Marilyn's Musings

I first heard of S. Connell Vondrak at the Public Safety Writers Conference this year. I knew she had a book published by Oak Tree Press who publishes my Rocky Bluff P.D. series, but nothing more. While at the conference I bought her book, No Evidence of a Crime . Susan (that's what the S. stands for) is a 24 year veteran of the Illinois State Police, in the forensic department. She's currently the Director of Research and Development and the Statewide Training Program. I tell you all that because the fact that she's an expert really comes through in her mystery. The story is set in Washington DC and begins with the murder of a congressman's beautiful aide. She was shot near the Capita Mall. (Sound familiar? Let me tell you it might, however the story is nothing like any you've heard about or read before. The detectives investigating the case, Kathleen and Jim, almost immediately begin noticing discrepancies in the evidence. As the dig deeper, they beg...

Today, S. Connell Vondrak, author of the new book, No Evidence of a Crime , is visiting. Marilyn: Tell me about your background. S. Connell Vondrak: My background is in forensics. In 1985, just out of college, I became a forensic scientist with the Illinois State Police. It was a time when so much of forensics was changing; our capabilities expanding. If you think about the advances we, as individuals, have lived through since 1985, computers, iPods, cell phones, it is minor compared to the growth in forensics. I worked in the forensic toxicology section until I became the director of training. The director of training position is responsible for overseeing training in the various specialties of forensics. Unlike television, most forensic laboratories utilize forensic scientists as specialists. The instrumentation in each section is so sophisticated and takes time to learn. Someone who is testing the DNA in a blood sample one day would not examine it in toxicology the next da...