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Research website by Alice de Sturler

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You are here: Home / Unsolved / The December Killings

The December Killings

December 10, 2014 By Alice

leaning angelThe December Killings always give me pause.

During this month, we lost Maria Ridulph, Shawn K. Simmons, Officer Deriek Crouse, Kimberly Ann Thompson went missing, Leo Resk, and Gregory McRoberts was killed in a hit-and-run. Michelle Martinko was murdered, Eric Beasley was killed, and Amber, Karmon, and Kameron Willingham died during the accidental fire that led to their father’s wrongful execution. Patty Vaughan went missing and left behind small children.

In this month in 2009, the Criminal Cases Review Commission declared that the court of appeal will not pardon Hawley Harvey Crippen posthumously despite the fact that DNA disproves the prosecution’s charges.

It is quite a list.

But it is on Christmas Eve that I really pause and say a silent prayer.

On Christmas Eve, the murders of Charles Mays, Perry & Virginia Edwards, and Eunice Edwards-Zeigler led to the wrongful conviction of William Thomas Zeigler who remains on death row. Betty Gene Hull, a woman who embodied the spirit of giving, was brutally murdered.

When I stand in front of our Christmas tree, I wish for a solution to stop the madness that endures for Tommy Zeigler. I don’t want him exonerated posthumously. I wish to clear his name in court while he’s still alive. I wish for an M-Vac led forensic squad to re-examine the Hull and Vaughan evidence pieces for touch DNA. And I wish for peace.

I would like to thank all my blog readers and supporters on social media for reading and sharing these posts. Thanks to your sharing we reach new news feeds every day.

I wish to thank all the families who reach out every day with stories and details about their loved ones, who share photographs, and correct/add information in the posts. Your support and kind words mean the world to me.

Thank you all for placing the victims in the spotlights. I hope you will continue to do so in 2015.

Happy Holidays and the very best for the New Year!

Thank you for sharing!

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Filed Under: Unsolved Tagged With: Miscarriage of Justice, Unsolved Homicide, Victim, Wrongful Convictions

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Dina Fort

Author Notes

On this website, I write about old, unsolved cases. Most are from the pre-DNA era and are in need of renewed media attention. I only do research and leave the active investigation of these cases to the professionals.

My posts are about homicides, missing and unidentified people, wrongful convictions, and forensics as related to these cases.

On book reviews: I only review select works of true crime, crime fiction, and historical fiction/mysteries. The stories have to fit my website's theme and research. It remains my prerogative to not review a book.

My database has over 325 cases listed by the victim’s last name. You will find a brief description there as well. The database will always be free to the public to use. You cannot buy ad space on my website, ever.

All writing suggestions that come in by email are added to my to-do list in the order in which they were received. Please be patient. My to-do list is very long but no case gets dropped and I will get back in touch.

Defrosting Cold Cases is NOT an organization. It is my brainchild.

If you have any questions about my website please check the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page, the about page, and the tabs in both menu bars. If you still cannot find the answer there, please contact me.

Thank you,

Alice de Sturler

Copyright

If you use my work, please add a link back. Let your readers know where you found your information. I do the same for you. Thank you!

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William Thomas Zeigler

Category: ALL POSTS

On March 31, 2016, an evidentiary hearing was held to request touch DNA testing. On July 18, 2016, Judge Whitehead denied that request.

On November 23, 2016, an appeal was filed with the Florida Supreme Court. On April 21, 2017, the Florida Supreme Court denied the request for touch DNA analysis.

On May 8, 2017 a motion for a rehearing with the US Supreme Court was filed. It was denied November 13, 2017.

In the summer of 2019, the appeal for DNA testing to the Florida Conviction Integrity Unit was denied.

Richard Lapointe

Category: ALL POSTS

In March 2015, the Connecticut State Supreme Court ordered a new trial for Richard lapointe. On Oct 2, 2015, International Wrongful Conviction Day, Richard was set free. The judge ruled that he cannot be retried for the 1987 rape-murder of Mrs. Bernice Martin. Richard Lapointe died on Aug 4, 2020 of Covid19 complications.

In 1987, someone killed Bernice Martin. I hope that she will not become a forgotten file.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Copyright: Please add a link back if you use my work. Let your readers know where you found your information. I do the same for you. If you need help with this, just contact me. Thank you, Alice de Sturler

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