Emblem of the Henry C. Lee Forensic Institute (Dr. Henry Lee's Institute of Forensic Science)

Dr. Henry C. Lee is one the most interesting and knowledgeable international experts in contemporary crime scene investigation.  As former Commissioner for the Department of Public Safety, Chief Criminalist, and Director of the Connecticut State Police Forensic Science Laboratory in Meriden, CT, he has visited thousands of crime scenes and testified in numerous high-profile cases, notably his consultation for the O. J. Simpson defense team.  Currently he is Chief Emeritus for the Connecticut Division of Scientific Services, a full professor of forensic science at the University of New Haven, where he has helped to set up the Henry C. Lee Forensic Institute.  Available for consultation to over three thousand agencies, he has assisted law enforcement in over six thousand cases around the world.

Dr. Henry Lee  (State of Connecticut)

Born in China in 1938, Dr. Lee studied police science in Taiwan.  He served as a captain of the police force there, noting the need for scientific methods of solving crimes, before coming to the United States in 1965 for further education in forensic science.  He received degrees from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and New York University.  Aside from his Ph.D. in human genetics and biochemistry, he has received several honorary doctorates as well and has been an adjunct professor in eight different universities.

For almost a decade, Dr. Lee worked at New York University Medical Center and then created a forensic science program at the University of New Haven.  In 1992, he was elected a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Science.  Over the years he has authored or co-authored twenty books and book chapters including Famous Crimes Revisited, Henry Lee's Crime Scene Handbook, and Physical Evidence in Forensic Science, as well as over three hundred articles.  He's also been a key consultant in cases such as the reinvestigation of the Sacco-Vanzetti affair, the JonBenet Ramsey murder, the John F. Kennedy assassination, and the mystery surrounding Vincent Foster's death.

Just back from consulting on a homicide in Miami and receiving a life achievement award in California to add to his huge collection of citations and awards, he agreed to interrupt his busy schedule to give the following interview.