VIDEO: Can Giving Playing Cards to Inmates Crack Cold Cases?
About 3,000 inmates in the Travis County, Texas, jail system are about to get new decks of playing cards. And the right card in the hands of the right inmate could help crack homicide or missing person cold cases.
The decks will include 52 cold cases on their face, cases submitted by detectives in Travis, Hays, Williamson and Bastrop counties, KXAN TV reports.
Such cards are being distributed to inmates in 17 states and they’ve had some success.
“If we’re able to solve one case with this deck of cards then it’s a complete success,” said Travis County Sgt. Tom Szimanski, who heard about the idea through his wife. “I’ll be overwhelmed.”