unsolved murders in jasper, alabamaunsolved murders in jasper, alabama

Harriett Smith died about eight years ago, and Smith, now 82, has since remarried. Kubiszyn stayed in the guest room at her sister's house that had a window on the front side of the home. '&charset='+document.characterSet : '')); Because of this, and because of wall-to-wall media coverage of such events, it can be easy to assume that this era of mass murder is unprecedented in American history. In 2000, the Smiths met with FBI agents and pleaded with them to reopen the case, but were told all leads had been exhausted. These cases stem from various situations, and circumstances, but all have one thing in common: people's loved ones have yet to be found. She didn't say anything that was true.". Some parts 2023 Advameg, Inc. Crime rate in Jasper, Alabama (AL): murders, rapes, robberies, assaults, burglaries, thefts, auto thefts, arson, law enforcement employees, police officers, crime map. All of these clues would be wasted during the initial investigation, which is blamed by contemporary law enforcement for failing to follow up on solid leads and outright ignoring pieces of evidence. "He would run you around every night. The source material for author Beth Lowrys 2016 true crime book Who Killed These Girls?, the yogurt shop murders continue to haunt the citizens of the Lone Star State. On December 6, 1991, firefighters in the capital city of Austin, Texas, responded to a suspected arson at a strip mall. The most recent in May 2017 Jamol Horton who was shot and killed in his home in Ridgleand. A hammer and a knife were recovered at the crime scene, while survivor Justin Sharp provided information that led to a composite sketch. The show includes interrogation footage of Jones from Jan. 19, 2005. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Captain Jack Kennedy, the current commander of the Violent Crimes Unit, said Jowers was a popular fixture at the bar, teaching line dancing and a regularly singing karaoke. I can see the window off the guest room. Christmas is usually a time of good cheer, good food, and good times spent with family. He said he and another man guarded Carrie at an abandoned house in Marshall County and then she was taken to Jackson County and strangled. Twenty-four-year-old Robert Bruce Springsteen and 25-year-old Michael James Scott were the only two to go to trial, and both men were convicted on flimsy DNA evidence. [CDATA[ And, of course, there were people who thought Lawson was somehow involved in Carrie's abduction. Endres vanished the same month Greenwell was found dead. When she entered the salon, she first saw the corpse of 62-year-old Dorothy Harris. Some of the cases remain unsolved. Mobile County Sheriffs Office Sgt. Keddie, California, is an out-of-the-way kind of place. With great haste, Carolyn and her husband got dressed, and headed out to the driveway of their Jasper, Alabama home. Indeed, the victims were nearly decapitated by their killer. Glennas body might have also been arranged in a sexually explicit manner. "They had searched his house, and questioned him and left him in the house with a bunch of guns," Kubiszyn said. June 7, 2021: Alex Murdaugh, 53, calls 911 and reports he found his wife Margaret, 52, and son Paul, then 22, shot dead outside of their home in Islandton, a small community about an hour north of. Private investigator W.W. "Red" Self sits in his Pinson office in this 2002 file photo. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Prior to their deaths, Hinson and Gierse had moved to Indianapolis in order to start their own microfilm company called B&B Microfilm Services. Sells was executed in 2014. Christmas 1959 was supposed to follow this tradition. Click here to create a free account which will allow access to 5 stories every 30 days. In 2001, Springsteen was sentenced to death. On December 19, 1959, the entire Walker family was out running errands. For a while, Hinson and Gierse had worked for Records Security, a company based in Jasper, Indiana. Copyright 2019 WSFA 12 News. Keddie, however, became infamous on the night of April 11, 1981. The trunk was found by hunters nearly three years to the day later, with only the elderly brothers' suits inside. If the case was easily solved, it would have not gone cold. Even we have a limit that you can push us to before we stand up and cry foul.". Paul Burch said on the show that Jones told investigators he needed to tell them about a hairdresser he had abducted at knife-point from a Georgia salon, drawing diagrams of where his and her cars were. "I have four sisters-in-law and I'm close with them, but missing a sister is so difficult. A subsequent search of the Walker home found that several items were missing: Cliffs pocketknife, Cliff and Christines marriage license, and a high school majorette uniform that Christine had once worn. When he does talk about it, it's to use it as proof of what God can do in someone's life. The suspects wore gloves and did not leave behind their blood at the scene, but they did leave footprints. Thats always been really hard for me to swallow, that anyone could get to know Carrie and then turn her over to her executioner., Years ago, McPherson agreed to meet with Lawsons father, who has since died, and give details about the crime in return for the family not protesting parole. "We were all in the kitchen discussing what needed to be done with Jerry Bland. Investigators found that Glenna, John, and Dana had been bound with white medical tape and appliance wire, and all three had suffered stab wounds along with being bludgeoned and strangled. The third victim was identified as 27-year-old James Barker. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. Jack Kelly, Charles Magarian, Peter Meroth, Freddie Delavega, and Vincent Solmonte were shot several times by a 12-gauge shotgun and a .25-caliber automatic in what appeared to be a robbery gone wrong.[11]. And it still, in some ways, marks Walker County. Cliff and Jimmie were dispatched with the .22, while Debbie was also shot but was likely killed by being drowned in the familys bathtub. HARDEEVILLE, Sc. Other theories about the case include a scorned, jealous husband or boyfriend (all three men had an ongoing bet about who could sleep with the most women) and the local mob. Whited had a string of arrests for traffic and drug offenses through the years including one for possession of a crack cocaine pipe less than three weeks after two hunters found Dailey's body with a gunshot to the head on April 26, 1995, documents show. He doesn't talk about Carrie or the case much, but said not a day goes by when he doesn't think about the kindness shown to him and his and Carrie's families. Email all inquiries to me at ryan.phillips@patch.com. An excavator scooped out the bottom of the pool but found nothing. MOBILE, Ala. (WPMI) In 2005, suspected serial killer Jeremy Jones was convicted by a Mobile jury for the brutal murder of 44-year-old Lisa Nichols. My uncle lived in Nebraska. Clearly it wasn't.". 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. "This case affected our community," District Attorney Bill Adair said, noting hundreds of people carried out searches and held prayer vigils. CHICAGO (CBS) -- A mob gambling operator "was taken for a ride" and lived to tell about it. A ransom demand was made, and paid, but Carrie Lawson was never found. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Two of the victims had been shot in the head, neck, and shoulders by a .38-caliber handgun. This booking photo provided by police in Decatur, Ala., shows Johnny Dwight Whited. Anyone with information about Endres murder is asked to call the Georgia Bureau of Investigation or go to unsolved.com. "It was the next morning. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. One of the voices was determined to be Jerry Bland, and the other McPherson. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Karen McPherson, now 60, is serving a life sentence in the kidnapping of Carrie Smith Lawson, who was abducted from her Jasper home in the early-morning hours of September 11, 1991. The first discovery was a vehicle belonging to one of the abducted four. "The FBI, they're pretty direct on what you can expect," he said. Then he had to call Carrie's parents, David and Harriett Smith, in Tennessee. Three of the bodies were stacked together, and at least one of the girls had been raped. The note, however, left no clues on Carrie's whereabouts. Lawson said much of those first few months after Carrie's disappearance and Bland's suicide is a blur. Despite Bland's death, and McPherson's swift arrest on first-degree kidnapping charges, the searches for Carrie continued by hundreds, if not thousands. Arson of Kinder Care Childcare Arson of Klub 280 Guy Kirby - Missing Person Murder of Hernan Rojas Torres Murder of Willie Earl Bedford They reportedly found some of the ransom money -- which had been documented by serial numbers -- in a truck on his property. The next and final discovery occurred on November 19, when all four bodies were found in a rural part of Johnson County. Ultimately, Christine was killed with a shot to the head from a .22-caliber gun. Kubiszyn, previously told AL.com McPhersons role in the disappearance has always been understated, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. (Ron Colquitt). "I was convinced as soon as we got him the money, we were going to get Carrie back and nail this bastard," Lawson said. That book claimed, in part, that agents had the authority to search Bland's home without a warrant. If you would like to buy one, you can reach Mitchell at (843) 683-0568, or on Facebook at Charles Mitchell. "I couldn't help but think that anybody would tell, or leave a note, about where she was," Lawson said. Authorities got a major break when Bland was identified as a suspect. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. A woman who has been in prison for more than 30 years in the kidnapping of a young Jasper lawyer, whose body has never been found, has again been denied parole. Simpson had just ended in early October 1996, but remained fresh in the public psyche and dominated . A quarter century since she vanished without a trace in a mystery that became one of the most talked-about missing person cases in Alabama history. Shaquille Granta football star at the school, somebody killed him, said Detective Charles Mitchell with the Hardeeville Police Department. Family members of McPherson have said they know Karen Lancaster McPherson did wrong, but said they feel shes been punished enough. As of April 1, there were around 19 reported murders in Alabama in 2021. This quick thinking saved the young girls life, and, for a time, it saved her mothers life as well. McPherson was the "nurse" who made the call, and she dropped Bland off at the Lawson home to carry out the kidnapping. The victims were 37-year-old Connie R. Woolfolk of Flossmoor, Illinois; 22-year-old Sarah Szafranski of Oak Forest; 42-year-old store manager Rhonda McFarland of Joliet; 33-year-old Carrie Hudek Chiuso of Frankfort; and 34-year-old Jennifer Bishop of South Bend, Indiana. Jones recanted his confession and police found no evidence to link Jones to her murder, but have never eliminated him as a suspect. The ratio of all residents to sex offenders in Jasper is 233 to 1. Carrie's parents took up residence in a Jasper motel. Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. Following a negative DNA test in 2008, Springsteen and Scott were both released in 2009. I know my sister, and if she had any inclination that there was going to be harm done to Carrie, she wouldnt have done this.. No arrests have been made in the case, although one tantalizing suspect, 36-year-old convicted rapist Donald Ray Forrester, did confess to crime before recanting. For a time, Illinois investigators suspected serial killer Angel Maturino Resendiz, a Mexican-born and Texas-based transient who was arrested in 1999. My sister had a minor role in this. "The guy just comes up with a gun. When Lawson Sr. arrived at the site, however, there were about five police cars there totally unconnected to the kidnapping case, purely a coincidence. On Saturday, Sept. 28, 1991, federal agents searched Bland's home. They rushed to the car, and it began. Murdered. By all appearances, the Burger Chef murders probably came as the result of a botched robbery. In 1997, a prison inmate claimed he had first-hand knowledge of the case. Unsolved Crimes If you have information concerning any of these crimes, please contact our Criminal Investigations Division through our Report Form or by phone at 205-669-4181. document.write ('&cb=' + m3_r); In the week that followed, local media also reported that a handgun was recovered in the parking lot of the bar. Unsolved Alabama Murders According to Project: Cold Case, from 1980 to 2019 there were 20,003 homicides in Alabama alone, leaving 7,893 unsolved murders in Alabama. Carrie Lawson was declared dead two years after her disappearance. Lackey was sentenced to death on April 3, 2008, and was later executed in Alabama by lethal injection on July 25, 2013. Closure came tantalizingly close when four young men were arrested in Texas and West Virginia in October 1999. He had a demon inside, you know, that he liked to sexually abuse women, Burch says. Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The days without an arrest turned into months and then . It has been called Dr. Seuss Day because of this. Given the absolute horror of the crime scene, locals began to blame Satanists for the crime. "He had duct tape and told Carrie to duct tape my hands behind my back. 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That is the only person who shares your story. If you had told me that moment that I'd have the kind of life I have now, I would have never believed it. His penis had also been removed. In one case, two victims died when their home was intentionally set on fire in Selma. "That breaks my heart because all he's done is try to find her. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). These cases stem from various situations, and circumstances, but all have one thing in common: people's loved ones have yet to be found. The City-Data.com crime index weighs serious crimes and violent crimes more heavily. In fact, investigators later found that Christines shoes were coated in blood that did not belong to her. Authorities at the time said the note indicated the ransom money was in the attic, and that's where roughly $250,000 had been found. In 1996, investigators hired a construction crew to pump out a pool at a closed surface mine in Tuscaloosa County. They cared, and tried their very hardest. //]]>-->, Copyright 2023, Cleveland Newspapers, Inc., operating as the Daily Mountain Eagle. (Photo courtesy of McPherson's family). Twenty-five years of her life are gone. These rumors provided investigators with their first major theory. Higher means more crime, U.S. average is 270.6. "He'd never met her, but he loved her.". He told me to get on the ground on my stomach. This would prompt an investigation that has yet to see a single suspect charged with the murder. [10] Keiths body would not be found until the next day. "That was the first time I felt alone," he said. On the horrible morning of February 10, 1990, two armed men entered the Las Cruces Bowl located on East Amador Avenue in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The bottom line is this: I dont disagree that my sister deserved to be punished. "I've always admired my dad so much -- he just keeps plugging on. Thats why law enforcement across Jasper County is asking for the communitys help. He wasn't arrested then, however, but FBI instead staked out the house throughout the weekend. Kubiszyn said Carrie was the bright light in their family. My family and Carrie's family," Lawson said. The whole Jerry Bland suicide is very suspicious, and it's very possible somebody else killed him. The voice on the tape, investigators said, matched that of the man making the ransom calls to Lawson. The only tangible evidence is a composite sketch released in 1990 which shows two middle-aged black or Hispanic males with mustaches. The house belonged to two of the victims, 34-year-old Robert Gierse and 27-year-old Robert Hinson. After asking Senac to retrieve $5,000 from the bowling alleys safe, the gunmen shot all four several times. Then they got in my car and they left.". "He called the payphone and said, 'I'm watching you right now. Court records don't include a defense attorney who could speak on behalf of Whited on the murder charge, but he already was awaiting trial on a methamphetamine charge with his trial scheduled for May. Years later, in 2000, the daughter of a man named Fred Harbison told the local media that her father had written a deathbed confession claiming to have carried out the triple homicide as part of a contract killing drawn up by Uland.[8]. The first to return to their modest ranch-style house was Christine. I think probably in the last 10 years, he's more resigned to the fact that we probably won't find her, but if anybody calls him and says they know something, he's going to follow up on it. With that in mind, Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit (VCU) is once again reminding the public that Wednesday marks the 25th anniversary of the seemingly unprovoked killing. He still responds to tips, and continues to fight against parole for McPherson, most recently in August. [5] Such overkill caused Plumas County Sheriffs Office special investigator Mike Gamberg, along with Sheriff Greg Hagwood, to suspect that as many as six people may have taken part in the murders. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The victim's vehicle was found partially submerged in the Tennessee River. 6 The Burger Chef Murders. Home; News; Sports; Extras; Walker Magazine; Subscribe; Police have never revealed her name. Without question, the massacre was a gangland killing, yet no one is sure if the perpetrators were members of the Patriarca crime family, the Bulger gang, or some other unknown Italian or Irish crime outfit. "Thousands of people sympathized, empathized with their family. Earl Lawson told himself one thing, even as it was happening: It will all be over soon. It taught me a lot about how to be a friend, and I never stop thinking about the people who took time off from their jobs, time off from school to search and cry with us.". These belonged to 44-year-old Brenda Patch and 71-year-old Cynthia Paulus. Registration Opens For Hospice Of West Alabama's 13th Annual 5K, Teen Victim Identified After Fatal Crash On 15th Street Tuesday, UWA's Woodruff Earns Back-To-Back GSC Coach Of The Year Honors, Commission Considers New Storm Shelter For Jerusalem Heights Community, Commission Moves Forward On New Fosters Farmers Market, Tuscaloosa Public Library To Kick Off Summer With Free Northport Event. They were saying something about exculpatory evidence that needed to be cleared up. Making an arrest in these cases, helps families, it gives them some kind of closure, but it will never completely heal, Mitchell said. Glenna and Tina Sharp would suffer the same fate, although Tinas skeletal remains would not be found until years later. Many, if not most should be considered armed and dangerous.