Ted Bundy to be added to FBI DNA Database

on August 1, 2011 in Forensics, Serial Killers by Brian Combs

If you were to ask most devotees of true crime whether Ted Bundy’s DNA was in the federal database, he or she would most likely say “yes”. And he or she would be wrong.

Bundy’s DNA has never been added to the FBI’s DNA database, but that is about to change.

A number of hurdles has meant that the effort to add his DNA has taken years. First of all, it was difficult to find a complete sample. Bundy’s crimes occurred long before DNA was used in criminology, and most police departments did not keep a sample.

David Coffman, regional crime lab director for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, had a partial DNA profile, but it was not enough to upload to the database, or to connect him to any crimes.

Lindsey Wade, a Tacoma homicide detective, became interested in the case when she began to look into the Ann Marie Burr case. Bundy has long been a suspect in her murder.

After talking to Coffman, Wade began contacting institutions to try and find a sample. Finally, she talked to the clerk’s office in Lake City, Florida, where Bundy killed 12-year-old Kimberly Diane Leach. Kimberly is believed to be Bundy’s final victim.

Investigators there had a vial of blood from that case.

Coffman said:

We were shocked how we got a complete profile. It was a beautiful profile.

The next hurdle was legal. The sample had been taken from Bundy prior to his convictions. As a result, Bundy’s profile had to be placed into a special legal category.

This is sort of an unusual situation. He’s a suspect but a dead suspect.

All these hurdles have now been cleared, and the sample is on the way to the FBI for uploading into their database.

Meanwhile, Wade is preparing the evidence from the Ann Marie Burr case to be sent to the state crime lab, so that it can be compared against Bundy’s DNA.