barbara butcher

Barbara Butcher, MPH, is one of the nation’s leading experts in medicolegal death investigation and the former Chief of Staff and Director of the Forensic Sciences Training Program at the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner. Over her 23-year tenure, she investigated more than 5,500 death scenes, led major disaster responses including the 9/11 World Trade Center recovery, and directed the creation of the federally funded Forensic Sciences Training Program to establish national standards for death investigation.

An internationally recognized consultant, Barbara has advised the World Health Organization, assisted in global disaster responses, and lectured widely on mass fatalities and forensic science. She is the author of “What the Dead Know” (Simon & Schuster, 2023), featured in Netflix’s Homicide New York, and the host of Oxygen’s true-crime series The Death Investigator with Barbara Butcher. The series was recently renewed for a second season, and at CrimeCon Las Vegas 2026 it received the CLUE Award for Outstanding Episodic Series, recognizing its excellence in true crime television. 

Learn more at www.barbarabutcherofficial.com