10x35 - Sole Searching

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Narrator: criminals usually
leave some kind of trace

Evidence at the crime scene.

The trick is to find it.

Scientists used some aurora pink
powder, cyanoacrylate fumes,

And a computer database to
identify a suspect in the midst

Of a senseless crime spree.

It was 4:00 a.m. On an october
morning, and kim miller was

Manning the police switchboard.

I was working night shift.

I think I'd only worked there
around six months, so I hadn't

Been trained at that particular
position very long.

Narrator: there isn't much crime
in lansing, michigan.

It's usually quiet, but this
night was different.

All of a sudden, I took this
call, and this lady said that

"Someone was breaking into my
house."

[ Screaming ]
the line went dead, so I knew

Something was very wrong.

Narrator: police were
dispatched immediately.

It took less than four minutes
to get there.

At first glance, everything
looked fine.

But behind the house was clear
evidence of a break-in.

The door had been kicked in,
and kicked in violently.

The door was actually off of
the frame, and there was glass

From the door outside on the
front porch, as well as on the

Inside entranceway, from the
door.

Narrator: inside, down the
hallway, police found the

Bathroom door had also been
knocked off its hinges.

On the floor was the body of


She had been shot in the head at
close range with a .32-caliber

b*llet.

The phone that they believe
that she was using was found

Right in that area, I believe in
the hallway just outside the

Bathroom.

Narrator: the police officers
knew mrs. Nichols.

She had worked for the michigan
state police for 17 years

Analyzing traffic accidents.

She had retired just four months
earlier and lived alone.

Her three children were grown
and living elsewhere.

We all felt violated by it,
just because so many of us were

Alone.

It was very shocking to us, it
was numbing, and there was a lot

Of anger -- an awful lot of
anger.

Narrator: since police
arrived within five minutes of

The call, the k*ller wasn't
inside the house long.

None of the drawers or closets
had been ransacked, but audrey's

Purse was missing.

It looked like the house had
been selected for break-in so

That somebody could go in and
find something of value,

Probably to purchase for dr*gs.

Narrator: a preliminary look
at the evidence left no doubt

About what had happened.

Audrey heard the intruder kick
in the back door.

She grabbed the portable phone,
ran to the bathroom, and locked

Herself in.

But apparently he heard her on
the phone...

Then grabbed her purse and left.

Here was a woman that was
huddled on the floor of her

Bathroom on 911 who, at least in
the opinion of the forensic

Pathologist, turned her head to
avoid what she saw was coming --

The fatal g*nsh*t.

It doesn't get any worse than
that.

Narrator: unfortunately,
police could find no witnesses.

We didn't have any neighbors
or anything that saw or heard,

Anybody in the neighborhood that
could give us any type of

Physical description.

He has no regard for human
life.

And our concern was, at that
point, we needed to find this

Guy and put him away.

Narrator: police and forensic
experts searched audrey nichols'

Home, hoping to find evidence
left by the person who k*lled

Her.

The victim was in the
bathroom, dead, so we determine

A pathway from the entranceway
to the bathroom.

So everything in between has to
be processed.

And then there was no other way
out of the house but out of the

Door that the suspect came in.

Narrator: in the kitchen,
police found one foreign

Fingerprint, although it was
badly smudged.

There were shards of glass
spread over the linoleum floor

Of the kitchen.

Was it possible that the k*ller
stepped on a shard of glass,

Leaving his shoe impression?

The theory of any crime-scene
investigation is that the

Suspect is always going to leave
something of themself at the

Scene or take something away
that's gonna link them to the

Crime.

Narrator: the shards were
collected and sent to the

Forensics lab.

Glass is such a smooth,
perfect surface that it's really

The best surface we can possibly
hope for to get a footwear

Impression on.

Narrator: the linoleum floor
was dusted with a powder called

Aurora pink that sticks to any
moisture present.

Then, using what is called an
alternate light source, any

Powder that clings to the
moisture will fluoresce.

If you have a patterned
linoleum or something where the

Background is interfering with
the impression, you can usually

Use your alternative light
source to eliminate the

Background, and then the
fluorescent powder that you use

To dust up the impression is
very bright.

So it makes a very good
contrast.

Narrator: it was successful.

They saw one clear print -- the
heel portion of the k*ller's

Left shoe.

It appeared to be an athletic
shoe.

Most of the prints you see
are partial prints.

You may sometimes get some full
footwear impressions, but with

People walking over on top of
them, it can destroy the prints.

Many times, you only get partial
prints.

Narrator: back in the
forensics lab, scientists saw

What looked to be another shoe
impression on a shard of broken

Glass.

So they placed it in a t*nk
filled with heated superglue.

The fumes create a permanent
image of the print, and it

Looked like the toe area of the
k*ller's right shoe.

Because we had a toe area on
the glass and a heel area on the

Linoleum, we basically almost
had an entire shoe impression,

So we did have a very good idea
what the entire tread pattern

Looked like.

I remember looking at the
glass and saying, "we have some

Really good footwear impressions
here."

Narrator: today, forensic
analysts have access to

Sophisticated databases of all
kinds of shoe impressions.

It includes men's, women's, even
children's shoes, both dress and

Leisure, from all over the
world.

This database is called
solemate.

Elements of the shoe patterns
will be entered in by the

Operator, so if it has squares
in the ball area of the shoe or

Toe area of the shoe, you would
enter that in.

And then the computer comes back
with a list of possible shoe

Treads, and you can pull those
up and look at them to determine

If any of those are the shoe
you're actually looking for.

Narrator: checking and
cross-checking finally gave

Investigators their first solid
piece of information.

The footwear impressions were
consistent with having been made

By a spalding tennis shoe.

Narrator: unfortunately, the
print wasn't complete, so some

Details were unclear.

The fact that he was wearing
tennis shoes was about the only

Given that we had.

Narrator: a month after
audrey's death, a pedestrian

Found her purse in a field about
a mile from her home.

Her identification was inside,
but all the money was gone.

This proved robbery was a
motive, but why m*rder?

It was an unanswered question
for all of us.

It was like, "who would do this?

Why would they do it, and how
did they choose her?"

It wasn't like she was a rich
woman.

It wasn't like she was flashy at
all.

Narrator: research shows
criminals often commit their

Crimes close to where they live,
so police focused their search

In the surrounding areas but got
no leads.

You always fear that this
might be one of those cold cases

That might end up on the shelf.

This was a very, very serious
case, so we had this concern

That "we hope this one doesn't
go cold."

Narrator: then, six weeks
after audrey's m*rder, police

Got a break.

Police apprehended a man
breaking into a home just down

The street from audrey's.

Get down on the ground!

Irony of ironies -- they end
up with a home nearby audrey's

That was broken into, and the
guy's wearing sneakers.

Not only is he wearing sneakers,
but he's wearing spalding

Sneakers.

There were glass fragments
embedded right in the shoes of

The first suspect.

It's like, "whoa, is this the
guy?"

And glimmers of hope that maybe
there had been a solution to the

Audrey slaying.

Narrator: but it didn't turn
out to be that simple.

Narrator: two partial
impressions from a pair of

Spalding tennis shoes were the
best clues found in

Audrey nichols' home following
her m*rder.

Police also found a partial
fingerprint but weren't sure if

It was left by the k*ller.

The suspect was in and out of
the house so quickly that there

Really wasn't a lot of other
forensic evidence, if any.

So this particular case really
hinged on those footwear

Impressions.

Narrator: six weeks after the
m*rder, police arrested a man

Attempting to rob a home not far
from where audrey nichols lived.

He was 25-year-old kent embry,
who had prior arrests for petty

Theft and burglary.

The suspect happened to be
wearing spalding tennis shoes,

Just like we had told the
investigators that they were

Looking for.

Since these are spaldings and
we already know that we need

Spaldings, we needed to have
these analyzed right away.

This could be the big break in
audrey's sh**ting.

Narrator: police sent the
shoes to the forensics lab,

Where they were inked and
printed.

Using transparent overlays,
amy michaud compared them to the

Two partial prints found in
audrey nichols' home.

That was compared directly to
the photograph of the footwear

Impression on the linoleum, and
then directly to the glass.

Narrator: michaud was looking
for two things -- class

Characteristics, which result
from how the shoe is made, and

Accidental characteristics,
which result from how it's worn.

Just the random wear that
occurs to the bottoms of the

Shoes through ordinary
activities every day produces

Cuts and scratches and nicks on
the bottoms of your shoes, which

Make it unique to all other
shoes.

So it's those scratches that we
really look for.

Narrator: after extensive
comparisons, michaud called

Investigators with some bad
news.

The sizes were slightly off.

Things just didn't line up
correctly.

We were absolutely positive that
those weren't the shoes that

Made the impressions left at the
crime scene.

What we had hoped would be
good evidence turns out to be

Absolutely useless and
unrelated.

It wasn't that break that we
were looking for.

Now we had to basically start
from zero again and move

Forward.

Narrator: investigators went
back to canvassing the

Neighborhood but feared audrey's
m*rder would go unsolved.

Then, almost four months after
audrey's m*rder, the local

District attorney received a
letter from a man in prison.

"Do you remember the retired
state police lady that was

k*lled in lansing?

I can give up the k*ller for a
deal with the prosecutor.

He said he found her in the
bathroom.

She was calling for help, so he
knocked the phone from her hand

And stomped on it.

When he looked up, she was
looking at his face, so he shot

Her in the head with a
.32-caliber.

See what you can do."

Narrator: the letter was from
a prisoner named carl hedly.

Hedly said he heard about the
m*rder from a cellmate who was

Awaiting trial for sh**ting and
robbing a truck driver.

It had to be checked out
because, obviously, sometimes in

These jailhouse settings, things
get exaggerated or they pick up

Information that they think they
can sell or trade off, so that

Always has to be taken with a
degree of skepticism.

Narrator: but the details of
the letter were all accurate.

He had details that we had
not released to the public.

There's only one way he could
have come into that type of

Information.

He was either there, or he got
it from somebody who was.

Narrator: the man's name was
john skinner, 22 years old.

Homicide investigators
questioned skinner about the

m*rder, but he denied it.

And like everybody else that
we interview that is accused of

A m*rder, they never had
anything to do with it, weren't

There.

"I don't remember where I was
that night, but I wasn't there."

Narrator: skinner's
fingerprints did not match the

Unidentified print found in
audrey nichols' kitchen.

And there were no spalding
tennis shoes in the prison

Storage unit or at the local
county jail where skinner was

First processed.

It was a tough situation
because of the fact that the

Homicide occurred approximately
a month earlier, and we were no

Closer to finding this horrific
person out running around

Possibly k*lling people.

Narrator: again, the
investigation faced a crisis.

Without a fingerprint match and
with no spalding tennis shoes,

Investigators had reached a dead
end.

Narrator: 22-year-old
john skinner was the prime

Suspect in audrey nichols'
m*rder.

He was in prison awaiting trial
for an unrelated crime when he

Allegedly bragged to a cellmate
that he had k*lled

Audrey nichols and gotten away
with it.

But police couldn't find any
evidence that skinner even owned

A pair of spalding brand tennis
shoes similar to the prints

Found at the crime scene.

We had the information from
the jailhouse informant.

We knew that we had to have
something else.

It was imperative to get the

Shoes to do the comparison work.

And the longer you wait, the
chances of getting the shoes

Lessens.

And the chances of more damage
occurring to the shoes, if

Somebody's wearing them, that
lessens the chance of an

Identification.

Narrator: as a last resort,
police spoke with everyone

Working in the prisoner
processing area of the county

Jail, and they got a break.

Skinner's prison file indicated
that his mother picked up her

Son's personal belongings after
he was incarcerated.

Investigators rushed to her
home, which was less than a mile

From the m*rder scene.

Those sneakers were
absolutely essential.

The mother could have taken them
and thrown them in a trash can,

Or he could have called her and
said, "get rid of them," and

That could have been very
damaging.

Narrator: but police found a
worn pair of spalding tennis

Shoes in john skinner's bedroom.

We got pretty excited that
this might be the person who

Committed the breaking and
entering and m*rder of the

Victim.

Narrator: again, amy michaud
compared skinner's pair to the

Transparent overlays of the
partial prints found at the

m*rder scene.

The partials were a toe from the
right shoe and the heel from the

Left.

In both of the impressions --
the one from the linoleum and

The one from the glass -- there
were enough accidental markings

And characteristics that were
visible in the impression that

Lined up with the known shoes
that we were able to say without

A doubt that these are the shoes
that made those impressions.

How is he gonna dispute that
his tennis shoes were found at

That crime scene?

What possible explanation can he
give?

There's no way he could ever
explain his presence in that

House, other than he went there
to rob and ended up k*lling.

Narrator: based on the
forensic evidence, prosecutors

Say skinner kicked in the back
door and broke the glass.

As he stepped into the room, his
sneaker left a partial print on

A broken shard.

His other shoe left a partial
print on the linoleum floor.

Audrey heard the commotion,
grabbed her telephone, ran into

The bathroom, locked the door,
and called police.

911.

Someone broke into my house.

Narrator: when skinner heard
this, he kicked open the

Bathroom door and k*lled her.

Police arrived within five
minutes, but skinner had already

Fled with audrey's purse.

Inside was all of $100 in cash.

His drive to get money was
more important than a human

Life.

His downfall was the fact
that he was wearing those

Spaldings.

There's reason for his footwear
impressions to be there, because

He did not know the victim.

The victim did not know him.

Narrator: police questioned
skinner one last time.

He asked about the evidence
against him.

After denying the fact that
he was there, his main question

To me was, "do you have my
prints in the house?"

And my response to that is,
"yes, I do, john.

I have your prints, so I need to
know whether or not you had

Planned this k*lling or whether
or not is was a random act."

Narrator: skinner then
realized the investigation was

Over.

He confessed to the crime and
said he chose the house at

Random, that all he planned to
do was to steal some money for

dr*gs.

He said he didn't go there
with the intent to k*ll her or

Anything like that.

He heard her talking on the
phone and only wanted to make

Her stop talking on the phone
and somehow the g*n went off

Accidentally, which we thought
was a bunch of bullcrap.

We never did identify him
with latent prints, and I don't

Know if he was wearing gloves or
not at the time.

After he confessed, we talked
to him about where the g*n was,

Because our main goal was to get
the g*n back so it couldn't be

Used in any other crimes.

He had indicated that we would
never find the g*n, that it was

Thrown down a sewer, and then
later on he recanted that story,

Indicating that someone else had
the g*n and we would never find

It.

Narrator: john skinner pled
guilty to second-degree m*rder.

He was sentenced to life in
prison.

I'm glad for the forensic
sciences that they were able to

Close this case -- that they
were able to get the person who

Did it -- for her family and her
friends so that there would be

Some kind of closure.

Personally, I think that audrey
rests better knowing that her

Kids don't have to wonder what

Happened and her friends don't
have to wonder what happened.

While investigating
homicides, the first line of

Defense is forensic sciences.

A person coming in and fuming
the floors, obtaining

Fingerprints -- without them,
would half of the crimes be

Solved?

Probably not.

As technology progresses, I hope
forensic science does.

In this case, forensic
science was at the very heart of

This case being solved and being
successfully prosecuted.

Without it, who knows?

We might have a cold case on the

Shelf, plain and simple.

But with the forensics,

Everything came together.