Alaina Urquhart and Ash Kelley continue the Green River Killer case, covering 1984–85 victim discoveries, Ted Bundy's consultation, and recent DNA identifications.
Judge Graf Shows ZERO Confidence Despite MOUNTAINS of Evidence in Tyler Robinson Hearing, Lance Twiggs DOWNPLAYS His "Trans" Identity, w/ Aronberg, Frei, Eiglarsh, Murphy & Spilbor | Ep. 1357The Megyn Kelly Show · Jul 10, 2026 · 1 h 44 min
Megyn Kelly and legal analysts Dave Aronberg, Viva Frei, Matt Murphy, Mark Eiglarsh and Jonna Spilbor dissect day five of Tyler Robinson's preliminary hearing.