Opinion: Queens district attorney’s Cold Case Unit solves backlog of cases, brings closure for families

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. Eagle File photo by Jacob Kaye

By Melinda Katz

The family of Nadine Slade sat in a Queens courtroom on May 1 to witness an event that came nearly 31 years to the day after the 15-year-old was murdered in Far Rockaway. A defendant had finally been arrested and will face justice thanks to the diligence of investigators digging through old homicide files and unexplored forensic evidence.

The loss of a loved one to a brutal and senseless act of violence brings unimaginable, relentless pain to families whenever and wherever it occurs. But it should go without saying that unsolved murders do not just affect the murdered victim and their families; they impact friends, neighbors, coworkers and the community for years to come.

The emotional strain and unique grief that comes from not having answers for who committed the most serious of crimes and being unable to seek justice in a court of law is unimaginable. And that sense of unease and frustration can infiltrate entire communities, and result in distrust of law enforcement or, even worse, the sense that police and prosecutors simply don’t care enough to solve these crimes — which can, in turn, lead to less cooperation from those most affected by violent crime. That is why it is so crucial for the criminal justice system to recognize the importance of bringing closure to these cases.

To address this, I created the first Cold Case Unit at the Queens County District Attorney’s Office. The unit is dedicated to investigating and closing Queens’ oldest and most challenging unsolved homicide cases. Our goal is to provide justice for all crime victims and their families, no matter when the crime was committed and no matter how long it takes. We want the community to know that we will never stop fighting for justice for those who can no longer speak or fight for themselves.

The Cold Case Unit is comprised of an experienced team of assistant district attorneys, detective investigators and support staff who have systematically begun to sift through an enormous backlog of unsolved cases.

Thankfully, the number of homicides in Queens has declined dramatically in recent years. Still, an unacceptably high number of unsolved murder cases persists due to past decades of violence. Homicides in Queens first surpassed 100 in 1970 and remained in the triple digits for nearly 30 years, peaking at 341 in 1992. In 2022, there were 72 homicides in the borough and there are still approximately 2,200 Queens cold case murders.

The goal of the Cold Case Unit is to give each of these cases a fresh look, to bring them up to current investigative standards, and to ask for community support and involvement, whenever appropriate. Not only do we look to test evidence that has never been tested, but we also look for evidence that we may be able to test based on advancements in technology.

In some cases, evidence that was once considered unsuitable for forensic testing or that yielded inconclusive results, may now provide supportive evidence in an investigation. This can allow for the identification of suspects that were not on anyone’s radar or supply definitive proof of guilt where evidence was previously too uncertain to form the basis of a prosecution.

Often the forensic testing involves evidence that produces a DNA profile, but it can also come from advancements in latent print and other technology. In addition, the increasing number of DNA profiles contained in national databases and familial DNA testing can produce not only investigative leads, but also solve cases. Forensic genetic genealogy – the process of identifying human remains or a suspect through family members who voluntarily submit their DNA to genealogy databases – has also been a game changer for solving cold case homicides.

I am pleased to report that the Cold Case Unit has already achieved notable results.

Last year, advancements in modern technology and forensics allowed us and the NYPD to solve and successfully prosecute a 45-year-old homicide case using forensic genetic genealogy. Martin Motta was arrested for the 1976 murder of an 81-year-old World War I veteran, George Clarence Seitz. Motta killed, dismembered and then buried Seitz’s remains under a concrete slab in a Queens backyard. His remains were unearthed in 2019 based on a tip from a witness.

A DNA profile that was developed could not identify the deceased man in any local, state or national databases. My office then sought the assistance of the FBI and Othram, a private forensic laboratory in Texas, to generate leads as to the unknown victim’s identity. Othram produced a comprehensive genealogical profile from the skeletal remains using advanced DNA testing. That profile was given to the FBI, which then developed leads that were turned over to my office and the NYPD.

Those leads enabled us to identify the victim and his identity, in turn, allowed us to find additional witnesses. This was the first successful prosecution of a case using forensic genetic genealogy in New York City. The case we built was so solid that Motta ultimately pled guilty in exchange for a 20-year prison sentence.

The arrest in Nadine Slade’s murder came after the Cold Case Unit reviewed the case and, working with the NYPD, asked the New York City Medical Examiner’s office to test for DNA under the victim’s preserved fingernail clippings. The results linked the defendant to the crime, resulting in an indictment.

Unfortunately, not every case can be solved forensically or by using advanced technology. Thus, the unit also focuses on interviewing — or reinterviewing — any potential witnesses, as well as reaching out to family members and friends of the victim and engaging the community. To this end, the office has developed a social media template that highlights the details of individual cold cases. On the anniversary of the victim’s death, we post that information on the office’s social media sites and on our public webpage to engage the public in these investigations and hopefully to obtain leads.

Today’s technology coupled with increasing successes nationwide in solving cold cases has empowered investigators and prosecutors to endeavor to solve the unsolvable and begin to decrease the daunting cold case backlog.

Melinda Katz is the Queens district attorney.