Charles' Crime / Punishment Blog

Everyone has an opinion and we would like to hear yours in our Crime and Punishment Forum. Take a look at some of the top cases, crimes and criminals currently under discussion and join in with your thoughts and opinions.:

• Father Admits Caging Daughters
  In back of pickup truck.
  
• Man Charged in Niece's Death
  3-Year-Old killed.
  
• Dog Sex Tapes Prompt Arrest
  Couple charged in beastiality.
  
• Newborn Baby Rescued
  Mother's body found in park.
  
• Molester Gets 4,060 Years
  Give 40 life sentences.
  
• Girl Left in Car 9 Hours
  Mom, boyfriend face charges.
  

When the body of seven-month-pregnant Army Specialist Megan Touma was found in an off-base motel bathtub June 21 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, a crossed circle symbol was drawn in lipstick on the mirror. The same symbol was at the bottom of a letter received by a local newspaper in which the writer took credit for the death of Touma.

Poll: Is the 'Zodiac' letter a clue that another serial killer is on the prowl?

1) Yes. It was written by a copycat killer.
2) No. It is a ruse to throw off police.
3) Undecided

See Also:

• 'Zodiac' Letter Clue in Pregnant Soldier's Death
  
• Crime and Punishment Weekly Polls

The body of a 12-year-old Vermont girl, whose disappearance touched off Vermont's first ever Amber Alert last week, was found by searchers near the home of her uncle, with whom she was last seen alive. Vermont State Police Col. James Baker said the death of Brooke Bennett was "clearly suspicious" and foul play was indicated.

"The painful discovery of Brooke's body today is tragic and heartbreaking," Col. Baker said at a news conference after the discovery of her body around 4:45 p.m. Wednesday. Read more...

Law enforcement agents have spent two days digging around an old farm 50 miles east of Atlanta in search of clues in an unsolved lynching of four people more than six decades ago. Agents from the FBI and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation have been searching a once-working farm five miles from Moore's Ford Bridge on the Apalachee River in rural Walton County, the scene of the 1946 murders of two black couples.

The deaths of Roger and Dorothy Malcom and George and Mae Murray Dorsey at Moore's Ford is one of the most infamous unsolved multiple lynchings in U.S. history. Read more...

When the body of seven-month-pregnant Army Specialist Megan Touma was found in an off-base motel bathtub June 21 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, a crossed circle symbol was drawn in lipstick on the mirror. The same symbol was at the bottom of a letter received by a local newspaper in which the writer took credit for the death of Touma.

Although investigators believe the symbols, in the style of the San Francisco area Zodiac Killer from the 1960s, is a ruse to throw them off, the letter is a key piece of evidence in the case. Read more...

An Illinois man who police believe went on a killing spree that left eight people dead in two states has been captured outside a Granite City bar following a massive manhunt. Nicholas T. Sheley, 28, was captured after a bartender and a customer recognized him inside Bindy's Bar about 10 miles north of St. Louis.

Sheley, an ex-convict, became the subject of a FBI manhunt Tuesday afternoon and his photo was placed on digital billboards across the country. He was arrested around 7 p.m. the same day. Read more...

A 12-year-old Vermont girl, whose disappearance last week touched off the state's first-ever Amber Alert, is still missing and authorities are searching the property of her uncle, a registered sex offender. Michael Jacques, the uncle of Brooke Bennett, has been arrested on an unrelated charge of aggravated sexual assault and is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail.

As police began to look for clue in Brooke's disappearance, they developed evidence against Jacques in connection with the sexual assault of another relative. Read more...

British scientists have developed a new technique for lifting prints off metal objects even after the prints have been wiped off or washed away with soap and water. The breakthrough could lead to decades-old cold cases being solved, because they claim the fingerprints never really disappear. Read more...

Forensic Science:

• New Technique Helps Police Bust Forgers
  
• Using Telltale Toolmarks to Fight Crime
  
• Internet Training Launched for Forensic Experts

^{Photo: Clipart.com}

Court records released to the press last week shed new light on the shooting death of the popular student body president of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Rather than a victim of a random carjacking, Eve Carson was kidnapped from her home, taken in her own vehicle to an ATM machine where she was robbed, shot by both assailants and left in the street.

The search warrants in the case were unsealed last week over the strong objections of the defense attorneys for Laurence Lovette, 17, and Demario Atwater, 22, who have been charged with first-degree murder in the case. Read more...

A man convicted May 22 of the rape and murder of a University of Vermont student is already appealing his conviction and seeking a new trial on claims that the judge failed to give proper instructions to the jury. Brian L. Rooney was convicted of the murder of Michelle Gardner-Quinn, 21, of Arlington, Virginia.

Testimony during the trial showed that Gardner-Quinn was raped, beaten and strangled after asking to borrow his cell phone while walking home from a friend's birthday party. Read more...