Professor David Wilson, the UK's leading criminologist, presents the third series of the crime talk show Crime Files. This season David is focusing primarily on Scotland's numerous Cold Cases. In episode 3, he and his guests tackle the complex issue of forensic analysis and whether human interpretation can lead to miscarriages of justice.
David travels to Kilmarnock. There he will try and untangle a complex tale where a woman's brutal murder was lost in the chaos of forensic mistakes. He is examining the case of Marion Ross, who was murdered in her home in 1997. Though a suspect was quickly found, David will dissect the evidence that mistakenly convicted him and whether there was a miscarriage of justice due to incorrect evaluation of the fingerprints.
In the studio, David speaks with renowned forensic scientist Jim Fraser who was essential in the re-analysis of the forensics which would help release the suspect from prison. He will explain in depth what evidence was found at the scene and why it all went so wrong.
David, this series, is joined in studio by our resident Forensic Scientist Helen Meadows. This week Helen will dissect both Marion's case and also examine the case of Pamela Hastie. Pamela was a 16 year old girl who was viciously attacked and killed on her way home from school. Her murder was supposedly solved quickly with the blame being placed on a local youth. However, Helen will show how many vital forensic clues were either ignored or mismanaged leading to the realisation that the youth was serving time for a murder they didn't commit.
David's final guest is Gordon Richie, he was the defence lawyer who led the appeal for the convicted suspect in Pamela's murder case. He will talk us through how he and his team focused on dismantling the original post mortem used in the crown case in 1982 to overturn the original ruling. He will explain that when forensics are mismanaged it can lead to devastating consequences. And begs the question if we rely too heavily on them for answers.

Professor David Wilson, the UK's leading criminologist, presents the third series of the crime talk show Crime Files. This season David is focusing primarily on Scotland's Cold Cases. In episode 5, he and his guests try to get to the bottom of Scotland's record number of unsolved murdered sex worker cases.
David travels to the epicentre of the once booming red light distract of Leith. Here he examines the catastrophic murder of mother of two Sheila Anderson. Sheila was a tragic example of the heroin epidemic of the 80s and how many women turned to the streets to support their habit. And on a dark April night in 1983 a suspected client ran Sheila over with his car multiple times and left her for dead.
In the studio, David speaks with former Deputy Chief Constable Tom Wood. He was the lead detective on Sheila's case back in 1983. He will speak on the initial investigation and the ways in which he and his team tried to uncover Sheila's killer. He will touch on the many roadblocks preventing them from getting answers, from the police themselves to finding witnesses that would cooperate. He will speak on the culture at the time, how police were prepared to deal with the heroin epidemic and how it changed the atmosphere on Edinburgh's streets.
David, this series, is joined in studio by our resident Forensic Scientist Helen Meadows. This week Helen will dissect both Sheila's case and also inform David on the tragic murder of Tracey Wylde. Tracey was a sex worker from Glasgow, who in 1997 was murdered in her flat. Tracey's case, like many sex workers before her, went cold but Helen will look at the crucial DNA evidence left behind that eventually lead to her killer's arrest, over 20 years after her death.
David's final guest is charity worker and activist Ruth Morgan Thomas. As a former sex worker, she has expert knowledge on the situation many women face on the streets. She will talk about the lack of action taken by politicians to bring in real change to the industry. Ruth will also speak on the current legislation surrounding sex work and whether it is actually protecting the women involved.