Henry C. Lee, World-Renowned Forensic Scientist, Dies at 87
Dr. Henry C. Lee, the world-renowned forensic scientist, died peacefully on March 27 at his home in Henderson, Nevada, after a brief illness. He was 87. His passing was announced by his family together with the University of New Haven, where he taught for more than 50 years. In his final days, he was finishing a book on missing-person investigations.
Lee was born on November 22, 1938, in Rugao, Jiangsu, China, the eleventh of 13 children. His family emigrated to Taiwan, where he earned a degree in police administration from the Central Police College in 1960 and joined the Taipei Police Department, rising to captain at 22 — the youngest in Taiwanese history. He moved to the United States with his wife in 1964.
Working his way through school, Lee earned a bachelor's degree in forensic science from John Jay College in 1972, and a master's (1974) and a Ph.D. (1975) in biochemistry from New York University. He would go on to receive 30 honorary degrees.
In 1975, Lee joined the University of New Haven in Connecticut and founded its forensic science program, building it from a single classroom with one fingerprint kit into one of the most respected programs in the nation. In 1998 he founded the Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science, and in 2010 the university opened a three-story, 15,000-square-foot home for the institute, with a crime scene center and a state-of-the-art forensic laboratory. He taught at the university for more than five decades and was a favorite of students and alumni.
From 1978 to 2000, Lee served as Connecticut's chief criminalist and director of the Connecticut State Police Forensic Science Laboratory. From 1998 to 2000 he was also Commissioner of the state Department of Public Safety and the Connecticut State Police, and from 2000 to 2010 he served as Chief Emeritus of the state's Division of Scientific Services. A retired Connecticut prosecutor once said that what Lee did changed the face of forensic knowledge among police officers and criminal justice professionals.
Over his career, Lee worked as a forensic expert in all 50 states and more than 46 countries, lectured in more than 70 countries, consulted for some 600 law enforcement agencies, and testified more than 1,000 times in criminal and civil courts. He became a household name in 1995, testifying for the defense in the O.J. Simpson murder trial and declaring that there was "something wrong" with the way Los Angeles police had handled blood evidence at the scene. He also provided investigative assistance in some of America's most closely watched cases, including the murder of JonBenét Ramsey, the Helle Crafts "woodchipper" murder, the Laci Peterson case, the death of Chandra Levy, the kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart, the 9/11 forensic investigation, and the reinvestigation of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
In 2023, as the Associated Press reported, a federal judge found Lee liable over his testimony about a piece of blood evidence in a 1989 Connecticut murder case, and the state later agreed to a $25 million settlement. Lee maintained throughout his life that he had done nothing wrong in the case.
Lee authored or co-authored more than 40 books and hosted the 2004 Court TV documentary series "Trace Evidence: The Case Files of Dr. Henry Lee." His motto was "Make the impossible possible." In 2016, a museum of forensic science bearing his name opened in his hometown of Rugao, built around materials he donated. Through his books and television work, generations of students, investigators, and Chinese American families first encountered modern forensic science through him.
Lee was predeceased by his first wife, Margaret, in 2017. He is survived by his wife, Angel Xiaping Jiang; his daughter, Sherry Hersey; his son, Stanley Lee; and four grandchildren.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 李昌钰在纽黑文大学李昌钰法医学研究所。图片来源：纽黑文大学（官方发布）。Dr. Henry C. Lee at the Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science. Photo: University of New Haven (official release).
- 2026-03-27Henry C. Lee, World-Renowned Forensic Scientist, Dies at 87This story
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