The Dingo Case: How a Mother Was Convicted by Blood That Wasn't

The Dingo Case: How a Mother Was Convicted by Blood That Wasn't

When Azaria Chamberlain vanished from an Australian campsite in 1980, her mother's claim that a dingo took her was dismissed, and forensic tests on the family car 'proved' murder. Years later, the incriminating stain turned out to be a spray-on sound deadener, and a matinee jacket found near a dingo lair collapsed the case. This is a story about how expert science and public loathing can convict an innocent person together.

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Show notes

Forensic experts misidentified automotive sound-deadening sealant as fetal hemoglobin inside the family car.

A nineteen eighty-four poll revealed over seventy-six percent of Australians believed Lindy Chamberlain was guilty.

Investigators mistook iron oxide from red desert sand for a bloody handprint on the baby's clothing.

Religious prejudice against Seventh-day Adventists fueled false rumors that the name Azaria means sacrifice.

The discovery of a matinee jacket near a dingo lair eventually proved the mother's innocence.

Chemical tests used by the prosecution produced false positives for infant blood on mundane surfaces.

In this episode
  1. 01Intro1 min
  2. 02The Night at Uluru2 min
  3. 03The Trial of Public Opinion2 min
  4. 04The Forensic Illusion2 min
  5. 05The Desert's Correction2 min
  6. 06Outro1 min
Sources
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The Dingo Case: How a Mother Was Convicted by Blood That Wasn't — Fylom