Mental Retardation

Sum it up! #2

January 14, 2011 By Alice

For this week’s Sum it Up: several cold cases were in the news. Rockfort Police (IL) announced an arrest in the 1998 murder of Debbie Lynn Logsdon. “Richard L. Brown was served a warrant last Friday for first-degree murder. Deputy Police Chief Greg Lindmark would not say what new piece of evidence led police to Brown, but […]

Too many wrongful convictions

February 4, 2010 By Alice

Today, Innocence Project’s client Freddie Peacock became the 250th person exonerated through DNA evidence in the United States of America. Peacock was convicted in New York in 1976 of a rape he didn’t commit based on an eyewitness misidentification and a false confession that police claimed he made during an interrogation. Peacock, who has severe […]

Who really killed Mrs. Bernice Martin?

January 21, 2010 By Alice

On March 8, 1987, fire fighters were called to the Mayfair Gardens Elderly Housing Complex, Manchester, Connecticut. They found Mrs. Bernice Martin, 88 years old, barely breathing, and badly beaten. She died later that evening in the hospital. To many the case is closed. Convicted for her murder is her granddaughter’s former husband, Richard A. […]

I am a true crime writer who analyses old, unsolved cases from the pre-DNA era. I try to raise awareness for those cases as they need renewed media attention. I only do research. I leave the active investigation of these cases to 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 more than 300 cases listed by the victim’s last name. You will find a brief description there as well. My research and the database will always be free for the public to use. You cannot buy ad space on my website, ever.

All case suggestions that come in by email for writing considerations are added to my to-do list in the order in which they were received. Please be patient as my to-do list is very long. No case gets dropped from those lists 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

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.