She didn't stumble into cold case forensics: she invented it.

Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick is a nuclear physicist, former rocket scientist, and the founder of California-based Identifinders International, and she's the woman who pioneered the technique now known as forensic investigative genetic genealogy. Adam sits down with Colleen to trace her remarkable journey from laser science and space shuttle research to building family trees that catch killers, and hears how she cracked cases that had defeated generations of detectives, including the 20-year-old murder of teenager Sarah Yarborough and Australia's most enduring mystery, the Somerton Man.

Colleen pulls back the curtain on how FIG actually works, the limits of commercial DNA databases, and why the technology is only getting more powerful. And she and Adam share a fascinating conversation about a potential future project - using genetic genealogy to identify and repatriate human remains taken from colonial Zimbabwe, currently sitting nameless in British museums. If you've got a skeleton in your closet, Dr Colleen Fitzpatrick will find it.

Identifinders International Website: https://identifinders.com/

GEDmatch Website: https://www.gedmatch.com/

She didn't stumble into cold case forensics: she invented it.
Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick is a nuclear physicist, former rocket scientist, and the founder of California-based Identifinders International, and she's the woman who pioneered the technique now known as forensic investigative genetic genealogy. Adam sits down with Colleen to trace her remarkable journey from laser science and space shuttle research to building family trees that catch killers, and hears how she cracked cases that had defeated generations of detectives, including the 20-year-old murder of teenager Sarah Yarborough and Australia's most enduring mystery, the Somerton Man.
Colleen pulls back the curtain on how FIG actually works, the limits of commercial DNA databases, and why the technology is only getting more powerful. And she and Adam share a fascinating conversation about a potential future project - using genetic genealogy to identify and repatriate human remains taken from colonial Zimbabwe, currently sitting nameless in British museums. If you've got a skeleton in your closet, Dr Colleen Fitzpatrick will find it.
<a href="https://identifinders.com/">Identifinders International Website</a>: <a href="https://identifinders.com/">https://identifinders.com/</a>
<a href="https://www.gedmatch.com/">GEDmatch Website</a>: <a href="https://www.gedmatch.com/">https://www.gedmatch.com/</a>

Join investigative journalist Adam Shand each week as he takes you into his world of real crime, honed from forty years of covering Australia's biggest law and order stories. These are the firsthand stories of the cops, robbers, and victims who lived them.

Join investigative journalist Adam Shand each week as he takes you into his world of real crime, honed from forty years of covering Australia's biggest law and order stories. These are the firsthand stories of the cops, robbers, and victims who lived them.

Real Crime with Adam Shand

Join investigative journalist Adam Shand each week as he takes you into his world of real crime, honed from forty years of covering Australia's biggest law and order stories. These are the firsthand stories of the cops, robbers, and victims who lived them. 

Join investigative journalist Adam Shand each week as he takes you into his world of real crime, honed from forty years of covering Australia's biggest law and order stories. These are the firsthand stories of the cops, robbers, and victims who lived them.&nbsp;

The Woman Who Invented Cold Case DNA | Dr Colleen Fitzpatrick

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/2fb3740d-3436-44af-8cc0-a91900716aa5/clips/b9a972ff-1c3b-4670-95af-b46000627068/transcript

For nearly six years, Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty commanded the New South Wales Homicide Squad, overseeing more than 450 murders, a wave of organised crime killings, and some of the most complex mass-casualty investigations in the state's recent history, including Bondi Junction.

Now retired after a 40-year career, Danny sits down with Adam Shand to pull back the curtain on what it actually takes to run one of Australia's most demanding policing units. They cover the investigative "surge" model that put almost every organised crime murder before the courts in a single year; why the first 48 hours has given way to the first two weeks; the psychology of killers who refuse to give up a body — from Bruce Burrell to Chris Dawson; the promise of forensic investigative genetic genealogy; and the unsolved cases that still keep him up at night.

For nearly six years, Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty commanded the New South Wales Homicide Squad, overseeing more than 450 murders, a wave of organised crime killings, and some of the most complex mass-casualty investigations in the state's recent history, including Bondi Junction.
Now retired after a 40-year career, Danny sits down with Adam Shand to pull back the curtain on what it actually takes to run one of Australia's most demanding policing units. They cover the investigative "surge" model that put almost every organised crime murder before the courts in a single year; why the first 48 hours has given way to the first two weeks; the psychology of killers who refuse to give up a body &mdash; from Bruce Burrell to Chris Dawson; the promise of forensic investigative genetic genealogy; and the unsolved cases that still keep him up at night.

450 Murders: Inside NSW Homicide | Danny Doherty

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/2fb3740d-3436-44af-8cc0-a91900716aa5/clips/c66acb71-f63e-4233-b658-b46500778c5b/transcript

When Sergeant Benedict Bryant pulled into Henderson Road on the morning of February 19, 2022, he had travelled 800 metres from Redfern Police Station to respond to a serious crime in progress. What followed took 3.9 seconds, and cost him his career, his finances and his freedom.

Adam Shand is joined by Retired Chief Inspector Paul Fownes, who has been supporting Bryant's legal fight and fundraising appeal. Together they examine the detail of what actually happened that morning, the coroner's conduct, the decision to bring in a barrister who had previously prosecuted police over an Aboriginal death in custody, and what this conviction means as a precedent for every officer who responds to a dynamic situation in seconds, with a legal system watching in slow motion.

Paul Fownes Support Page:

https://www.sergeantbryantfight.com/

When Sergeant Benedict Bryant pulled into Henderson Road on the morning of February 19, 2022, he had travelled 800 metres from Redfern Police Station to respond to a serious crime in progress. What followed took 3.9 seconds, and cost him his career, his finances and his freedom.
Adam Shand is joined by Retired Chief Inspector Paul Fownes, who has been supporting Bryant's legal fight and fundraising appeal. Together they examine the detail of what actually happened that morning, the coroner's conduct, the decision to bring in a barrister who had previously prosecuted police over an Aboriginal death in custody, and what this conviction means as a precedent for every officer who responds to a dynamic situation in seconds, with a legal system watching in slow motion.
<a href="https://www.sergeantbryantfight.com/">Paul Fownes Support Page:</a>
<a href="https://www.sergeantbryantfight.com/">https://www.sergeantbryantfight.com/</a>

3.9 Seconds: The Prosecution of Sergeant Ben Bryant | Paul Fownes

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/2fb3740d-3436-44af-8cc0-a91900716aa5/clips/5267f4c0-c9cf-43dd-9905-b465005da9d8/transcript

What began as a conversation about Ned Kelly, Dezi Freeman and the myth-making around Australia's most notorious outlaws, suddenly took an unexpected turn, and became something far more powerful.

Adam Shand was a guest on his mate Luke Bona's Bonafide podcast to explore the parallels between Kelly's rebellion and Freeman's modern-day sympathisers, and the romanticised legacy of Australian bushranging. But when Luke's Indigenous identity came up, Adam did what he does best - he asked the question no one else had thought to ask.

For the first time on any public platform, Luke Bona reveals the story of how he came to be raised in a white family on Sydney's northern beaches, unaware of his Wiradjuri heritage. Born at Crown Street Women's Hospital to a 16-year-old Aboriginal woman from Bourke, Luke was left in a Bondi orphanage — and the circumstances under which his biological mother lost him are deeply troubling. 

It's a story of identity, loss, and the long shadow of adoption — one that Luke has carried for years, including the devastating decision by his adoptive mother to write him out of her will after he went searching for his roots.

Listen to Luke Bona's Bonafide Podcast HERE

 

What began as a conversation about Ned Kelly, Dezi Freeman and the myth-making around Australia's most notorious outlaws, suddenly took an unexpected turn, and became something far more powerful.
Adam Shand was a guest on his mate <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/bonafide-with-luke-bona/id1801841940">Luke Bona's Bonafide podcast</a> to explore the parallels between Kelly's rebellion and Freeman's modern-day sympathisers, and the romanticised legacy of Australian bushranging. But when Luke's Indigenous identity came up, Adam did what he does best - he asked the question no one else had thought to ask.
For the first time on any public platform, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/bonafide-with-luke-bona/id1801841940">Luke Bona</a> reveals the story of how he came to be raised in a white family on Sydney's northern beaches, unaware of his Wiradjuri heritage. Born at Crown Street Women's Hospital to a 16-year-old Aboriginal woman from Bourke, Luke was left in a Bondi orphanage &mdash; and the circumstances under which his biological mother lost him are deeply troubling.&nbsp;
It's a story of identity, loss, and the long shadow of adoption &mdash; one that Luke has carried for years, including the devastating decision by his adoptive mother to write him out of her will after he went searching for his roots.
<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/bonafide-with-luke-bona/id1801841940">Listen to Luke Bona's Bonafide Podcast HERE</a>
&nbsp;

Such Is Life: Luke Bona's Untold Australian Story | Luke Bona

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/2fb3740d-3436-44af-8cc0-a91900716aa5/clips/fbf32ceb-ddb7-4753-b73c-b45e0025b9c6/transcript

The Woman Who Invented Cold Case DNA | Dr Colleen Fitzpatrick

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