Cold Case Files Classic Season 1 Episode 7 The Baiting Game

In season 1 episode 7 of Cold Case Files Classic, titled "The Baiting Game," viewers are taken through the investigation into the 1985 murder of 26-year-old Denise Johnson in Durham, North Carolina.

At the time of her death, Denise was a single mother of two young children and worked as a security guard at a local hospital. On the night of her murder, she had just finished her shift and was apparently on her way home when she disappeared. Her body was discovered the next day in a secluded area of the hospital's parking lot.

Initial investigators were stymied by a lack of physical evidence and leads, and the case went cold. However, almost a decade later, Detective Bill Bishop was assigned to review the case and was determined to find the killer.

Bishop methodically sifted through old evidence, tracked down potential witnesses, and used new technologies to re-examine the case. One of his breakthroughs came when he uncovered a record of a 911 call made on the night Denise disappeared. The call was reportedly made by a woman who said she saw Denise being forced into a car outside the hospital. However, the call had been dismissed as a false report at the time.

Bishop also utilized psychological profiling to identify the likely profile of the killer, which helped him narrow down a list of suspects. He discovered that the killer may have been using a tactic called "baiting," in which an attacker intentionally leaves an opportunity for a victim to be lured into a trap. The attacker may then watch and wait for their target to fall into their trap.

Through a combination of old-fashioned detective work and the use of new techniques, Bishop ultimately identified the killer as a man named Gerald Parker. Parker had no known criminal record at the time of the murder, but Bishop was able to connect him to the crime through circumstantial evidence and Parker's pattern of predatory behavior.

"The Baiting Game" offers a fascinating look into the lengths investigators will go to solve a cold case and bring justice to the victim and their family. It also highlights the importance of using modern technologies and techniques to re-visit old cases and potentially solve them.