Outside Iowa: Cold Cases in the News
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Sacramento police agencies get funding for cold-case work
December 30, 2008
Sacramento — Cold cases can make splashy headlines when finally solved, such as when James Calvin Gaines was sentenced to life in prison in 2007 for the murder of a 12-year-old girl in Rancho Cordova 35 years earlier.
$100,000 Reward Offered in 34-Year-Old Kentucky Cold Case
December 29, 2008
Louisville, KY — A $100,000 reward is being offered for information to help police solve a 34-year-old cold case.
Cold cases to get another look: Unit made up of volunteers will try to solve murders
December 27, 2008
Indio, CA — If retired police officer Ed C. Williams cracks just one of Indio's dozens of unsolved murders, he'll be satisfied.
New Prosecutor Takes Look at JonBenet Ramsey Case
December 26, 2008
Boulder, Colo. — A new Boulder County district attorney plans to take a new look at one of the country's most high-profile cold cases -- the slaying of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey.
Police Make Arrest in Cold Case Slaying
December 22, 2008
Denver — Denver police have arrested a suspect in the murder of a woman in 1992.
Cold case chilling for woman
December 21, 2008
Windsor, CO — A 36-year-old East Coast cold case is coming to a close, but that closure is causing mixed feelings for a Windsor woman.
DNA advances give Garda Cold Case Unit vital breakthrough in 21-year-old murder
December 21, 2008
Ireland — Officers from the Garda Cold Case Unit have sent a file to the DPP recommending charges be brought against a man and a woman for their involvement in the murder of a man 21 years ago.
Boston Police Use DNA to Solve Cold Case
December 3, 2008
Boston — Evidence kept for 24 years helped nab a suspect in the brutal sexual assault and strangulation death of a teenage girl, a crime that had remained unsolved since she was found in a vacant lot in Roxbury in 1984, police and sources said.
Intern cracks cold murder case ... after 36 years
October 23, 2008
San Diego — After 36 years, the family of Gerald “Jerry” Jackson had despaired of ever learning who had brutally murdered the Vietnam vet in his apartment. But now, thanks to an enterprising intern at the San Diego Police Department, the closure they have waited for so long appears to be finally at hand.
'Touch DNA' Offers Hope in Cold Cases
September 24, 2008
Anne Arundel County, MD — For 35 years, Anne Arundel County, Md., police have been baffled by the killing of a 17-year-old girl whose battered body was discovered in an abandoned quarry in suburban Washington.
Kawkawlin man faces murder charges in 15-year-old cold case
June 19, 2008
Kawkawlin, Michigan — Randal S. Czerkies' neighbors know him as a family man who has lived a normal life inside his two-story home on a sparsely populated stretch of Fraser Road.
Woman Arrested in Cold Murder Case Has Other Dead Husbands
June 13, 2008
Albemarle, N.C. — For two decades, Al Gentry begged investigators to take another look at the mystery of who killed his brother, Harold, and left his gunshot-ridden body sprawled on the floor of the home he shared with his wife.
Wavering court case prompts plea deal in cold case
May 28, 2008
Kansas City — Two years ago, Cass County Prosecutor Teresa Hensley heaped praise on detectives, a toxicologist and her office for finally getting someone charged in a mystery killing from 12 years earlier. The break in the cold-case murder of John Hollis, a 31-year-old Navy Seabee, came when the toxicologist used new medical technology to come up with findings that led investigators to conclude that Hollis’ wife had spiked his drinks with antifreeze.
Cold Case Unit to Look at 2 Eerily Linked Murders
May 13, 2008
ST. PAUL — Two young women, both named Susan, were found murdered in St. Paul on the same date in May, two years apart. The similarities don't stop there.
Unlikely partnership between historian, sheriff's office brings mystery closer to closure
May 6, 2008
BOULDER — When Silvia Pettem met Jane Doe’s spirit in 1996, the specter knew little about herself. She knew where she died and where her body was found. She did not know her real name or her personal history.
Unsolved cases are not forgotten
April 30, 2008
Omaha, NE — Russell Neal Sr. has found it impossible to move on since his 16-year-old daughter, Sarah, was gunned down inside the family's north Omaha home June 21, 2005.
Cold Case Sent Back to Union County
April 17, 2008
Elk Point, SD — The South Dakota Supreme Court has sent a cold case back to Union County after a prison snitch admitted to lying in a different case.
Cold case unit taking a fresh look at decades of unsolved crimes
January 21, 2008
Minneapolis, MN — Supported by a $500,000 federal grant, veteran Minneapolis homicide Sgts. Tammy Diedrich and Barb Moe will consider cases with the greatest potential for solving, dating back to 1972.
1930 NYPD Cold Case 'Solved'
August 19, 2005
New York — The NYPD's longest-running unsolved missing-person case - the bizarre and legendary disappearance of Judge Joseph Force Crater - may finally be solved.