Perfect Crime? Disguising Murder Isn't Easy

Murder disguised as suicide, accident or natural death is a popular trope of mystery fiction and TV crime drama. In murder mystery plots, common "perfect crime" accidents include the trusty fall down the stairs or over a cliff; the bathtub head-injury slip or electrocution; drowning (the at-home convenience of tubs and pools is popular, but lonely spots of ocean and river are handy, too); the traffic accident (ranging from car crash to pedestrian hit-and-run); the accidental medication overdose or unknowingly ingested deadly allergen; the hunting accident (if VP Dick Cheney can misfire...); and, a new favorite, strangulation covered up as an autoerotic asphyxia hanging. Mystery writers can find many models from real crime cases. For example, the less than godly Pastor Arthur Schirmer used different types of accidents to cover disposal of two wives: Wife No. 1 died from a catastrophic "fall down the stairs" in 1999, a murder which escaped punishment until it was revisited after Schirmer was convicted of killing wife No. 2 with a crowbar and staging a car accident in 2008 to cover up the injuries. We can't know how many murders go undetected, but the "perfect crime" killer today needs to jump through more hoops than ever, and the mystery writer can deliver more clues to an ace detective, thanks to forensics and society's ever-expanding technological surveillance. Of course, the killer must make sure there are no fingerprints, DNA (blood, saliva, hair, etc.), or fibers in incriminating places. Plus, in staging the crime, the murderer now needs to be aware of the ubiquitous security cameras recording movements for gas stations, stores, ATMs, hotels, and even neighbors. To avoid being caught in a lie, perpetrators also need to worry about telltale credit card receipts and even bar codes that will direct police to an incriminating purchase or location and timing contradiction. A murderer's alibi today can be checked against location tracking via mobile phone and car anti-theft device, while suspicious Internet interactions leave telltale cyber tracks. And, if in search of a perfect alibi, a killer hires/persuades someone else to create an "accidental death," then the murderous instigator is either in thrall to a potential blackmailer and betrayer--or forced to plan another perfect murder! For an interesting discussion, see https://zmprofiler.wordpress.com/the-perfect-murder-2/