OPP seeks help in 1974 cold case of Karen Caughlin as her death nears the 40th anniversary on March 16th. From CBC News: “Ontario Provincial Police hope a new appeal to the public will help reinvigorate an investigation into a four-decade-old homicide. Police on Thursday released a seven-minute video detailing the events of the day Karen Caughlin […]
Autopsy
Case of the Month: Paula Oberbroeckling
Case of the Month: Paula Oberbroeckling (Feb 25, 1952 – July 11, 1970). Paula disappeared on July 11, 1970, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She was 18 years old and dreamed of becoming a model. She had borrowed her roommate’s car to go off on an unspecified errand. Her roommate’s car was found parked in a no parking zone […]
Sum it Up! #48
Sum it Up! #48 is an eclectic batch of cowboys, cases and conferences that you may wish to put on your calendar. Markus Schantz left the legal profession. His blog “Chicago Criminal Defense” has excellent posts about law and a cold case. Markus has embarked on a multi-pronged career. He is writing and works as a […]
Trial starts in the Hina Family Murders
Trial starts in the Hina Family Murders today. The Hina Family was killed during a 1989 fatal fire at a Keene apartment complex, New Hampshire. From the SFGate: “David McLeod has pleaded not guilty to four counts of second-degree murder. He is accused of igniting a blaze in a drug-fueled rage on Jan. 14, 1989, […]
Case of the Month: Josephine Backshall
Case of the Month: Josephine Backshall (39) who was last seen at about 6pm on Tuesday October 29, 1974, when she left her home to keep an appointment in Witham, Essex, UK. She was found dead Nov 1, 1974. Today marks the 39th anniversary of her unsolved murder. Josephine Backshall left three children: Christopher, Sarah, and Emma. Her […]
Jury finds John Heath guilty
Jury finds John Heath guilty for the murder of Elizabeth Gough-Heath. From the CTPost: “The jury’s verdict was returned just over an hour after they re-heard a surreptitiously recorded interview in which Heath made denigrating comments to police about his wife’s fitness as a mother, as well as other statements that just didn’t ring true […]
M-Vac helps solve Beslanowitch case
The M-Vac System made the difference in the Krystal Lynn Beslanowitch case. In 1995, Krystal’s nude body was found lying face down on the rocks, bloody and broken, on the banks of the Provo River, Utah. She was just 17 years old. Parts of the large, granite rocks were saved as evidence as well as scrapings from under Beslanowitch’s fingernails. […]
Case of the Month: Bernice Martin
Case of the Month: Bernice Martin. On March 8, 1987, fire fighters found Mrs. Bernice Martin inside the Mayfair Gardens Elderly Housing Complex, Manchester, Connecticut. She had been brutally beaten and passed away that same night in the hospital. The fire department found her front door locked but the glass sliding door in the back open. The […]
Alfred Moore; first impressions
As you know, Pam alerted me to the Alfred Moore campaign to have this case, a wrongful conviction, examined again. I have done some checking on the web, found the eBook by Steve Lawson, and have started mulling this case over. Those familiar with my blog know that my first take on a case usually […]
CT Supreme Court hears Lapointe case Sept 17, 2013
CT Supreme Court hears Lapointe case Sept 17, 2013. This fantastic news came from the Bellingham Herald. Almost a year ago, I posted that Richard Lapointe was going to get a new trial. In a stunning decision, the state Appellate Court Monday ordered a new trial for Richard Lapointe, a mentally disabled dishwasher convicted of […]