[67] Although this information proved to be of little help throughout the actual manhunt, Hurkos also predicted that this individual would shortly strike one final time. The Michigan Murders was a series of highly publicized killings of young women committed between 1967 and 1969 in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area of Southeastern Michigan by an individual known as the Ypsilanti Ripper, the Michigan Murderer, and the Co-Ed Killer. Collins criticizes former sheriff Harvey, accusing him of having an obsession with hismother. In a new twist just this week,Collins revised his story yet again. He is known for being a Criminal. It was a travesty of justice that took place in this courtroom. Collins ends his email, with a request: "You can say whatever you want about me" butleave "my Dear Mother" out. [21] Nonetheless, the inquiry into both murders remained active, and a reward then-totaling $7,800 for information leading to the conviction of the perpetrator of both homicides remained.[22]. Convicted of one The Michigan Murders, a series of killings that terrorized southeastern Michigan for two years, but is believed to have committed all. She was a Kind & Loving person to all that knew her." John Norman Collins's age is 75. Then-Gov. The failed sting caused Harvey substantialpublic embarrassment, and bringing it up again, Harvey said, was Collins' way of mocking him, as if heweresaying: "Ha. A killer is on the loose, five women in southeast Michigan are dead, and a sixthis missing. July 31: John Norman Collins is placed under arrest for Beineman's murder. Photos, evidence in Michigan murders case against John Norman Collins Collins rejected any association with the slaying of the 13-year-old, just like in his police interviews. Mary Terese Fleszar was last seen alive the evening of July 9, 1967. Maryann Struman is Freep Now director at the Detroit Free Press and project leader. Five different police agencies frantically searched for Karen Sue Beinemanon July 23, 1969. I remember being quite scared myself at the time and I still think of those girls as I pass the landmarks involved in the case. Enjoy dual pane vinyl windows, high 9' ceilings top & bottom floors, a spacious loft 10' x 10' that can be used as a bedroom or game room, a 10 x He also did some modeling, appearing in a bodybuilding magazine bare-chested with ripplingmuscles. The first victim, Mary Fleszar was last seen being cut off by a guy in a shiny car just a block from Collins' room. Two days after the remains had been identified as those of Mary Fleszar, a young man claiming to be a friend of the Fleszar family arrived at the funeral home holding Fleszar's body prior to her scheduled burial. I was on the prison yard with him in 1986, we played basketball, and hand ball he maintained his innocence he is well kept, clean, neat, sober and yet at the same time he was not someone to be under estimated "The Michigan Coed Murders", as they came to be called, began with Eastern Michigan student Mary Flezlar on July 10, 1967. Though he was only charged with this final murder, he is considered responsible for six othersincluding that of Mary Terese Fleszar. Not something a mom wants to think about.". As he had explained this to Davis, Collins had been carrying a red handbag, which he claimed Schell had left in his car. Thank you to Gregory A. Fournier, author of "Terror in Ypsilanti," for taking us on this tour, and photographer Lisa Powers for documenting our work. This summer, as Bundshuh prepared to retire, he gathered the more-than-50-year-old files that he had become familiar with so he could ship them to the Michigan State Police headquarters in Dimondale so the state candigitize them. "[155] This appeal motion was partly upheld upon the basis that Dr. Guinn's testimony relating to probabilities was based upon on the statistical probability of another prosecution expert, and therefore, this part of his testimony was impermissible. He shares the nickname The Co-Ed Killer with murderer Edmund Kemper. Upon cross-examination, Dr. Guinn did agree with defense attorney Neil Fink that a statistical analysis of hair mixtures had never been attempted in a court of law,[136] although he remained firm that his applications had been performed via scientific principles. On August 3, two Washtenaw County detectives traveled to Salinas Police Department to review information and determine whether a connection existed between Phillips' murder and those which Collins was suspected of committing in Michigan. Questioned by police, Collins flatly denied even knowing Schell, and insisted he had spent the weekend of June 2930 with his mother at her house in the Detroit suburb of Center Line, and had not returned to Ypsilanti until the morning of July 1. I saw your video you did on the location of where the girls went missing and where they were found.. That was haunting to me and very disturbing .. After I saw in the video the home you lived in and how you lived next door this man It had to be haunting to you to know you could of been one of his victims After watching the KELLY AND COMPANY VIDEO that i saw I have to question myself if I truly believed he could of murder these women .. After I read the book there was no doubt in my mind.. Well I just want to let you know much I had enjoy the video you had done it just put everything in perspective . Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked Enjoy your days sitting under the private pergola, listening to the elegant turquoise Perkons testified as to his belief that the hair samples retrieved from Beineman's panties were of a "different origin" than the hair samples retrieved from the Leiks' basement,[140] whereas Golub stated that because he had found only one single fiber upon the victim's panties, the likelihood of her undergarments accumulating these hairs from a basement was extremely remote. I don't think there was ever a farmhouse or barn in the area you referenced. [127], The prosecutors at Collins' trial, William Delhey and Booker Williams, opted to charge Collins only with the murder of Karen Sue Beineman, with the state contending that she had been murdered by Collins in the basement of the Leik household. A look at five of Michigan's serial killers and their crimes This vehicle had slowed to a stop before the driver had asked her, "Want a ride?" There was a door with steps from the basement into the garage that had been covered over. On top of that, Collins, in two 2013 letters to his cousinJohn Chapman, revealed inhis own words what he said "really happened" all those years ago, confirming details from the cases and recanting his claim that he never knew his victim. Dr. Jervis testified as to his belief that insufficient chemical samples had existed in the samples retrieved from the basement which the prosecution scientists had worked with to form their conclusions, and that to form a conclusive neutron activation analysis, at least ten components in a hair sample must be compared, whereas only five components had been used by the prosecution's forensics experts to determine their findings. Investigators had established that each victim had been menstruating at the time of her death, and had theorized this may be a factor in the sexual violence exhibited upon the victims. Through interviewing a recent girlfriend of Collins, investigators also learned that she had lived in an apartment complex directly across the road from the home of Dawn Basom, and that, throughout their courtship, Collins had been a regular visitor to her apartment. [3], All the victims of the Michigan Murderer were young women between the ages of 13 and 21 who were abducted, raped, beaten and murderedtypically by stabbing or strangulationwith their bodies occasionally mutilated after death before being discarded within a 15-mile radius of Washtenaw County. She had received extensive skull and brain injuries which had been inflicted with a blunt instrument, had been forced to ingest a caustic substance,[58] and her neck, shoulders, nipples and breasts had been burned with the same caustic agent. 2023 FOX Television Stations, Michigan Murders: 50 years ago, terror reigned in Ypsilanti, Michigan Murders: Close calls, haunting roads - life after a suspected serial killer is arrested, The heaviest snow is behind us heading into the weekend, Snow storm shuts down Detroit Metro Airport, Power outages hit Metro Detroit hard as winter storm pounds area, WATCH - Jennifer Hammond talks with Detroit Titans guard Antoine Davis after coming up just short of the NCAA all-time scoring record, 65-year-old woman killed in double shooting on Detroit's west side, Suspect still wanted after brutal beating of victims after they shoveled his snow last winter in Detroit, Wayne County woman wins $1 million after 'random urge' to buy Michigan Lottery ticket, General Motors laying off 500 white collar positions, Police: Wayne County Morgue employee broke into homes of the deceased. [16] In addition, her throat had been slashed, and her miniskirt then tied around her neck. The moment for a confession, Harvey said, had passed. What more do you want? And I'm with you we should NEVER forget that something like that Can & DID happen here. Sad sad fact. I walked over to see if he was playing a JOKE on me and had a dummy there to scare me. Her birthday was on Christmas, and she sought toget into U-M's graduate school for social work. Sowhen DNA matching Collins turned up on Alice Kalom's clothing, it was significant. Through interviewing acquaintances of Phillips, investigators established that she had been introduced to the individual she had referred to as "John from Michigan" through a 17-year-old friend named Nancy Ann Albrecht, who informed police she had herself become acquainted with Collins on June 29, and that she had mentioned her friend (Phillips) to Collins on this date. She supported herself by waiting tables at a Detroit restaurant. Investigators determined the knife was consistent with the weapon used to stab Kalom. Evaluation of individual will and moral restraints within society, written by Collins while enrolled at Eastern Michigan University. Smdh. SoHarvey called the prosecutorand Collins' attorney. "And nobody wanted to say anything to anybody because it was very obvious by that time that there was a serial killer working this area.". "He was in with John for about 45 minutes. [23] Prior to enrolling at Eastern Michigan University in the fall of 1966, he had been an honor student and football co-captain at his high school.[89]. Letters, interviews reveal dark side. 50 years later, investigation into Michigan Murders leads to DNA revelations, Through interviews with John Norman Collins and DNA evidence, Michigan State Police look to solve the cold case Michigan Murders, a "wholesome-looking girl" with "a vivid imagination. All-American boy John Norman Collins was . Honest to God, that's what they said - apparantly, they didn't clean it well enough, and they came through the paint!Needless to say, Sherry and Mike were creeped out!!! When questioned Collins claimed that he was with his mother at the time in Centerline, MI and it was probably just a case of mistaken identity. ", Collins introducedBeineman and Davis and offeredBeineman the option of riding home on his bike with him or going in the car with Davis. The discovery of several dried bloodstains and two buttons missing from the victim's raincoat at a Northfield Township commercial gravel pit on June 10 indicated the victim had been murdered at this location. William Milliken promised to leave "no stone unturned" to find herkiller. Her underwear had been inserted into the area of her vagina - which police say was one of the killer's signatures. At the request of Michigan authorities, Phillips' body was exhumed in Oregon in order that pubic hair samples could be obtained from her for comparison with those found upon Collins' sweater: The pubic hairs upon Collins' sweater proved to be a precise match to those obtained from Phillips' body, and investigators believe they may have transferred from her body to Collins' sweater as she was carried to the location in which her body was discarded. Copyright 11826 Caminito Rihely. She told me years ago that Maralynn was killed by a motorcycle gang. Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked - amazon.com All-American boy John Norman Collins was arrested, tried, and convicted of the strangulation . The forensic experts who had testified on behalf of the prosecution, Dr. Jervis stated, had therefore based their conclusions on "insufficient data". For example, in the case of Mary Fleszar, investigators discovered that at the time of her disappearance, Collins had worked part-time in the Eastern Michigan University administration unit, and that his office had been located directly opposite the hallway from the office where Fleszar had herself worked. Both letters begin,"Hello John, =: )," and Collins ends one calling Chapman "the Best Little Brother ever! But they also found something unusual, more than 500 short clipped blonde hairs. I grew up in YPSI. Larry said. 'The Michigan Murders' is one of those rare books you re-read because Before Collins left the Golden State, he saw a doctor for a case of poison oak. John Norman Collins committed the "Michigan Murders" as it was named by media and locals, between 1967 and 1969, during this period of time he committed eight murders of women ranging from 13 to 23 years old. [163], When Kalom's body was found, a distinctive boot print on her skirt was found to be a perfect match to a boot Collins had owned, and although Collins had evidently cleaned his car in an effort to destroy evidence prior to his arrest, investigators would find bloodstains in this vehicle and upon a raincoat he owned which were determined to match Kalom's blood type. [75], The 47th and final witness to appear for the prosecution at Collins' trial was a University of California chemistry professor named Dr. Vincent P. Guinn, who testified on August 5 as to his conclusions that the hair samples retrieved from Beineman's panties bore "a remarkable similarity" to those retrieved from the Leik household and that, upon statistical calculations he had begun the previous month, the odds of erroneous matching of the hair samples earlier testified to by Walter Holz were quite low. [105], On August 14, 1969, Collins attended a pretrial hearing at Ypsilanti District Court. When asked to formally identify the individual upon whose motorcycle she had observed waiting outside her shop,[84] Goshe pointed directly at John Norman Collins. But Collins wasn't all that he seemed. An autopsy revealed Mixer had been shot twice in the head with a .22-caliber pistol, then garroted with a nylon stocking which, the pathologist noted, had not belonged to her. During the trial, Collins sat more relaxed than before: He smiled at attorneys, his mother, and his family. Collins' grip of terror on our community ended officially on August 19, 1970, when he was found guilty of first-degree murder. The driver had been aged around 20 and clean-cut with short, dark, side-parted hair. Furthermore, Goshe had identified a photograph shown to her of Collins as being the man she had seen with Beineman. [66], Despite recovering numerous stolen items from his apartment and being informed by Arnold Davis that Collins had been in the habit of committing burglaries with a former roommate of theirs named Andrew Manuel,[100] no incriminating evidence linking Collins to Beineman or any victim of the Michigan Murders was discovered, although officers were informed by Arnold Davis on this date of the incident two days earlier in which he (Davis) had observed Collins carrying a laundry box containing women's clothing and jewelry from his apartment and towards his car. I am adding your comment to the story.My friend Ray who grew up near Gale rd confirmed your facts. Although police theorized that Fleszar had been raped, the advanced state of decomposition of the corpse had erased any conclusive evidence of sexual assault. [114] No hard evidence would ever arise suggesting his involvement in any murders, and the Washtenaw County prosecutor's office would publicly announce on December 18 their satisfaction that Manuel had "no knowledge of the murders. student named John Norman Collins, was eventually caught when evidence linking him to the murder of final victim Karen Sue Beineman was found in the basement of a home belonging to his uncle, state trooper David Leik. And,Schroeder said, when they mentioned Dawn Basom, the 13-year-old victim killed in 1969,it touched a nerve. Welcome to Lakeside. A vacationing Leik had entrusted Collins to watch over his house while he was away. Had this violation of the county prosecutor's order not taken place, Collins may not have realized how seriously he was considered a suspect at that stage, and thus may not have disposed of the physical evidence which would have assisted in linking him to other killings linked to the Michigan Murders. Manuel was extensively questioned as to his potential involvement in both Phillips' murder and those committed in Michigan which investigators had linked to Collins, and agreed to submit to a polygraph test. The killer had taken too big of a risk with Beineman however. To go down into his basement and say 'whoa, something's different here'," Sheriff Harvey said. [47] A handkerchief found stuffed in her mouth had likely been placed there to muffle her cries throughout her torture, and her murderer had placed her body in a location where rapid discovery was assured. "Butwhat you want him to do is admit things that you can investigate. And to your new HOME! Collins then offers a similar account, but in more detail, that he gave the detectives. Another individual would be convicted of the murder of Jane Mixer in 2005. I finished reading the book "Michigan Murders" today and am looking at the Internet for more information. [162] Nonetheless, the decision of the prosecution at his 1970 trial was to try Collins solely with the murder of Karen Sue Beineman. Butback then, Harvey, 88, saidthere was no DNA profiling and just not enough clues for charges. Collins was "six feet . Barlow testified as to the fact that although Beineman had been deceased for almost 72 hours, her body had only lain in the location where she was found for 24 hours before discovery.[74]. Some of my Fraternity Brothers lived in the Emmet House in 1990. His nephew had stayed at the home: John Norman Collins. mean while looking for Iggys fun house. Larry turned to one of the girls he saw Collins flirting with to see if he was the same man that drove off with Karen in downtown Ypsilanti. After Kalom's body was found, Collins writes, Davis"admitted to killing her.". Did I turn you on to the book Michigan Murders that had a bunch of stuff on John Norman Collins? When informed his request was impossible,[3] the young man had replied: "You mean you can't fix her up enough so I could just get one picture of her? "We've never met," said Chapman, 47, of Mississauga, Canada, near Toronto. "He had several fraternity brothers that rented an apartment there," Fournier said. In the few days he was in southern California, 17-year-old Roxie Phillips disappeared. [130], Three days after both counsels had begun introducing witnesses, Joan Goshe was called to testify on behalf of the prosecution. In a brief final argument on behalf of the prosecution, Booker Williams re-emphasized the physical and circumstantial evidence against Collins, before accusing the defense attorneys of attempting to sow doubt in, particularly, the forensic evidence presented by the prosecution. Later, Arnie Davis, Collins' roommate, showed up. Formal sentencing was scheduled for 8:30a.m. August 28. "Mary worked at the university. But Collins was a bit bigger than Larry. He lured women into his clutches by exploiting a common practice at the time, women hitchhiking or arranging rides with strangers to get from Ypsilanti to Ann Arbor and beyond. On October 14, Judge Conlin rejected defense motions to dismiss the case, or suppress any evidence obtained; ruling Collins' arrest had been on the reasonable grounds he had committed a felony. She had been raped, then stabbed 25 times with a knife estimated to have measured four inches in length. Wow, Kim, this does bring back memories. [134] Although subjected to intense cross-examination by Joseph Louisell as to the reliability of his findings, Holz remained adamant the color, length, type and diameter of the hair samples found upon Beineman's panties were a precise match to those found in the Leik family basement. Investigators also ascertained Collins had either been acquainted with most of the victims, had currently or previously lived close to their place of residence, or had likely established possible prior contact prior to their murders. [39] Nonetheless, Ann Arbor Police Chief Walter Krasny formally linked Skelton's murder to the series. I remember her telling us how shocked the aunt was at the arrest and how hard she found it to believe that her nephew was involved. In 1967, John Norman Collins lived in a rental about one block south of EMU's campus. [86] Upon their return from their vacation, Leik's wife, Sandra, had noted numerous paint marks covering the floor of the family basement, and that several itemsincluding a bottle of ammonia, a box of laundry detergent, and a canister of black spray paintwere missing from the household. [56] She had also been raped, although the pathologist was unable to determine whether this act had occurred before or after death. Thank You for this wonderful site. [76] These hair clippings were predominantly blond, and as such did not belong to the victim, whose own hair color had been dark brown. [86] When questioned as to the source of these clippings, Leik (who had not been informed of the discovery of the hair clippings found upon Beineman's panties) informed investigators that his wife regularly cut their children's hair in this basement, and that she had done so shortly before the family had embarked upon their vacation. In part three of our special series, we'll meet the women who had close calls with the killer, including one woman who says he's still luring women into his clutches today, from his prison cell. Hurkos proved to be of little help and soon the police had yet another body on their hands, student Karen Sue Bieneman. [132] Mrs. Leik also testified to having cut her children's hair in her basement two days prior to embarking on a vacation with her family, and that when they had returned home, she had noticed that several items from her basement had been moved, that she had discovered a wet, soiled cloth containing hair aside a laundry tub, and that other itemsincluding a nearly-full bottle of ammoniawere missing.[76]. I know for a fact that John confessed to him," Sheriff Harvey said. So sadmy twins are at EMU and they were home this weekend and asked me if I knew anything about the serial killer. (Chapman holds. [121] Mrs. Collins reportedly remortgaged her home to secure their services. COLLINS' LETTER: John Norman Collins one of Michigan's most notorious killers pens letter to the Free Press. "In my mind," the detectivesaid, "the Kalom case is solved.". Collins details his discomfort at being locked up in the Washtenaw County jail before his trialand his steadfast refusalto "allow them to BREAK ME. Schell had intended to travel to Ann Arbor to visit her boyfriend, and her roommate had accompanied her to the bus stop. All the victims had been sexually mutilated. "I said, 'I knew it. [77], At approximately 12:15a.m. the following morning,[78] in the midst of a heavy, humid storm, one officer observed a young man running from the gully;[79] the heavy rain and insect irritation had prevented the officer from observing the young man actually approaching the gully. Davis wrapped the gun in a blanket and tossed them both into a garbage bin. [47], One week after the murder of Dawn Basom, a detective conducting a routine examination of this farmhouse basement discovered a scrap of cloth from Basom's blouse, plus an earring later determined to belong to Maralynn Skelton. During the course of the investigation, police determined that she had been killed in the basement of Collins uncles family home in the College Heights neighborhood. [71] As had been the case with previous victims, her killer had placed a section of cloth in her throat to muffle her screams throughout her torture. He told me that he tried to get her into his car, BUTT, he couldn't because of the dog barking in the driveway. His mother attended every single day of the trial. ", In 30 years of letters, Chapman said, Collins exhibited a domineering personality, expressed misogynistic views, and seemed to have "underlying anger toward his mother. Sex Slayer Could be Anyone! It was across the street from where the second victim, Joan Schell, lived. [5], Although never tried for the remaining five murders attributed to the Michigan Murderer, or the murder of a sixth girl killed in California whose death has been linked to the series,[6] investigators believe Collins to be responsible for all seven murders linked to the same perpetrator.[7]. Larry thought he was onto something and, when he found Collins getting ready to put a new license plate on a Triumph bike behind the house, he got nervous. Each testified on August 6. When questioned Collins claimed that he was with his mother at the time in Centerline, MI and it was probably just a case of mistaken identity. Enjoy dual pane vinyl windows, high 9' ceilings top & bottom floors, a spacious loft 10' x 10' that can be used as a bedroom or game room, a 10' x 5' Harry Potter closet previously used as an office, hand-carved lightly distressed maple hardwood flooring-Ponto . "I may be off on the day/time etc. [28][n 1], Four days after the discovery of Mixer's body, on March 25, a surveyor discovered the nude, mutilated body of a teenage girl lying upon a blue jacket behind a vacant house on a remote, rural section of Earhart Road,[30] just a few hundred yards from where the body of Joan Schell had been discovered eight months previously. Collins graduated from St. Clement High, a Catholic schoolin Center Line. [36], The victim was identified as a 16-year-old Romulus[37] high school student named Maralynn Skelton, who had disappeared while hitchhiking in Ann Arbor. Collins was then informed by Judge Conlin that if the jurors' verdict was wrong, the error would be corrected in due course. ", "Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked,", Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Delhey formally closed his opening statement to the jury by requesting they return a verdict of life imprisonment with no possibility of parole. Beineman's body was replaced with that of a tailor's mannequin, and the gully surrounding this mannequin monitored by undercover officers. [107] Albrecht described this individual, whose surname she did not know, as being 5 ft 11 in tall, clean-cut, with dark brown hair and who had described himself as an Eastern Michigan University senior with aspirations to become a teacher.