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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsCold-case evidence is reexamined by rebuilding the history of the investigation, checking what evidence still exists and what earlier tests established, then asking a forensic laboratory which present-day methods could answer an unresolved question. The process is selective: a newer method is useful only if the item, its condition, the prior work and the case’s needs make it a sound choice. Results can generate leads, but a DNA profile or database hit is not, by itself, proof of guilt.
What happens when investigators reopen a cold case?
Reexamination is not simply sending every stored item back for another test. Investigators first reconstruct what happened in the original inquiry: which leads were pursued, which evidence was collected, where it is now, how it has been stored, what laboratory examinations were performed and what those examinations did—and did not—establish. They then identify the questions that remain important to the case.
This matters because a test has value only in relation to a question. A sample that was once inconclusive might now merit review if a laboratory can explain how current methods could address the unresolved issue. Conversely, repeating an examination without a clear purpose may consume or alter limited material without producing useful information. The decision is made case by case with investigators and forensic specialists, not by a universal rule about how old evidence must be.
The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) describes evidence audits, documentation of evidence location and condition, review of earlier analyses, and periodic review of case files as elements of sound cold-case practice. Its best-practices recommendations are guidance for agencies, not mandates that dictate one procedure for every jurisdiction or case.
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How investigators decide what to examine
Reconstruct the case and its evidence inventory
The first task is to make the case file and the physical evidence legible to the current team. Investigators review the chronology, reports, photographs, prior laboratory findings and unresolved leads alongside the evidence inventory. They confirm where relevant items are held, their recorded condition and what examination or handling has already taken place. A tracking system helps preserve that history so a later investigator does not mistake an old result for an unanswered question—or overlook a prior procedure that affects what can be done next.
The central decision is not “What can be tested?” but “Which available item could answer a material question, and what would the answer change?” A laboratory can help assess whether an item is suitable for a proposed examination and what its limitations are. The investigator, in turn, supplies the case context needed to judge whether a possible result would be useful. A review can therefore lead to testing, to a different investigative step, or to no further examination of a particular item.
Compare previous findings with present capability
Older biological samples may be small, degraded, previously consumed in part, or affected by earlier handling. Some tests may have produced no interpretable result or only a limited one. Improvements in DNA analysis have widened the range of samples that may yield a profile, including some that were once considered unsuitable or produced inconclusive results, according to NIJ’s Cold Case Investigations topic coverage. That is a reason to ask a laboratory for an assessment—not a promise that any old sample can now be tested successfully.
There is no fixed waiting period that makes retesting appropriate. In a 2022 NIJ article, Jason Moran of the Cook County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims/Forensic Services Unit put it plainly: “There’s no rule of thumb on how much time should have passed before re-testing evidence.” He describes a possible reason to revisit a sample: an earlier mitochondrial DNA profile accompanied by a weak nuclear DNA result may warrant another look if newer capabilities could clarify what the sample can support. The point is that prior results and current laboratory capability matter more than a calendar interval.
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What can DNA retesting establish—and what can it not?
A DNA examination may produce a profile that can be compared with an appropriate reference sample or searched in an eligible database. Whether it can do so depends on the material, its condition, the quality of the result and the available comparison options. A profile that cannot be compared to a relevant reference or produce a database lead may still be a meaningful forensic result, but it does not name a person by itself or resolve the surrounding questions of when, how or why biological material came to be at a location.
NIJ practitioner Jason Moran has emphasized that obtaining a profile without a database hit does not make a case solved. It can still give investigators a new starting point: they may pursue other evidence, identify potential reference samples, or consider another qualified investigative method. The profile is one part of the case, and its significance must be assessed alongside the facts and other evidence.
Nor does a database match end the work. A match is a lead that must be checked and followed up. NIJ’s 2023 coverage of laboratory handling of cold hits describes quality-control steps that may include reanalysis and other forensic or biographical checks. The FBI encourages collecting a new standard sample for direct comparison under appropriate chain of custody. Those checks help establish whether the apparent association is reliable and relevant before investigators draw conclusions from it.
Why examination order can matter
Different forensic methods can compete for the same item or affect one another’s evidence. NIJ’s 2023 guidance on collecting DNA evidence at property-crime scenes cautions that some latent-print visualization techniques can cause loss or damage to DNA evidence; DNA analysis, in turn, may eliminate latent-print evidence. The practical implication is to consider the available evidence sources and possible order of work before processing begins, rather than treating each discipline as an isolated step.
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For an item that might contain both biological material and latent prints, investigators should discuss its condition, the questions each examination might answer and the laboratory’s proposed sequence with the relevant laboratory staff. The best order depends on the particular item and methods under consideration; there is no universally correct sequence stated for every case. The aim is to avoid needlessly sacrificing one potential source of information while pursuing another.
How the main investigative options differ
Cold-case methods are not interchangeable upgrades. Each needs a particular kind of evidence, answers a different question and may have its own capacity or follow-up requirements. The choice depends on what the case contains and what earlier work has established.
| Method | What it may contribute | Key prerequisite or constraint |
|---|---|---|
| DNA analysis and comparison | A biological profile that can be assessed against suitable reference samples or searched where eligible. | Usability depends on the sample and the result; a profile without a relevant comparison or database hit is not an identification. |
| Latent-print examination | A potential comparison from a latent print, depending on the item and the available print evidence. | Some visualization methods can affect DNA evidence, so possible processing order should be considered with the laboratory. |
| Forensic genetic genealogy | An investigative lead in a qualified case when conventional database searching has not produced a probative match. | It requires an SNP profile; not every laboratory has the capacity to generate one. It is a lead method, not a universal test or guaranteed identification. |
| Advanced fingerprint identification | A further avenue for examining fingerprint evidence, depending on the case and available material. | Whether it is useful depends on the evidence and the investigative question. |
| NIBIN | A database search involving cartridge-case imagery that may provide an investigative lead. | It concerns cartridge-case imagery, not biological or fingerprint evidence; its relevance depends on the case evidence. |
| NamUs | A potential resource in cases where the relevant missing-person or unidentified-person questions apply. | Its relevance depends on the case circumstances and evidence. |
NIJ’s cold-case best-practices coverage identifies advanced fingerprint identification, the FBI’s Next Generation Identification system, NIBIN, NamUs and newer examination of biological samples among possible tools. The list is not a checklist that every case should follow: a method matters only when the evidence and unresolved question fit it.
When a DNA search has no hit
CODIS is an important first search for eligible DNA investigative leads. A no-hit result means that the search did not return a probative match; it does not establish that the profile is useless or that no suspect exists. Investigators may consider other leads or, in a qualified investigation, forensic genetic genealogy. NIJ and the Forensic Technology Center of Excellence explain that genetic genealogy requires an SNP profile, and that not all laboratories can generate one. It should be understood as a route to an investigative lead, not as a routine replacement for CODIS or a guaranteed way to identify someone.
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What a cold-case database hit means
A hit is a reason to investigate further, not a verdict. Laboratory quality-control and follow-up can test whether the result is sound; investigators then assess its significance in the wider case. A new reference sample collected directly under appropriate chain of custody can provide a further comparison, as noted in NIJ’s 2023 discussion of cold hits. The case still requires evidence-based interpretation and investigative work beyond the database notification.
This distinction protects against two errors: treating a database lead as conclusive proof, and treating the absence of a hit as proof that further investigation is pointless. Database searches are one mechanism for finding possible connections. They do not replace careful review of the evidence, its provenance and the other facts in the case.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why preservation and documentation affect future options
Evidence that cannot be found, whose condition is unclear, or whose examination history is incomplete is harder to assess when methods change. NIJ recommends retaining biological evidence from unsolved cases for possible future evaluation and emphasizes recording where evidence is, its condition and what analyses have been performed. Reviewing retention policies also helps agencies make unresolved-case material available for later assessment.
The value of preservation is practical: a future investigator needs to know what exists and what has happened to it before a laboratory can judge whether another examination is possible. NIJ’s 2019 coverage of its cold-case best-practices guide reported that, by December 2017, more than 1 million kits had been analyzed for DNA and more than 400,000 forensic crime-scene DNA profiles had been uploaded to CODIS. Those are historical figures reported for that date, not current totals or a measure of how many cold cases were solved.
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Does a new forensic result automatically hold up in court?
No. Investigative usefulness and legal admissibility are separate questions. A technique may help generate or assess a lead, while a court may separately consider reliability and admissibility in the circumstances of a particular case. NIJ’s National Center on Forensics resource on post-PCAST court decisions documents that disputes vary across forensic disciplines and cases. It would be inaccurate to promise that any method or result is automatically admissible.
Investigators and prosecutors must evaluate the actual method, its application and the case record under the relevant legal standards. A promising investigative result can justify follow-up without settling the legal question of whether, or how, it may be presented in court.
What the evidence review can reasonably promise
A disciplined review can reveal overlooked evidence, clarify the limits of earlier testing, and identify whether newer methods or databases offer a meaningful next step. It cannot guarantee a usable profile, a database match, a suspect identification or a prosecution. NIJ’s Cold Case Investigation Working Group has said, “Cases once considered unsolvable can be resolved today.” That is an argument for preserving evidence and reassessing cases when circumstances justify it—not a promise about the outcome of any individual investigation.
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