RIVERHEAD, N.Y. (AP) — The question of whether certain DNA evidence can be used in the upcoming trial of a Manhattan architect charged in a string of deaths known as the Gilgo Beach killings is the focus of court hearings that began Friday on Long Island.
Lawyers for Rex Heuermann want DNA tests conducted by Astrea Forensics on hairs recovered from most of the seven victims in the case to be excluded from the trial, saying the California-based lab’s method has never been accepted in a New York court of law.
But an academic expert testifying in the pre-trial hearing in Riverhead court said the type of testing used, known as nuclear DNA, or “whole genome sequencing,” is widely accepted in the scientific community.
Dr. Kelley Harris, a University of Washington professor of genome sciences, described Astrea Forensics’ method as an “elegant and powerful” way to determine whether hair fragments pulled from a crime scene match those taken from suspects.
Heuermann’s attorney, Michael Brown, sought to temper Harris’ testimony, noting during his cross-examination that she had no background in the forensic science used in criminal cases.
He also pressed Harris on her close ties to the co-founder of Astrea Forensics, Dr. Richard Green, who she has coauthored research papers with and considers a colleague.
“She’s the witness for hire, and she was suggested by Dr. Green to be a proponent of this magic, as we call it,” Brown said after the daylong hearing.
He also took aim at Astrea Forensics’ use of the publicly accessible 1,000 Genomes Project, which sequenced the DNA of some 2,500 people worldwide, as the reference pool for comparing hair samples in the case.
“Hopefully the point got across that it has no business being utilized in a criminal court,” Brown said outside court. “The 1,000 Genomes Project has been around for quite a while and it’s never been used in a forensic setting, and the reason they don’t use it as a population reference is because it’s simply not enough people to compare it to.”
The proceedings continue next Wednesday when other experts are expected to testify before Judge Timothy Mazzei renders a decision.
Heuermann, who was dressed in a dark suit, didn’t speak during Friday’s hearing. Asa Ellerup, who reached a divorce settlement with Heuermann on Thursday, was also in court, along with the couple’s daughter and the family’s lawyer.
No trial date has been set for the case, which spans decades of killings on Long Island.
Heuermann’s legal team also wants to break the case into multiple trials over concerns about the “cumulative effect” of the evidence presented by prosecutors. Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney’s office has opposed that request. Mazzei is expected to rule on it soon.
Prosecutors argued in legal briefs ahead of the hearing that whole genome sequencing has been accepted in peer-reviewed scientific journals and by federal regulators, paleontologists, virologists and medical communities.
They say the findings by Astrea Forensics were also independently corroborated by another lab’s mitochondrial DNA testing — a methodology long accepted by New York courts.
Since late 2010, police on Long Island have been investigating the deaths of at least 10 people — mostly female sex workers — whose remains were discovered along an isolated highway not far from Gilgo Beach.
Heuermann, who lives in nearby Massapequa Park, was arrested in 2023 and charged in the deaths of three of the victims between 2009 and 2010: Melissa Barthelemy, Amber Lynn Costello and Megan Waterman.
While in custody, he was subsequently charged in the deaths of four other women: Valerie Mack in 2000, Jessica Taylor in 2003, Maureen Brainard-Barnes in 2007 and Sandra Costilla in 1993.
Heuermann has maintained his innocence and pleaded not guilty to all counts.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Richard Chamberlain, the handsome hero of the 1960s television series “Dr. Kildare” who found a second career as an award-winning “king of the miniseries,” has died. He was 90.
Chamberlain died Saturday night in Waimanalo, Hawaii, of complications following a stroke, according to his publicist, Harlan Boll.
“Our beloved Richard is with the angels now. He is free and soaring to those loved ones before us,” Martin Rabbett, his lifelong partner, said in a statement. “How blessed were we to have known such an amazing and loving soul. Love never dies. And our love is under his wings lifting him to his next great adventure.”
Tall, with classic good looks and romantic style, Chamberlain became an instant favorite with teenage girls as the compassionate physician on the TV series that aired from 1961 to 1966. Photoplay magazine named him most popular male star for three years in a row, from 1963-65.
Not until 2003 did he acknowledge publicly what Hollywood insiders had long known, that he was gay. He made the revelation in his autobiography, “Shattered Love.”
The actor became known as “king of the TV miniseries” in 1978 when he landed the starring role in “Centennial,” an epic production 24 hours long and based on James Michener’s sprawling novel. He followed that in 1980 with “Shogun,” another costly, epic miniseries based on James Clavell’s period piece about an American visitor to Japan.
He scored his greatest miniseries success in 1983 with another long-form drama, “The Thorn Birds,” based on Colleen McCullough’s best-seller. He played Father Ralph de Bricassart, a Roman Catholic priest in Australia who falls in love with beautiful Meggie Cleary (Rachel Ward). The ABC production, which also starred Barbara Stanwyck, reportedly attracted 100 million viewers.
Chamberlain won Golden Globes for his work in “Shogun” and “The Thorn Birds.” Years earlier, he received one for “Dr. Kildare.”
When the public began to lose interest in miniseries, Chamberlain turned to the theater, where he displayed a fine singing voice. He appeared as Henry Higgins in a 1994 Broadway revival of “My Fair Lady” and as Captain von Trapp in a 1999 revival of “The Sound of Music.”
He reprised his role of de Bricassart in the 1996 TV movie “The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years.”
He also appeared in numerous films, including “The Music Lovers” (as Tchaikovsky), “The Madwoman of Chaillot,” “The Towering Inferno” and “The Three Musketeers” and its sequels.
The “Kildare” series was based on a string of successful 1930s and ’40s films that had starred Lew Ayres in the title role.
Chamberlain’s hunky, all-American appearance made him an overnight star. Another medical show that debuted the same season, “Ben Casey,” also was a smash and made its leading man, the darkly handsome Vince Edwards, a star, too.
The “Ben Casey shirt” became a fashion item, both shows’ theme songs made the pop Top 40 (the Kildare song performed by Chamberlain himself) and there was even a pop song called “Dr. Kildare! Dr. Casey! You Are Wanted for Consultation.”
But in his book, Chamberlain recounted how he was forced to hide his sexuality. He would escort glamorous actresses to movie premieres and other public events at the request of studio executives and dodge reporters’ questions about why he had never married with a stock reply: “Getting married would be great, but I’m awfully busy now.”
“When I grew up, being gay, being a sissy or anything like that was verboten,” he said in an NBC interview. “I disliked myself intensely and feared this part of myself intensely and had to hide it.”
The book also described a troubled childhood and an alcoholic father, and Chamberlain said that writing it finally lifted a heavy emotional burden. He also expressed relief that he was no longer hiding his sexuality.
“I played a cat-and-mouse game with the press. Game over,” said Chamberlain.
Born George Richard Chamberlain in Beverly Hills on March 31, 1934, the actor originally studied at Pomona College to be a painter. But after returning from the Army, where he had served as an infantry clerk in the Korean War, Chamberlain decided to try acting.
He studied voice and drama, and after appearing in guest roles in a handful of TV shows and in the 1960 film “The Secret of the Purple Reef,” he won the Dr. Kildare role.
When “Dr. Kildare” was canceled he initially found it difficult to shake the image of the handsome young physician.
He moved to England for a time to find work and hone his acting skills. While there, he appeared in three of director Richard Lester’s films, “Petulia” (1968), “The Three Musketeers” (1973) and “The Four Musketeers” (1974). He reunited with Lester in 1989 for “The Return of the Musketeers,” once more playing Aramis.
In 1969, Chamberlain played the title role in “Hamlet” at England’s Birmingham Repertory Company and repeated it in a TV adaptation that appeared on NBC in the United States. He also appeared as Octavius in a film version of “Julius Caesar,” which co-starred Charlton Heston and Jason Robards.
He continued to act well into the 21st century, appearing on such television shows as “Will & Grace,” “The Drew Carey Show” and “Touched by an Angel.”

Bob Thomas, a longtime Associated Press journalist who died in 2014, was the principal writer of this obituary.

Glen Cove police say a man’s body was discovered in Hempstead Harbor near the Welwyn Preserve early Thursday morning.
Police have not yet identified the deceased person, they believe the man to be in his 30s.
Investigators have stated that there is no indication at this time that the death is criminal in nature.

NEW YORK (AP) — Austin Wells became the first catcher to hit a leadoff homer on opening day, Anthony Volpe also went deep and the New York Yankees began their AL pennant defense by beating the Milwaukee Brewers 4-2 on Thursday.
Carlos Rodón (1-0), starting because of ace Gerrit Cole’s season-ending elbow injury, allowed one run and four hits in 5 2/3 innings. Rodón got 13 swing and misses, including nine on sliders.
Devin Williams, an All-Star closer acquired from Milwaukee in December, loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth on two hits and a walk. He gave up Brice Turang’s sacrifice fly, then struck out Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich for the save.
Chourio fanned five times, two more than his previous high.
Wells put the Yankees ahead when he sent a 2-0 fastball into the right-field short porch against Freddy Peralta (0-1) — it would not have been out of any other big league ballpark.
Volpe homered in the second, Aaron Judge added an RBI double off third base in the seventh and Cody Bellinger followed with a sacrifice fly that made it 4-1 in his Yankees debut.
Vinny Capra hit his first big league homer in the third for Milwaukee.
New York’s lineup included just four starters from World Series Game 5: Judge, Wells, Volpe and Jazz Chisholm Jr.
Cole appeared for pregame introductions, his right arm in a sling following Tommy John surgery on March 11.
A moment of silence was held for Miller Gardner, the 14-year-old son of former Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner, who died Friday.
Milwaukee wore a patch on the left sleeve honoring broadcaster Bob Uecker, who died Jan. 16 at age 90.
Key moment
Brewers rookie Isaac Collins pinch hit with the bases loaded in the sixth and in a nine-pitch at-bat grounded into an inning-ending forceout against Tim Hill.
Key stat
New York hadn’t had a catcher hit leadoff in 19,451 games — 19,014 in the regular season and 437 in the postseason — according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Up next
LHP Max Fried makes his Yankees debut Saturday and Nestor Cortes his Brewers debut in his return to New York. Cortes dyed his hair blond on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a major overhaul, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will lay off 10,000 workers and shut down entire agencies, including ones that oversee billions of dollars in funds for addiction services and community health centers across the country.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. criticized the department he oversees as an inefficient “sprawling bureaucracy” in a video announcing the restructuring Thursday. He faulted the department’s 82,000 workers for a decline in Americans’ health.
“I want to promise you now that we’re going to do more with less,” Kennedy said in the video, posted to social media.
The restructuring plan caps weeks of tumult at the nation’s top health department, which has been embroiled in rumors of mass firings, the revocation of $11 billion in public health funding for cities and counties, a tepid response to a measles outbreak, and controversial remarks about vaccines from its new leader.
Still, Kennedy said a “painful period” lies ahead for HHS, which is responsible for monitoring infectious diseases, inspecting foods and hospitals, and overseeing health insurance programs for nearly half the country.
Overall, the department will downsize to 62,000 positions, losing nearly a quarter of its staff — 10,000 jobs through layoffs and another 10,000 workers who took early retirement and voluntary separation offers encouraged by President Donald Trump’s administration.
The staffing cuts were first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Public health experts, doctors, current and former HHS workers and congressional Democrats quickly panned Kennedy’s plans, warning they could have untold consequences for millions of people.
“These staff cuts endanger public health and food safety,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, in a statement. “They raise serious concerns that the administration’s pledge to make Americans healthy again could become nothing more than an empty promise.”
But Kennedy, in announcing the restructuring, blasted HHS for failing to improve Americans’ lifespans and not doing enough to drive down chronic disease and cancer rates.
“All of that money,” Kennedy said of the department’s $1.7 trillion yearly budget, “has failed to improve the health of Americans.”
Cancer death rates have dropped 34% over the past two decades, translating to 4.5 million deaths avoided, according to the American Cancer Society. That’s largely due to smoking cessation, the development of better treatments — many funded by the National Institutes of Health, including groundbreaking immunotherapy — and earlier detection.
The reorganization plan also underscores Kennedy’s push to take more control of the public health agencies — the NIH, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — which have traditionally operated with a level of autonomy from the health secretary. Under the plan, external communications, procurement, information technology and human resources will be centralized under HHS.
FDA and CDC face the deepest cuts
Federal health workers — stationed across the country at agencies including at the NIH and FDA, both in Maryland — described shock, fear and anxiety rippling through their offices Thursday. Workers were not given advance notice of the cuts, several told The Associated Press, and many remained uncertain about whether their jobs were on the chopping block.
“It’s incredibly difficult and frustrating and upsetting to not really know where we stand while we’re trying to keep doing the work,” said an FDA staffer who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation. “We’re being villainized and handicapped and have this guillotine just hanging over our necks.”
HHS on Thursday provided a breakdown of some of the cuts.
_ 3,500 jobs at the FDA, which inspects and sets safety standards for medications, medical devices and foods. _ 2,400 jobs at the CDC, which monitors for infectious disease outbreaks and works with public health agencies nationwide.
_ 1,200 jobs at the NIH, the world’s leading public health research arm. _ 300 jobs at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees the Affordable Care Act marketplace, Medicare and Medicaid.
HHS said it anticipates the changes will save $1.8 billion per year but didn’t give a breakdown or other details.
The cuts and consolidation go far deeper than anyone expected, an NIH employee said.
“We’re all pretty devastated,” said the staff member, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. “We don’t know what this means for public health.”
Union leaders for CDC workers in Atlanta said they received notice from HHS on Thursday morning that reductions will focus on administrative positions including human resources, finance, procurement and information technology.
At CMS, where cuts focus on workers who troubleshoot problems that arise for Medicare beneficiaries and Affordable Care Act enrollees, the result will be the “lowest customer service standards” for thousands of cases, said Jeffrey Grant, a former deputy director at the agency who resigned last month.
Kennedy plans to shutter some agencies, even those created by Congress
Beyond losing workers, Kennedy said he will shut down entire agencies, some of which were established by Congress decades ago. Several will be folded into a new Administration for a Healthy America, he said.
Those include the Health Resources and Services Administration, which oversees and provides funding for hundreds of community health centers around the country, as well as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which funds clinics and oversees the national 988 hotline. Both agencies pump billions of dollars into on-the-ground work in local communities.
SAMHSA was created by Congress in 1992, so closing it is illegal and raises questions about Kennedy’s commitment to treating addiction and mental health, said Keith Humphreys, a Stanford University addiction researcher.
“Burying the agency in an administrative blob with no clear purpose is not the way to highlight the problem or coordinate a response,” Humphreys said.
The Administration for Healthy America will focus on maternal and child health, environmental health and HIV/AIDS work, HHS said.
The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, created by a law signed by then-Republican President George W. Bush and responsible for maintaining the national stockpile that was quickly drained during the COVID-19 pandemic, will also be eliminated and moved into the CDC.
Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota said the ramifications of Kennedy’s plans for HHS are unclear.
“We’ll just wait and see what it is, and then we’ll go back and try to fix if there is something broken,” Rounds said. “That’s the approach we’ve taken so far.”
But Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington warned that the fallout is clear.
“It does not take a genius to understand that pushing out 20,000 workers at our preeminent health agencies won’t make Americans healthier,” Murray said in a statement. “It’ll just mean fewer health services for our communities, more opportunities for disease to spread, and longer waits for lifesaving treatments and cures.”