GUEST POST: The Death of Anyone - D.J. Swykert

After reading The Death of Anyone, I was keen to learn more about how Familial DNA can be used in criminal proceedings.  David Swykert has very kindly written a guest post about investigating crimes using Familial DNA.

Unique DNA Search Catches the Grim Sleeper - D. J. Swykert

The underlying theme in The Death of Anyone, Melange Books, poses the Machiavellian question: Does the end justify the means? Bonnie Benham, the lead detective in my story, has her own answer. But the legality of this question will be answered in a real life courtroom in the California trial of a serial killer dubbed by the media: The Grim Sleeper.

Lonnie David Franklin, the Grim Sleeper, was caught because his son’s DNA was the closest match to DNA collected at the crime scenes in the database. Investigating Franklin’s son led them to investigate Lonnie Franklin. But there was no direct DNA evidence that linked Lonnie to the crime scene until they obtained a sample from him after his arrest. Lonnie Franklin will be the first person in the U.S. to ever stand trial for murder based on this type of evidence, and its admissibility issues will be thoroughly tested by defense attorneys.

Only two states at this time, California and Colorado, have a written policy concerning the use of Familial DNA in an investigation. The admission of Familial DNA, with its potential Fourth Amendment violations, has never been tested in court. The California trial of Lonnie David Franklin will become a landmark case for the future use of Familial DNA Searches by law enforcement agencies nationwide.

This is an update on the legal progress of the trial. Franklin was arrested on July 7, 2010, The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office charged him with ten counts of murder, one count of attempted murder, and special circumstance allegations of multiple murders in the cases. A grand jury indictment was issued on March 23, 2011. The Grim Sleeper has been resting comfortably in jail since his arrest awaiting trial; the large quantity of evidence in this case, some dating back thirty years, has caused a lengthy pretrial discovery. The trial was originally scheduled to begin the summer of 2014, but was put on hold. It was rescheduled for June 30, 2015, but that didn’t happen. On Monday August 17, 2015, at a pretrial hearing, the trial was rescheduled for October 14, 2015. Finally, in the spring of 2016, The Grim Sleeper was convicted. A long appeals process is expected.

I first heard of the technique while working as a 911 operator in 2006. It came up in a conversation with officers. I thought at the time it would make an interesting premise for a book. I began writing the mystery some three years later after leaving the department. I had just finished editing a first draft of The Death of Anyone in the summer 2010 when news of The Grim Sleeper’s capture in Los Angeles was released. I read with interest all the information pouring out of L.A. regarding the investigation and the problems confronting prosecutors. All of which are explored in The Death of Anyone.

In my fictional story Detroit Detective Bonnie Benham has been transferred from working undercover in narcotics to homicide and is working the case of a killer of adolescent girls. She is a straight forward investigator who describes herself as a blonde with a badge and a gun. CSI collects DNA evidence from the scene of the latest victim, which had not been detected on the other victims. But no suspect turns up in the FBI database. Due to the notoriety of the crimes a task force is put together with Bonnie as the lead detective, and she implores the D.A. to use an as yet unapproved type of a DNA Search in an effort to identify the killer.

The Death of Anyone is available on the Melange Books website and also on Amazon.com in Kindle and print formats.

About the author

DJ Swykert is a former 911 operator writing and living in the Cincinnati area. His work has appeared in The Tampa Review, Detroit News, Coe Review, Monarch Review, the Newer York, Lunch Ticket, Gravel, Zodiac Review, Barbaric Yawp and Bull. His books include Children of the Enemy, Alpha Wolves, The Pool Boy’s Beatitude and The Death of Anyone. You can find him at: www.magicmasterminds.com/djswykert

He is a wolf expert.

The Death of Anyone - D.J. Swykert

Detroit homicide Detective Bonnie Benham has been transferred from narcotics for using more than arresting and is working the case of a killer of adolescent girls.

CSI collects DNA evidence from the scene of the latest victim, which had not been detected on the other victims. But no suspect turns up in the FBI database. Due to the notoriety of the crimes a task force is put together with Bonnie as the lead detective, and she implores the D.A. to use an as yet unapproved type of a DNA Search in an effort to identify the killer.

Homicide Detective Neil Jensen, with his own history of drug and alcohol problems, understands Bonnie's frailty and the two detectives become inseparable as they track this killer of children.

What did I think?

I chose to read The Death of Anyone during the Global Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week 2016, although the book is not about mitochondrial disease it is about familial DNA which mitochondria are part of.  David Swykert has very kindly written a piece about familial DNA which you can read here on the post after my review.

Bonnie Benham is one tough cookie but we later find out that she is a cookie with a little squidgy middle as she opens her heart to fellow detective, Neil Jensen.  They both have similar backgrounds and are both married to the job, so it was inevitable that they would be attracted to each other.  Bonnie and Neil's budding relationship aside, the main story is about a serial killer in Detroit.  When the body of a young girl is found, the police scratch their heads at the lack of evidence.  Surely the killer left some kind of trace?  Then they find a bead of sweat but there is no match in their database.

When another body is found is similar circumstances they start to look at cold cases and find similarities to murdered youthful looking prostitutes.  All they have to go on is the DNA from the bead of sweat and they want to expand their search by seeing if the DNA is a part match (i.e. familial DNA) for anybody in their database.  This test needs to be approved and it is only when the daughter of a high profile city official is murdered that the bureaucratic red tape can be cut and the net can finally close around the killer.  Will Bonnie get her man both professionally and personally?

I really enjoyed The Death of Anyone; it was very strong on police procedure and the hindrance of bureaucratic red tape.  I liked Bonnie as a character, the far from perfect heroine, and likened her to Harry Bosch - she has that kind of cool detached persona.  D.J. Swykert isn't afraid to pull some punches either and I had a huge gasp out loud moment as a virtual gunshot reverberated inside my head.  A hugely entertaining and informative read.

I received this e-book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

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