Mother and Daughter double homicide

ELIZABETH SCHALCHLIN (13) - stabbed in the neck while talking on the phone 12/19/07
ELLEN 'Lori' SCHALCHLIN (41) - stabbed multiple times when she walked into the living area looking for her daughter
Donald Schalchlin (15) - brother/son being held on investigation of rendering criminal assistance; Bail set at $100,000
Joshua Tucker (16) - state ward and repeat runaway had been taken in by the family; being held on investigation of murder or manslaughter; bail set at $500,000
WEST RICHLAND, Washington
Teens held in Benton City slayings--(Tri-City Herald)--Elizabeth Schalchlin was doing what most 13-year-olds typically do -- talking on the phone -- when she was killed Wednesday night.
Original 911 Call in Double Homicide Came from a Cell Phone--(KNDO/KNDU)--It was Ellen Schalchlin or Lori asking for help. Five seconds later, the line went dead.
Ellen Schalchlin's Son Copes With Family's Murder--(KNDO/KNDU)--Ellen Schalchlin's son Steven has a lot of work left to do at the home where he once lived. And picking up the pieces has not been an easy job to do all alone.
Mother and Daughter Killed in West Richland Double Homicide--(KNDO/KNDU)--Both the Benton County Sheriff's Office and the Washington State Crime Lab are investigating after a mother and daughter were killed in West Richland.

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Jury finds Montgomery guilty in death of woman whose baby was kidnapped

10/22/2007
BOBBI JO STINNETT (23) - pregnant mom strangled in her home; baby removed from her body 12/17/04
Lisa M. Montgomery (39) - charged with one count kidnapping resulting in death; death penalty sought; convicted
SKIDMORE, Missouri
Jury finds Montgomery guilty in death of woman whose baby was kidnapped--(Kansas City Star)--Turning aside defense claims of insanity, a jury Monday convicted Lisa Montgomery of killing Bobbie Jo Stinnett to kidnap Stinnett’s unborn daughter and claim the girl as her own.
Jury convicts Montgomery--(Topeka Capital Journal)--Melvern woman will be sentenced to death or receive life in prison
Montgomery guilty; sentencing phase begins Wednesday--(Associated Press)--Lawyers for Lisa Montgomery now have a new fight on their hands: keeping her alive.
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Interpol Unscrambles Blurred Internet Image in Hunt for Pedophile

PARIS-- He apparently travels the world sexually abusing young boys, but remained unidentifiable — until now.

Police in Europe have unscrambled digitally altered images found on the Internet to reveal the face of a man shown abusing boys in Vietnam and Cambodia.

Interpol released four reconstructed photos of the suspected pedophile on Monday in an unprecedented public appeal for help, hoping that someone, somewhere, will recognize the man whose identity and nationality remain a mystery.

The response has been heartening: about 200 messages in just over 12 hours, Interpol said.

But the decision to unmask the suspect is not without risk: Tipping criminals off to the techniques that police have at their disposal could also prompt them to hide their identities better.

Suspected Pedophile Interpol said 12 boys, apparently ranging in age from 6 to early teens, appeared in about 200 photographs posted on the Internet. But the face of the man inflicting the abuse was disguised in a digital whirl.

Using techniques that neither they nor Interpol would discuss, German police produced identifiable images of the man from the original pictures. The reconstructed photos showed a white man who looked to be in his 30s, with uncombed short brown hair. One showed him wearing glasses, in another he smiled, and another showed that he has a hairy chest. Interpol, which is headquartered in Lyon, southeast France, posted the images on its Web site.

Anders Persson, a Swedish police officer seconded to Interpol's human trafficking unit who oversees its database of images of child abuse, said releasing the photos sent "a quite clear message" to criminals that they can be identified through Web postings.

"We have a lot of responses and they are coming from all over the world," Persson said in a telephone interview.

Some of the estimated 200 messages in the first! wave include detailed information such as names and addresses, he said. Others are simply names and still others are sightings of people met on holiday.

Interpol forwards detailed information to the countries concerned so local police can check, Persson said, adding that local police, too, are getting responses to the appeal.

Persson said he personally had opposed making the photos public because it demonstrated to criminals that police can unblur pictures. But that consideration and the risk that the man could face public humiliation or even violence now that he is recognizable were outweighed by the desire to protect other children from abuse.

"It was a long discussion," Persson said. "We can't just sit here and do nothing. We have exhausted all possibilities within police work to find this man ... This was the last step."

Interpol said the reconstructed images were produced by Germany's Bundeskriminalamt, or BKA, police force. Contacted separately by The AP, a BKA spokesman said the agency did not want to give detai! ls of the process used by its image processing expert "because we do not want to give criminals the opportunity to adjust to the techniques we are using."

Interpol said it does not divulge such information from member countries.

The techniques do not appear very complicated: The Associated Press produced an almost recognizable image of the man from the blurred photo that Interpol also distributed, in just a few minutes using commercially available computer software for editing photographs. The AP image was not as clear as Interpol's, but still showed the outlines of a face rather than a mere blur.

"Techniques are always developing. What is impossible today is possible tomorrow," said Persson. "There were several attempts to clear the face ... We are sure that you can't get better pictures, and the people in his neighborhood — family friends, colleagues, whatever — they will recognize him."

Persson said one of the 200 pictures showed the name of a hotel in Vietnam, but police checks of the guest register tur ned up no clues. Cambodian police recognized locations in other photos.

The photos must date from before December 2004, when they were found on the Internet, and some were digitally stamped as having been taken in 2002 and 2003, said Persson.

The 12 boys have not been located, he added.

Interpol had already circulated photos of the man to police around the world but failed to identify him. Persson said he believes Interpol obtained the first photos around spring 2005, then more and more came in.

"For years, images of this man sexually abusing children have been circulating on the Internet. We have tried all other means to identify and to bring him to justice, but we are now convinced that without the public's help this sexual predator could continue to rape and sexually abuse young children," Interpol's secretary general, Ronald K. Noble, said in a statement.

"We have very good reason to believe that he travels the world in order to sexually abuse and exploit vulnerable children," Noble said.

Distinguishing marks on his body will help police be sure that they have their man if he is eventually caught, Persson said. He did not say what these marks were but said they would be "the final proof if he is the right guy or not."

Interpol asked people who recognize the man or who have other information to contact police or the Interpol bureau in their country. It urged them not to take any direct action themselves.

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Update - Phoenix Serial Killer Cases

Mark Goudeau (42) - alleged "Baseline Killer" charged with an additional 74 criminal counts ; including nine murders; five sexual assaults and 12 armed robberies; convicted of a 2005 sexual assault of two sisters; sentencing scheduled 11/06/07; murder trial scheduled 08/06/08
Dale Hausner (33) - alleged "Serial Shooter" charged with seven counts of first-degree murder; death penalty sought
Samuel Dieteman (31) - alleged "Serial Shooter" charged with charged with two counts of first-degree murder; death penalty sought; trial is set for April 2008
PHOENIX, Arizona
Expert: Alleged Serial Shooter Duo Were 'Thrill-Seeking'----An expert on serial killers said Friday that murder suspects Samuel Dieteman and Dale Hausner were looking for thrills last summer as they carried out a shooting spree that killed two people and wounded many others in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
Psychologist: No common motivation in Serial Shooter crimes----A forensic psychologist told a judge Friday it would be a “substantial leap” to assume all the crimes connected to Dale Hausner, a suspect in serial slayings, were done for thrills.
Ring tied convicted rapist to other Baseline Killer attacks----According to police documents released Wednesday, authorities connected Goudeau to several attacks by testing shell fragments found at shooting scenes. In one case, they found a gold ring from one shooting victim in Goudeau's shoe.
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Convicted Sex Offender William Joe "Billy Mitch" Mitchell Captured in Virginia

October 9, 2007

WINCHESTER, VA. A Nationwide manhunt came to an end Saturday when Virginia State Police arrested 46-year-old William Joe "Billy Mitch" Mitchell, a convicted sex offender with a violent past, in Winchester, Virginia. Police had been looking for Mitchell since he lured 15-year-old Alyssa Frank away from her family home in Bartow, Florida last week. Fortunately, the teen was able to get away from Mitchell in DeFuniak Springs. From there, Mitchell led police on a manhunt through several states along the East Coast.

The hunt for Mitchell intensified on Thursday, when police in Pennsylvania received a tip that Mitchell's black Chevrolet Lumina with Florida license plate number G025EL had been spotted in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, Mitchell left the area before police could locate the vehicle. The trail went cold from there, but then, on Saturday morning, a second tipster reported seeing Mitchell's car at the Flying J Truck Stop in Winchester, where police were able to take him into custody without incident.

"Virginia State Police swooped down upon him at gun point, arrested him, and he offered absolutely no resistance," Polk County, Florida Sheriff Grady Judd said in an interview with WHSV.com, adding, "Now our goal is to see that he never breathes another breath of air! outside of prison."

Alyssa's father, Roger Frank, was overjoyed when he received new of the arrest.

"When we got the news today about that he was caught, it was absolutely the best joy in the world," Frank told WHSV.com. "We're very happy my daughter's doing fine; she's going to be OK."

Alyssa's parents reported her missing on the morning of October 1, after going to her room to wake her up for school, and discovering her missing. When investigators interviewed Alyssa's friends, they learned that she had been chatting with Mitchell, a man who portrayed himself as a teenager, through the popular social networking website, MySpace.com. Alyssa allegedly told her friends that she had fallen in love with Mitchell, and was going to run off with him.

Authorities immediately issued an Amber Alert, asking for the public to look out for Mitchell's Chevrolet Lumina. Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd also held a press conference, at which time he directly addressed Mitchell.

"Don't you dare hurt this young lady. Let her go," Judd said. "Take her to a convenience store. A bus station. But let her go."

As the search for Alyssa intensified, Mitchell apparently felt the heat, and decided that it was in his best interest to part ways with her before going into hiding. After driving to Alabama, Mitchell decided to turn back and head for DeFuniak Springs. There, he stopped at a local Wal-Mart, and told Alyssa that he was going somewhere for about 5 minutes. He also told her that if she sought help, he would kill her. Mitchell then drove away, leaving Alyssa behind. When he failed to return, she identified herself to the authorities, and provided them with information on the events leading up to her separation from Mitchell.

According to court documents, Mitchell is currently on probation. His rap sheet details 14 arrests for crimes including aggravated assault with a weapon, bomb threats, extortion, burglary, "grand larceny and offenses or offers of lewdness and lewd and lascivious behavior."

Mitchell is currently being held in the Frederick County Regional Jail without bond. He is charged with solicitation to commit a lewd act, enticing a child via the Internet, interference with custody, and traveling to meet a minor for the purpose of unlawful sexual contact. Mitchell also faces charges in Alabama for taking the victim across the state line.

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Missing Woman found

10/10/2007
SUMMER SHIPP (54) - vanished Dec. 8 2004, last seen conducting a marketing survey in Independence
INDEPENDENCE, MO
Body found in Independence is Summer Shipp’s--(Kansas City Star)-- The Jackson County sheriff’s office confirmed Tuesday night that a skull found along the banks of the Little Blue River in Independence and other remains found nearby were Shipp’s.
Pepper Spray Inc.

Fast Food Pepper Spray attack

OAKLAND PARK, Fla. -- The Broward Sheriff's Office is investigating a fast-food restaurant drive-through pepper spray attack that left several employees irritated.BSO deputies said a blue Toyota Solara with five females inside pulled up to the McDonald's drive-through window at 3073 W. Oakland Park Blvd. at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.The driver ordered a 69-cent soda, but when the employee told the customer through the intercom that it wasn't available, she became verbally abusive, according to the BSO. The driver then pulled up to the take-out window, and the left back seat passenger pulled out a can of pepper spray and sprayed the inside.Three employees went to the hospital for treatment, while eight other employees complained of residual pepper spray effects but required no treatment.The driver of the car is described as a thin black female with large earrings. The front seat passenger was dressed as a woman, but BSO deputies said the passenger might have been a cross-dressing man with red, white and blue hair accessories. Three other females were in the back seat of the car.Anyone with information is asked to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.
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