An indictment was handed down Tuesday for murders in Prince George’s County, Maryland. A grand jury indicted Jason Thomas Scott, 27, of Upper Marlboro with two counts of murder, two of first-degree burglary and three gun related charges. Scott is officially charged in the murders of Delores Renee Dewitt, 41, and her daughter Ebony, 19. Investigators expect formal charges to be brought down for other homicides in the area as well. Other jurisdictions are also investigating to see if Scott is responsible for crimes and murders in their areas. Currently Scott is being held behind bars and will be arraigned within the next couple of days.
This is a case that caught my interest from the start, and one that’s been on my mind ever since. It baffled me that two mothers and two daughters could be murdered in the same neighborhood, only blocks away, and the cases weren’t somehow connected. The murders occurred within weeks of one another. In addition, in the same neighborhood at least 40 burglaries had been committed.
Karen and Karissa Lofton (top) Delores and Ebony Dewitt (bottom)
This is a case that caught my interest from the start, and one that’s been on my mind ever since. Two mothers and two daughters murdered in the same neighborhood in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The murders occurred within weeks of one another, and now investigators believe they may have the man responsible behind bars.
This Upper Marlboro, Maryland neighborhood isn’t far from one of my homes, and is just miles outside of Washington, D.C. I always thought the cases were connected in some way, even though authorities, specifically an FBI profiler, said early on it appeared they were not. Another thing that caught my attention was the fact that more than 40 burglaries occurred from 2008 up until the murders in the same neighborhood. The evidence wasn’t adding up, and now we have a little more information about the person who may be responsible even though we don’t know his name yet. Prince George’s County Police Chief Robert Hylton said he is positive the man responsible for the murders is behind bars and is about to be indicted, and he may go down in history as one of the most dangerous and notorious criminals in the county’s history.
More than 200 brand new photoswere finally released by the NYPD this week in the Rodney Alcala serial killer case. Investigators are hoping to identify all of the people in the photos. Authorities in California released an initial stash of pictures last month to the public out of whichmore than 20 women have been identified and are said to be doing well. At that time, another batch was sent off to the NYPD cold-case squad, but wasnot immediately made public.
All of the photos depict women, girls and young boys. Along with being on death row for five murders, police say Alcala is a suspect in two other cold-case killings in New York. Cornelia Crilley, 23, was raped and strangled in 1971, and her case was never solved. Also, Ellen Jane Hover, 23, disappeared in 1977. Her bones were found in a grave a short time later. Alcala may have been the last person to see her alive.
A convicted serial killer who once appeared on the dating game in the 1970’s is now sitting on death row for the third time. Rodney Alcala represented himself in court in March for the rapes and murders of four women and one child, and police fear there may be even more victims. He was sentenced to death this week for a third time, and hopefully he won’t be allowed to appeal the decision. Alcala was found guilty of murdering 12-year-old Robin Samsoe in 1980 and again in1986 and was sentenced to death both times, but appeals overturned the cases, prolonging the pain for the victim’s family. This case was prolonged much like police say Alcala prolonged the lives of his victims. As he would strangle them, and just before they would die, Alcala would bring them back to life by resuscitating them. Alcala is now in the same serial killer category as Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz, John Wayne Gacy, Jeffrey Dahmer, Gary Ridgway, Charles Manson, and Andrew Cunanan (to name a few).
A convicted serial killer who once appeared on the dating game in the 1970’s is now sitting on death row for the third time. Rodney Alcala represented himself in court last week for the rapes and murders of four women and one child, and police fear there may be even more victims. Alcala was found guilty of murdering 12-year-old Robin Samsoe in 1980 and again in1986 and was sentenced to death both times, but appeals overturned the cases, prolonging the pain for the victim’s family. This case was prolonged much like police say Alcala prolonged the lives of his victims. As he would strangle them, and just before they would die, Alcala would bring them back to life by resuscitating them.
The District Attorney’s office was finallyable to link four adult cases with DNA to put Alcala on trial for the murders of child Robin Samsoe, 12 and adults Jill Barcomb, 18, Jill Parenteau, 21, Georgia Wixted, 27, and Charlotte Lamb, 32. The prosecutors say he raped one of the women with a claw hammer. On March 9, 2010, Alcala was sentenced to death againor the rape and murder of Robin and the murders of the other four women. Let’s just hope this time Alcala isn’t granted yetanother appeal.
According to the Cleveland Police, investigators do not have plans to go back and search the address of Anthony Sowell, but they do have cadaver dogs combing over the neighborhood where Sowell lived. Investigators are searching commercial dumpsters, and an old elementary school for more bodies. The house at 12205 Imperial Avenue is still considered a crime scene and will continue to be secured. According to a Cleveland Police press release: “The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office to evaluate investigative strategies. Two County Prosecutors have been assigned and will assist investigators with preparing for prosecution.” Sowell is currently facing 5 counts of aggravated murder, rape, kidnapping, and felonious assault. Sowell is held only a $5 million bond, and currently has a public defender. He could face the death penalty. Meanwhile, on November 9, 2009, the 8th and 9th victims were identified. Cleveland Police say Janice D. Webb and Kim Yvette Smith are among the victims found inside Sowell’s residence. Also, the Prosecutors office filed an indictment today against Sowell for charges attempted murder, rape, kidnapping, and felonious assault. Cuyahoga County Jail Warden, Kevin McDonough told me that Sowell is currently being held in solitary confinement. He is only allowed out of his cell when there aren’t other inmates around, and his time out in the common area is very limited. Warden McDonough said Sowell is only held at his facility during his court case, and will be transferred to the state prison when the case is over. He says Sowell is “watched closely,” and during Sowell’s time there, he is allowed to receive and respond to mail.
Over the weekend, three more victims were identified, bringing the total of positively identified remains to seven African American women. Police say the women were found dead inside of Anthony Sowell’s home after they executed a search warrant on October 29, 2009. Although we know the identities of these seven women, there are still three more bodies and one skull police need to identify.
On November 8, 2009, Parishioners filled the Mt. Olive Baptist Church to mourn the murdered women. Hundreds of people filled in to show their respect, and honored those lost with song and prayer.
I spoke with Councilman Zack Reed who was boarding a flight back to Cleveland this afternoon, he says after all 11 bodies are positively identified, two major things need to take place:
Ted Bundy… David Berkowitz… John Wayne Gacy… Jeffrey Dahmer…
Gary Ridgway… Charles Manson… Andrew Cunanan…
FBI - www.fbi.gov
These are all familiar names linked to the phrase, “serial killer.” According to the FBI, “Serial killings are rare, probably less than one percent of all murders. They do, however, receive a lot of attention in the news and on screen—and much of the information out there is wrong. Yet, the public, the media, and even sometimes law enforcement professionals who have limited experience with serial murder, often believe what they read and hear. And this misinformation can hinder investigations.”
The FBI says – as for serial killer myths, our group of experts had this to say about a few of them:
1) Serial killers are not all dysfunctional loners: some have had wives and kids and full-time jobs and have been very active in their community or church or both.
2) Serial killers are not all white males: the racial diversification of serial killers generally mirrors the overall U.S. population.
I just got off the phone with Powell Cesar, spokesman with the Cuyahoga County Corner’s office in Ohio. He says, the corner’s office can confirm there were six female bodies found inside the home where Anthony Sowell lives. It is confirmed four of the women died by strangulation, the fifth victim ‘may’ have died by strangulation (working to determine). The sixth body was badly decomposed and it may take some time to determine the cause of death. Cesar says, “the bodies could have been there from weeks, to months to years. Some were covered in blankets, some found in a crawl space, and others in a shallow grave. When the corner’s office arrived on the scene, they had their hands full. They had to secure the bodies, bring in a cadaver dog, and determine a fix manner and cause of death, then the next step is to determine the women’s age, race and gender. We know for sure, two of the women were African American. Anthropologists in their office can figure out quickly whether the bodies are male or female because of their pelvis bone. Right now, the Cleveland 4th district headquarters has a command post set up, and are looking for families with loved ones who are missing. They are collecting DNA samples from those family members, and the corners office will try to match up those samples to the victims. Cesar says, “the only case I can compare this to is a house fire where five people perished, but something like this is a big case.” Another case Cesar mentioned in comparison was the case of Jeffery Lungrin who was executed on October 24, 2006 for killing a family of five in 1989. The youngest victim in that case was only 7-years-old. You can read the press release here. http://www.drc.ohio.gov/public/press/press253.htm
Michelle Sigona is a crime fighting, victims advocate extraordinaire, but for Michelle -- the good fight doesn't stop there. In her spare time, she is a volunteer firefighter -- and now, she is tackling the issues and cases that mean the most to her....
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