Hair/Fiber Famous Cases

Atlanta Child Murders

Between 1979 and 1981, 29 children were found strangled in the Atlanta area. On July 28, 1979, an investigation was launched in response to the "child murders." The only link between the killings was fiber evidence. Strands of unique yellow-green fibers were found on all of the bodies or their clothing. After media coverage of this discovery, the killer began dumping nude bodies in the river so as to minimize fiber evidence. On May 22, 1981, a police stakeout on a bridge over the Chattahoochee River heard a splash and stopped a nearby car driven by Wayne Williams. After questioning, Williams was allowed to leave. Two days later a body washed ashore downriver and a search warrant was obtained for Williams' house. Fibers similar to those found on all of the victims were found throughout Williams' house, although police had to prove that such fibers were rare in order for the discovery to be circumstantial. The odds that the fibers came from any place in Atlanta other than Williams' house were calculated to be about 1 in 7,792. In addition, different fibers were found on another victim's shorts which were similar to samples extracted from Williams' car. The combined odds that both fiber samples were from places other than Williams' house and car were 1 in 29,827,776, enough to convict Wayne Williams and sentence him to two life sentences in jail.