Ken’s Comments (group member since Nov 10, 2012)

Ken’s comments from the Q & A with Detective Ken Lang group.

Yes Brenda, DNA typing did begin in the late 80's but didn't become affordable to my agency until the late 90's. Plus, with it being so new in the 80's there always seems to be a time period before the courts really know how to deal with technology and science.

TJ - there was one case we had where the victim had these strange marking across the back of her legs. They appear to be burn marks evenly spaced, parallel to one another and about 8 inches long and 1 inch wide. When the ME looked at the these markings he immediately determined that they were burn marks and asked if the was a radiator heater in the room. Sure enough there was and we were able to determine that the victim (who suffered from dementia) would sit on the radiator to warm her body. It was a sudden death, no foul play.

Michael, you have me beat on that--no apparitions here. Just straight up murders.

Sorry TJ, I've never come across a case that was very X Files.

I'll have to look into the Renea Ramsey case...

Something that I would always look for in murder investigations were "coincidences." One or two might pop up in an investigation with no real relevance. But you start getting to three or four then you're actually beginning to form your probable cause (which, of course, is short of 'proof beyond a reasonable doubt.')

Michael wrote: "I'm Mike Atencio and it's nice to meet all of you. I'm a disabled old fart that once was a young strong cop. Now I write stories similar to the Jesse Stone novels by Robert B. Parker. I also enjoy ..."

Mike,

Like you, I am working on my MS Criminal Justice Administration and hope to be teaching by Fall 2013. Though, I've already been doing some guest lecturing at Towson University and Stevenson Univeristy near Baltimore, MD... I really enjoy it!

Judith,

I had a chance to review the meager facts in the news about Holly Cassano's murder. Before reading an article about an FBI profile of the potential suspect, I do agree that the suspect knew her. Most stabbings where there is overkill often turns out to be someone the victim knew. Another tell-tale sign was the fact that her daughter was at grandma's house the night of the murder. The only people who knew this fact would be family, friends, and neighbors. This would be an opportune time for the suspect to "drop by."

It would have been interesting to know if the killer covered the body in bed (information not released to the press) which is a sign of shame on behalf of the killer.

I think given the state of today's DNA analysis that this case has a high probability of being solved. With the repeated stab wounds it was clear in the articles that the suspect had injured themselves (from the hand passing over the hilt of the blade and getting cut) which left the suspect's DNA at the scene. The DNA lab will be able to parse out the known from the unknown blood samples left at the scene and the unknown samples will be uploaded into the CODIS database.

If the investigators can get enough PC for search warrants (which may take a little time as they wait for potential suspects to slip up), they'll be able to do a one on one comparison and rule in or out any suspects.

Great question Michael. Yes I have worked some weird cases. I once had a drug dealer (who was high) shot an arbitrary round at his supplier to show him who was boss. But the bullet caught him dead center through the heart. He was dead before he hit the ground. Then, the shooter, administered CPR. When uniformed officers arrived on the scene he told them someone else shot the supplier. But through a witness and some evidence we were able to show he was the killer. We approached the suspect with the evidence and swabbed his hands for GSR he confessed to shooting the supplier, said it was accidental. He ultimately plead guilty to murder 1.

As for the 'perfect murder' I personally don't believe that there is such a thing because there is always evidence left behind. The question is whether or not the detective is astute enough to find that evidence. Sometimes it is so minuscule it is never found and the case goes unsolved.

In 1997, when I started as a detective in sex crimes, we didn't have DNA. We did have blood typing. Now look at us. I'm curious to see where we'll be 20 years from now and how science and technology will be solving these cold cases.

That's great Darcia! This book is the first of my homicide series trilogy. These ate actual cases I worked as a homicide detective in MD. I really enjoyed writing them and am excited to see many true crime fans latching on to them.

After you read, or even while your reading Walking Among the Dead, feel free to ask any questions.

Have a great week!

It's so good to see so many new faces joining my group. I'm looking forward to sharing with you and getting to know you all.

Lucy wrote: "Thank you Ken Lang for the invite into your new group. Your books look really interesting! I look forward to learning more about you and your expertise and I will certainly look up your books."

Thanks Lucy...

No matter what city or state you live, there are always fascinating true crime events going on the around us. So I wanted to make a category where you can bring up those events and get my spin.

If you hear about a true crime event that may be of interest, please by all means, post it here. If anything, it will help me stay current with the events going on around the country and give me some topics to blog about.

BTW, here's my blog: http://kenlang.weebly.com/blog.html

I had spent three years as a homicide detective and wanted to share the final investigations I worked before moving on with my career. Death Comes Uninvited finishes those incredible experiences working homicide investigations around the Baltimore, MD area.

The books were really fun to write, and based on the feedback (and the award) I've decide to continue writing both true crime books and novels.

I'm currently preparing to start writing my first novel after the first of the year. But in the meantime, feel free to ask me questions about my lastest homicide book Death Comes Uninvited.

Here's the order you should read these books:

After self-publishing Walking Among The Dead I still had a handful of murder investigations that I could draw from for material. With Walking Among The Dead doing so well I decided to continue telling about my adventures as a homicide detective around one of the most deadliest cities in the nation.

Here you can ask me questions about the second book in my homicide series, Standing in Death's Shadow.

My first book, Walking Among the Dead, came by accident. I was helping a friend (who is a professional storyteller) with his workshop. More specifically, I was pulling guard duty for the speakers product tables when I learned from one of the attendees that one of the featured speakers spoke about how to make money writing online content for your profession. Being a certified police instructor, I thought that there might be potential for me to make some money. So I met the instructor who turned out to be ghostwriter John Riddle (creator of I Love to Write Day).

When John and I spoke and he learned about my extensive experience in law enforcement, he encouraged me to write a book about the time I spent in the homicide unit investigating murders. With a little guidance about formatting and current industry expectations for the length of a chapter and book, I started pounding out the keys. A year later Walking Among The Dead was finished.

As most new authors I sought the more traditional means for publication. But with the economy giving way I self-published and started writing the second book.

If you've read Walking Among The Dead here is where you can engage me in some Q&A about the cases in the book or why I wrote this true crime book in a novel format.

If you haven't read Walking Among The Dead you're missing an adventure. Many people enjoy this book because, as they say, 'it's like I was right there with you.'

Hi, my name is Ken Lang and I am a former homicide detective and award-winning author of three true crime books: Walking Among The Dead, Standing in Death's Shadow, and my latest release Death Comes Uninvited. In 2011 I was named one of "50 Great Writes You Should Be Reading" by the Author's Show and New York Times bestselling author Julia Spencer-Fleming says that "Ken Lang is the real deal--a cop with chops!"

I started this group for a number of reasons; primarily because I receive a lot of questions about being a detective and about writing true crime. I couldn't think of a better avenue than the goodreads discussion board to carry out that mission.

I am looking forward to meeting each of you and getting involved in some engaging discussions.