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Cold Case Unit

District Attorney Jeff Rosen re-established a Cold Case Unit in 2011, to assist county law enforcement agencies with the investigation of unsolved homicides and sexual assaults.

A line graph showing the number of cold case murders solved by the Santa Clara County DA's Office Cold Case Unit. The graph begins in 2011 at 4 and shows how the unit solved three cases between 2012 and 2015, an additional five in 2017, an additional five cases between 2019 and 2021, five cases between 2021 and 2022, two cases between 2022 and 2023, and six cases between 2023 and 2024.

The mission of the Cold Case Unit is to assist all county law enforcement agencies in bringing violent offenders to justice. Toward this goal, the District Attorney has asked every county law enforcement agency for access to unsolved murder and sexual assault cases in order to assist with locating and submitting biological evidence, interviewing witnesses, and conducting a comprehensive case evaluation. Mr. Rosen, as well as County of Santa Clara Sheriff and the Chiefs of Police, have signed a Cold Case Partnership and Cooperation Agreement.

The County Crime Lab also joined this partnership and made a commitment to handle DNA in an expedited fashion. This commitment will assure that laboratory backlogs will not cause further delays for family members and loved ones who have often waited years for justice.

Since its re-establishment in 2011, the Cold Case Unit has solved over 30 cold case murders from as early as 1969. The Unit added cold sexual assault investigations to its inventory in 2021 after receiving a $500,000 federal grant. Since that time, the DA’s Office has solved 12 cold case sexual assaults, including five in 2024.

Notable Cold Case Unit news releases: