Episode
Forensic Files: Within Arm's Reach
Overview
A police officer accused of killing his estranged wife insists she committed suicide. Investigators say it was murder – that it was physically impossible for the woman to have shot herself. The crime scene evidence is interpreted differently by the defense and prosecution, and the jury must decide if the victim's death was suicide or cold-blooded murder.
Details
- Series
- Forensic Files
- Season
- Season 8
- Episode
- Episode 15
- Air date
- 2003-08-25
- Runtime
- 23 min
Episode context
Within Arm's Reach is Episode 15 in Season 8 of Forensic Files. It aired on 2003-08-25. The runtime is 23 min.
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Episode 14: A Welcome Intrusion
A man tells police he shot an intruder who had attacked and murdered his wife. The husband paints a tragic picture and is dubbed a hero. Four years later, forensic evidence leads police to re-examine the motives of this so-called hero.
Episode 16: Private Thoughts
When Firefighters found an entire family dead, inside their home, it looked like a murder-suicide, but there were several inconsistent clues in the rubble. Could ballistics, a time card, and some secret audiotapes unravel the mystery?
More episodes from this season
Episode 13: When the Dust Settled
A union official is executed in his home not long after a strike by the union membership. Neither his wife nor anyone in the neighborhood heard any gunshots. It would take a forensic sound test, an electron microscope, and a nightgown to explain why.
Episode 17: Brotherhoods
Two men were murdered, while sleeping in their bed. One night later, an arson fire destroyed a family planning clinic. Investigators wondered, wherether some shards of glass, paintchips and a chicken feather, could link for what appeared to be, two separate crimes.
Episode 12: Order Up
A man is found dead in his home, and his ex-wife has a perfect alibi. To determine time of death, investigators need to know when the victim ate his last meal. An endocrinologist, a forensic botanist, and a short-order cook answer their question.
Episode 18: Hair of the Dog
With no forensic evidence inside a murder scene, investigators were baffled. But they suspected that the victim's dog had witnessed the crime. If she had, forensic scientists would have to find a way to find out what the dog had seen.
Episode 11: A Wrong Foot
Police were puzzled by an obscure print found at a crime scene where one man had been killed and two teenage girls were seriously injured. Neither of the girls could identify their attacker. But one simple clue helped track the footsteps of a killer.
Episode 19: Breaking News
A young TV news producer is raped and murdered in her apartment. Police identify two suspects, but both are cleared of any wrongdoing. The case stalls for more than a year, and then investigators turn to the Commonwealth of Virginia's DNA Databank.
Episode 10: Dinner and a Movie
Time of death becomes pivotal after a pregnant woman is found murdered in her air-conditioned bedroom. A striking similarity between her death and an HBO movie gives examiners the clues they need to thaw out the alibi of a cold-blooded killer.
Episode 20: All the World's a Stage
Police are dispatched to the scene of a shooting, and discover the victim's husband is one of their own: a homicide detective who says his wife accidentally shot herself in the head. The detective maintains he called 911 immediately, but the evidence seems to indicate otherwise. [also marked as S8:E10]
Episode 9: Shot of Vengeance
A 34-year-old nurse experiences a variety of flu-like symptoms. None of her doctors are able to discover the cause, until she visits the gynecologist for a routine check-up. Then she learns it's something far worse than the flu.
Episode 21: The Big Chill
For years, a woman suffered from what appeared to be the unpleasant side effects of lithium, a drug prescribed to treat bipolar disorder. When she died, investigators had to determine if her death was due to natural causes, suicide, or murder.