Sean McCowan bears the weight on his wrist, marked by 14,219 days engraved in silver on a bracelet. This figure symbolizes the 39-year gap between his sister Erin Gilmour’s tragic murder in December 1983 and the apprehension of her killer in 2022. McCowan expressed relief rather than joy upon receiving the call confirming the arrest from a Toronto police detective, stating that it provided closure and answers, making him feel lighter.
Solving cold case murders, particularly those spanning decades, has always posed a significant challenge for law enforcement agencies. However, recent restrictions have made this task even more daunting due to limitations on genetic genealogy, a valuable tool that utilizes small DNA segments to trace perpetrators through distant familial connections.
Ancestry.com, a prominent U.S.-based platform, serves as a vast repository of public genealogical records, compiling data such as birth, death, marriage, and immigration records from various regions worldwide. Law enforcement agencies have increasingly relied on this platform to construct family trees in their investigative work.
Recently, Ancestry.com updated its terms of service, explicitly prohibiting law enforcement from accessing the site without a court order, impeding detectives’ research efforts. This change has significantly complicated the process, making it more time-consuming for investigators to gather necessary information for resolving cases.
Despite these challenges, genetic genealogy has proven instrumental in solving over 1,400 cold cases, starting with the identification of California’s Golden State Killer in 2018. The remarkable success stories often involve meticulous research and analysis, even when leveraging Ancestry’s data.
The case of Erin Gilmour exemplifies the painstaking investigative work required to crack cold cases. Through advanced DNA testing methods like single nucleotide polymorphism (SNIP) analysis, the Toronto police were able to identify a suspect in the 1983 murders of Gilmour and another victim, Susan Tice. By matching DNA samples with distant relatives on platforms like GEDMatch and FamilyTreeDNA, investigators slowly unraveled the suspect’s family tree, leading to the arrest of Joseph George Sutherland in 2023.
Ancestry.com’s decision to restrict police access to its database has raised concerns among law enforcement officials, who find the new policy counterproductive to their investigative efforts. The privacy implications of genetic genealogy have also sparked debates, prompting calls for enhanced oversight and safeguards to protect individuals’ rights.
While some police units have adapted to these changes by exploring alternative avenues for investigation, the impact of restricted access to genealogical data remains a contentious issue among stakeholders. Balancing the need for justice with privacy considerations continues to be a complex challenge in the evolving landscape of forensic genetics.