Paul Bernardo
In 1992, the Canadian press went into a frenzy concerning “The Ken and Barbie Murders.” In June 1991, Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka tortured, raped, and killed fourteen year-old Leslie Mahaffy. The brutal assaults of Mahaffy were recorded on tape by the couple and helped convict them at trial.
Ten months later in April 1992, Bernardo and Homolka again raped, tortured, and killed another teenage victim, Kristen French over a period of several days, all captured on video tape.
Once captured and put on trial, forensic entomology began to play an important role. In Paul Bernardo’s trial, renowned forensic entomologist Dr. Neal Haskell helped establish a timeline for one of the victim’s murders. Haskell utilized his understanding of insect development cycles to narrow a fifteen day time interval down to a period of four days for the victim’s time of death.
Being one of Canada’s most publicized criminal cases, Dr. Haskell and his testimony brought forth forensic entomology.
Read more about this topic: Forensic Entomology And The Law, Famous Cases