All language subtitles for catching.killers.s01e03.skeletal.secrets.web.h264-underbelly

[GUNSHOT]

Narrator: MURDER IS
AS OLD AS TIME...

...AND SO IS THE QUEST
TO FIND THE KILLERS.

AND WHEN SLEUTHING
MEETS SCIENCE,

NEW FORENSIC TOOLS ARE BORN.

IN 1897 CHICAGO,
THE CASE OF A MISSING WOMAN

WOULD CHANGE THE WAY
THAT CRIMINALS ARE CAUGHT.

Man: THEY FOUND
A FEW SMALL BONE FRAGMENTS.

THE QUESTION WAS,
WERE THESE ANIMAL BONES

OR WERE THEY HUMAN BONES?

Narrator: THE BREAKTHROUGH...
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY...

A WAY TO UNCOVER THE DARK
SECRETS HIDING IN BONES.

Man: THE BONES,
THEY DON'T FORGET,

AND THEY ALWAYS TELL THE TRUTH.

Narrator: FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY
REVOLUTIONIZES CRIME FIGHTING.

BUT A CENTURY LATER,

IT FACES ONE OF
ITS BIGGEST CHALLENGES...

TRYING TO UNRAVEL
THE HORRIFYING CRIMES

OF A SADISTIC SERIAL KILLER

KNOWN AS THE KILLER CLOWN.

Man: HE PROBABLY KILLED
CLOSE TO 50 PEOPLE.

Narrator: DECEMBER 1978.

POLICE ARE SEARCHING
FOR A MISSING TEENAGE BOY

IN NORWOOD PARK TOWNSHIP,
ILLINOIS.

ARMED WITH A WARRANT,

THEY BEGIN TO PULL APART
THE HOME OF A LOCAL SUSPECT.

BUT WHAT BEGINS AS
AN INVESTIGATION

INTO A TEENAGER'S
DISAPPEARANCE...

...WILL SOON EXPOSE SOMETHING
FAR MORE DISTURBING...

THE HIDDEN LAIR

OF ONE OF AMERICA'S
MOST NOTORIOUS SERIAL KILLERS.

10 DAYS EARLIER,

15-YEAR-OLD ROBERT PIEST
VANISHES FROM A NEARBY PHARMACY.

Joseph Kozenczak: HE INITIALLY
WAS SEEN AT THE DRUGSTORE

BY HIS MOTHER WHO HAD DRIVEN
TO THE DRUGSTORE TO PICK HIM UP.

HE WENT OUT THE DOOR,

AND AFTER A LENGTH OF TIME,

THE MOTHER DECIDED
TO GO OUTSIDE

AND SEE WHERE THE BOY WAS AT,

AND HE WAS NOWHERE AROUND,
HE HAD DISAPPEARED.

Narrator: EARLIER THAT DAY,

WITNESSES HAD SEEN THE BOY
TALKING TO A LOCAL CONTRACTOR

NAMED JOHN WAYNE GACY.

Kozenczak: GACY DENIED
ANY KNOWLEDGE WHATSOEVER

OF BEING ANYWHERE
AROUND THE YOUNG MAN

OR EVEN TALKING
TO THE YOUNG MAN.

Narrator: AT FIRST GLANCE,
GACY LOOKS LIKE A MODEL CITIZEN.

Kozenczak: HE WAS
A COMMUNITY ACTIVIST,

HE HOSTED ALL THEME PARTIES,
LIKE FOURTH OF JULY,

AND HIS NEIGHBORS THOUGHT
HE WAS THE GREATEST GUY AROUND.

Terry Sullivan:
HE WAS GREGARIOUS,

AND HE ALSO WENT TO ENTERTAIN
KIDS, ET CETERA, AS A CLOWN.

THAT'S TRULY WHAT
HE DID A LOT OF,

AND HE WAS RESPECTED FOR THAT.

Narrator: BUT BEHIND THE MASK
IS A MAN

WITH SOME VERY DARK SECRETS.

Kozenczak: JOHN WAYNE GACY
HAD A CRIMINAL HISTORY

AND ACTUALLY HAD SERVED TIME
IN THE STATE OF IOWA

FOR SEXUALLY ASSAULTING
YOUNG BOYS.

AND THE MINUTE WE HEARD THAT,

WE KNEW THAT WE WERE
PROBABLY FOCUSING

ON MR. GACY AS A SUSPECT.

Narrator:
GACY'S CRIMINAL HISTORY
MAKES HIM A PRIME SUSPECT

IN ROBERT PIEST'S DISAPPEARANCE.

AND POLICE HOPE IT'S NOT
TOO LATE TO SAVE THE BOY.

Kozenczak: WE WENT TO THE HOUSE
TO LOOK FOR ROBERT.

WE DIDN'T KNOW IF HE WAS
BEING HELD A PRISONER

OR IF HE WAS BURIED DOWN THERE.

Narrator: POLICE TAKE GACY INTO
CUSTODY ON A MINOR DRUG CHARGE

AND THOROUGHLY INSPECT HIS HOME.

THERE'S NO SIGN OF ROBERT,

BUT SOMEONE NOTICES
AN AWFUL SMELL DOWN BELOW.

THE SEARCH QUICKLY SHIFTS TO
THE CRAWLSPACE UNDER THE HOUSE.

Kozenczak: IN THE SEAL OF
THE GROUND BEING BROKEN,

YOU COULD START TO SMELL
SOMETHING DISINTEGRATING

UNDERNEATH THE HOUSE.

AND ONE OF THE DETECTIVES SAID
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON,

IT SMELLS LIKE THE MORGUE.

Narrator:
POLICE BRACE THEMSELVES

FOR THE DISCOVERY OF
THE MISSING BOY'S BODY,

BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT THEY FIND.

Kozenczak: THEY DISCOVERED
WHAT APPEARED TO BE...

BONES.

Narrator: BUT ROBERT PIEST HAS
ONLY BEEN GONE A FEW DAYS.

EVEN IF HE'S DEAD,
THESE BONES CAN'T BE HIS.

AS POLICE KEEP DIGGING,

THEY EXHUME
A COMPLETE SKELETON...

THEN A SECOND...

AND A THIRD.

IT'S STARTING TO LOOK LIKE

THE MAN WHO DRESSED LIKE A CLOWN
AT KIDS' BIRTHDAY PARTIES

MIGHT BE A SERIAL KILLER.

Sullivan: THERE'S A PHOTOGRAPH
OF ONE OF THE BODIES,

AND THEY HAD UNCOVERED
THE SKULL,

AND YOU COULD JUST SEE,
EVEN IN THE PHOTOGRAPH,

THE ABSOLUTE FEAR IN THAT SKULL.

AND UNTIL THE DAY I DIE,

I WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER THE FEAR
THAT I SAW RIGHT THEN.

Kozenczak: I WONDERED
IF THIS WAS ALL...

FOR REAL.

LIKE, NEVER IN OUR WILDEST MIND
DID WE EVER THINK

THAT THIS GUY WAS
A MULTIPLE KILLER.

Narrator: IT LOOKS LIKE GACY
HAS BEEN COMMITTING MURDER

ON A GRAND SCALE,

AND THIS CRAWLSPACE IS
HIS OWN PRIVATE BONEYARD,

FULL OF FACELESS,
NAMELESS VICTIMS.

IT'S CLEAR THAT GACY
IS THE KILLER,

BUT POLICE WANT TO
BE ABLE TO PROVE IT.

FIRST, THEY'LL HAVE TO FIGURE
OUT WHO THESE PEOPLE WERE

AND WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM.

AND THEY'LL DO IT
BY STUDYING THEIR BONES.

DEAD MEN DON'T TELL TALES,

BUT IN FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY,
THEIR BONES CERTAINLY DO.

Dr. Douglas H. Ubelaker:
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS

ARE PEOPLE WHO HAVE
SPENT THEIR CAREERS

LEARNING WHAT THERE IS TO KNOW

ABOUT THE RECOVERY AND ANALYSIS
OF HUMAN BONES.

Narrator: THE EARLIEST ATTEMPTS
TO MAP THE HUMAN SKELETON

GO BACK ALMOST 2,000 YEARS

TO A PHYSICIAN KNOWN AS
GALEN OF PERGAMON.

HE WAS THE FIRST PERSON
TO CLEARLY MAP

THE INNER GEOGRAPHY
OF THE HUMAN BODY,

INCLUDING THE SKELETON.

DOCTORS RELIED ON
THE INFORMATION HE PROVIDED

FOR CENTURIES.

BUT GALEN ACTUALLY BASED
SOME OF HIS OBSERVATIONS

ABOUT HUMAN ANATOMY

ON THE BODIES OF ANIMALS,
NOT PEOPLE.

IN THE 1500s, A DOCTOR NAMED
ANDREAS VESALIUS

FINALLY SET OUT TO CREATE
A MORE ACCURATE PICTURE

OF THE HUMAN PHYSIQUE.

VESALIUS, THE FATHER OF
MODERN HUMAN ANATOMY,

BOILED AWAY TISSUE

SO THAT HE COULD LITERALLY
ASSEMBLE A SKELETON,

BONE BY BONE, IN HIS KITCHEN.

BUT IT WASN'T UNTIL 1878 THAT
HARVARD PROFESSOR THOMAS DWIGHT

REALIZED THAT A PERSON'S BONES
COULD REVEAL SPECIFIC DETAILS...

SUCH AS WHETHER THEY CAME
FROM A MAN OR A WOMAN.

IN THE LATE 19th CENTURY,

THAT GROWING KNOWLEDGE
WOULD HELP SOLVE A CRIME

FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.

MAY 1, 1897,

A WOMAN NAMED LOUISA LUETGERT
IS REPORTED MISSING

TO CHICAGO POLICE.

LOUISA'S HUSBAND
IS ADOLPH LUETGERT,

BETTER KNOWN

AS THE SAUSAGE KING OF CHICAGO.

Robert Loerzel: ADOLPH LUETGERT
WAS ONE OF THE LEADING

SAUSAGE MANUFACTURERS
IN CHICAGO,

AND HE OWNED THE SAUSAGE FACTORY
NEXT TO HIS HOUSE

ON DIVERSEY BOULEVARD
IN CHICAGO.

Narrator: CHICAGO POLICE CAPTAIN
HERMAN SCHUETTLER

AND A TEAM OF DETECTIVES

PRESS LUETGERT ABOUT
HIS WIFE'S DISAPPEARANCE.

SHE'S BEEN GONE FOR WEEKS,

BUT HE SEEMS STRANGELY
CALM ABOUT IT.

Loerzel: HE SUGGESTED THAT
MAYBE SHE JUST LEFT HOME

TO GO VISIT SOME COUSINS
OR OTHER RELATIVES.

THE POLICE WERE PRETTY
SUSPICIOUS RIGHT FROM THE GET-GO

OF ADOLPH LUETGERT.

THEY EVEN NOTED THAT
A YEAR OR TWO EARLIER

HE HAD GONE TO THE POLICE WHEN
ONE OF HIS DOGS DISAPPEARED.

BUT IF HIS WIFE IS MISSING,
HE DOESN'T BOTHER TO REPORT IT.

THAT JUST SEEMED ODD
TO THE POLICE.

Narrator: BUT CAPTAIN SCHUETTLER
WILL NEED MORE THAN INSTINCT

TO MAKE HIS CASE.

HE QUESTIONS
THE FACTORY WORKERS,

WONDERING IF THEY'VE SEEN
ANYTHING UNUSUAL.

SURE ENOUGH, THEY DID.

BEFORE LOUISA WAS
REPORTED MISSING,

LUETGERT WAS HARD AT WORK.

Loerzel: HE WAS DOING VARIOUS
STRANGE OPERATIONS

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT,

RUNNING STEAM AND CHEMICALS
INTO THESE VATS.

AND THE NEXT MORNING WHEN HIS
FAMILY WOKE UP FOR BREAKFAST,

HIS WIFE LOUISA LUETGERT
WAS MISSING.

Narrator: CAPTAIN SCHUETTLER
CHECKS OUT THE VATS

WHERE LUETGERT MADE
HIS FAMOUS SAUSAGE...

THE SAME VATS HE WAS WORKING
WITH THAT NIGHT.

Loerzel: ADOLPH LUETGERT HAD
TOLD HIS EMPLOYEES

THAT THESE VATS IN THE BASEMENT
OF HIS FACTORY

WERE FILLED WITH THIS GOO.

AND HE DIDN'T EXPLAIN TO THEM
WHAT THIS STUFF WAS,

BUT HE JUST TOLD THEM

YOU'VE GOT TO CLEAN UP
THE BASEMENT IN MY FACTORY.

THERE WAS STILL SOME OF THIS
MYSTERIOUS BROWN, REDDISH FLUID

IN THE BOTTOM OF THE VAT.

Narrator: AND WHEN POLICE DRAIN
THE REMAINING FLUID

AND SCRAPE THE BOTTOM,

THEY DISCOVER
SOMETHING WORRISOME...

A WOMAN'S RING.

MAYBE A FEMALE EMPLOYEE LOST IT
WHILE GRINDING MEAT.

BUT AS POLICE CONTINUE SIFTING
THROUGH THE DRAINAGE,

THEY FIND SOMETHING ELSE.

Loerzel: THEY FOUND
WHAT APPEARED TO BE

A FEW SMALL BONE FRAGMENTS.

Narrator: LUETGERT CLAIMS
THEY'RE JUST THE REMAINS

OF AN ANIMAL
GROUND INTO SAUSAGE.

Loerzel: THE MEAT WAS BROUGHT IN
FROM THE STOCKYARDS,

AND IT WAS GROUND UP
INTO SAUSAGE THERE,

RIGHT THERE AT THE LUETGERT
SAUSAGE FACTORY.

SO, YOU KNOW,
GIVEN THAT SORT OF SITUATION,

IT WOULDN'T BE THAT SURPRISING

TO FIND SOME ANIMAL BONES
THERE AT THE FACTORY.

Narrator: CAPTAIN SCHUETTLER
ISN'T BUYING IT.

UNFORTUNATELY,
HE CAN'T PROVE IT.

HE'S GOT NO BODY
AND NO EVIDENCE OF FOUL PLAY.

HIS ONLY HOPE...
FIND SOME WAY TO PROVE

THAT THESE ARE THE BONES
OF LOUISA LUETGERT.

IN 19th CENTURY CHICAGO,

A WOMAN'S DISAPPEARANCE TURNS
ON A CRITICAL QUESTION...

ARE THE BONES FOUND

IN HER HUSBAND'S SAUSAGE-MAKING
FACTORY ANIMAL OR HUMAN?

IN THIS ERA, EVEN MOST DOCTORS
CAN'T ANSWER THAT QUESTION,

LET ALONE THE POLICE.

SO LEAD INVESTIGATOR
HERMAN SCHUETTLER

CALLS IN REINFORCEMENTS.

Loerzel: HE NEEDED SOME
EXPERT HELP TO FIGURE OUT

WHAT ALL THIS STUFF WAS.

Narrator: DESPERATE FOR INSIGHT,

SCHUETTLER TURNS TO
THE FIELD MUSEUM OF CHICAGO.

IN JUST A COUPLE OF YEARS,

IT'S ALREADY MADE
A NAME FOR ITSELF

FOR HAVING ONE OF THE BIGGEST
COLLECTIONS OF BONES

IN THE WORLD.

Loerzel: THE FIELD MUSEUM
OF CHICAGO IS WELL-KNOWN

FOR HAVING DINOSAUR BONES
AND HUMAN SKELETONS

AND ALL SORTS OF
ANTHROPOLOGICAL EXHIBITS.

Narrator: AND IN THESE
HALLOWED HALLS

WORKS A VERY UNCONVENTIONAL
SCIENTIST...

ANTHROPOLOGIST GEORGE DORSEY.

DORSEY HAS TRAVELED
ALL OVER THE WORLD

STUDYING HUMAN REMAINS.

Loerzel: HE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST
PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES

TO GET A PhD IN ANTHROPOLOGY,

AND WAS VERY FAMILIAR WITH
BEING ABLE TO RECOGNIZE

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN, SAY,
A BONE FROM A PIG OR A COW

OR SOME OTHER ANIMAL.

Narrator: WHAT DORSEY'S HOPING
TO DO THIS TIME IS MUCH TOUGHER.

ALL HE'S GOT ARE
THESE BONE FRAGMENTS.

THAT'S NOT MUCH TO GO ON

AS HE TRIES TO FIGURE OUT
WHETHER THEY'RE HUMAN OR NOT.

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST
DOUGLAS UBELAKER

FROM THE SMITHSONIAN
INSTITUTION'S

MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

HAS WORKED WITH THE FBI
FOR MORE THAN THREE DECADES.

AND HE KNOWS JUST WHAT
DORSEY WAS UP AGAINST.

Ubelaker: THIS IS AN EXAMPLE
OF A BEAR PAW.

THE CLAWS ARE GONE,

AND YOU'RE LEFT WITH
AN ARTICULATED BONE PATTERN

THAT LOOKS SIMILAR TO WHAT
WE SEE IN HUMAN FEET.

AND IT CAN BE MISTAKEN,

BUT THE DETAILS OF THE BONES
ARE DISTINCT

AND ALLOW IT TO BE
DISTINGUISHED.

Narrator: DORSEY WANTS TO
ELIMINATE ANY CHANCE OF ERROR,

SO HE COMPARES THE
SAUSAGE-FACTORY BONE FRAGMENTS

TO EVERY DIFFERENT
KIND OF SKELETON

HE CAN GET HIS HANDS ON.

EVERYTHING FROM PIGS,

TO COWS,

AND, OF COURSE, HUMANS.

EACH OF THESE SKELETONS HAS SOME
AREAS OF STRUCTURAL OVERLAP,

AND SOME VERY BIG DIFFERENCES.

BUT EVEN IF DORSEY KNEW FOR SURE
IT WAS A HUMAN BONE,

THERE ARE 206 OF THEM
IN THE HUMAN BODY,

AND THESE FRAGMENTS COULD HAVE
COME FROM ANYWHERE.

Loerzel: WELL, THE PROCESS
THAT GEORGE DORSEY USED

WAS ESSENTIALLY TO
LOOK AT THE BONES

THAT WERE FOUND IN THE FACTORY

AND FIGURE OUT WHERE MIGHT
THIS PIECE OF BONE

FIT INTO THIS SKELETON.

Narrator: TODAY,
MORE THAN A CENTURY LATER,

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS STILL
USE DORSEY'S HANDS-ON APPROACH.

Ubelaker:
TODAY WE ALSO DO THAT...

WE ALSO RELY ON
COMPARATIVE COLLECTIONS

AND THE APPEARANCE OF THE BONE.

Narrator: AFTER CAREFULLY
STUDYING EACH FRAGMENT

AND COMPARING THEM TO
HUNDREDS OF SKELETONS,

DORSEY HAS FINALLY
IDENTIFIED THE BONES.

HE CONCLUDES THAT SOME OF
THE FRAGMENTS ARE FROM A TOE,

A RIB, AND A FEMUR,
OR THIGHBONE.

BUT HE HAS NO QUESTION
ABOUT THEIR ORIGIN.

Loerzel: HIS CONCLUSION WAS NO,

THE ONLY PLACE THAT
THESE BONES WOULD FIT

WOULD BE IN THE HUMAN SKELETON.

Narrator: ARMED WITH
DORSEY'S CONCLUSIONS,

SCHUETTLER OFFICIALLY CHANGES
LOUISA LUETGERT'S STATUS

FROM MISSING PERSON...

...TO MURDER VICTIM.

AND TOPPING THE SUSPECT LIST
IS LOUISA'S HUSBAND,

ADOLPH LUETGERT.

Loerzel: ADOLPH LUETGERT WAS
REALLY THE ONLY SUSPECT

THAT THE POLICE HAD.

SOME WITNESSES TALKED ABOUT

SEEING ADOLPH CHASE HIS WIFE
AROUND WITH A GUN

ON ONE OCCASION.

SO THAT LENT SOME CREDIBILITY

TO THE IDEA THAT HE MIGHT HAVE
LOST HIS TEMPER FINALLY

AND DID HER IN.

Narrator: CHICAGO POLICE
ARREST LUETGERT

AND CHARGE HIM WITH
HIS WIFE'S MURDER.

AND THE STORY INSTANTLY BECOMES
A MEDIA SENSATION.

LUETGERT'S SAUSAGES
HAD BECOME A SENSATION

AT THE CHICAGO WORLD'S FAIR,

MAKING HIM VIRTUALLY
A HOUSEHOLD NAME.

Loerzel: PEOPLE ARE
ALWAYS INTERESTED

WHEN SOMEONE IN
A POSITION OF POWER

IS CHARGED WITH A CRIME.

BUT PERHAPS MORE THAN ANYTHING,

IT WAS THE,
BOTH THE GRUESOMENESS

OF HOW LOUISA LUETGERT WAS
SUPPOSEDLY DISSOLVED,

AND THIS UNDERLYING MYSTERY

OF WHETHER A MURDER
HAD EVEN HAPPENED.

Narrator: DORSEY HAS ALREADY
CONVINCED POLICE

THAT LOUISA WAS MURDERED.

BUT NOW HE'LL HAVE TO MAKE
THAT CASE TO A JURY.

AND IT'S GOING TO BE
A TOUGH BATTLE.

IT'S A MURDER CASE WITH NO BODY

AND NO EYEWITNESSES.

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER,

PROSECUTORS ARE HOPING
A FEW BONE FRAGMENTS

CAN BRING DOWN
A COLD-BLOODED KILLER.

A CENTURY LATER, IN 1978,

POLICE ON
THE JOHN WAYNE GACY CASE

AREN'T TRYING TO PROVE MURDER.

THEY'RE HOPING TO FIGURE OUT
WHO WAS KILLED AND HOW.

IT ALL STARTS WITH THE BONES...

THE ONLY THING THAT'S LEFT
OF THE THREE VICTIMS

FOUND BENEATH THE HOME
OF JOHN WAYNE GACY.

Sullivan: MY REACTION
WAS JUST PLAIN,

"WOW, YOU KNOW,
WHAT HAVE I UNCOVERED HERE?"

IT'S SOMETHING THAT, OBVIOUSLY,
I HAD NEVER SEEN.

AND IT WAS JUST, IT WAS JUST
WAY TOO MUCH FOR ME

EVEN TO COMPREHEND AT THAT TIME,
TO BE VERY HONEST WITH YOU.

Narrator: LEAD DETECTIVE
JOE KOZENCZAK CONFRONTS GACY

ABOUT THE GRISLY DISCOVERY.

AND TO HIS SURPRISE,

GACY STARTS TALKING ABOUT LURING
YOUNG MEN TO HIS HOME,

BINDING OR HANDCUFFING THEM,
AND THEN STRANGLING THEM.

BUT HE'S COY.

HE WON'T ADMIT HOW MANY VICTIMS
MET THEIR FATE HERE,

OR WHO THEY ARE.

Sullivan: GACY TOLD US
ONLY THINGS

THAT HE WANTED US TO KNOW.

HE ACTUALLY DID SAY AT ONE POINT

THAT WE COULD NEVER
PROVE THE CASE,

BECAUSE HE ACTUALLY
BUILT HIS HOUSE

ON AN INDIAN BURIAL GROUND.

THIS WAS PART OF
HIS WHOLE DEFENSE.

I THINK HE REALLY DID BELIEVE
THAT WE COULDN'T PROVE IT.

Narrator: BUT FORENSIC SCIENCE
HAS COME A LONG WAY

SINCE THE DAYS OF
THE SAUSAGE KING.

BY THE LATE 1970s,

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS
CAN DO MORE

THAN JUST DISTINGUISH
AN ANIMAL FROM A PERSON.

THEY CAN DETERMINE GENDER,
STATURE, AGE RANGE,

AND EVIDENCE OF INJURY.

AND ONE OF THE LEGENDS
IN THE BONE FIELD

IS FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST
DR. CLYDE SNOW.

HE HELPED IDENTIFY
THE REMAINS OF KING TUT

AND NAZI "ANGEL OF DEATH"
JOSEF MENGELE.

NOW HE'LL FACE
HIS BIGGEST CHALLENGE...

PUTTING NAMES AND FACES
TO THE BONES

FOUND UNDER
JOHN WAYNE GACY'S HOUSE.

AND IT'S JUST THE BEGINNING.

Reporter: TODAY, POLICE FIND
FOUR MORE BODIES

IN JOHN WAYNE GACY'S
SUBURBAN HOME.

Narrator: EACH DAY,
THE MEDICAL EXAMINER ANNOUNCES

THE DISCOVERY OF
MORE SKELETONS.

Sullivan: LITERALLY, THE HOLE
IN THE FLOORBOARD BECAME BIGGER,

DAYS THERE BECAME LONGER,

THE CRIME JUST SEEMED
TO BECOME BIGGER.

Narrator: IT TAKES TWO MONTHS
FOR A FULL EXCAVATION.

THE FINAL TALLY IS 29 VICTIMS.

POLICE NOW HAVE MORE THAN
ENOUGH EVIDENCE

TO PUT GACY AWAY FOREVER.

BUT THEY'RE STILL TRYING
TO ASSEMBLE THE PUZZLE

OF GACY'S KILLING SPREE.

Dr. Clyde Snow:
THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME

THAT A FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST
HAD BEEN ASKED

TO EXAMINE THIS NUMBER
OF BODIES, OF VICTIMS,

FROM A SINGLE CASE.

Narrator: THERE ARE
SO MANY VICTIMS

THAT IDENTIFYING EVERY ONE
OF THEM COULD TAKE MONTHS,

EVEN YEARS.

SO FIRST, POLICE WANT TO GET
AN OVERVIEW OF GACY'S CRIMES

AND SEE IF THERE'S
A COMMON THREAD.

DR. SNOW TURNS TO THE BONES
FOR HELP,

AND STARTS WITH THE MOST BASIC
QUESTION OF IDENTITY...

HOW OLD WERE THESE VICTIMS
WHEN THEY DIED?

Ubelaker: TO ASSESS AGE
AND DEATH OF JUVENILES,

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS
FREQUENTLY LOOK AT

THE SIZE OF THE BONES.

IT PROVIDES SOME CLUES
AS TO AGE.

IN ADDITION, YOU CAN SEE HOW
THESE BONY CAPS

ON THE ENDS OF THE BONES OF
THE GROWING CHILD ARE SEPARATE.

AS THE BONE CONTINUES TO GROW,

THESE CAPS WILL GROW
RIGHT ON OUT WITH THAT BONE

UNTIL THEY FUSE,
AND THEN THEY LOOK LIKE THAT.

Narrator: THIS IS
COMMON KNOWLEDGE

FOR FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS
TODAY,

BUT IT TOOK OVER
60 YEARS OF RESEARCH

AFTER THE LUETGERT CASE

TO DETERMINE THE GROWTH PATTERNS
OF INDIVIDUAL BONES.

WHEN THE BONES FUSE, THAT MEANS
THEY'VE STOPPED GROWING.

AND DIFFERENT BONES
STOP AT DIFFERENT AGES.

THE HANDS AND FEET AT ABOUT 15,

THE THIGH BONE AT ROUGHLY 17,

AND THE COLLARBONE...
THE LAST BONE TO STOP GROWING...

AT APPROXIMATELY AGE 28.

WHEN SNOW CHECKS
THE COLLAR BONES

OF THE SKELETONS FOUND
UNDER GACY'S HOUSE,

NONE OF THEM ARE FULLY FUSED.

THE FIRST PIECE OF
THE IDENTIFICATION PUZZLE

NOW FALLS INTO PLACE...

THESE VICTIMS WERE ALL
LESS THAN 30 YEARS OLD.

THE NEXT QUESTION... WHAT WERE
THE GENDERS OF GACY'S TARGETS?

FIRST, DR. SNOW WILL FOCUS ON

THE SIZE AND SHAPE OF THE FEMUR,
OR THIGHBONE.

Ubelaker: THE HEAD OF THE FEMUR,

THE PART THAT FITS
INTO THE PELVIS,

TENDS TO BE MUCH LARGER IN MALES
THAN IT DOES IN FEMALES.

Narrator: THIS IS
A STRONG INDICATOR

OF WHETHER A SKELETON
WAS A MAN OR A WOMAN.

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS
CAN ALSO LOOK TO OTHER BONES

FOR CLUES... LIKE THE PELVIS.

FEMALES USUALLY HAVE
A WIDER, ROUNDER PELVIS

TO ACCOMMODATE CHILDBIRTH.

Snow: AND NOT ONLY THE PELVIS,

BUT ALSO THERE ARE DIFFERENCES,

PARTICULARLY IN ADULTS,
IN THE SKULL.

MALES, FOR EXAMPLE, HAVE
THE VERY HEAVY BROW RIDGES

ABOVE THE, ABOVE THE EYES HERE,

THEY HAVE BIG MASTOID PROCESSES,

THIS LUMP OF BONE
RIGHT BEHIND YOUR EAR...

A NUMBER OF DIFFERENCES.

Narrator: POLICE HAVE RECOVERED
VERY COMPLETE SKELETONS,

SO DR. SNOW HAS ENOUGH MARKERS
TO CONFIRM EACH VICTIM'S GENDER.

BASED ON THESE BONES,

THE OVERALL SNAPSHOT
OF GACY'S VICTIMS

COMES MORE CLEARLY INTO FOCUS.

THEY'RE NOT ONLY YOUNG,
THEY'RE ALL MALE,

LIKE THE BOY WHO VANISHED
FROM THE PHARMACY.

NOW DR. SNOW LOOKS FOR CLUES

THAT WILL TELL HIM
THEIR ANCESTRAL BACKGROUND.

ETHNIC FEATURES
ARE LESS CONCLUSIVE

THAN THE ONES THAT
SHOW GENDER OR AGE.

BUT THEY DO OFFER CLUES.

Snow: THOSE DIFFERENCES
ARE REFLECTED

IN THE SKELETON
OF THE FACE.

Narrator: AND SNOW NOTICES
THESE SKULLS

SHARE MANY SIMILAR
CHARACTERISTICS...

NARROW, TRIANGULAR
NOSE OPENINGS,

UNPROTRUDING JAWS,

AND CHEEK BONES THAT
AREN'T VERY PRONOUNCED.

THESE ARE ALL SIGNS

THAT POINT TO THE SKELETONS
BEING CAUCASIAN.

POLICE NOW BELIEVE THAT
ALL OF THE REMAINS

FOUND IN JOHN WAYNE GACY'S HOUSE
ARE WHITE MALES,

IN THEIR TEENS OR EARLY 20s.

AND THEY KNOW FOR SURE THAT
THIS IS NO INDIAN BURIAL GROUND.

THE 29 BODIES IN THIS BASEMENT

WERE ALL LEFT HERE
WITHIN THE LAST FEW YEARS.

BUT WHO WERE THEY?

AND WHERE DID THEY COME FROM?

KILLER CLOWN JOHN WAYNE GACY
ISN'T SAYING,

SO POLICE WILL HAVE TO TURN BACK
TO THE BONES FOR ANSWERS.

Reporter: INVESTIGATORS HAVE
FOUND NINE BODIES IN THREE DAYS

OF SEARCHING THROUGH
JOHN WAYNE GACY'S

SUBURBAN CHICAGO HOME.

THEY EXPECT TO FIND AT LEAST
FOUR MORE BODIES EACH DAY

FOR THE REST OF THE WEEK.

Narrator: USING JUST THE BONES

FOUND IN THE CRAWLSPACE
OF JOHN WAYNE GACY'S HOME,

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST
CLYDE SNOW HAS CREATED A PROFILE

OF THE SERIAL KILLER'S
TARGET OF CHOICE...

YOUNG, WHITE AND MALE.

BUT WHO ARE THESE VICTIMS?

THEIR FAMILIES ARE
OUT THERE SOMEWHERE,

WAITING FOR NEWS.

SO POLICE ARE GOING TO
TRY TO FIND MORE ANSWERS

BY SENDING DR. SNOW
BACK TO THE BONES.

Snow: THE BONES,
THEY DON'T FORGET,

AND THEY ALWAYS
TELL THE TRUTH.

NOW, WHEN THEY TALK TO US AND
THEY TELL US THEIR STORIES,

SOMETIMES YOU CAN'T
SHUT 'EM UP.

Narrator: IN COURT, PROSECUTORS
WILL WANT TO PROVE

EXACTLY HOW GACY
KILLED HIS VICTIMS.

GACY HAS ADMITTED TO
STRANGLING SOME OF THEM,

BUT HE'S NOT EXACTLY
A CREDIBLE WITNESS.

SO DR. SNOW CHECKS A PARTICULAR
BONE IN THE NECK...

ONE THAT USUALLY CONTROLS
TONGUE MOVEMENT.

Snow: THIS IS THIS LITTLE
KIND OF HORSESHOE-SHAPED BONE

UP IN YOUR THROAT... THE HYOID.

AND WITH A FAIR DEGREE
OF FREQUENCY,

THAT BONE BECOMES FRACTURED
DURING MANUAL STRANGULATION.

Narrator: BASED ON WHAT HE FINDS
IN THE HYOID BONE

OF MOST OF THESE SKELETONS,

HE'S SUDDENLY ABLE TO CONFIRM
WITHOUT A DOUBT

GACY'S GRUESOME
METHOD OF MURDER.

Sullivan: WE SAW A GENERAL
TREND OF HIS,

WHICH WAS THE ROPE
AROUND THE NECK,

AND ONCE HE TWISTED THAT,
THEY ASPHYXIATED.

FOR ALL PRACTICAL PURPOSES,
THE KIDS DIDN'T HAVE A PRAYER.

Narrator: THAT BROKEN HYOID BONE
CONFIRMS

THAT MANY OF GACY'S VICTIMS
WERE STRANGLED.

BUT POLICE STILL HAVE
NO IDEA WHO THEY ARE.

THE CHICAGO POLICE FILES
ARE FULL OF RUNAWAYS

WHO'VE NEVER BEEN FOUND.

AND SOME OF GACY'S VICTIMS
COULD BE FROM OTHER CITIES.

FORTUNATELY, SNOW'S
ANTHROPOLOGICAL PROFILE

HAS ALREADY HELPED POLICE

NARROW DOWN THE POOL
OF POSSIBLE CANDIDATES.

Snow: THEY COMPARE IT
WITH MISSING PERSONS,

WITH THEIR PROFILES,

AND THAT CAN LEAD US
TO CANDIDATES

FOR EVENTUAL
POSITIVE IDENTIFICATION.

Reporter: POLICE ARE GETTING
HUNDREDS OF CALLS

FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY

FROM PEOPLE WHO WANT TO KNOW
WHETHER A MISSING SON OR BROTHER

HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED
AMONG THE DEAD.

Narrator: THIS WILL BE
A LONG, SLOW PROCESS.

BUT LONG BEFORE
THE AGE OF DNA ANALYSIS,

AND WITH NO SKIN ON
THEIR FINGERS TO PRINT,

THERE'S ONE LAST FORENSIC TOOL
FOR IDENTIFYING VICTIMS...

THEIR TEETH.

LIKE BONES, TEETH CAN REVEAL
A WEALTH OF INFORMATION,

INCLUDING AGE.

THE PATTERNS OF
TOOTH ERUPTION AND WEAR

CAN CLEARLY SHOW
HOW OLD SOMEONE WAS.

Ubelaker: THIS IS A LOWER JAW,
A MANDIBLE OF A YOUNG CHILD.

AND BASICALLY WE CAN LOOK AT

THE STAGE OF FORMATION
OF THESE TEETH

AND CALCULATE THE AGE
MORE EXACTLY

THAN WE CAN FROM LOOKING AT
THE LENGTH OF THE BONES.

Narrator: EXPERTS, CALLED
FORENSIC ODONTOLOGISTS,

CAN ALSO TELL FROM
CERTAIN TYPES OF EROSION

WHETHER SOMEONE IS A SMOKER.

A PERSON'S MOLARS AND INCISORS
CAN EVEN REVEAL

HOW WELL-OFF THEY WERE,

BASED ON THE QUALITY
OF THEIR DENTAL CARE.

BUT WHEN IT COMES TO FORENSICS,

THE BEST THING ABOUT TEETH

IS THAT THEY HELP
IDENTIFY PEOPLE.

THAT'S WHAT THE FAMILIES

OF JOHN WAYNE GACY'S
SUSPECTED VICTIMS

ARE COUNTING ON.

Reporter: GREGORY'S MOTHER
HOPES HE'S STILL ALIVE.

Woman: I REALLY DO
WANT TO BELIEVE THAT.

Narrator: ON DECEMBER 12, 1976,

17-YEAR-OLD GREGORY GODZIK,

AN EMPLOYEE AT
GACY'S CONTRACTING COMPANY,

DISAPPEARED AFTER DROPPING
HIS DATE OFF AT HER HOUSE.

HIS CAR WAS FOUND THE NEXT DAY.

BUT GREGORY WAS
NEVER SEEN AGAIN.

Kozenczak:
IF THEY SUSPECTED THEIR SON

MIGHT HAVE BEEN
A VICTIM OF GACY'S,

THEY WOULD BRING DENTAL WORK
FROM THEIR DENTIST

INTO THE COUNTY MORGUE

TO DO COMPARISONS.

SO IT WAS A DIFFICULT,
TEDIOUS PROCESS.

Narrator: WITH 29 BODIES
TO IDENTIFY,

POLICE HAVE A LONG ROAD AHEAD,

AND NOT EVERY VICTIM HAS
DENTAL RECORDS TO MATCH AGAINST.

Sullivan: AFTER SIX WEEKS OR SO,

WE HAD ONLY IDENTIFIED
LESS THAN HALF OF THE BODIES.

Narrator: AND 17-YEAR-OLD
GREGORY GODZIK IS ONE OF THEM,

DASHING THE HOPES
OF HIS MOTHER,

WHO HAD PRAYED
HE WAS STILL ALIVE.

AND WITHOUT FINGERPRINTS
OR DNA TO HELP HIM,

DR. SNOW COULD BE
OUT OF OPTIONS.

BUT HE HAS AN INNOVATIVE IDEA
FOR TRYING TO I.D. MORE VICTIMS.

SNOW AND A FORENSIC ARTIST
NAMED BETTY PAT GATLIFF

HAVE BEEN PIONEERS IN EFFORTS
TO PUT FLESH ON SKULLS,

ALLOWING THEM TO SEE
WHAT VICTIMS LOOKED LIKE

BEFORE THEY DIED.

SNOW AND GATLIFF BEGAN USING
FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION

TO IDENTIFY PLANE CRASH VICTIMS
BACK IN THE '60s.

BUT AROUND THE TIME
OF THE GACY CASE,

THE METHOD IS GETTING PERFECTED.

Karen T. Taylor:
THIS IS A SCULPTURE

DONE FOR A VERY
SPECIFIC PURPOSE,

NOT MADE TO GO IN A MUSEUM
OR TO LOOK GOOD.

IT'S MADE TO ACHIEVE
ITS PURPOSE

OF GETTING SOMEONE IDENTIFIED.

Narrator:
EVERY SKULL HOLDS CLUES

AS TO HOW THE FLESH
FOLDED AROUND IT,

WHERE THE EYES ONCE SAT,

AND HOW WIDE FEATURES LIKE
THE NOSE AND MOUTH ONCE WERE.

Taylor: WE ARE
UNIQUELY DIFFERENT

IN OUR LAYOUTS OF OUR FACES,

AND CAPTURING THAT IS WHAT
THE FORENSIC ARTIST NEEDS TO DO

TO TRIGGER RECOGNITION.

IT'S KEY.

Narrator: ONE OF THE MOST
CRITICAL STEPS IN THE PROCESS

IS TO USE SIMPLE
VINYL ERASER TIPS

TO ESTABLISH THE AVERAGE
THICKNESS OF THE SKIN.

Taylor: THEY ARE
ACTUALLY APPLIED

ON VARIOUS ANTHROPOLOGICAL
LANDMARKS AROUND THE FACE.

THEN IT BECOMES A MATTER OF
STARTING TO CONNECT THOSE DOTS,

STARTING TO BUILD UP
THE SOFT TISSUE USING CLAY

TO REVEAL WHAT THE CONTOURS
MIGHT HAVE LOOKED LIKE

ON THE SURFACE IN LIFE.

Narrator: THE SKULL DOESN'T
GIVE ANY CLUES

ABOUT A PERSON'S HAIR
OR EYE COLOR.

BUT IT DOES SHOW
THE MORE SUBTLE FEATURES

THAT FORENSIC ARTISTS
CAN REPLICATE.

Taylor: WE TEND TO THINK THAT
WE RECOGNIZE SOMEBODY WE KNOW

BY JUST THEIR EYES OR
SOME INDIVIDUAL THING,

BUT, IN FACT,
WHAT WE REALLY ARE DOING

IS PICKING UP ON THE LAYOUT,

THE SPATIAL RELATIONSHIPS

BETWEEN THE FEATURES
OF THE MID-FACE,

THIS MID-FACE TRIANGLE
OF EYES, NOSE, MOUTH.

AND LITTLE DIFFERENCES
MAKE A BIG, BIG IMPACT

ON RECOGNIZABILITY.

Narrator: NOW POLICE HAVE
FINALLY GIVEN FACES

TO NINE OF GACY'S
UNIDENTIFIED VICTIMS.

BUT CAN THEY FIND THE NAMES
TO GO WITH THEM?

SOON THEY RELEASE THE IMAGES
TO THE MEDIA,

HOPING THAT SOMEONE SOMEWHERE
WILL BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE THEM.

WITH THE GACY CASE,

AT LEAST POLICE HAD
FULL SKELETONS

AND CLEAR EVIDENCE

THAT THEY WERE DEALING
WITH A SERIAL KILLER.

BUT 100 YEARS EARLIER,

ALL POLICE HAVE ARE
A FEW BONE FRAGMENTS

AND REPORTS OF A MISSING WOMAN.

THERE'S STILL NO PROOF

THAT LOUISA LUETGERT
IS A MURDER VICTIM,

OR THAT CHICAGO'S FAMOUS
SAUSAGE KING KILLED HER.

Loerzel: THE KEY LEGAL QUESTION
THAT CAME UP

IS SOMETHING CALLED
CORPUS DELICTI,

WHERE YOU HAVE TO PROVE
THE BODY OF EVIDENCE

THAT THERE WAS A CRIME.

SO THE FIRST QUESTION IS,
WAS THERE A MURDER?

AND SOME PEOPLE IN CHICAGO,
AND ADOLPH LUETGERT AMONG THEM,

INSISTED THAT NO MURDER
HAS HAPPENED HERE,

LOUISA LUETGERT JUST RAN OFF.

Narrator: ANTHROPOLOGIST
GEORGE DORSEY

TELLS A DIFFERENT STORY.

HE BELIEVES THAT
LOUISA WAS KILLED.

AND HE'S TRYING TO PROVE IT WITH
A FEW STRAY BONE FRAGMENTS,

SOMETHING NO ONE'S
EVER DONE BEFORE.

Loerzel: THIS WAS
THE FIRST TRIAL

WHERE ANTHROPOLOGISTS TESTIFIED
AS EXPERT WITNESSES.

AND WHEN GEORGE DORSEY
TESTIFIED,

HE CAME ACROSS
AS VERY CREDIBLE.

HE SOUNDED VERY DEFINITIVE

WHEN HE IDENTIFIED
THESE SPECIFIC BONES

AS BEING FROM SPECIFIC PARTS
OF THE HUMAN SKELETON.

Narrator: AND THEN DORSEY
GOES EVEN FURTHER.

WHEN HE LOOKS AT THE SIZE
OF ALL THE BONES TOGETHER,

THE FEMUR, THE RIB, AND TOE...

HE NOTES THEY ARE ALL SMALLER
IN COMPARISON

TO THE SIZE OF
AVERAGE MALE BONES.

HIS CONCLUSION?

THE BONES BELONG TO A WOMAN.

AND LOUISA LUETGERT WAS
A WOMAN OF SMALL STATURE.

Loerzel: THE DEFENSE ATTORNEYS
CROSS-EXAMINED DORSEY,

BUT NO MATTER HOW THEY TRIED
TO TRIP HIM UP,

HE WOULD NOT BUDGE
FROM HIS STORY.

Narrator: THE PROSECUTION
HAS MADE A COMPELLING CASE,

BUT THEY'RE RELYING ON
CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE

AND AN ANTHROPOLOGIST
WHO'S NEVER TESTIFIED

IN A CRIMINAL CASE BEFORE.

SO THE DEFENSE TRIES
TO REMIND THE JURY

THAT THIS IS JUST
ONE EXPERT'S OPINION.

Loerzel:
SO THE DEFENSE ATTORNEYS
KEPT HAMMERING AWAY AT THAT,

TRYING TO HAVE THIS DOUBT
IN THE MINDS OF THE JURORS.

Narrator: LUETGERT'S TEAM
THEN COUNTERS

THE PROSECUTION'S STAR WITNESS
WITH THEIR OWN EXPERT...

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY ANATOMY
INSTRUCTOR DR. WALTER ALLPORT.

AND AFTER EXAMINING
SOME OF THE RIB FRAGMENTS,

HE DRAWS HIS OWN
VERY DIFFERENT CONCLUSION.

Loerzel: DR. ALLPORT
LOOKED AT THE SAME BONES

THAT GEORGE DORSEY LOOKED AT

AND SAID THAT SOME OF THESE
BONES WERE FROM A HOG.

Narrator: PIG RIBS
AND HUMAN RIBS

HAVE SIMILAR CHARACTERISTICS,

WHICH MAKES ALLPORT'S ASSERTION
HIGHLY PLAUSIBLE.

Loerzel: LIKE MANY TRIALS TODAY,

YOU ENDED UP WITH WARRING
EXPERTS ON THE WITNESS STAND.

Narrator: IF THE JURY BELIEVES
IN DORSEY'S TAKE ON THEM,

THE SAUSAGE KING IS GOING AWAY
FOR A LONG, LONG TIME.

BUT IF THEY DON'T, AN ACCUSED
KILLER WILL BE SET FREE.

AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY,

THE WIFE OF CHICAGO'S
SAUSAGE KING IS PRESUMED DEAD,

AND THESE BONE FRAGMENTS
ARE THE KEY EVIDENCE

AGAINST HER ALLEGED KILLER,

HER OWN HUSBAND.

BUT ARE THE BONES HUMAN OR NOT?

ANTHROPOLOGIST GEORGE DORSEY,

WHOSE LIFE'S WORK IS
THE STUDY OF BONES, SAYS YES.

AND HE'S METHODICALLY
COMPARED THE BONES

TO DOZENS OF DIFFERENT ANIMAL
SPECIES IN ORDER TO PROVE IT.

ANATOMY INSTRUCTOR
DR. WALTER ALLPORT, HOWEVER,

INSISTS THAT HE CAN JUDGE THE
SOURCE OF THESE BONE FRAGMENTS

JUST BY LOOKING AT THEM.

SO PROSECUTORS VOW
TO PUT HIM TO THE TEST.

Loerzel: THEY WERE BRINGING OUT
SOME VARIOUS BONES

DURING CROSS-EXAMINATION,

AND THEY HANDED
SOME BONES TO HIM,

AND HE LOOKED AT THEM
AND SAID THEY WERE FROM A DOG.

THE PROSECUTION POINTED OUT

THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY
FROM A MONKEY,

WHICH PROMPTED SOME LAUGHTER,

AND HIS WAY OF TRYING
TO RECOVER FROM THIS MISTAKE

WAS TO SAY, WELL,
MAYBE IT WAS A DOG-MONKEY.

AT THAT POINT, THE JURORS ARE
PROBABLY THINKING

THIS GUY DOESN'T KNOW
WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT.

SO THAT REALLY UNDERMINED
SOME OF THE DEFENSE TESTIMONY

ON THE BONES.

Narrator: LUETGERT'S DEFENSE
IS LOOKING SHAKY,

BUT THE BURDEN OF PROOF
IS STILL ON THE PROSECUTION.

YES, MAYBE THOSE
ARE HUMAN BONES,

BUT DORSEY STILL HASN'T PROVED
THAT ANYONE WAS KILLED...

AT LEAST NOT YET.

DORSEY HAS ALREADY ESTABLISHED
THAT SOME OF THE BONE FRAGMENTS

WERE FROM A TOE, A RIB,
AND A PART OF THE THIGHBONE.

BUT THEN COMES A STARTLING
NEW REVELATION...

ANOTHER FRAGMENT IS PART
OF THE VICTIM'S SKULL.

ON CLOSER OBSERVATION,

DORSEY NOTICES A TRACE
OF THE EAR CANAL

LEFT ON A PIECE OF THE BONE.

WHICH MEANS
THIS IS THE TEMPORAL BONE,

A PART OF THE SKULL
LOCATED NEAR THE EAR.

THE GRISLY DISCOVERY
CLINCHES THE ARGUMENT

THAT THIS IS A MURDER CASE.

Sue Black: IF YOU LOSE THE TOP
OF YOUR LITTLE FINGER,

YOU COULD STILL QUITE
FUNCTIONALLY BE ALIVE.

HOWEVER, IF IT TURNS OUT
TO BE A BIT

THAT COMES RIGHT FROM
THE SIDE OF YOUR HEAD HERE,

CHANCES OF YOU WALKING AROUND
ALIVE ARE PRETTY SLIM.

Narrator:
FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER,

BONES ARE USED TO HELP MAKE
THE CASE AGAINST A KILLER.

Loerzel: THE 12 JURORS
FIND HIM GUILTY.

INSTEAD OF GIVING HIM
THE DEATH PENALTY,

WHICH SOME PEOPLE
THOUGHT HE DESERVED

FOR COMMITTING SUCH
A GRUESOME CRIME,

THEY SENTENCED HIM
TO LIFE IN PRISON.

Narrator: A FEW SMALL BONES,

A DEDICATED EXPERT,

AND A PROSECUTION WILLING
TO TAKE SOME VERY BIG RISKS

CONSPIRE TO MAKE HISTORY.

THE SCIENCE OF
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY

HAS JUST PROVED ITS VALUE.

AND IT'S ABOUT TO MAKE
EVEN GREATER STRIDES.

IN 1936, FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY
AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

FORM AN OFFICIAL PARTNERSHIP
WHEN THE FBI REACHES OUT

TO THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION'S

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF
NATURAL HISTORY

FOR ASSISTANCE IN SOLVING

SOME OF THEIR TOUGHEST
HOMICIDE CASES.

IN 1945, FORENSIC
ANTHROPOLOGISTS' EXPERTISE

CROSSES INTO THE BATTLEFIELD,

HELPING TO I.D. THE BONES
OF UNKNOWN CASUALTIES

FROM WORLD WAR II.

AND IN 1949,

BONE DETECTIVES TAKE ON
THEIR FIRST SERIAL KILLER,

PIECING TOGETHER
THE REMAINS OF SIX VICTIMS

AT THE HAND OF
JOHN GEORGE HAIGH,

ALSO KNOWN AS
THE ACID BATH MURDERER.

AND BY 1978, POLICE HOPE
THAT FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY

CAN HELP CLOSE THE BOOKS ON
THE JOHN WAYNE GACY MURDER CASE.

MOST OF THE 29 SKELETONS
FOUND UNDER GACY'S HOUSE

HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED.

BUT THERE ARE STILL
A FEW UNKNOWNS.

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST
CLYDE SNOW

AND ARTIST BETTY PAT GATLIFF

HAVE USED THE VICTIMS' SKULLS
TO CREATE FACIAL RECONSTRUCTIONS

THAT COULD HELP THEIR FAMILIES
RECOGNIZE THEM.

Snow: IT'S YOUR LAST SHOT.

YOU'VE EXHAUSTED
ALL NORMAL LEADS

OR METHODS OF GETTING LEADS
FOR AN IDENTIFICATION.

Narrator: AT LAST THEY GET A HIT

ON ONE OF THE ANONYMOUS
SKELETONS.

THEY IDENTIFY A 15-YEAR-OLD
NAMED TIMOTHY McCOY.

A TEENAGER FROM IOWA,

TIMOTHY WAS RETURNING HOME
FROM A CHRISTMAS TRIP

IN JANUARY OF 1972

WHEN HE DISAPPEARED
FROM A CHICAGO BUS STATION,

20 MINUTES FROM GACY'S HOUSE.

BASED ON THE DATE
OF HIS DISAPPEARANCE,

TIMOTHY McCOY IS BELIEVED
TO BE GACY'S FIRST MURDER.

OVERALL,
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS

PUT NAMES TO MORE THAN
20 OF GACY'S VICTIMS.

IN A GRUESOME TWIST,

POLICE ALSO FIND FOUR MORE
CORPSES IN NEARBY RIVERS

THAT FORENSIC EVIDENCE SHOWS
TO BE GACY'S HANDIWORK,

INCLUDING THE BODY
OF ROBERT PIEST,

THE BOY WHOSE DISAPPEARANCE

FIRST BROUGHT AUTHORITIES
TO GACY'S DOORSTEP.

ON FEBRUARY 6, 1980,

GACY STANDS TRIAL

FOR THE MURDERS OF
33 YOUNG MEN AND BOYS.

THE WORLD OF
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY

HAS CLEARLY COME A LONG WAY

SINCE THE DAYS OF
THE SAUSAGE KING.

THE BONES FOUND
IN GACY'S CRAWLSPACE

ARE POWERFUL AND
UNDENIABLE EVIDENCE.

Sullivan: THE DEFENSE WAS
OSTENSIBLY ONE OF INSANITY,

WHICH WAS REALLY THE KIND
OF DEFENSE THAT WE EXPECTED,

PRETTY MUCH THE ONLY DEFENSE

THAT I THINK WAS AVAILABLE
TO HIM AT THAT TIME.

Narrator: WHILE GACY
PLEADS INSANITY,

PROSECUTORS USE THE REMAINS
OF HIS VICTIMS

TO WEAVE A STORY OF A SOCIOPATH

WHO KNOWINGLY LURED YOUNG MEN
AND BOYS INTO HIS HOME

AND RUTHLESSLY KILLED THEM.

WITH THE BONES OF
GACY'S MANY VICTIMS

HELPING TO MOUNT
THE CASE AGAINST HIM,

THE VERDICT IS NO SURPRISE.

Kozenczak: GACY WAS FOUND GUILTY

OF ALL 33 COUNTS OF MURDER,

AND WAS SUBSEQUENTLY
SENTENCED TO DEATH.

Narrator: ON MAY 10, 1994,

GACY IS EXECUTED
BY LETHAL INJECTION.

TODAY GACY'S STREET
LOOKS LIKE ANY OTHER.

HIS HOUSE HAS BEEN TORN DOWN,

AND THE MASS GRAVE HAS
LONG SINCE BEEN FILLED IN.

BUT THE LEGACY OF GACY'S CASE
LIVES ON,

MOSTLY BECAUSE OF HOW IT
LAUNCHED FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY

INTO THE LIMELIGHT.

AND THIS FIELD HAS BECOME
EVEN MORE POWERFUL SINCE THEN.

NOW STATE-OF-THE-ART TOOLS,
LIKE HIGH-POWERED MICROSCOPES,

ARE HELPING FORENSIC
ANTHROPOLOGISTS GO FAR BEYOND

WHAT THEY EVER
IMAGINED POSSIBLE.

Ubelaker: IT ALLOWS US
TO LOOK INSIDE THE BONES,

AND THAT PRODUCES INFORMATION
THAT'S RELEVANT

TO MANY AREAS OF INTERPRETATION
IN FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY,

AND MAY PRODUCE SOME
EXCITING BREAKTHROUGHS.

Narrator: TECHNOLOGY LIKE
DIGITAL ANIMATION

ALSO ALLOWS FORENSIC
ANTHROPOLOGISTS

TO GET MORE DETAILED INFORMATION
FROM OLD BONES.

Taylor: I'VE BEEN ABLE TO SCAN
THESE FRAGMENTARY SKULL ELEMENTS

AND VIRTUALLY ASSEMBLE THEM

USING THE INPUT OF
A FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST

INTO THE CORRECT ORIENTATION
TO HAVE A VIRTUAL SKULL.

AND IN THE PAST, I WOULDN'T HAVE
BEEN ABLE TO DO ANYTHING

TO HELP PUT A FACE
ON THAT SKULL.

Narrator: AND NOW
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGISTS

ARE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF
THE LATEST TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES

ON AN EPIC SCALE.

DR. CLYDE SNOW IS CURRENTLY
WORKING IN GUATEMALA,

TRYING TO IDENTIFY THOUSANDS
OF UNKNOWN SKELETAL REMAINS

BURIED IN A MASS GRAVE.

THEY ARE BELIEVED TO BE VICTIMS
OF POLITICAL ASSASSINATIONS.

Snow: HERE IS A GUNSHOT WOUND
TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD,

A SINGLE GUNSHOT WOUND,

ENTERING THAT SKULL
AT THE BASE.

CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT
THE PERPETRATORS OF THESE CRIMES

EVER IN THEIR WILDEST NIGHTMARES

THOUGHT THAT WE WOULD BE
FINDING THE VICTIMS?

Man: NO, I'M SURE
THEY COUNTED ON THE FACT

THAT NOBODY WOULD EVER
LOOK FOR THESE GUYS.

Snow: YEAH, YEAH.

Narrator: FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY
IS STILL JUST A CENTURY OLD,

BUT MODERN DAY BONE DETECTIVES
ARE TAKING THE SCIENCE

TO A LEVEL ONCE THOUGHT
IMPOSSIBLE...

SOLVING MURDERS AND
IDENTIFYING THE DEAD

USING NOTHING MORE
THAN A VICTIM'S BONES.