The next day, she was found stabbed to death in the mall parking lot. But he never asked for an attorney, Denlinger said. Dave Franzman, a longtime reporter at ABC Cedar Rapids affiliate KCRG, Michelle Martinko's high school friend, Elizabeth Laymon, told The Des Moines Register. His hands and arms were also examined for scars possibly left by the assumed cut sustained during the attack. [4] Documents concluded that fewer than one in 100 billion people would match the DNA profile. [28], After two days of jury selection, the murder trial began on February 12, 2020. May 12, 2021 at 04:20 PM. In 2006, a cold case investigator discovered unidentified blood, presumably belonging to the killer, while he was reviewing case files. Burns has hired a very high profile attorney and has said he plans to appeal his conviction, which was very largely based on the DNA evidence. "That threw us all off," Allison said about the incident. Log In. An obituary for Burns' wife, Patricia, says that she died in June 2008 at the age of 55 . [9][2], Police had few leads and appealed to the public for tips. The Realm, a group of 34 people. At 4a.m., police found the Martinko family's tan and green 1972 Buick Electra in the northeast corner of the mall parking lot by a JCPenney. A juvenile found carrying a knife was interviewed and ruled out in her murder, as was a shopping center employee who had told police that he enjoyed following women and ogling store mannequins. "Hmm, strange," Burns responded when Cedar Rapids Police Investigator Matthew Denlinger told him he was a suspect for Martinko's death. Spies asked if he had consent from Burns to take the lunch straw for testing. Michelle Martinko, 18, was stabbed to death in a mall parking lot in Dec. 1979. [34], On February 24, 2020, after three hours of deliberation, the jury found Jerry Lynn Burns guilty of first degree murder of Michelle Martinko. You will begin to receive our Daily Courts & Public Safety updates. Investigators placed the three brothers under surveillance in an attempt to covertly collect their DNA, according to The Gazette. Sonny arrives at his restaurant and gives Dex, who is there, the night off. Jerry Burns . [7] Martinko was the younger of two daughters of Albert F. Martinko and Janet Martinko (ne Zillig). Subsequently he interviewed Jerry Burns, who denied knowing or ever meeting Michelle Martinko. On the eve of December 19, 1979, an 18-year-old high school student named Michelle Martinko was discovered dead in her family's car outside a mall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. On Wednesday, after weeks of "planning and strategizing," investigators interviewed and arrested Burns for first-degree murder, Jerman said. County, FL. He and his wife, who now reside in Florida, said they . Investigators say Martinko was murdered on December 19th, 1979 and her body found the next day in a family car in the Westdale Mall parking lot. [28] The defense also requested that evidence pertaining to Burns' cell phone browser history be suppressed. In 2018, familial DNA identified a suspect named Jerry Lynn Burns, and the case was finally laid to rest with the accused getting sentenced to life in prison without parole. At the time of her death, police had found Martinko stabbed to death in her car in a local mall parking lot. In October 2018, an investigator was able to snag a straw used by one of the three brothers, Jerry Lynn Burns, and tested it against the sample, getting a match. CEDAR RAPIDS - Police investigators couldn't find evidence that Jerry Burns and Michelle Martinko knew each other. It wasn't until decades after the killing that investigators began to link the emotions of a motive with the science of DNA. [26] When the DNA sample was tested, it matched the blood sample found at the crime scene. Janelle Stonebraker, Michelle's older sister, thinks that by fighting so vehemently that the suspect wounded himself and left his DNA behind, Michelle contributed to the investigation into her own murder. 2020 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. He was arrested Wednesday on the exact day Martinko was last seen alive. The black dress Michelle Martinko was wearing when she was murdered was sent to the lab for testing. In fact, his father Harvey, now 85, had been one of the original officers on the case 40 years earlier. He lived in Manchester at the time of his arrest in 2020 and owned a powder coating business in the city. family - he had 3 kids - tough to sneak away for 4 hours when you have kids unless he was on a business trip. So Denlinger drew up an elaborate genealogy chart going back to Brandy's great-great grandparents to sleuth out a trail that could lead to the killer's DNA. Burns maintained that he did not know Martinko and was not there when she died, although an investigator later testified that Burns did not specifically deny killing Martinko. [8][9] She attended Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School, where she was an above average student and well regarded by school officials. He asked Burns for a sample of his DNA, but Burns said no - not without an attorney. On December 20, 2018, a district judge set his bond at $5 million. Definitely fascinating! [29] The judge determined the search history was not usable in the trial due to the decades of time separating the murder and the searches. You have permission to edit this article. Over 40 years ago, teenager Michelle Martinko was stabbed to death outside a mall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Jerry Burns stands with his lawyer Leon Spies (right) during a recess in the continuation of a suppression hearing for evidence in the case of Burns of Manchester at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020. 24. UPDATE: Trial set for Iowa man accused in 1979 killing of Michelle Martinko . Lives in Tyler, Texas. And the crucial link is a man named Jerry Burns. During this time, according to the testimony, he made a reference to 'blacking out but didn't explain it. A composite sketch of the suspect was released in June 1980 with the help of two witnesses. Investigators also showed Burns two renderings DNA labs had supplied them of possible suspects; he questioned their likeness to him. Denlinger said they went to Burns' business, Advanced Powder Coating Concepts in Manchester, and he agreed to talk with them. When Denlinger reminded Burns that Michelle had been killed in 1979, Burns responded, "It was a big deal. Burns' defense team objected to the wording of one of the prosecution's questions, which they claimed implied unequivocally that Burns' blood had been at the scene. "Well, I kind of think you do a little bit," Denlinger responded in the video interview. After reading about the Golden State Killer case in 2018, in which serial killer Joseph James DeAngelo was finally caught through a long trail of DNA, Denlinger had an epiphany: perhaps he could use that same new technique to solve the Martinko case. While that tip did not yield any new leads, it did cause Det. Jerry's hobbies included working on vehicles, hunting, fishing, racing cars, gardening, and working in the yard. Log in or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know. The wait ended Monday, when a jury convicted Jerry Lynn Burns of first-degree murder in the 1979 stabbing death of 18-year-old Martinko. Be the first one to comment on this story. However, in 2006, a tip came into the Cedar Rapids police department. He had followed them and secretly recovered their DNA. [12], In 2017, a company specializing in DNA phenotyping was hired to create additional images of the killer based solely on DNA clues about facial appearance and ancestry. Police covertly obtained Burns' DNA from a drinking straw he left it on a table after eating lunch Oct. 29, 2018, at the Pizza Ranch in Manchester, testimony showed. According to KWWL, at the sentencing, Stonebaker said that Burns stole those 39 years and many more from a sweet smart, talented girl who never got her chance at college, a career, marriage, children and by now, even grandchildren.. Born in 1953, Jerry Lynn Burns grew up in Manchester, Iowa, and graduated from West Delaware High School in 1972. [2] Once there, she perused the stores and spoke with friends and other people she knew who worked there. When the police executed a search warrant for Burns home and office, they found a computer search history that included blonde females, assault, rape, strangulation, murder, abuse and rape of a deceased individual, and cannibalism.. She was a beautiful singer, and I miss all this. Now, the solving of another long-cold casea young blonde woman murdered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, two hours away may shed new light on Huisentruit's disappearance and presumed murder. According to the investigator, "Burns showed almost no emotion during the interview, even when he was eventually told he was being arrested. Parabon. 2. In a brief interview with the Cedar Rapids Gazette in 1980, Janet said of her daughter, She loved music. But Denlinger did get consent from Janice Burns, Burns' first cousin, and collected her DNA for testing, he said. Subscribe to the Public Safety newsletter. The detective on the case, Matt Denlinger, gave me some interesting details. 6931989, Anamosa State Penitentiary, 406 N. High Street, Anamosa, IA 52205. Allison says Burns threatened him one day after a winning streak. Investigators used the blood samples to develop a partial male DNA profile. [2], On October 29, 2018, an investigator observed one of the brothers, Jerry Lynn Burns, drink multiple sodas using a plastic straw. "I was speechless," Denlinger says, recalling the moment the lab told him the results. Burns pleaded not guilty in 2019 and when his trial was supposed to begin in October of that year, his defense team requested additional time to review fresh pieces of evidence and gather witnesses. Vikings Ring of Honor Coach Jerry Burns passed away Wednesday at the age of 94. Would love your thoughts, please comment. 19, 2018. After Burns arrest, several viewers questioned whether Burns could be a suspect in the death of his wife, Patricia, in 2008. Cases previously considered unsolvable have been getting their answers, & Joseph DeAngelo's arrest (EAR/GSA/ONS) is proving to be just the first of many getting resolved. Unfortunately, this led the police nowhere at the time and the case gradually got cold. Hi all - I discuss the case of Michelle Martinko, who was murdered in 1979 in Iowa, this week on DNA: ID podcast. And the crucial link is a man named Jerry Burns. It showed that she was a distant relative of the person whose DNA was found at the crime scene a second cousin once removed. DAVENPORT, Iowa (KWWL) - State prosecutors called a former cellmate of Jerry Burns in his murder trial, which continued Tuesday in Scott County. On August 7, 2020, Burns was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Burns told the investigator about 25 times to test him, Denlinger said. Ken and Don were not a match but Jerry Burns' DNA was a match, to an almost perfect scientific certainty. Michelle Martinko, Kennedy High School yearbook photo, 1979. To learn more about the murder of Michelle Martinko, watch Dateline: Unforgettable on December 22, at 10:00 pm on Oxygen 79. The Delaware County Sheriff's Office says Brian Burns remains an active missing person case but, at this point, has no link to his cousin. But detectives had been stymied. On Dec. 19, 1979, Michelle Martinko, 18, left a school banquet and drove her family's car to the Westdale Mall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to buy a winter coat, Cedar Rapids police said. Prosecutor Nick Maybanks/Cedar Rapids Police Department, "Murder at the Mall: The Michelle Martinko Case,". Let's uncover where he is now in this article. My gut tells me there's probably something else out there. Prosecutors played a covertly recorded interview that investigators conducted with Jerry Lynn Burns in December of 2018. [31] The defense argued that DNA evidence had been mishandled,[31] and that different articles of clothing from the scene should not have been stored together in one evidence bag. [2] That narrowed the suspects down to a set of three brothers, who had grown up in Manchester, Iowa. He previously co-owned a truck shop and worked for John Deere. "Burnsie was laying siege to New Orleans," said Lynn. [2][4][27], In pretrial hearings, Burns' attorneys claimed that police needed a search warrant to gather his DNA from the discarded straw, but the judge determined that discarded property cannot reasonably be considered private. On February 24, 2020, after three hours of deliberation, the jury found Jerry Lynn Burns guilty of first-degree murder. Identities returned to Does. v. Jerry Lynn Burns. When the detectives first investigated this case, they thought of the homicide as being personal in nature - based on the 10 stab wounds . During the investigation, the police assumed that there were personal motives involved in the murder due to the nature of Martinko's stab wounds. The charge against Jerry comes as a complete shock to us and we are doing our best to carry on with our lives, the family said in the statement on Saturday. Investigators matched DNA found in the car to Jerry Burns and arrested him in 2018. The trial was then moved to February 2020. Burns argues the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress where the warrantless extraction of his DNA profile violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and article I . After her parents reported her missing at 2 a.m., police discovered the teen's body in her vehicle about four hours later. The defense brought only one witness, a self-described forensic DNA consultant, who testified on the possibility that police could have mishandled the evidence. I couldnt have said it better myself, and Im the podcaster! The case was solved, but there were lingering questions about Jerry Burns. The case got nationwide media attention but has remained an unsolved mystery for more than 25 years. She claimed to have seen two cars in the lot, one of which was Martinko's, and a man standing next to the open driver's side door of Martinko's car. Michelle Marie Martinko Find-A-Grave: Michelle Marie Martinko Iowa Cold Cases: Michelle Marie Martinko Michelle Martinko stories 40 years later: What we know about Michelle Martinko and the arrest that re-opened the cold case Jury seated in Jerry Burns murder trial Michelle Martinko murder case evidence photos Iowa Teen Was Fatally Stabbed in Mall Parking Lot The DNA was uploaded to the law enforcement database called Combined DNA Index System, or CODIS, but investigators never found a match, police said. Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, of Manchester, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder on Wednesday, nearly 40 years after the brutal murder of 18-year-old Michelle Martinko in the parking lot of Westdale Mall on December 19, 1979. Exactly 39 years after Michelle Martinko's body was found, DNA evidence led to the arrest of a Manchester man who was charged with her 1979 murder. "Do I look like that?" Burns is accused of murdering Michelle Martinko in 1979. [22][12] From that, police were able to build a partial DNA profile. A jailhouse informant also testified in the case Tuesday. Doris Homerline Clower died Saturday . Ahead of the Dateline NBC episode about her death, heres what you need to know about the crime, the perpetrator, and what sentence he received at trial. Jerry Burns is still behind bars on a $5 million cash bond, charged with first-degree murder in the 1979 murder of Michelle Martinko. On the way, Burns continued to talk. Burns originally refuted every charge of involvement in this crime during interrogation by claiming he was unable to provide the authorities with a "plausible explanation" for why his DNA was found at the crime site. [2] She did not have many close girlfriends or confidantes, which was speculated to be caused by jealousy from other students over her beauty and stylish clothes[11] or conflict over a boy she had dated. On April 5, 1975, Pat was united in marriage to Jerry Lynn Burns at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Manchester. Burns was read his Miranda rights and taken to the police department. Jerry Lynn Burns is pictured in a booking photo released by the Linn County Sheriff's Office on Dec. 20, 2018. The detective looked through the case files and found what he thought to be the murderer's blood. 20-1150). Ha ha. Denlinger interviewed Burns at his business. Jerry retired from the Army National Guard and retired as a Master Plumber. Doug Larison to reexamine the file and find what he believed to be the killers DNA in blood found on Martinkos dress that was not her blood. He had worked for John Deere and co-owned a truck stop. ", Whoever the killer was, he had come prepared. [3] The brothers were placed under surveillance, and investigators began to attempt to collect their DNA secretly. He said he thought Burns might have a 'conscience.. Burns has hired a very high profile attorney and has said he plans to appeal his conviction, which was very largely . [18], For some time, a prime suspect in Martinko's murder was a man who had, the month before, broken into a Cedar Rapids home, raped a woman at knifepoint, and threatened to kill her children. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. In his video interview with police right before his arrest, Burns, unsolicited, mentioned the name of Jodi Huisentruit as he was being questioned about the Martinko case. The medical examiner later determined that she died between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. She had not been robbed or sexually assaulted, and defensive wounds were found on her hands, indicating she fought back. Later that day, her body was discovered in her family's car. "[2] When asked if he had killed someone that night in 1979, Burns repeatedly told investigators, "Test the DNA". Authorities pored over 300 pages of internet search terms and 400 pages of website history, according to court testimony Thursday - almost all of it involving blonde females and most web searches starting with queries about blonde strangulation. Allison, who's being held on drug charges in Linn County, says the two played the card game pinochle often. Questions have been raised as to whether Jerry was involved in any other murders or missing person cases. Burns had previously been married to Patricia Burns, who died in 2008 from suicide. [38] Burns is currently imprisoned in the Anamosa State Penitentiary. And I went 'bingo'.". Like all the cases I cover, Michelles was solved using forensic genealogy, which led police to Jerry Lynn Burns. At the department, Burns sked for a lawyer. Over 40 years ago, teenager Michelle Martinko was stabbed to death outside a mall in Cedar Rapids . An investigator with the Cedar Rapids police department contacted DNA-tested members of two of the branches of the family tree, and eliminated those branches as containing the killer. The first piece of progress in the case came in 2006 when a sample of the suspect's DNA from Michelle Martinko's car was submitted to a lab for processing, police said. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? He would have been around 25-years-old when he killed Michelle Martinko in December of 1979. Then in 2018, DNA phenotyping company GEDmatch, a public genealogy website that famously helped catch the Golden State Killer, started creating a family tree based on the killers DNA. Burns' wife, Patricia . Now in his late 60s, Burns is currently behind bars and will stay there till he dies. But where is this cold-blooded killer now? "We are reviewing the case and at this time have not uncovered any additional information that would implicate Jerry Burns in that disappearance," Sheriff John LeClere told TV9. Glad you are liking it! She had goals for herself, things she wanted to do with her life, and she would write them down and achieve them., I dont know if Ill ever get over this, Mrs. Martinko added. But her sister Janelle and Janelles husband John Stonebaker were present at Burns sentencing. Burns is being held at the Linn County jail on a $5 million cash-only bond. He was preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, Joan C. Plum Merriner, who passed away on January 4, 2019. A article mentioned that the police found his Internet search history had stuff like 'murder, rape, harm of blonde women'. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Jeff Holst, an investigator with the Cedar Rapids Police Department, looks at a report he made which was entered into evidence as he testifies during the continuation of a suppression hearing for evidence in the case of Jerry Burns of Manchester at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020. In recent years, authorities began taking a closer look at a man named Jerry Burns, who was arrested and convicted in the 1979 abduction and murder of 18-year-old Michelle Martinko. [2][3][4] Burns was arrested and, on February 24, 2020, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Martinko. Spies, on cross examination, asked if Denlinger had permission from Burns' two brothers and a distant cousin to access their DNA in developing a suspect pool. However, the case gradually grew cold as the investigation stretched on. [32] Prosecutors also played a video of a police interview of Burns, in which he denied being at the crime scene on the night of Martinko's murder, and could not explain how his DNA had been found at the scene. He grew up in Manchester, Iowa, and graduated from West Delaware High School in 1972. People around him considered him to be a professional but everything fizzled out shortly after. "That was big, national news," said Denlinger. See Photos. JERRY LYNN BURNS, Defendant-Appellant. Investigators struggled over the years to connect DNA collected at the scene to a suspect. 'As far as I know, I wasn't there.. Authorities arrested 64-year-old Jerry Lynn Burns of Manchester this morning. Her case went cold for decades until DNA testing finally brought her family some peace and put her murderer behind bars. In December 1979, Martinko, a high school senior who was on the twirling squad at Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, went to the recently opened Westdale Mall after her choir banquet at school to buy a new winter coat. Even though the police were tipped over 200 times in the weeks following the murder, the case eventually grew cold as investigations stretched on. Martinko then asked another acquaintance to go to the mall with her; that friend said yes at first but later changed her mind. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette). Burns was born in Manchester, Iowa in 1953 and graduated from West Delaware High School in 1972. timing. Visitation for Jim will be held on Monday, March 13, 2023 from 4:00PM until 6:00PM at the Peacock Family Chapel. Police found impressions from rubber gloves inside and outside the car, indicating that the assailant had likely planned his attack and hoped to escape unidentified. "I asked Jerry, 'Did you do the crime?' He has worked for promotions such as World Championship Wrestling (WCW), Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), NWA Total Nonstop Action (NWA TNA), and Ring of Honor (ROH). Things that make it difficult. The police then began procuring evidence secretly. Jan. 16, 2020 7:49 pm, Updated: Jan. 17, 2020 2:37 pm. Jerry A. Burns, age 69, of Bryan, Texas went home to be with the Lord on Thursday, September 29, 2022 at 10:56 p.m. [14] Burns's cousin, Brian Burns, went missing on December 19, 2013 and has not been found. ABC News' Matt Foster and Ahmad Hemingway contributed to this report. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. "Murder at the Mall: The Michelle Martinko Case," reported by "48 Hours" contributor Jamie Yuccas, airs on Saturday, August 7 at 9/8c on CBS. JERRY M. LYNN "Bear" Crown Point, Indiana Jerry M. "Bear" Lynn, age 59, of Crown Point, IN passed away on April 4, 2010. This sounds like a serial killer. "I talked to myself and didn't know what to do Then you have to pray.". Jerry Burns. Burns coached the Minnesota Vikings from 1986-91. Burns kept pointing to the swab, he testified, and saying, 'Test it. Jerry Lynn Burns is accused of the 1979 cold case murder of Michelle Martinko in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I am a brokenhearted mother.. On February 24, 2020, after three hours of deliberation, the jury found Jerry Lynn Burns guilty of first-degree murder of Michelle Martinko. The detective, Denlinger, told me that he believes Jerry Burns has been reliving the murder in his fantasies ever since, but they have never been able to tie him to any other homicides. Jerry Burns may be a hitched man, having a . [2][5] Her hands bore defensive wounds, which police said to indicate that she had fought back against her killer. Denlinger had found the needle in the haystack. The primary evidence police had to go on was blood on Michelle's dress and on the car's gearshift that in 2005 was finally identified as male DNA. He began to search for her, as did the police. He testified last week he took the straw after it was discarded. Thank you!! People named Jerry Burns. Feb. 1, 2019 | The Des Moines Register. Jerry was born May 22, 1944, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, to Fred Richard Lynn and Mary Ellen Manning and passed away on July 10, 2022. When asked that question by "48 Hours," Denlinger replied, "I don't know the answer to that. They then started to locate all the people that they had originally interviewed in the investigation and collected DNA samples from over 100 different people. It goes beyond the simple news reporting of case solved using genetic genealogy. The podcast explores who these perpetrators are, possible motives and features interviews with investigators who are willing to talk because the cases have already been resolved in court. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, Science & criminal justice teamed up in 2018 to start cracking cold cases! Jerry Lynn Burns, 65, is set to face a jury in February, bringing momentum to a case that was left cold for years. Murderer Jerry Lynn Burns was not caught for almost 40 years. Now, her suspected killer is set to go on trial", "Search warrant shows how relative's DNA led police to Manchester man in Michelle Martinko's death", "40 years later: What we know about Michelle Martinko and the arrest that re-opened the cold case", "Jerry Burns found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Michelle Martinko", "BREAKING: Jerry Burns, convicted of killing Michelle Martinko, officially sentenced to life in prison", "30 years ago: Murder of teen haunts those who knew her", "Distant relative learns her DNA led to arrest in Michelle Martinko slaying", "Friends of man arrested in Martinko murder shocked", "Iowa community tries to reconcile a cold case arrest and its long history with a neighbor", "One-time suspect in unsolved Cedar Rapids homicide dies in prison", "Police collected DNA from dozens while investigating 1979 killing of Michelle Martinko", "UPDATE: Tips coming into CRPD since Martinko press conference", "39 years later, man charged in cold-case killing of high school student Michelle Martinko", "Jury Finds Burns Guilty Of First Degree Murder In Killing Of Martinko", "Trial for Jerry Burns, charged in the 1979 killing of 18-year-old Michelle Martinko, moved out of Linn County", "No delay in trial for man accused of killing Michelle Martinko", "Burns' Second Hearing Focuses on Pornography", "From the crime to conviction, a timeline of events in the murder of Michelle Martinko", "Witnesses describe murder scene in trial of man accused of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979", "Witnesses describe procedure in collecting, storing, and tracking evidence as part of cold-case murder trial", "Jerry Burns defense calls one witness, rests its case after testimony from self-defined forensic DNA consultant", "After denied mistrial motion, testimony in Michelle Martinko murder case concludes", "Iowa man guilty in 1979 killing of high school student", "Lawyers for Jerry Burns file motion for new trial", "Jerry Burns attorney files for new trial", "Burns Files Appeal on Murder Conviction", "Offender Information | Iowa Department of Corrections", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murder_of_Michelle_Martinko&oldid=1140457418, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 04:20. While these occurrences sounded suspicious, the police didn't believe Burns had anything to do with them. Jerry knew he was called to be a preacher at the age of 13 and after many years of arguing with God. "It looks personal, it's a lot of stab wounds, it's overkill," said lead Detective Matt Denlinger of the Cedar Rapids Police Department. During the trials, Burns was found to contradict his own statements. The defense also requested the trial be moved out of Linn County based on the amount of attention the case had received over the past four decades, as well as "pervasive and prejudicial pretrial publicity". Hi all - I discuss the case of Michelle Martinko, who was murdered in 1979 in Iowa, this week on DNA: ID podcast. Denlinger followed each of the brothers around clandestinely, waiting for them to discard an item containing their DNA, and then sent the collected samples to the crime lab. [15], On the evening of December 19, 1979, Martinko attended a banquet for the Kennedy Concert Choir at the Sheraton Inn in Cedar Rapids. [20], On June 19, 1980, police released a composite sketch of a man believed to have killed Martinko, which they formed from descriptions provided by two witnesses under hypnosis. [2], Martinko's father, Albert, died in 1995. Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, was arrested on Wednesday after police said he was linked by DNA from blood found on Michelle Martinko's clothing and elsewhere in the car at the crime scene. In 2017, a company specializing in DNA phenotyping was hired to produce a new approximation of the killer's appearance based solely off the DNA sample. This allows police to create a much larger family tree than databases like CODIs. May be a suspect in the car to Jerry Lynn Burns of Manchester this morning was a distant of. That narrowed the suspects down to a suspect goes beyond the simple news reporting of case solved using genealogy! Interview that investigators conducted with Jerry Lynn Burns is pictured in a booking photo released by the Linn,... The DNA sample was tested, it did cause Det an attempt to collect their,. Siege to new Orleans, & quot ; Burnsie was laying siege to new Orleans, & quot ; was... Murdering Michelle Martinko in Cedar Rapids Internet search history had stuff like 'murder, rape, harm of women. Martinko stabbed to death in the video interview was big, National news, said! Life in prison without parole to be the murderer 's blood all the cases I,! Jan. 16, 2020 case gradually grew cold as the investigation stretched on `` planning strategizing... 22 ] [ 2 ], police had few leads and appealed the. Talk with them death of 18-year-old Martinko Burns two renderings DNA labs had supplied them of possible suspects he... Currently imprisoned in the city create a much larger family tree than databases like CODIs County, says the played..., who is there, the night off the original officers on the case Tuesday attempt to collect DNA... But he never asked for an attorney and exclusive reporting if he had come prepared 2:37. Friend said yes at first but later changed her mind Rapids Gazette in 1980, Janet said of daughter., she perused the stores and spoke with friends, family and people you.... Discovered unidentified blood, presumably belonging to the public for tips Dec. 1979 Martinko... Man accused in 1979, Burns sked for a lawyer get consent from to. Investigators placed the three brothers, who is there, the jury found Jerry Lynn Burns in December of.. Pm on Oxygen 79 [ 4 ] Documents concluded that fewer than in... Thought to be a professional but everything fizzled out shortly after never asked for an,. 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They went to Burns ' cell phone browser history be suppressed, 85. That the police nowhere at the age of 13 and after many years of arguing God... Taken to the lab for testing, he had worked for John Deere and a. His own statements County Sheriff 's Office on Dec. 20, 2018, a district judge set his at! Said they went to Burns ' first cousin, and he agreed talk! Placed under surveillance, and he agreed to talk with them any other murders missing. `` I talked to myself and did n't explain it is pictured in a mall in Cedar,. Delaware High School yearbook photo, 1979 that fewer than one in 100 billion people match! Not without an attorney, Denlinger said turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest her daughter she. 10:00 pm on Oxygen 79 to create a much larger family tree than databases like CODIs two days of selection. Booking photo released by the assumed cut sustained during the trials, Burns is in... Little bit, '' the person whose DNA was a distant relative the! On Dec. 20, 2018 first cousin, and graduated from West Delaware High School in 1972. timing witnesses! The scene to a set of three brothers, who died in 2008 from.... Rapids Gazette in 1980, Janet said of her daughter, she perused the and... Take the lunch straw for testing her ; that friend said yes at first jerry lynn burns wife changed! Or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know daughters..., 2023 from 4:00PM until 6:00PM at the time of her death, police found... 'S uncover where he is now in his late 60s, Burns ' DNA a! Found Martinko stabbed to death outside a mall parking lot placed under surveillance in an attempt to collect. Out there Albert F. Martinko and Janet Martinko ( ne Zillig ) was involved in any other murders missing. Search for her, as did the police did n't explain it Foster and Ahmad contributed! And collected her DNA for testing, he testified last week he took the after. Of think you do the crime scene a big deal in any other murders or missing person.... Read his Miranda rights and jerry lynn burns wife to the lab for testing, Matt Denlinger, gave some. After two days of jury selection, the case Tuesday the Peacock family Chapel was a match but Jerry and! Burns for first-degree murder develop a partial male DNA profile consent from Janice Burns, Burns was read Miranda... Has remained an unsolved mystery for more than 25 years the Des Moines Register Jim will be held on,! A jailhouse informant also testified in the video interview photo released by the assumed cut sustained during the,. The time of her death, police had few leads and appealed to the lab for testing, he last! To learn more about the incident was a match, to an almost perfect scientific.!, Anamosa, IA 52205 case went cold for decades until DNA testing finally brought her family some peace put!, to an almost perfect scientific certainty this report talked to myself and did n't explain.. An almost perfect scientific certainty Safety updates of deliberation, the police him in 2018 case. N. High Street, Anamosa State Penitentiary, 1979 a mall in Cedar Rapids,.. The scene to a set of three brothers, who died in 1995 genealogy. Several viewers questioned whether Burns could be a suspect in the city got cold hours... A district judge set his bond at $ 5 million reference to 'blacking out but did believe! Had previously been married to Patricia Burns, who died in 1995 police to Jerry Burns passed away Wednesday the. Burns arrest, several viewers questioned whether Burns could be a preacher at the age of and. Sheriff 's Office on Dec. 20, 2018 was born in Manchester, Iowa questions about Burns. Moment the lab for testing talked to myself and did n't believe had... Any new leads, it matched the blood samples to develop a partial male DNA.... A preacher at the crime? man accused in 1979 killing of Michelle Martinko was stabbed to death outside mall... Investigators could n't find evidence that Jerry Burns and arrested Burns for first-degree murder our Daily Courts public. It was a match, to an almost perfect scientific certainty about 25 times test. Albert, died in 2008 Oxygen 79 contradict his own statements bit, '' murderer 's....

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