Cold Case Solved in Columbus

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www.FrontPorchColumbus Dot Com
optimism running rampant

I received an email last night from our Mayor Nancy O.

Great news for Columbus . On March 11th, 1980 there was a murder in Columbus … it has remained unsolved for 29 years. Today Curtis Forbes from Randolph was arrested and will be charged!

Marilyn McIntyre was 18 years old, married and lived on South Ludington street with her husband and 3 month old child when she was murdered in her home. No one was ever arrested or charged with her murder. October, 2007 I received an email from Marilyn’s niece asking us to take another look at this murder and bring justice to her family. I went to our police chief and asked him to reopen the case and see what they could uncover. He did, and it has continued to progress for 18 months until today there was an arrest. Last year Marilyn’s body was exhumed and additional DNA evidence collected. Lots of good police work has led to an arrest today. Columbia County Sheriff’s office, Dodge County Sheriff’s office, Columbus Police Department and Department of Justice all worked together on this case. Charges will be filed tomorrow, Wednesday. This is really exciting… today I’m happy to be the mayor!!!
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Channel 3000

March 19 2008
Sheriff's Lt. Wayne Smith said that his agency received a tip during the summer of 2007 from an informant about a killing in Columbus. He said that the tip had the wrong time frame, but authorities linked it to the unsolved murder.

Smith said that a man was interviewed in Sioux Falls, S.D., during the renewed probe as a "person of interest" in the case, but he said that the investigation is now focusing on another man in the "greater Columbia-Dodge County area."
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Oddly I was just thinking of this a few weeks ago, maybe I had read it in the news somewhere but it popped into my brain.

This is the 2nd cold case that I am within 6-degrees of. I can not think of the exact facts but a coworker of DJs dad, some 30 or 40 years ago had a wife that just vanished. I guess everybody at the time thought it was very odd because the investigation said she went out for a walk or something. One of those "why would she do that" and "it's totally not like her" type things.

Well, DJs dad was curious and for some odd reason was thinking about this and asked the police whatever became of this cold case. The police looked into it, opened the case and found evidence. The husband did it. He was still living in Madison(???), had a new wife and was living a happy happy life.

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Columbus had 2.97 inches of rain last night. It was really coming down about 10:00. Blake did not appreciate having to go out. sigh! There are more and more signs that he is getting old. Makes me sad. Just little things.

I THINK he has a tooth ache now.

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Yesterday on this day in Wisconsin History - 1874

On this date magician Harry Houdini was born in Budapest, though he later claimed to have been born on April 6, 1874, in Appleton, Wisconsin. At the age of 13 he left Appleton, where his family had emigrated, for New York City, and began his career as an escape artist and magician.
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Here is the bring you down moment of the day.

In 1911 the Triangle Shirtwaist factory caught fire in New York killing 145 teenage emigrants. A sweatshop in the truest sense. The factory was located on the top 3 floors of the Asch Building in downtown Manhattan. There were 4 elevators that could hold a total of 12 people and two stairways both locked on the outside. The fire escape would opnlu hold 2 people at a time.

The factory was owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris adn this was the third such suspicious fire in their factory's. It seems that Blanck and Harris like to deliberately torch their buildings in order to collect on the large fire-insurance policies they purchased. They had been asked on numerous occasions to install sprinkler systems but that might put out a fire.

The workers were paid $15 a week ($329 in today's money) for 84 hours a week of work (12 hours 7 days a week)

Though Blanck and Harris were put on trial for manslaughter, they managed to get off scot-free**. Still, the massacre for which they were responsible did finally compel the city to enact reform. In addition to the Sullivan-Hoey Fire Prevention Law passed that October, the New York Democratic set took up the cause of the worker and became known as a reform party.

** - scot-free = Sceot is Old English for "a tax." Scot and lot was a medieval municipal tax levied on residents. Someone who managed to avoid paying this medieval tax got off "scot free."

Eventually, the word evolved to describe getting away without any kind of punishment, fiscal or otherwise. Kids who fake fevers get out of school scot-free. Cagey adults escape jury duty scot-free. And dogs with remorseful eyes get off scot-free from just about any wrongdoing.
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I took this a couple days ago walking to work.


BTW - Whos! - if you do not get an email from me - contact me at some point.

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Have a dry day today.

Rod