Hulu's Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks - How did the police solve Nacole Smith's cold case? 

Nacole Smith, a 14-year-old child, was assaulted and murdered in the 1990s, but it took a long time for the murdered girl's family to get justice or closure. The terrifying incident occurred in Atlanta, Georgia, and the offender went unpunished his whole life, even after committing at least a few other closely related crimes.

Hulu's upcoming series, Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks, is a 10-part docu-series that explores chilling crimes which remained unsolved till the development of modern technology, especially DNA recognition. The murder of Nacole Smith is one of the horrifying cases explored in the upcoming Hulu series.

The official description for the Hulu series reads:

"COLD CASE FILES: DNA SPEAKS is a new, 10-part documentary series focusing on murder cases that remained unsolved for decades and were ultimately cracked with DNA evidence. It explores these stunning scientific developments – as well as the unwavering dedication of families and investigators – that eventually brought the killers to justice."

While it took the police a long time to finally complete their investigation, it put an end to a 26-year-old unsolved mystery.

The case was settled considerably later, in 2021, owing to technological improvements. The murder and assault were ultimately attributed to Kelvin Arnold, a serial criminal.

Kelvin Arnold had already passed away from renal and liver failure by the time officials came to the conclusion of the case.

Disclaimer: The following article contains details about s*xual assault and murder. Readers' discretion is advised.

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Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks - Forensic genetic genealogy helped police solve the case of Nacole Smith's murder

On the tragic day of June 7, 1995, Nacole Smith, then just 14 years old, was traveling to her school. She parted ways with her older sister halfway through and returned home to fetch an assignment from her house. She used a shortcut to get there but never reached the other side.

The Atlanta Police Department detectives leaped into action right after, questioning witnesses, searching the area, and following up on every tip and lead that was received from the public.

However, the case went cold without any leads. The police had a breakthrough in 2004 when Betty Brown, a 13-year-old girl, reported experiencing s*xual assault in the East Point neighborhood of southwest Atlanta.

Despite the fact that her attacker's DNA matched that of Nacole Smith's murderer, authorities were still unsure of the man's identity.

It was only in January 2022 that the Atlanta police were finally able to solve the long-running case. Using forensic genetic genealogy, the same technique California authorities employed to identify the Golden State Killer, the police declared it had solved both crimes (Nacole Smith and Betty Brown's murders).

The survivor of the second assault, Betty Brown, stood beside Nacole Smith's mother during a news conference at Atlanta Police headquarters. She said:

“I’m sorry we had to meet under these circumstances”

Although the killer was identified, unfortunately, he could not be brought to justice since he had already died of kidney failure in 2021. After the case was solved, Betty Brown sobbed as she explained that even though the verdict wasn't what she had hoped for, she can finally move past the trauma she has endured since the assault.

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All the details about the assault and murder of Nacole Smith are explored in Hulu's upcoming series Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks.