Patricia Wiltshire

Professor Patricia Wiltshire (born 1942 in Monmouthshire)[1] is a forensic ecologist, botanist and palynologist.[2] She has consulted police forces in approaching 300 investigations spread throughout England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and abroad.[3] She has been instrumental in helping solve a number of high-profile crimes. These include the murders of Sarah Payne, Millie Dowler, and Christopher Laverack (a case that was unsolved for three decades). She was also able to help prove the guilt of Ian Huntley for the Soham murders and give valuable intelligence in the Ipswich serial murders.[4]

Early life

Professor Wiltshire had an unconventional childhood education: encyclopaedias formed her major source of learning from age seven, on account of an injury which was followed by repeated chest infections which damaged her lungs. This broad approach to knowledge provided a strong foundation for her future career. Starting as a medical laboratory technician, she moved on to study botany at King's College London. She lectured there for several years in microbial and general ecology before taking up a post at the Institute of Archaeology at University College London.[5][6] She was later responsible for setting up a masters' course in Forensic Archaeological Science which ran successfully and continued after she left UCL.

High-profile cases

  • Soham murder inquiry, 2002. Her analysis of soil and plant evidence from clothing, footwear, and a vehicle yielded trace evidence that linked Huntley to the place where the victims (Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells) were found. Observation and experimentation of plant growth at the deposition site enabled her to estimate the time that the girls had been placed in the ditch very accurately. Her evidence was important in the conviction of Ian Huntley.* In the Christopher Laverack murder case, iIn 2007, three decades after the nine-year-old's murder, Professor Wiltshire linked the unusual pollen and other plant matter on the victim's clothing, along with the ornamental brick used to keep him submerged after death, with that found on the property of his uncle, Melvyn Read, thus providing substantial evidence to implicate Read.

Patricia Wiltshire has provided valuable intelligence to police forces involving timing of events, and location of places (including clandestine burials). The analysis of fungal growth on bodies, and materials associated with victims, has also enabled her to provide accurate estimates of post mortem interval in murder cases. The analysis of pollen, plant spores, and fungal spores has enabled her to contribute many kinds of temporal and spatial evidence in police enquiries. However, Patricia Wiltshire also works on defence cases wherever necessary.

Sobriquets

  • The queen of forensic science.[5]
  • The snot lady for her technique of irrigating nasal cavities of the dead to retrieve pollen, fibres and particles that can be used as evidence.[5]

References

  1. ↑ http://search.findmypast.co.uk/results/united-kingdom-records-in-birth-marriage-death-and-parish-records/and_births-and-baptisms?firstname=patricia&firstname_variants=true&lastname=wiltshire&_page=1
  2. ↑ "Geoforensics and Information Management for crime Investigation (GIMI)".
  3. ↑ Introducing Forensic and Criminal Investigation. SAGE Publications. pp. 110–111. ISBN 0857027522.
  4. ↑ "Waking the Dead" (PDF).
  5. 1 2 3 "Forensic Ecology: CSI hedgerow".
  6. ↑ "The crime of her life".
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.