Medical Detectives

An examination of the first time animal DNA was used to solve a criminal case. In 1994, on Canada's Prince Edward Island, the body of Douglas Beamish's estranged wife Shirley Duguay was discovered. Authorities linked 20 cat hairs found on her jacket to a cat owned by Beamish's parents, with whom he lived. Scientists estimated that chances that the hairs came from another feline were one in 50 million. A jury later convicted Beamish of second-degree murder; he was sentenced to 18 years without parole.