Since no DNA samples were retained from Pearson, his remains were exhumed in October to collect samples, police said. In July 2022, the Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office received a grant to help identify human remains using genetic genealogy. Spokane police detectives gathered evidence, conducted interviews and followed up on leads, but ultimately, the case went cold. DNA was recognized as a scientific concept but wasn’t used to solve forensic cases for decades to come. Technology and forensic testing ability were virtually unrecognizable from the capabilities of today, police said. The man was buried as a John Doe in February 1980 at Fairmount Memorial Park. Fingerprints were collected, but they failed to produce an identification. An autopsy was conducted, but no DNA samples were retained, which was not uncommon at that time, the release said. He was described as a man between the ages of 35 and 45, 5-foot-6 and weighing 125 pounds. Pearson did not have identification, and a missing person report was never filed for someone fitting his profile. Pearson’s death was ruled a homicide because of the injuries and smoke inhalation, police said. in Spokane discovered a dead man, identified in April as Donald Leroy Pearson, curled up with burn marks to his torso and significant head trauma, according to a Spokane Police Department news release. In January 1980, three transients walking in a railroad tunnel at 700 E. A man found dead in an apparent homicide more than four decades ago in Spokane was identified this year using genetic genealogy, police announced Friday.
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