The Story Of “The World’s Premier Forensic Investigators” By New York Times Bestselling Author Steve Jackson Catches Up On Cases
More than a dozen years have passed since my true crime book NO STONE UNTURNED was released in print. At the time, NecroSearch International, the inspirational and eclectic group of scientists and law enforcement investigators described in the book, were little known outside of the few agencies who had come into contact with them. As often as not most of these agencies had initially viewed NSI warily as a group of well-meaning volunteers, but not necessarily anyone who could help them find clandestine graves, recover remains, and assist them with solving homicides and missing persons cases.
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However, that began to change when the successful resolution of a few exemplary cases put NSI on the map with law enforcement agencies throughout the United States and around the globe. Whether it was finding the remains of a murder victim thrown by her killer down a steep mountainside in Colorado, or buried beneath a concrete slab in Arizona, or placed in the trunk of a car and then submerged in the Missouri River, their reputation began to grow in law enforcement circles though the general public still knew little about them. After a brief history of forensic science, NO STONE UNTURNED covered the genesis and early days of NecroSearch International, as well as detailed the “true crime” stories behind their most dramatic cases up to 2001.
A lot has changed over the past dozen-plus years both in the publishing world, as well as with NecroSearch International. So I decided to publish an eBook and audio book version of NO STONE UNTURNED through WildBlue Press. While I was at it, I thought I’d update the stories by talking to the NSI members, as well as law enforcement, to write about what has come of the people and events described in the book (print fans can still find the book, but I don’t own the rights and so will not be updating that version).
In the meantime, NSI has grown–both in its membership and its reputation among law enforcement agencies to where they are regularly consulted, as well as brought in on cases, by a wide variety of investigators from the FBI to small town police departments. (NecroSearch only works at the request of law enforcement.) They also work closely with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which helps fund NSI investigations for victims under the age of 18, and several NCMEC members also belong to NecroSearch.
It was a great honor for me when in November 2014 I was made an honorary member of the group, and even more so several weeks ago when the members voted to make me a full member. I hope to assist NSI with their media dealings, act as their historian (with a good start on that already), and explore an interest of my own that for want of a better term I call “forensic historian.”
I plan to write a second book on NecroSearch International that will describe the evolution of the group from the end of NO STONE UNTURNED to the present, as well as detail some of their incredible work and successes since the first book was published. The plan is to have that book ready to go by late 2015. So make sure you’re caught up on this amazing group of people by ordering your copy of NO STONE UNTURNED.
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