The 1988 Apple Valley Murders of Hulon and Elaine Hughes have been solved thanks to a federal DNA grant. Hulon and Elaine Hughes were found shot to death in their California Apple Valley home on Oct. 12, 1988. They operated two business on the property: Hughes Roofing and B&S Paving. They employed Harold David Toney as a mechanic […]
Forensics
Florida moves to protect innocent people from wrongful convictions
Some of the most important movers and shakers in Florida’s criminal justice system huddled in Tallahassee today with a simple, yet critical mission: protect innocent people from wrongful conviction. The Florida Innocence Commission held its first meeting in what will be a two-year examination of how the state administers justice. There are clear problems. A […]
Sentencing in Julius Schnoll case
Darrell Kastel has accepted a plea bargain in the 1979 murder of Mr. Julius Schnoll as I wrote in my previous post. I did not have further details then. I know learned that on August 30, 2010, Kastel was sentenced to 10-15 years for 2nd degree murder as part of a plea deal. He was credited […]
Andy Moore (April 25, 1974 – Sept 9, 2000)
The parents of Andy Moore want answers. They hope that talking about the circumstances of their son’s death and offering a large reward will prompt someone who knows something to come forward. Andy was murdered in his studio apartment on the corner of Ash and 8th Avenue in downtown San Diego, California, USA. Police believe that Andy was […]
Can we base a conviction on one palm print?
Can we base a conviction on one palm print? In August of 1984, a double sexual assault took place in West Norwood, south London, UK. A teenager assaulted a woman in her home and forced her flatmate to join in the abuse. The teenager wore a balaclava and used an iron bar to force the woman […]
Willeke Dost: search continues
The search for Willeke Dost will continue. Police will start digging into an area behind the farm however, they are tight lipped and will not indicate when or why exactly that spot has been chosen to search for possible remains. Willeke Dost was only 15 years old when she went missing. Now, she is presumed […]
Colorado’s Cold Cases go online!
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) Cold Case Unit, in partnership with Colorado.gov, announced the launch of an online Cold Case Database that citizens may access via the official state Web site at www.colorado.gov/coldcase. This is the first time the public will have online access to this data, which was previously managed in paper and computer […]
The 1985 murder of Vincent Paul Caciola
Vincent Paul Caciola (known as “Vince”) was reported missing on August 14, 1985 by his wife, Kimberly Rene Caciola (now Ms. Kimberly Grubbs). She said she left him at home late in the evening to get some items from her office on Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River, Maryland. When she came back around midnight, […]
Daniel Dougherty and Forensic Arson Detection
Daniel Dougherty was found guilty of deliberately igniting fires in his home that killed his two sons, Danny(4) and Johnny(3) in 1985. Police arrested Dougherty 14 years later, when his estranged wife came forward and claimed he confessed. A jury found him guilty on capital murder charges in 2000. He is awaiting his execution. His case […]
Update 1979 Julius Schnoll case
Darrell Kastel, facing a first-degree murder charge, entered a plea this morning, bringing relief to the people who were present during the 1979 shooting of a supermarket supervisor in Farmington, MI. Kastel, 56, pleaded no contest to an added charge of second-degree murder as part of a plea agreement. The first-degree felony murder charge against him […]