News stories about US forensic scientist Dr. Henry Lee (
The former commissioner of Connecticut's Department of Public Safety was born in Juhao County, Chiangsu Province, China, on Nov. 22, 1938. With his 12 brothers and sisters, Lee moved to Taiwan with his parents in 1947. Lee's father died during the trip.
When he was 19, Lee was admitted to Tamkang College, National Taiwan Ocean University and Central Police University. He decided to attend Central Police University because he could not afford the tuition at the other schools.
After he graduated, Lee, like many other officers, started on the force as a captain in the foreign affairs department. Eventually he quit his job because at that time the most important positions on the force were assigned only to military personnel.
Lee and his wife Margaret decided to move to Malaysia to begin a new life. In Kuala Lumpur, Lee was editor in chief of a Chinese-language newspaper. The couple decided to move to New York in 1966.
Six years later, Lee earned his second bachelor's degree in forensic science from John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
Lee continued his studies and earned a master's in science and a doctoral degree in biochemistry from New York University. He completed his graduate studies in only two years.
In 1975, he volunteered to assist the Connecticut State Police in developing their forensic laboratory services and he introduced the Major Crime Squad concept for criminal investigations. In the meantime, he had also completed special training courses at the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and at other institutions.
In 1979, he was appointed the first chief criminalist for the state of Connecticut.
Currently, he is the chief emeritus of the Connecticut State Police, founder and professor of the Forensic Science Program at the University of New Haven and an adjunct professor at 10 other universities and law schools in the US and abroad.
Lee, already well-known, became famous when he testified in the O. J. Simpson case in 1994. Partly due to Lee's forensic analysis, Simpson was found not guilty.
When he was appointed the commissioner of Connecticut's Department of Public Safety in 1998, he was the first Taiwanese-American to become the top police officer in any US state.
During his 45 years as a forensic scientist, Lee has investigated more than 4,000 homicides a year. He testifies as an expert witness more than 100 times a year.
Lee has assisted local investigators with many cases in Taiwan, such as the Hsichih Trio murder case and the murder of naval captain Yin Ching-feng (
Lee's wife once described him as a workaholic. Her view seems to be confirmed by Lee's coming to Taiwan to assist in the investigation of Chen and Lu's shooting.
According to Hou You-yi (侯友宜), commissioner of the National Police Administration's Criminal Investigation Bureau, Lee started working immediately after he landed in Taiwan at 5am on Friday. He didn't eat or drink anything until around 8am, in Tainan.
"He spent more than 20 hours in the air, another 20 hours working afterward and then got up again to have a meeting with us yesterday morning. He only slept for about four hours but he never said he was tired," Hou said. "He did nothing but work."
In addition to his professional skills and expertise in forensic science, Lee is also well-known for his passion for helping the younger generation. Most forensic scientists in Taiwan were his students at one time, including Taiwan's top forensic officer, Judy Cheng (程曉桂).
"Lee has been my mentor. Because of this, I try to tell my students everything I know whenever we have a chance to work on cases," Cheng said.
"If there is anything good that I have, I got it from him," she said.
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