Dr. Henry Lee Visits Clinton

It's never a humdrum moment when Dr. Henry Lee, one of the world's most famous forensic scientists, relates tales of murder, massacre, and mayhem. He keeps his audience riveted with stories of every type of crime imaginable both here in Connecticut and around the world.

Lee, 73, joined by his wife Margaret, visited Clinton last week as a special featured guest on The Peter Mezzetti Show, a weekly informational television show created by resident Peter Mezzetti.

The show, which was previously known as Mezzetti & Me and Clinton Clips, is broadcast every Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. on Comcast's community access channel 19.

Lee, who came to the United States from his native China in 1965, helped put the University of New Haven (UNH) on the map when he founded the Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science at UNH. In addition to teaching forensics at UNH since 1975, Lee is a consultant in the field, author, expert witness, lecturer, and research scientist, among other things.

"I am 73 years old and have retired four times," he said with a laugh.

He has consulted on 8,000 crime cases in 42 countries.

"I don't take any new cases anymore," he said. "I work on cold cases or unsolved crimes."

Last week, he spoke of many famous Connecticut cases he has worked on, including those of serial killer Michael Ross, murder victims Penny Serra and Martha Moxley, and wood chipper killer Richard Crafts.

Crafts was convicted of killing his wife Helle Crafts in 1986. He disposed of her body by use of a rented wood chipper. Due to Lee's investigation of the scene and from evidence of a tiny piece of Helle's fingernail polish, Crafts was convicted and sentenced to 50 years in prison. It was the state's first successful murder conviction without a body.

Lee also discussed details of other famous cases on which he was asked to consult, including the John F. Kennedy assassination, Jon Benet Ramsey (unsolved) murder, the O.J. Simpson murder trial, the murder of Laci Peterson, and the suicide of Vincent Foster, attorney to President Bill Clinton.

"Real forensics work is not like the CSI television show," said Lee. "It is hard work and team work, a lot of sacrifice of family life, and no commercials!"

Lee said crime, especially murder, has changed over the years. Fifty years ago, 90 percent of murders were committed by someone the victim knew such as a spouse, family, friends, co-workers, and acquaintances.

"Today, 46 percent of murders are committed by strangers to the victim," said Lee.

Lee said he became interested in forensics while serving as a police captain in Taipei, Taiwan. Due to his father's death when Lee was four years old and the size of his family (he is one of 13 children), he joined the police academy because it was free of charge.

"I realized there must be a better way to solve crimes than relying on one witness or interrogating the suspect," he said.

Lee said he has watched witnesses point the finger at a suspect with unwavering certainty that he or she committed the crime against them.

"After DNA tests are done, you find out that the suspect could not have committed the crime," he said, noting that victims have even named as their rapist or attacker people of a different race than the actual convicted offender.

The job of the police, he believes, is to act as "fact finders."

"The evidence will speak for itself," he said.

Dr. Lee invites those interested to sign up for the 19th annual Arnold Markle Symposium on Police Involved Shootings-Investigation of Critical Incidents and Issue on Sept. 27 and 28 at MGM Grand at Foxwoods. For more information, visit www.henryleeinstitute.com.