WARNING: this post has crime scene and autopsy photography from both Keith Combs and Eugene Ellis. Introduction On the morning of Sept. 25, 1993, people riding off-the-road motorcycles found the bodies of Keith Edmond Combs (Aug 20, 1970 – Sept 25, 1993) and Eugene Clifford “Cliff” Ellis (June 21, 1973 – Sept 25, 1993). They […]
Unsolved Homicide
The Cold Case of Tamara Greene
The Cold Case of Tamara Greene remains a mystery. In the early morning hours of April 30, 2003, Tamara Greene was shot to death in a drive-by shooting. She was in a car with her boyfriend Eric Mitchell. Mitchell survived the shooting. The Detroit News described that Greene was in the driver’s seat and that they […]
The new IACHR report on the Highway of Tears
The new IACHR report on the Highway of Tears can be found here. It “is just one more reason for a national inquiry, said Prince George lawyer Mavis Erickson of the international body’s report. “It’s such a dismal picture, but I think that the Inter-American Commission has done a good job in bringing the issues […]
The December Killings
The 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 […]
Lisa Peak – Julie Benning – Valerie Klossowsky
Lisa Peak – Julie Benning – Valerie Klossowsky is a guest post written for DCC by Jody Ewing, the blogger behind Iowa Cold Cases. I was contacted a while ago by a reader, Tom, who alerted me to Lisa’s case. After an Internet search, Jody and I decided to work on this together and see […]
Carmen Melinda Croan (Jan 16, 1963 – Aug 23, 1981)
Carmen Melinda Croan (Jan 16, 1963 – Aug 23, 1981) was murdered when she was just 18 years old. She doesn’t have a good web presence. The only information on the Odessa Crime Stoppers page is as follows: “It has been over 20 years since the brutal slaying of Carmen Croan. Her body was found on […]
Jacobs not guilty of Blakelock murder
Nicholas Jacobs was found not guilty of the Blakelock murder during the 1985 Broadwater Farm Riots. From the Huffington Post: “Nicky Jacobs, who was 16 at the time, went on trial at the Old Bailey accused of being one of the rioters who together stabbed the officer more than 40 times and tried to decapitate him. There […]
Help needed in Karen Caughlin case
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 […]
In loving memory: Teresa Sue Hilt
In loving memory: Teresa Sue Hilt. Today, Sunday August 4th, 2013, marks the 40th anniversary of Teresa‘s murder. A few days ago, I spoke to her mother. Teresa’s mom is 86 years old now and hurts every day for the loss of her only child. She lost her husband Stanley years ago. He was never […]
The Caughlin family: enough!
Enough energy has been put into asking, begging the OPP to re-evaluate the cold case of Karen Caughlin. Their hearts broken since Karen’s murder in 1974, the family has decided to stop talking to the media. From the PetroliaTopic.com and sent to me by Kathy Caughlin: “Two years after calling for the external review, Caughlin says […]
WANTED: a PI, a media consultant, and a profiler!
WANTED: a PI, a media consultant, and a profiler! I have two cases where the key players have asked for help. Both cases are cold. One case involves a child, the other case involves a married couple. In neither case is there a budget! You will be doing this because you believe in the pursuit of […]
Zeigler defense asks Judge Whitehead for evidentiary hearing
Zeigler defense asks Judge Whitehead for evidentiary hearing. Last Thursday, the Zeigler defense team was back in court to ask Judge Whitehead for an evidentiary hearing to explore the latest developments in the case of William Thomas Zeigler, who remains on death row in Florida. Of course, at issue were the false arrest report and the […]
Book alert about the case of Kathy Whorton
Kathy’s sister Debbie Wilson is releasing a book called “Sweet Scent of Justice” to tell the story of her sister’s murder. Police found her car abandoned near the then-Northeast Louisiana University, where she was a college student. Less than an hour later, an anonymous caller led authorities to her body. Kathy had been shot twice in […]
Possible prosecution in 1985 Blakelock case
All the papers were buzzing since last night about a possible prosecution in the 1985 cold case of UK Police Officer Keith Blakelock. Officer Blakelock and his colleague Pc Coombes was was attacked by 300-strong mob as he tried to protect firefighters who were tackling a supermarket blaze at the height of the riot known as the […]
Recap #cclivechat August 17, 2012
Today’s #cclivechat was dedicated to the 1974 Canadian cold case of Karen Caughlin. I highlighted several things that concern me in her case. Of course, those concerns are just the top of the iceberg! I started with the evidence in her case, worried that it might not have been preserved properly for examination with modern […]
New manager on Caughlin case
New manager handling the Karen Caughlin case is great news. Fresh eyes to look over a file to see if we missed anything. On May 1, 2012, Inspector Chris Avery was assigned to the 1974 Caughlin investigation. The case of Karen Caughlin has featured here on DCC ever since Karen’s older sister Kathy contacted me by email. Kathy […]
Update Karen Caughlin
The Lambton Shield reports that “one of the suspects in the 1974 murder of Karen Caughlin may have died. It is believed that Miss Caughlin was struck by a vehicle and left for dead in a shallow ditch on the side of Plowing Match Road (formally known as Side Road 6-7) in Enniskillen Township, a couple kilometers northwest of […]
Gone but not forgotten: Raymond Nels Nelson
Gone but not forgotten: Raymond Nels Nelson: thirty-one years ago, someone killed Raymond Nels Nelson by hitting him on the head with a typewriter. Nelson, bureau chief of the Providence Journal and Evening Bulletin in Warwick, Rhode Island, and later a member of Senatorial candidate Claiborne Pell’s team, was a dynamic man and public figure in Washington, D.C., but foremost, he […]
Los Tocayos Carlos
Los Tocayos Carlos … the namesake Carlos … The Guardian has an excellent article about a Texas capital punishment case involving a wrongful conviction, switched identities, an unsolved murder, evidence not tested for DNA, sloppy police procedures and an execution. “Carlos DeLuna was arrested, aged 20, on 4 February 1983 for the brutal murder of […]
Sentencing in Keith Combs & Eugene Ellis
Edward Jesus Elias and Leopoldo Chavez II, both 36, were found guilty of first-degree murder and special-circumstance allegations including murder during a robbery of Keith Combs & Eugene Ellis. They were teenagers at the time they killed Keith Combs and Eugene “Cliff” Ellis. Elias and Chavez were both sentenced to serve life without the possibility of parole. […]