Episode 04: Lay Off or We’ll Bump You Off

By the 1930s, Inspector Vance had become a familiar face at crime scenes and was often called to testify in court because of his knowledge of forensics. In fact, his skills and analytic abilities were so effective that in 1934 there were seven attempts on his life—including a car bomb—and for a time he and his family were under constant police guard from criminals afraid to go up against him in court.

The stories for this first series are from my book  Blood, Sweat, and Fear: The Story of Inspector Vance (Eve Lazarus, Arsenal Pulp Press, 2017).  Vance was one of the first forensic scientists in North America, and during his 42-year-career, helped to solve some of the most sensational murders of the 20th Century. Each episode focuses on one of those cases.

Photo logo: Threatening letter from the personal files of John FCB Vance

Credits

• Intro and outro: Duke Ellington’s St. Louie Toodle
• Background track created by Nico Vettese www.wetalkofdreams.com
• Inspector Vance’s voice by Mark Dunn

Photo logo: Threatening letter from the personal files of John FCB Vance

Sources:         

• Blood, Sweat, and Fear: The Story of Inspector Vance, Vancouver’s First Forensic Investigator, by Eve Lazarus (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2017)
• Primary source material from Vancouver Sun, Province, Vancouver News Herald, The World; Nanaimo Free Press, Daily Colonist, and the personal files of Inspector John F.C.B. Vance including his diary.