Despite the heinous crime, a formal investigation was never performed. All of the links in this post refer back to the author's references. If you enjoy coverage like this, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it. "911. He refused to appeal his death sentence. Public Domain/Wikimedia. If youre interested in learning about both solved and unsolved Pulaski County murders, you can find information regarding many Pulaski County murders trial with a simple search, and often times you can find all of the crime scene information if the case is solved. If you have an interest in learning more about the statistics and data surrounding crimes in Arkansas, you can easily find multiple law enforcement agencies which release annual reports on their websites that show, in detail, the crimes in that area. In August 1998, both boys were sentenced to confinement until they reached the age of 21, which is the maximum sentence available under Arkansas law. According to Arkansas investigators, she told her friends she was originally from Florida. In Buddhism, the willow branch represents compassion. "She was a hardworking lady. Another of many Arkansas killers, who is considered to have been a spree killer, is Ronald Gene Simmons Sr., who killed 16 people in a week-long murder spree in 1987. 48-year-old Timothy Sharp is in the Sevier County Jail charged in the shooting death of his wife Crystal Sharp. JONESBORO, Ark. "Even though an arrest has not been made, it's never been put on a shelf and ignored," said Sevier County Sheriff's Office Chief Detective Jeff McCarter, who worked on the case back in 2009. Special Report: Plans to exhume 1977 Arkansas murder victim's body are 'underway'. It may be that last trait that can most be closely identified with the author. A few examples of Arkansas cold cases which have been solved by DNA in recent years include the 2000 murder of Tawana Blunt and the 1985 murder of Mildred Lee Matheny, as well as many others. They said it had political overtones, pointing to the untimely suicide of Vincent Foster a childhood friend of Clinton's and one of his closest allies only months earlier as evidence of a connection. That nightafter all, it was only one nightthe socially prominent women did something a little out of character; they went to Juarez and lived it up. Once Hazel Frome and her daughter Nancy had decided to drive from San Francisco to Parris Island, South Carolina, they might have chosen the northern transcontinental route instead of the southern road through El Pasobut they didnt. If a suspect whispered about his or her guilt during an incident, it could be the missing link to the puzzle. The local police quickly rushed to the conclusion, claiming the boys had died from a drug overdose on the tracks. HOT SPRINGS -- The new year began with some homicides still unsolved. Cherry's estimated release date is January 9, 2020. In January 2007, outgoing Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee made a peculiar request of his staff: destroy the office computers. He lived withand perhaps still lives withan older female companion, Jessie Forsyth. It began on the night of August 15, 1970, when Roberts, whose real name wasnt Robertshe was born Leroy Seviersummoned his friend and bodyguard Al Bergeron concerning a matter of utmost importance. After finishing some personal business, Bergeron went to the mansion. Police interrogated more than 3000 persons, from highway travelers to narcotics addicts, all to no avail. The cars spare tire had no inner tube; perhaps the Fromes had stopped to fix a flat tire, only to encounter a not-so-good Samaritan. Willow trees are another deliberate choice Jared made to include in the book. The police have the man who did it, and he is indeed behind bars. The indictment alleges that the four mentwo from Corpus Christi, two from Louisville, Kentuckyarranged, for Randy to buy Mafia skim money at a discount. Arkansas was no different. Finally, some unsolved central Arkansas murders include the 2011 murder of Kimberly Steele, the 2002 murder of Jane Murdaugh, the 1987 murder of Sandra Lynn Williams, and the 1995 murder of Robin Lynn Farnsworth, among others. The local Packard garage might have had the necessary parts to repair the carbut it had to order them and wait five days instead. Occasionally the monotony is broken by a piece of flotsam floating far out. Authorities ask anyone with information in the case to call the Sevier County Sheriff's Office at 865-453-4668 or 865-428-1899. Damien Echols was the lead suspect in the murders of three West Memphis boys in 1993. ARKANSAS (KNWA/KFTA) There are at least four unsolved missing person cases in North Central Arkansas since 1991, and all are women. They may have information. The inquiry was hampered from the start when Horton was assaulted in the courthouse parking garage; his briefcase, containing important documents including the original power of attorney, was stolen. The reason behind the frenzied housecleaning has never been fully explained. Either way, the murders that took place in Arkansas left a mark on the state and made headlines in the news. Constable John J. Sumpter, Jr. and Deputy Sheriff John McLemore were investigating reports of "cattle rustling" in Hot Springs when they watched a bright light descend behind some trees. Ted Hercutt, his then-wife and his other daughter, Penny Stephens,were vacationing some 380 miles awayin Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, when authorities respondingto an alert from Shannon Hercutt'sOnStar safety system found her dead inside her SUV. On June 25, 1990, Simmons died by the method he had chosen, lethal injection. Maybe somebody knows something who just can't talk about it right now, but down the road they may. Finally, some others include east Arkansas unsolved murders, which include the 1986 murder of Sandra Alberda, the 1989 murder of Jimmie Wade Martin, the 1994 murder of Marty Bradley, the 1987 murder of Stella Patterson, and the 1970 murder of John Leonard, among many others in the remainder of the state. February 2023 Reader Quiz: What Did You Learn? The memo also says the backups were supposed to be delivered to a Huckabee aide. This case immediately caught national attention when three teenagers, Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelly Jr., and Jason Baldwin, were arrested and charged with the murders of the three young boys, with the killings being portrayed as being a part of a Satanic ritual. Days later, his truck was found in the woods just outside Marion. After trekking through the woods, they eventually found the source of the light. Police in Baxter County think Gary had help, and they believe that the unnamed suspect might also have ties to Jerry's murder. The property had been sold to a management company created and owned by Horton. Her possible birthday is 22Jun1862--d. 1936 around Grenola, KS. An El Paso truck driver reported seeing a black sedan following the Packard early on the afternoon of the murders; several hours later the two cars passed him going the opposite direction, followed closely by a third car with mysterious markings on the side. Noted now for being an obsolete method of execution, death by electrocution is still a legal secondary execution practice in Arkansas. The puzzle is still currently ongoing and its progress can be followed here. The list of his victims read like the Dallas social register: James Ling, Clint Murchison, Sr., P. E. Haggerty (then president of Texas Instruments), and at least a dozen others. Tommy Sevier, Jr., age 25, and Samantha Sevier, age 19, both of Texarkana, Arkansas are each charged with two counts of capital murder.On February 16th, hunters found the bodies of Patrick Dickey, 22, and Billy Drumm, 32, both of Texarkana, inside a charred vehicle on a hunting lease in Doddridge. In 1987, Don Henry and his friend Kevin Ives were found dead in Bryant, Arkansas on the railroad tracks near their homes. On June 9, 1995, Morgan Nick and her mother, Colleen Nick, went to a Little League baseball game in their town of Alma, Arkansas. If youre interested in learning about the statistics surrounding the number of murders in Arkansas by year, multiple law enforcement agencies offer reports and statistics on their websites. Without a doubt, the most famous murders in Arkansas, as well as the most controversial and infamous Arkansas murders case, is the 1993 triple homicide of 8 year olds Steve Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers, more commonly known as the West Memphis Three case. "We've heard numerous things," Giles said. The fence supposedly got it out of the country through Chicago. However, after hearing conflicting testimony, Rector was ruled competent to stand trial. Crystal Sharp's body has been sent to Little Rock, Arkansas for an autopsy. Johnson has since faced run-ins with Arkansas law subsequent to his release and is currently serving a four-year federal sentence on weapon and drug charges. The gem once belonged to the Maharajah of Mahratta in the Gujarat region of India. The Kings last performance came more than a decade ago, in February 1966, and Fannin now says resignedly of the cases, Theyll never be solved.. On August 19, 2011, they entered Alford pleas, which allow them to assert their innocence while acknowledging that prosecutors have enough evidence to convict them. The area where White was found is part of Hot Springs National Park and on federal land, resulting in both the National Park Service and FBI taking the lead on the investigation. Garland County Prosecutor Michelle Lawrence confirmed Thursday the case was still under review by her office. Pulaski County is the largest county in Arkansas, with a population of over 392,000 residents, and is home to Arkansas most popular city, Little Rock. The Top 50 Texas BBQ Joints: 2021 Edition. (It was still working.) A-State Announces 2017 Spring Graduation List, JPD: One arrested after downtown crowd gets out of hand, Two teens arrested in Jonesboro shootings, Sheriff investigating raw sewage dumped in Izard County, Suspect breaks into home and refuses to come out: JPD, Report: Male assaulted, shot at in Jonesboro. 6720, he said. The two had a tumultuous relationship characterized by bouts of estrangement and reconciliation. Anyone with information about White or her death, "no matter how insignificant it may seem," is asked to contact the National Park Service. Barnett may have been the same John Barnett who, at the time of the 1900 census, was living in Independence Township (Lee County). Why these two cities were chosen among some of the more exotic locations, which include Seattle, New Orleans, London, Tokyo, and Paris, is unclear. Jjesus Anaya, a Hot Springs Police Department public information officer, told the newspaper on Nov. 30, while appealing to the public for help in the almost year-old case. Over the years, around 7,797 of those murders were solved, leaving over 2,100 unsolved murders in Arkansas alone. Authorities also discovered that the names in the Bible belonged to a family the victim stayed with while living in Dallas. Tommy Sevier, Jr., age 25, and Samantha Sevier, age 19, both of Texarkana, Arkansas are each charged with two counts of capital murder. OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. 48-year-old Timothy Sharp is in the Sevier County Jail charged in the shooting death of his wife Crystal Sharp. Standing in the surf off Mustang Island, he looks for variety wherever he can find it, noting minute shifts in the tide, the direction of the current, the timing of the waves. The West Memphis Three: Arkansas's most controversial murder case involves three men who were tried and convicted as teenagers in 1994 of the 1993 murders of three eight-year old boys (Steve Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers) in West Memphis, Arkansas. The police have the man who did it, and he is indeed behind bars. "And I think that sometimes it takes years and years to solve a case. Dr. Doug [], JONESBORO, Ark. Robbery certainly had to be considered; there was no money on the corpse, but there was an expensive waterproof wristwatch. She was last seen at 10:45 p.m. by her friends, emptying sand out of her shoes at her mother's car. When a case goes cold its especially haunting to remember that there are actual people out there either waiting for their stories to be told or desperately trying to hide a secret from the world. So when authorities found her body inside her crashed SUV at the bottom of a steep slope off Walker Trail 10 years ago on Saturday they quickly ruled her deathan accident. Another case, which Jared has been following for many years, is the murder of Amanda Tusing. ", Mathis' aunt, Misty Ely, told the newspaper Mathis had gone to a friend's house on Christmas Eve but left around 11 p.m. and it was unknown what happened to him between then and Christmas morning. The stranger then showed Sumpter and McLemore his vessel: a cigar-shaped amalgamation of blimp and balloon that was nearly 60 feet long The pilot even offered them a ride, but the officers refused. Jared was present for three of the four executions including the first double execution in 20 years in the United States. You'll receive your first newsletter soon! Name: Date: Victims: Location : B: Charles Jason BALDWIN: May 5, 1993: 3 ? HOT SPRINGS -- The new year began with some homicides still unsolved. Both women had been savagely beaten and choked; in addition, a large piece of flesh had been bitten from Mrs. Fromes arm and Nancys body was marred by cigarette burns. While browsing the internet for a list of murders in Arkansas, list of Arkansas murders, or all murders in Arkansas, youll find both solved and unsolved cases, some of which have received a lot of media attention, and others that have almost no information or receive no attention from the media. The book also delves into Arkansas death row, which made it back into the news in 2017. According to Arkansas State Trooper Robert Roten, his office had two separate reports of drivers picking up a "clean-cut, well-dressed" man who frightened them with his claims of the Second Coming. Authorities say the couple's 13 and 15 year old sons witnessed the shooting of their mother. Adding another twist in the case, Gary was recently charged with the murder of his mother's new husband, David Millstein. A friend called Bergeron two days later with news of a special delivery letter from Tex, who wrote that he had left the state on business and that attorney Leon C. Horton would be managing his affairs during his absence. The victim was a young blonde, and she had been savagely beaten before being shot in the head by her boyfriend. Hazel, 46, and Nancy, 23, left their car on the afternoon of March 25, 1938, and requested that it be ready at 6 a.m. the next day. Mary Isabel Piner/Ball/Johnson lived in Madison Co. AR came from NC and TN to AR. Print Headline: Work on unsolved Hot Springs killings goes on in '22. According to Project: Cold Case, from 1965 to 2019 there were around 9,951 murders in Arkansas alone. Its available now on Amazon in paperback and Kindle format. Other evidence revealed that the victim briefly lived in Shreveport, La. After waiting several hours for Roberts to return, Bergeron called the police. While most of the stories share similar motifs, the legend seems to have emanated from a report published in 1980. Some examples of cases where Little Rock murders DNA was used to solve or bring new information to light include the 1990 murder of Treva Parks and the 1990 murder of Pamela Felkins, among many others. Riggs' defense said she was suffering from depression and apparently did not want to have her children split up after her envisioned suicide. woman accused of using aunts debit card for 136 DoorDash orders held on preset $18 million bond. Also, the Federal Bureau of Investigation releases a Uniform Crime Report every year which shows, in detail, the crimes, crime rates, and locations of crimes in every state, county, and city. Authorities in Arkansas are seeking information in a double homicide that has remained unsolved for 21 years. Sheriff Stringfellow adds, "Oh yes, we've had several restraining orders, but the couple would somehow makeup.". A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office confirmed Thursday there was nothing new in the case to report and the investigation is ongoing. Police were summoned to the scene, but officers took the report via the drive-thru window and never entered the building to interview the suspect. Get more stories delivered right to your email. Love Arkansas? One year later, a robber arrested in Kingsville for a different offense confessed to stealing the diamond. Mention "Woodson Lateral Road" to most Arkansans over 40 and you're bound to hear the Natural State's version of the vanishing hitchhiker legend. Despite Rector's mental state, then Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton made a point of returning to Arkansas to oversee Rector's January 24, 1992 execution during the 1992 U.S. Presidential campaign. This date marked the first woman executed in Arkansas since 1845. For Fannin is chief of detectives for the Dallas police force and the short, stocky man is the King of Diamonds, the most daringand most successfuljewel thief ever to operate in Dallas. Five famous cases the police may never mark closed.. Although many of Arkansas cold cases will or have remained cold for decades, and often times run completely out of leads as tips run out, there have been countless Arkansas cold cases solved and Arkansas murders solved in the past few years thanks to technological advancements as well as advancements in DNA technology. (It is perhaps worth noting that the laws of the state of Texas are somewhat more lenient, and its citizens have considerably more difficulty keeping their jewels.) By the time the unknown object reached shallow water, it began to assume the identity of a mana man wrapped in chains, with his hands tied behind his back and a cement block around his neck. Bergeron looked at the familiar signature again and decided it didnt look quite right. However, due to an ever-expanding Pulaski County, the once rural highway is slowly being overrun by suburbia. He was serving a 40 year state sentence for armed robbery and narcotics violations and an additional 30 year federal sentence for kidnapping and airplane hijacking. Despite the passing of two decades, LRPD's investigation into the elder Parks' murder is ongoing. Texarkana Siblings Charged in Burned Bodies Case. Investigators never found any physical evidence linking the WM3 to the crime scene. So what's all this got to do with Arkansas? We've always constantlytried to do things to try to solve it. ", Texarkana Siblings Charged in Burned Bodies Case, La. The Jonesboro prosecutor later stated that were it not for their ages, he would have sought a death sentence for the pair. Uncovered is where the most passionate true crime enthusiasts can learn from and teach others. And we still have some of those here today.". Crow at jdcrow@garlandcounty.org or call (501) 622-3751. Travis Dorman covers crime, breaking news and law enforcement.. The secret starts in the wooded terrain of Jack Mountain in Hot Spring County, where hunters found the remains of Linda Edwards back in 1977. According to their YTD report, which shows crimes from January to the end of May 2021, there have been roughly 27 murders in Little Rock alone. These names were given to the FBI, and authorities later discovered that the victim was also wanted for bank robbery in various states on the East Coast. The Little Rock Police Department dismissed such claims as "unsubstantiated". A litany of theories emerged as motives for the murder. Further complicating the case was the mysterious "Mr. The Sevier County officials told appellant that they had a subpoena issued by the Sevier County Prosecuting Attorney and that they wanted to question him further in . On Christmas Day 2020, shortly after 8 a.m., the body of Ethan Mathis, 18, of Hot Springs, was found in the 1400 block of Bald Mountain Road after deputies responded to a 911 call about a possible deceased person. The following day, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole. West Texans Are Learning What It Means to Live in Bear Country, How Florence ButtNot Her SonLaunched the H-E-B Empire, H-E-Bs True Texas BBQ Restaurant Is Slipping, Jimmy Carters Peanut-and-Egg Taco Made Quite the Impression on San Antonians. Judge David Laser accepted the pleas and sentenced the three to time served. The report was []. She had also been arrested in Texas under the aliases "Cheryl Wick," "Kelly Carr/Karr," "Sharon Wiley," and "Mercedes.". Ted Hercutt was never charged, and he died in 2017. The King reaped so much publicity he became an inspiration for lesser thieves, who attempted to emulate him without success. At around 10:30 p.m., Morgan asked her mother if she could catch lightning bugs with her friends. A vehicle with a similar insignia had been used by narcotics smugglers, leading police to speculate that the Fromes may have been mistaken for dope runners who double-crossed their ringleaders. Address: 137 W. Robinson Road De Queen, AR 71832. He asked to be put in touch with Tex personally, but Horton insisted on protecting his clients strict request for secrecy. There's just something that comes together at some point, and I truly believe that it will here, too. According to this same report, in 2019, 242 people were murdered in Arkansas. Cicada 3301 is the name of a group that has annually for the past three years at least created what's essentially an online scavenger hunt for the technologically savvy. Police believe she was abducted before she was tossed in the ditch. In the months that followed, the Phantom Killer embarked on a murder spree, which the media coined the Texarkana Moonlight Murders. When they returned to the hotel shortly before midnight, they got the bad news about the car, and for the next four days, they shopped in the Juarez marketplace and danced away the nights. Forrest Wilder writes about politics and the outdoors. In January 1975, Carolyn Dianne Zachry of Ashdown paid two men (the exact amount is in dispute) to kill her husband -- the men took Curtis Eugene Zachry to a remote location under the pretense of. At the time it was thought he had been caught in a bear trap, frozen to death and thrown aside. "You may remain anonymous. Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use. The only evidence left behind were 10 9-mm bullet casings scattered on the pavement. [], JONESBORO, Ark. At first, her mother was uncertain, but eventually let her go. Some of the biggest unsolved murders in Arkansas include the 1994 murder of Melissa Missy Witt, the 1995 murder of Marlo Taylor, and the 1987 double murder of Don Henry and Kevin Ives, among many others. Madewell recalled drivingbackto Sevier County from Ohio the day after Hercutt's death on Aug. 3, 2009. Jos R. Ralat is Texas Monthlys taco editor, writing about tacos and Mexican food. No conclusive proof of their cause of death has ever been established. Vance was reportedly a fan of Pressly, and was a frequent viewer of her morning news show. More specifically, in Little Rock, Arkansas most populated city, in 2018 the homicide rate was 20.07 per 100,000 residents. Despite a handful of photos scattered across the internet, along with unsolicited help from members of the web, the victim's identity is still shrouded in mystery.