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Will DNA reveal who Zodiac was?


susieice

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It seems after the Golden State Killer was identified by running DNA through sites that identified possible family ties, authorities are considering doing the same with DNA available from the Zodiac killings. They are hoping the DNA is still viable from the late 60's.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/crime-courts/after-golden-state-killer-arrest-zodiac-killer-case-could-be-n871601

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Man I hope so! Many people need what closure they may get from that knowledge.

Very curious if my gut feeling he is deceased turns out to be true. I have felt he died shortly after his last interactions and known activity, but, what is a feeling worth, right? :)

 

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It can only work if some member of his family offered up their DNA by committing a crime or by searching for family/ancestry connections.  I have no problem with DNA being volunteered or taken forcibly once a felony crime has been PROVEN.  If the government begins building a database of DNA by forcing compliance, we will have a real problem on our hands.

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I think the government is covertly working with those 'see where your ancestors came from' DNA testing companies. I also think that your DNA information will go to potential employers and insurance companies...it's not a good thing at all IMO. Eventually nothing will be personal/private and there won't be a damn thing anyone can do about it. 

I would never have my DNA tested nor would I ever open a Facebook account. 

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  • The title was changed to Will DNA reveal who Zodiac was?

I'm thinking police running DNA through sites like this should depend on the severity of the crime. Serial killers, yes. But government abuse is government abuse and that's scary. I don't think they even know your name if they scan your DNA unless you hit as a potential match. When you look for your ancestors, it's the same thing. You don't know the identity of everyone who has been scanned, only potential relatives. The scan probably takes 10 seconds and moves on. But without any type of a warrant, I just don't know. If your DNA is identified to someone, it's the ancestry site that will reveal it.

Edited by susieice
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6 hours ago, and then said:

It can only work if some member of his family offered up their DNA by committing a crime or by searching for family/ancestry connections.  I have no problem with DNA being volunteered or taken forcibly once a felony crime has been PROVEN.  If the government begins building a database of DNA by forcing compliance, we will have a real problem on our hands.

Yeah, that creeps me out, too.

I've always thought that 23andme and such were really about that sort of government database, although they claim they're not.

Here we are, and I'm glad they caught that other guy. He was a bad guy.

But still...it creeps me out.

Of course, I do hope they figure out who the Zodiac killer was.

Complicated issue that I have mixed feelings about.

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I always thought that it wasn't only to figure out who the criminals were, but "who's who."

What our genetic makeup is. 

What our genetic weaknesses are.

Where we come from.

How much of this or that is in us.

That would be really scary if someone is hoping to sort us out in some way.

Edited by ChaosRose
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  • 3 months later...
  • 4 months later...

Hi,

My name is Mike Rodelli.  I have been researching the Zodiac case for the past 20 years.  I am an expert on DNA in the Zodiac case because DNA affected me personally in 2002, when ABC News did a show on the Z case and used some DNA that was later determined to be of no use to "rule out" my suspect on national TV.  There is not now and there never was any Zodiac DNA of which I am aware.  In my 2017 ebook, The Hunt for Zodiac, I devote an entire chapter to DNA but suffice it to say that all the scientific evidence so far points to DNA being very unlikely to solve the Zodiac case.

In The Hunt for Zodiac, I present a mountain of evidence to show why one of SF's wealthiest and most politically powerful men was the Zodiac killer.  Between my evidence and a new profile of the killer by one of the top forensic psychologists in the world, Richard Walter, one of the co-founders of the prestigious Vidocq Society of Philadelphia, I believe that DNA is not necessary in order to know who Z really was.  My book is receiving 22 of 25 five-star reviews on Amazon and I document my evidence with nearly 200 footnotes.

If you have questions, ask away!

Mike

@mikerodelli

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6 minutes ago, Mike_R said:

Hi,

My name is Mike Rodelli.  I have been researching the Zodiac case for the past 20 years.  I am an expert on DNA in the Zodiac case because DNA affected me personally in 2002, when ABC News did a show on the Z case and used some DNA that was later determined to be of no use to "rule out" my suspect on national TV.  There is not now and there never was any Zodiac DNA of which I am aware.  In my 2017 ebook, The Hunt for Zodiac, I devote an entire chapter to DNA but suffice it to say that all the scientific evidence so far points to DNA being very unlikely to solve the Zodiac case.

In The Hunt for Zodiac, I present a mountain of evidence to show why one of SF's wealthiest and most politically powerful men was the Zodiac killer.  Between my evidence and a new profile of the killer by one of the top forensic psychologists in the world, Richard Walter, one of the co-founders of the prestigious Vidocq Society of Philadelphia, I believe that DNA is not necessary in order to know who Z really was.  My book is receiving 22 of 25 five-star reviews on Amazon and I document my evidence with nearly 200 footnotes.

If you have questions, ask away!

Mike

@mikerodelli

Who do you think is the zodiac, what’s his name?

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I dont think they will solve this case it was interesting that they resently could decifer one of his coded messages with another name.

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4 hours ago, rashore said:

Who do you think is the zodiac, what’s his name?

I'm sure his e-book, available on Amazon.com for only 9.99, will tell you exactly who Zodiac was.

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9 hours ago, Mike_R said:

Hi,

My name is Mike Rodelli.  I have been researching the Zodiac case for the past 20 years.  I am an expert on DNA in the Zodiac case because DNA affected me personally in 2002, when ABC News did a show on the Z case and used some DNA that was later determined to be of no use to "rule out" my suspect on national TV.

How does that make you an expert?

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Hi,

I am an expert on Zodiac DNA because I have a Master's degree in biological sciences, have done years of behind the scenes research that only one other person that I know of did on the DNA (and he is deceased) and have spoken to SFPD personnel who know the inside scoop on what was going on in the lab in 2002. I also lived through the pain of it, which gave me incentive to dig into it.

Even a modicum of effort on Google would show anyone that my suspect was one of the wealthiest men in SF, Kjell Qvale.  As to why he was Z, I have to refer you to my book because the story is very complicated but involves a behavioral profile Zodiac and a mountain of circumstantial evidence that pints the finger at Qvale.  As one poster here said,  the ebook is only $9.99 and one reporter called it a "compendium" of info not only on my own research but on the case itself.  I go into details I learned from the detectives who worked on the various crime scenes, there is a big chapter on behavioral profiling and one on DNA that discusses what constitutes good science and pseudo-science.  The DNA from 2002 was the product of some really, really bad science that even a smart high school student would not have done for a class project.

Mike

Edited by Mike_R
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1 hour ago, Mike_R said:

Hi,

I am an expert on Zodiac DNA because I have a Master's degree in biological sciences, have done years of behind the scenes research that only one other person that I know of did on the DNA (and he is deceased) and have spoken to SFPD personnel who know the inside scoop on what was going on in the lab in 2002. I also lived through the pain of it, which gave me incentive to dig into it.

Even a modicum of effort on Google would show anyone that my suspect was one of the wealthiest men in SF, Kjell Qvale.  As to why he was Z, I have to refer you to my book because the story is very complicated but involves a behavioral profile Zodiac and a mountain of circumstantial evidence that pints the finger at Qvale.  As one poster here said,  the ebook is only $9.99 and one reporter called it a "compendium" of info not only on my own research but on the case itself.  I go into details I learned from the detectives who worked on the various crime scenes, there is a big chapter on behavioral profiling and one on DNA that discusses what constitutes good science and pseudo-science.  The DNA from 2002 was the product of some really, really bad science that even a smart high school student would not have done for a class project.

Mike

Well that's rather unfortunate that you have to refer us to your book- advertising is not permitted here on UM. It would be much better to discuss why you think Kjell Qvale did it here in this discussion than tell people to go get your book for sale. So, are you going to just plug your book, or actually discuss what you think you have on DNA in the Zodiac case?

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Hi,

Just a note about the Jalopnik article.  This article came out of the blue  Her article concludes that KQ was most likely not the Zodiac killer but it was a totally uninformed opinion.  I don't think this guy even knew about my book or who I was.  He certainly did not interview me for the article.  When he says that the "main reason" Qvale become a suspect is that he was out walking his dog, that is only half true.  Yes, he was out walking his dog right after the Stine murder but that is NOT why and how he became a suspect.  Qvale later met with me face to face at HIS request in 2006 and denied that he was out walking his dog but the police officer who spoke to him swears up and down it was him and says there is a report buried in SFPD's files to prove it.  So I'd suggest that you take the article with a huge grain of salt.

I was interviewed by the Zodiac reporter for the SF Chronicle, Kevin Fagan, for his December 16th 50th anniversary front page article on the case.  I spoke very briefly about the Zodiac DNA, about which an entire expose really needs to be written to do it justice.

Mike

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Hi,

Well, I guess if I am not allowed to plug my book while answering some of your questions, I'll bid you adieu.  I'm trying to build readership not give the entire contents of twenty years of research away for free, as I'm sure you would like me to do.  If you write a book someday, I hope you;ll hold yourself to the same standard.

Mike

 

Edited by Mike_R
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I thought we all agreed that it was that right-wing American loser Ted Cruz.

Edited by Podo
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  • 4 weeks later...

i feel like, even if dna testing is most definitely some annoying thing done by the government, we have to have hope that some DNA on the zodiac killer can match up with some persons ancestry! it helped us with golden state so i believe it can someday help with this too.

-Kay

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  • 2 weeks later...

Book peddling aside,

Perhaps the orginal subject can be salvaged it was a good one, mind engaging, what i have come to learn with my 40 ish years of interest and research on this case is every so often a person pops up with their theory who zodiac was, they fit bits and pieces to their suspect and sprikle in melodrama as it progresses to them their suspect is the only real possibilty, of course they desire fame and profit above things like giving peace to loved ones of the victims. I take most with that proverbial grain of salt.

When all is said and done 3 or 4 suspects all fit very well each with unique attributes, while dna could likely solve this case i highly doubt anything will be found plus the hurdles of is the found dna really that of the zodiac, 

I used to believe someone knew who zodiac was,  not a profiteer, but now we are in a race with the undertakers will people who have important clues or even the smoking gun pass away before the info is presented.

 

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  • 1 month later...

I do not think the Zodiac Killer would have gotten married and/or had children.  The only hope is that brothers, sisters, etc will do the test.

Someone like the Zodiac Killer is not capable of meangful relationships.  He, pretty sure it’s a he, finds his excitement in taunting, peeping, killing, etc.  If someone like the Zodiac would be active today, I’m sure he would be caught.  But who knows?

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14 hours ago, Maureen_jacobs said:

I do not think the Zodiac Killer would have gotten married and/or had children.  The only hope is that brothers, sisters, etc will do the test.

Someone like the Zodiac Killer is not capable of meangful relationships.  He, pretty sure it’s a he, finds his excitement in taunting, peeping, killing, etc.  If someone like the Zodiac would be active today, I’m sure he would be caught.  But who knows?

The Golden State Killer, Green River Killer and BTK were all serial killers, and all were married with children.  Not all serial killers fit the loner stereotype.

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I have heard it's not that easy to catch a killer even if you have the dna unfortunately i dont think they will ever catch the killer. 

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