About Dr. Laura Pettler

Dr. Laura Pettler, 2025 April

Named one of the world’s most influential women in forensics today in 2019 and awarded Most Influential Forensics Businesswoman (USA) by CEO Monthly Magazine in 2022, revered true crime forensic criminologist and one of the world’s leading experts on staged murder, Dr. Laura Pettler is the author of the world’s first book on solving staged murders, author of the world’s third dissertation on staged murders, inventor of the Kaleidoscope Shooting and Bloodstain Death Scene Laser Reconstruction System. Dr. Laura is also an executive producer and director, on-camera talent and podcaster, musician-singer-songwriter, equestrian, entrepreneur, and licensed private investigator. Dr. Laura owns and operates Laura Pettler & Associates (LPA), voted the #1 Death Investigations firm three years running for its scientific, multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, decedent-centered methodological approach.

Dr. Laura is well known for repeatedly making history. As one of the only female pioneers in forensic science the world, Dr. Pettler continues to invent ground-breaking methods based on her published research in staging behavior in homicide cases, death investigation methodology, and crime scene reconstruction. After publishing the third dissertation on staging in the world, “Doc” as she’s known to many published the first book in the world on staging Crime Scene Staging Dynamics in Homicide Cases, which included the publication of Pettler’s Victim-Centered Death Investigation Methodology (VCDIM) and Pettler’s Staging Trilogy. In 2017, she expanded VCDIM and published The Murder Room: A Systematic, Scientific, Multidisciplinary, Victim-Centered Death Investigation method. In 2021, invented Pettler’s Staging Taxonomy and published it internationally. Pettler’s Staging Taxonomy, the first taxonomy of its kind to classify staging behavior as a form of offender communicational behavior.

Dr. Laura was the OzTeam Forensic Criminologist for the Emmy-Winning Dr. Oz Show appearing in Seasons 8, 9, 10, and 11. Laura has appeared in numerous television shows for more than a decade and you can catch her regularly as a Guest Analyst on @CourtTVNetwork and @CourtTVUK in daytime and primetime shows. Laura is also Executive Producer/Host/Artist of LPA’s upcoming podcast The Murder Room, and was co-host of Melissa Moore’s podcast Life After Happy Face that dropped July 2021. Additionally, in 2017, Laura was the Executive Producer/Host/Artist Notorious: True Crime Stories with Laura Pettler nominated for Best Director by the International Academy of WebTelevision and has appeared on numerous podcasts and True Crime television shows, such as The DNA of Murder with Paul Holes, Snapped!, Killer Motive, Secrets of the Morgue, Deadly Women, Wrong Man, Gone: The Forgotten Women of Ohio, mini-series' shows like Death at the Mansion and Lovers Lane, Crime Stories with Nancy Grace on Fox Nation, The Mel Robbins Show, Daily Mail TV, broadcast on all major networks like Oxygen, Discovery ID, Starz, Reelz, and Spike, and CourtTV.


Leader

Dr. Pettler’s Contributions to the International Stage of Criminal Justice are Unmatched

Dr. Pettler is the Deputy Coroner Commander of the Lancaster County, SC, Coroner’s Office Mounted Response Unit, the first coroner’s office based mounted death investigation unit in the United States. She is a former District Attorney’s Investigator, where she was the co-founder and Director of North Carolina’s first Crime Scene Reconstruction and Behavioral Analysis Program, she was the head of the District Attorney’s Cold Case TASK FORCE, was a former member of the Richmond County Gang TASK FORCE, she was the Vice President and was a member of the Review Board Member of the American Investigative Society of Cold Cases, she is a volunteer expert for the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute founded and directed by Sheryl McCollum, and is a private forensic consultant now in her 23th year with 28 years total in the field. She has taught extensively throughout the United States, and in Mexico, Italy, France, Portugal, India, South Africa, the Bahamas, Panama, and Costa Rica.

  • CEO and founder of LPA the #1 Private Death Investigation firm in the world

  • 2019 August: Pettler named one of the Most Influential Women in the Forensics in the World

  • Most Influential Forensics Businesswoman (USA) by CEO Monthly Magazine in 2022 Magazine

  • 2020 Laura Pettler & Associates named the #1 Scientific Victim-Centered Death Investigation Firm in the World, CorpToday Magazine

  • 2019 Laura Pettler & Associates named the #1 Scientific Victim-Centered Death Investigation Firm in the World, Acquisition International

  • 2021 Certificate of Appreciate for “extraordinary dedication to the forensic profession” on International Women’s Day, from the Worldwide Association of Women Forensic Experts

  • Board Member, Technical Committee, Sicuurezza e Guistizia Magazine in Rome, Italy

  • Licensed North Carolina and South Carolina Private Investigator

  • Former District Attorney's Investigator

  • Former District Attorney's Cold Case Task Force Co-Founder & Director

  • Former District Attorney's Crime Scene Reconstruction & Behavioral Analysis Co-Founder & Director

  • Former Deputy Coroner

Pioneer

Dr. Pettler: An Ardent Pioneer Forging A New Path for Women in Forensics While Inventing The Future of Scientific, Multidisciplinary, Decedent-Center Death Investigation

Forensic criminology is the study of behavior that results in criminal behavior. It synthesizes the analysis of physical, behavioral, and sociological evidence for the purpose of understanding specific crimes like homicide so better systems can be invented to combat the problems. Within the scope of her work as a forensic criminologist, Dr. Pettler is an expert in crime scene analysis & forensic reconstruction of bloodstain evidence and bullet trajectory evidence, behavioral analysis of homicide offenders and their crimes, and the sociology of murder. Dr. Pettler has worked through adjudication and/or consulted on hundreds of hot and cold death cases over the two-decades now. And, since 2005, because of the hard work of LPA’s Elite Roundtable of Experts, its Army of allied Operatives nationwide, and Staff, Laura Pettler & Associates has become one of the top death investigation firms in the world, earning International Award Winning Status: Voted #1 Scientific, Multidisciplinary, Victim-Centered Death Investigation firm in the world in 2020 by CorpToday Magazine and in 2019 by Acquisition International.

Laura was a co-founder and the Director of North Carolina's first and only only Crime Scene Reconstruction and Behavioral Analysis program in history based in Prosecutorial District 20A and was the Director of its former Cold Case Task Force until 2010.

Inventor

Dr. Pettler is the Only Female Crime Scene Laser Reconstruction System Inventor in the World

She owns the world’s only Crime Scene Reconstruction SuperStore and her inventions have changed the World…for the better.

  • Inventor of The Kaleidoscope Bloodstain Pattern Evidence & Shooting Reconstruction System

  • Inventor of The Murder Room scientific, multi-disciplinary, victim-centered death investigation methodology

  • Inventor of Pettler’s Crime Scene Staging Trilogy

  • Inventor of Pettler’s Conflict-Resolution-Benefit Matrix

  • Methodologist who created The Murder Room Method, Pettler’s Staging Taxonomy, and Pettler’s Staging Trilogy

 

Emmy-Winning TV Shows

Dr. Pettler appeared as the OzTeam Forensic Criminologist on the 9x Emmy-Winning The Dr. Oz Show for four seasons and was the Forensic Criminologist on Emmy-Winning CBS46 cold case tv show CSI Atlanta Seasons 1 and 2.

Laura is now a regular Guest on CourtTV and CourtTVUK. Laura is also Executive Producer/Host/Artist of LPA’s podcast The Murder Room, and was co-host of Melissa Moore’s podcast Life After Happy Face dropped July 2021. Further, in 2017, Laura was the Executive Producer/Host/Artist Notorious: True Crime Stories with Laura Pettler nominated for Best Director by the International Academy of WebTelevision and appears on numerous True Crime television programs and podcasts, such as The DNA of Murder with Paul Holes, Snapped!, Killer Motive, Secrets of the Morgue, Deadly Women, Wrong Man, Gone: The Forgotten Women of Ohio, mini-series' shows like Death at the Mansion and Lovers Lane, and , Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, The Mel Robbins Show, and Daily Mail TV.

 

Author

Producer

  • Executive Producer of The Murder Room Podcast and its limited TV docuseries

  • On-Camera talent as the OZTeam Forensic Criminologist on the Multiple Emmy Award Winning The Dr. Oz Show, seasons 8, 9, 10, 11

  • On-Camera talent os the Forensic Criminologist of Emmy Winning and Emmy Nominated CSI Atlanta, seasons 1 and 2

  • On-Air/On-Camera Host/Director of The Murder Room Podcast and its limited TV docuseries

  • Singer-Songwriter of The Murder Room Podcast and its limited TV docuseries all-original season 1 soundtrack

  • Professional Musician/Singer/Songwriter, owner of Laura Pettler Music and 2007 Album Trucks R4 Girls on Lamon Records, Nashville, TN

 

Educator

Dr. Pettler has taught extensively throughout the United States, and in Mexico, Italy, France, Portugal, India, South Africa, the Bahamas, Panama, and Costa Rica.

  • Director and founder of the LPA International Forensics Institute School of Forensic Criminology for Homicide Studies

  • Instructor for The IAI, FDIAI, NCIAI, 2017 Keynote Speaker FDIAI

Backstory

Laura has one heck of a back story. The following is a snippet. Memoir forthcoming.

Born September 11, 1974, to a 15-year-old girl, Laura’s first home was an orphanage. Laura was adopted by a wonderful man named Donald Pettler and his then wife, Barbara, in 1976. Laura’s early years were filled with educational opportunities, equestrian activities, and music. Donald worked as a banker in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Barbara was involved in the gender equality feminist group AAUW. In 1989, Barbara destroyed Laura’s family when she unexpectedly divorced Donald then eight short months later married Donald’s best friend who also served as Laura’s former “god father”. Barbara moved on to a whole new family solely focused on her new husband and his children leaving Laura floundering and turning her into a latchkey kid who really began to struggle. April 1992, in her High School Junior year, at 17 years old, Laura gave birth to daughter Alexis as a result of tremendous turmoil. Though these years had been tough, now in many ways, her struggle was just beginning:

Alexis being biracial left she and Laura ostracized and largely shunned by the community in Beaver, Pennsylvania; an unwed, teen-mom with no mother to speak of, a father who is emotionally devastated, and now with a half-black baby broke every social norm of this small town. Laura’s teen years were marked by sadness, strife, anger, and a lack of support from adults who should have stood up, a broken school system that was disorganized and chaotic, and adults who should have stepped up instead of turning their backs. Luckily, Laura had some “ride or die” friends who helped raise Alexis: Melinda, Ashley, Maria, Allison, Jenni, Chief, Ryan…all of whom Laura is still close to today, however, Ryan passed away in 2023. Alexis’ biological father was never involved. Laura was alone except for a few incredible high school teachers, especially Mr. Lou Naccarato whom Laura is still very good friends with today, her core friends, and Alexis. Laura’s adopted father struggled post-divorce. Life was a complete disaster for young Laura. Fortunately, Laura’s father did the best he could to recover from betrayal, which he eventually did. He went on to happily marry a kind, loving, and loyal woman, but passed away in 2016. While he and Laura struggled during the early years post-divorce, Laura and her father were an inseparable pair for 41 years. Laura was his world because he saw her brilliant mind so his focus continued to be building her to change the world and for her success, which now included the success of her daughter, Alexis. From orphan to world leader in forensic science, Laura Pettler as a pioneer in forensics by women, as a leader, inventor, educator, all came to fruition when she was sworn in as the Deputy Coroner Commander of the Lancaster County Coroner’s Office Mounted Response Unit on January 17, 2025, the first coroner’s office based mounted unit dedicated to medicolegal death investigation, search and rescue, public relations, and community outreach.

But Laura could not live at home with a baby as a teenager. Living in an attic, Laura barely graduated from High School due to taking care of Alexis and couldn’t get into a regular college. After a year at a community college and a tremendous amount of hard work, Laura was accepted to a four-year school. Coupled with her studies, internships, and raising a baby alone, Laura’s early adulthood was marked by poor choices of intimate partners, surviving domestic violence, and fighting for survival for she and Alexis.

In 1997, Laura opened her first equestrian center after graduating from college and moving to North Carolina. She started her former band, Cherry Rain, which later turned into #LauraPettlerMusic. While doing music on the weekends and training horses during the week, Laura managed to graduate with a masters degree in 2003 and soon after signed with Lamon records to release her first album, #TruckR4Girls in 2007. The album was a huge success leading to a national tour. Laura was a young woman on a mission with a 20-year plan.

Laura spent the next two years on weekend tour stops while employed as Prosecutorial District 20A' of North Carolina’s Homicide Investigator, cofounder and Director of its Crime Scene Reconstruction & Behavioral Analysis Program, and cofounder and Director of its Cold Case Homicide TASK FORCE. Laura retired from professional music in 2009 and became Dr. Pettler in earning her PhD in 2011 by publishing the world’s third doctoral dissertation on crime scene staging behaviors in homicide cases housed in the United States Library of Congress. Laura back into entertainment in 2012 in true crime television and in 2013, Dr. Pettler reimagined and reinvented her 2008 Tubular Dowel Crime Scene Reconstruction Kit into the world-renowned The Kaleidoscope Shooting & Bloodstain Reconstruction System AS SEEN ON TV in both fictional and true crime programming. Kaleidoscope earned international distribution and has been sold in 30 countries since 2009. Switching gears again, in 2015, Laura published the first book in the world on crime scene staging, five-star best seller entitled, Crime Scene Staging Dynamics in Homicide Cases…and that’s just for starters.

When Laura was 28 she found her biological mother, but that’s a story for another day.

As of 2025, Laura splits her time between Los Angeles and her North Carolina Horse Farm, CR Equine & Kennel. Laura breeds, buys, and sells, crossbred Drafts, Freisians, Gypsy Vanner horses, and farm-bred, farm-raised Russell Terriers. Laura invented agritourism series True Crime & Equines where she combines forensic education with farm/animal education for guests. The series launched in 2025 and more information can be found on CREKLLC.com.

Incomplete List of Appearances

  • 2023 to present Laura began to take care of her elderly uncle in Los Angeles, California. While she appears on TV, podcast, film, her public appearances are more infrequent due to her tremendous travel schedule

  • 28 October 2022, #CourtTV, on #Delphi Arrest