Joe Giacalone and I teamed up to explore the 1975 murder of Sharron Prior. It has haunted Point-St.-Charles ever since. We read the website that was made for Sharron and all the newspaper articles. Below are our observations and first reactions. What happened? Sharron (16) disappeared on March 29, 1975 after leaving from her home […]
Forensics
Tracy Allen & Patty Vaughan
Tracy Allen & Patty Vaughan are just two cold cases handled by the Texas Bexar County Sheriff’s Office but they can use your help in two cases: Tracy Allen In 1986, Tracy Allen (18) was found dead in Hondo Creek, Texas. Cause of death: strangulation. She went missing September 9 and was found on September 13, […]
No independent inquiry in Crewe Murders
Justice Minister Simon Power has turned down calls for an independent inquiry into the 40-year-old murder mystery of the Crewe Family. “In response, Mr Power said he understood the interest in seeking closure, but his hands were tied. Neither I nor my ministerial colleagues can direct the police to reopen the case. Due to the constitutional separation […]
Penn State’s Forensic Science students to explore the Zeigler case
I am proud to announce a special collaboration with Penn State University’s Forensic Science Program. The students in this program will get access to crime scene photographs, police reports, witness statements and more to apply everything they have learned in class in a real case. The students will be able to explore bloodstain patterns observed […]
Remember Betsy Aardsma
I am very glad to report that police are waiting for DNA test results of Betsy’s red dress that she wore the afternoon she was killed. Betsy was stabbed in her heart and nobody heard her scream. She died on November 28, 1969. Betsy was a lively young woman, a reader, a great cook, and […]
Remembering Dana Bailey
Update: Dana’s sister Tracy told me that the young woman who appears in many newspaper photographs is actually not Dana but Dana’s roommate. Tracy kindly gave me a photograph of her beautiful sister. We hope that by publishing this photograph and this post the discussions in Dana’s case will pick up again. On March 5, 1987, Dana Bailey […]
Riley Fox’s murderer gets life
Riley Fox’ murderer Scott Eby’s plea bargain was accepted yesterday by Will County (IL) Judge Richard Schoenstedt. Before his sentence, Eby rose and addressed the courtroom briefly. He apologized to Riley‘s parents saying that he wished he could trade his life to bring her back. In June of 2004, the body of Riley Fox(3) was pulled from a […]
Zeigler, Part XV
Zeigler, Part XV: “Just testify that you were Zeigler’s homosexual lover and we’ll help you out!” A Florida, Orange County woman in her 80’s, reads an affidavit that she signed alleging that the state tried to get her son to testify that he was William Thomas Zeigler’s homosexual lover. As you know, the state went through great […]
Dennis Anderson found dead
Dennis Anderson, a convicted killer that federal authorities believed was in Escambia County, was found hanged in a Pensacola motel room last Friday, according to The Harris County (Texas) Sheriff’s Office. He was wanted for obstruction of an investigation by tampering with evidence of a human corpse and was a suspect in a woman’s murder in […]
“It’s not about the conviction or the sentence.”
Sundeep Bhatia’s observation is one I agree with: “But the request to test the DNA evidence is not really about the conviction or sentence. It’s about the evidence and the possibility that it may shed some light on who the real killer is. Skinner hopes it is exculpatory. But it may be inculpatory. Skinner doesn’t know. And that’s […]