Leanne Tiernan Case Study
1. The murder of Leanne Tiernan.
The case
In November 2000 a 16- year old girl, Leanne Tiernan went missing following a shopping trip with a best friend in Leeds. What followed was the largest search in West Yorkshire as the police searched around 800 homes and 1500 gardens on the direct route back to her home from the bus stop as well as searches of a three-mile stretch of canals, drains and moorlands. Eventually with no witnesses, concrete evidence of new leads the case went cold.
However in August 2001 a man walking his dog about 10 miles from her home in a woods found her body buried in a shallow grave. Shew was found with a back plastic bad over her head, held in place with a dog collar, with a scarf and cable tie around her neck and cable …show more content…
The forensic analysis began with a profile of DNA samples taken from the rape victim.
When scientists compared Imiela’s profile with the one taken from the child, there was no match with either the national DNA database or samples taken from 2,000 local men
In July 2002 there was a further attack of a 30 year old woman who was raped in Earlswood, in Surrey.
Using a technique called low copy number (LCN) DNA profiling the forensic services were able to match fragments of DNA to those from the first case.
Following the rapes of a 26-year-old woman on Putney Common in London on the same day in July 2002, a 52-year-old woman on Wimbledon Common, London in August 2002, and a 26-year-old woman in Epsom, Surrey, also in August 2002, the forensic scientists screened the DNA of 1000 men but could not find any matches.
In October 2002, the rapist abducted a 14-year-old girl in Stevenage (Hertfordshire) and raped her at knifepoint. The girl was able to provide a description of her attacker. Following a release of the description, and anonymous caller gave the police a tip-off and Imiela came in to provide a DNA
The case
In November 2000 a 16- year old girl, Leanne Tiernan went missing following a shopping trip with a best friend in Leeds. What followed was the largest search in West Yorkshire as the police searched around 800 homes and 1500 gardens on the direct route back to her home from the bus stop as well as searches of a three-mile stretch of canals, drains and moorlands. Eventually with no witnesses, concrete evidence of new leads the case went cold.
However in August 2001 a man walking his dog about 10 miles from her home in a woods found her body buried in a shallow grave. Shew was found with a back plastic bad over her head, held in place with a dog collar, with a scarf and cable tie around her neck and cable …show more content…
The forensic analysis began with a profile of DNA samples taken from the rape victim.
When scientists compared Imiela’s profile with the one taken from the child, there was no match with either the national DNA database or samples taken from 2,000 local men
In July 2002 there was a further attack of a 30 year old woman who was raped in Earlswood, in Surrey.
Using a technique called low copy number (LCN) DNA profiling the forensic services were able to match fragments of DNA to those from the first case.
Following the rapes of a 26-year-old woman on Putney Common in London on the same day in July 2002, a 52-year-old woman on Wimbledon Common, London in August 2002, and a 26-year-old woman in Epsom, Surrey, also in August 2002, the forensic scientists screened the DNA of 1000 men but could not find any matches.
In October 2002, the rapist abducted a 14-year-old girl in Stevenage (Hertfordshire) and raped her at knifepoint. The girl was able to provide a description of her attacker. Following a release of the description, and anonymous caller gave the police a tip-off and Imiela came in to provide a DNA