Slashdot Mirror
Texas Rangers Use Internet To Breathe New Life Into Cold Case Homicides
Hugh Pickens writes writes "Katherine Rosenberg reports that the Texas Department of Public Safety has unveiled a new web site dedicated to unsolved cold case homicides to make sure the victims are not forgotten and to try to catch a break in even the coldest of cases. DPS spokeswoman Katherine Cesinger says continual strides in technology make focusing on cold cases more important than ever because there are more opportunities to solve them with each emerging process or device. The web site was created because the more readily available information is the more people may be apt to pick up the phone and report what they know. 'It helps to refresh these cases in the public's mind and hopefully we'll shed new light on it. In some cases, we can also re-examine evidence if there's an opportunity or need there as well,' says Cesinger. One featured case from 1993 is Kathleen Suckley who was 29 when her throat was slashed and she was stabbed about 40 times inside her rented duplex, while her two sons, ages 4 and 1, were home. Officials said they interviewed numerous witnesses but never got enough information for an arrest. Capt. Tim Wilson maintains that in any homicide case there always is someone who knows something. At some point, he believes, the murderer will tell someone out of guilt or pride, or simply the pressure of holding it in. Cesinger points out that over time as relationships change, if prompted by something like the website or a news article, that confidant finally may come forward. 'I think we owe it to Kathleen to be this tenacious. It drives me nuts that somebody can do this and get away with it,' says Kathleen's mother-in-law Luann Suckley. 'I think the website is great ... maybe someone will finally speak up because I'm tired of sitting back and waiting.'"
Are we going to talk about the story, or just have ad hominem attacks on unrelated subjects?
Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
You breathe breaths. One's a noun and the other is a verb. They're pronounced very differently. English isn't even my native language, but even I know the difference.
Right now, there's an assault case in Texas waiting on somebody coming forward. A young lesbian parent at a public playground was seriously beaten by a much larger male parent. This case has not been classified as a hate crime by local authorities despite that being clearly in line with Texas law, and those same authorities appear to be quite comfortable with letting this become a cold case. It looks like the case will only come to justice if some non-police person fingers the perp, and does so loudly enough that the local prosecutor can't ignore it.
It's laudable that Texas is taking steps to clear some cold case murders, but it will be up to some of the very same people who implemented this to figure out what their state government should do when a local government clearly doesn't want to help and thinks it has unlimited authority to decide which laws to follow, and judging by this recent assault case, they had better start planning for that problem yesterday.
Who is John Cabal?
Aside from the bad grammar of TFA, I found this little puzzle: "DPS spokeswoman Katherine Cesinger says continual strides in technology make focusing on cold cases more important than ever because there are more opportunities to solve them with each emerging process or device."
How do "continual strides in technology" make focusing on cold cases "more important?" I can see how it might make focusing on cold cases more convenient or more efficient or more productive. It doesn't make it more important. Old unsolved cases become less important over time because it becomes increasingly likely that the perpetrator has either already been imprisoned on a different charge, has died or has changed their life so that they are less of a danger to the public.
Multiple stab wounds doesn't mean it's personal. It means the killer was extremely angry for reasons we do not know. But I agree it is probably personal, which means the investigation should focus on former lovers and close family members.
"At some point, he believes, the murderer will tell someone out of guilt or pride, or simply the pressure of holding it in."
Dostoyevsky gently smiles from his grave.
I have a few family members that work in the Texas justice system. The number of people that have sat in jail for years to later be exonerated by DNA or new modern evidence methods are staggering. Put to death even when there was only the most circumstantial evidence that they were even involved (or other evidence that suggested they were not).
Though adding the cold case site is a good measure, over time people who commit crimes do think they have gotten away with them and may give up information they shouldn't have (to stay free).
They just need Chuck Norris. He'll close every cold case with his fists.
"I'm so moist I'm sticking to the leather." -Kermit the Frog on The Late Late Show
I don't hold out a lot of hope for the majority of cases. But, shit happens. Some dude beats the crap out of his old lady, and runs at the mouth a little while he's beating her. Over the next several days, she gives some thought to his comments, puts three and five together, and wonders if eight is the right answer. Maybe it was her boyfriend that killed the old lady down the street all those years ago? She was bludgeoned with a hammer, after all, and Bubba just threatened me with a hammer . . . I'll just make an anonymous call to the investigators, and see if they can make sense of it.
If they solve two or ten percent of the old cases, that's cool. If they don't solve any cases, well, I don't see a huge loss here.
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
But I agree it is probably personal, which means the investigation should focus on former lovers and close family members.
Was looking into being a LEO(law enforcement) a few years ago, couldn't cut it because I broke my back during the training, it's very hard to complete the training when you can't run or hardly walk. In Canada LEO training is about half of what a marine takes to get on the force. Really you'd investigate everyone, but at 40 stab wounds? It could also be someone with a deep psychosis or mental health issue as well. It's getting stuck in the "well it probably is..." that limits your field of view and screws up your investigation.
One thing I always did find odd between Canada and the US with the investigation of homicides. In the US you'll abandon a murder after a period of time, in Canada we never do, ever. There's always someone working on the case, there are cold case teams that are dedicated to it. One of the instructors I had, had a pretty good example of this about a major drug runner from the US, who wanted someone removed and suggested killing the guy in Toronto. Which was quickly put down by his partner. He pointed out that in Canada they'll hunt you down till the end of your days. While in the US they'll give up after a few months. Part of the reason is, in Canada an indictable offence(the equivalent of a felony) never expires. And there is no such thing as a I/O at the provincial level.
What I find odd about this article though, is that the rangers are doing what we've been doing up here in Canada since the 70's at a lower tech level(they used flash bulletins sent by intra BBS memos via CPIC). Then again, you guys copied our crime stoppers program too. Well if it works, it works right? But pretending that it's new and shiny is just silly.
Om, nomnomnom...
They may not get the right answer every time, but...
They'll be in the ball park!
I'll be here all week.