Burns' attorney, Leon Spies, also argued in his suppression motion that the computer evidence is irrelevant because it's from 2018 - 38 years after Martinko's death. He said Burns had no memory of being at the crime scene. [2], Martinko had been stabbed 29 times in her face, neck, and chest. According to the investigator, "Burns showed almost no emotion during the interview, even when he was eventually told he was being arrested. Cedar Rapids police arrested Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, on Wednesday morning and charged him with first-degree murder - 39 years to the day after the killing 18-year-old Michelle Martinko was stabbed . Burns is accused of killing Cedar Rapids teenager Michelle Martinko in 1979. William Brangham: Turns out the murderer was a distant, distant relative of Jennings. "I asked Jerry, 'Did you do the crime?' Linn. The Realm, a group of 34 people. [2] Once there, she perused the stores and spoke with friends and other people she knew who worked there. Ken and Don were not a match but Jerry Burns' DNA was a match, to an almost perfect scientific certainty. He was also ordered to pay $150,00 in restitution to Martinkos estate, according to KWWL. Months before his February . Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, was apprehended and charged with first-degree murder after authorities matched his DNA with blood samples found on the Martinko family car's gear shift knob. Vikings PR. She was stabbed 29 times in the face, neck, and chest. When Burns, of Manchester, Iowa, was questioned, he "denied committing the offense but could offer no plausible explanation why his DNA would be found at the crime scene," police said. Police said they were able to connect Burns to the case with DNA evidence. Ha ha. He entered a plea of not guilty. I hope you enjoy it!! Burns is accused of murdering Michelle Martinko in 1979. During this difficult time and as the justice system runs its course we ask that our privacy be respected.. Michelle Martinko was an 18yr old student from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA. In her ruling, Judge Fae Hoover said the . Jerry Burns mentioned Jodi by name while speaking to an investigator shortly before his arrest. . Would love your thoughts, please comment. Denlinger had to consider that Michelle could have been murdered by a stranger. What began to turn the case around was the emergence of DNA as a forensic tool for crime fighting in the late 1990s. What we know about Jerry Burns and the woman he's accused of killing 40 years earlier Dec 19, 2019/ updated Feb 17, 2020 Four decades ago, 18-year-old Michelle Marie Martinko was found stabbed to death in the family's car in the parking lot of a Cedar Rapids mall. Denlinger said he intentionally chose that day to interview Burns because it was the anniversary of Martinko's death. The similarities were eerie two pretty, young women, both meeting their final fate in parking lots in Iowa, 16 years apart, in cases that went unsolved for decades. Jerry Lynn Burns is accused of the 1979 cold case murder of Michelle Martinko in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Updated on: August 4, 2021 / 2:29 PM You have permission to edit this article. 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. The man charged with killing Michelle Martinko 39 years ago is not a suspect in the death of his wife or disappearance of his cousin, according to investigators. JERRY M. LYNN "Bear" Crown Point, Indiana Jerry M. "Bear" Lynn, age 59, of Crown Point, IN passed away on April 4, 2010. Staggering snowfall in California mountains leaves residents trapped for days, SpaceX launches new crew on flight to space station, Garland testifies before Senate panel amid ongoing special counsel probes, Colon cancer rates rising in younger age group, study finds, Firefighter dies battling blaze in downtown Buffalo, mayor says, Several hospitalized after Lufthansa flight diverted to Dulles due to turbulence, Explosive found in checked luggage at Pennsylvania airport, feds say, Prosecution wraps its case at Alex Murdaugh murder trial, Top McCarthy aide, House Oversight chair each met with Ashli Babbitt's mother, Sneak peek: Murder at the Mall: The Michelle Martinko Case, Michelle Martinko, left, and Jodi Huisentruit. His ex-wife, Patricia, committed suicide in 2008, and his cousin Brian Burns astonishingly disappeared. I like that it's just the facts and case without anyone trying (poorly) to be a comedian or talk about their own personal nonsense lol. Place of rest will be in the Dickson County Memorial Gardens. She was a beautiful singer, and I miss all this. See Photos. The Vikings organization is mourning the loss of the innovator, colorful . Detectives considered charging the Commissioner with failure to pass along the information to police, but no charges were pursued. Gerald Edward "Jake" Merriner, 92, of Jane Lew passed away on Monday, February 27, 2023 in the Stonewall Jackson Hospital. The company also produced approximations of how the man would have aged in the years since the crime. December . At the time of the murder, Burns was 25 and lived in Manchester, Iowa. She had looked into the parking lot as she drove by to check for her daughter's car because her daughter worked at the mall and had had car trouble before. Did you listen to the DNA: ID episode on the Martinko case? The family of Jerry Burns would like to thank our friends and the Manchester community for the support we have received since Jerrys arrest, read the familys statement. He was sentenced to life on August 7 without the possibility of parole. 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. Daryl F. Gates' Police Quest: SWAT, a group of 41 people. Burns is being held at the Linn County jail on a $5 million cash-only bond. This evidence was inadmissible at trial but was the subject of a public suppression hearing. Dave Franzman, a longtime reporter at ABC Cedar Rapids affiliate KCRG, Michelle Martinko's high school friend, Elizabeth Laymon, told The Des Moines Register. 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. Jerry Burns appeals his conviction for murder in the first degree. Vikings Ring of Honor Coach Jerry Burns passed away Wednesday at the age of 94. Denlinger had found the needle in the haystack. Log in or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know. With genetic genealogy, an unknown killer's DNA from a crime scene can be identified through his or her family members, who voluntarily submit their DNA to a genealogy database. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. DNA: ID. 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. [7] Martinko was the younger of two daughters of Albert F. Martinko and Janet Martinko (ne Zillig). He was around 25 when he killed Martinko in 1979. Might be nothing, but Jerry has a cousin who went missing in 2013 and it has become a cold case and Jerry's wife committed suicide in 2008. [1][5] Iowan law mandates a life sentence without the possibility of parole for first degree murder. [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. Jerry was born May 22, 1944, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, to Fred Richard Lynn and Mary Ellen Manning and passed away on July 10, 2022. Iowan law mandates a life sentence without the possibility of parole for first-degree murder. Jerry Lynn Burns. [10][11] She was also a talented performer, joined the twirling squad as a sophomore, and performed in choirs and theater productions. 2. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. 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. [2][3][4] Burns was arrested and, on February 24, 2020, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Martinko. Burns coached the Minnesota Vikings from 1986-91. Law enforcement said Burns hasnt been able to explain why his DNA would be at the crime scene, nor does he remember committing the crime. It wasn't until decades after the killing that investigators began to link the emotions of a motive with the science of DNA. Jerry Lynn Burns was arrested in the 1979 killing of Michelle Martinko. When Denlinger reminded Burns that Michelle had been killed in 1979, Burns responded, "It was a big deal. [8][9] She attended Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School, where she was an above average student and well regarded by school officials. 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 . "That threw us all off," Allison said about the incident. In October 2018, DNA was covertly collected from an Iowa man, Jerry Lynn Burns, and was found to match the sample discovered on Martinko's clothing. [2][5] Her hands bore defensive wounds, which police said to indicate that she had fought back against her killer. Burns repeatedly said he didn't know how his DNA was found at the crime scene. The police considered the murder personal in nature based on the manner of death, according to Little Village magazine. 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". [11] They described a white man in his late teens or early 20s, around six feet tall and weighing 165175 pounds, with brown eyes and curly brown hair. 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 retired from the Army National Guard and retired as a Master Plumber. Yeah, it's really really good! Cutting-edge DNA technology was used to solve the cold case. They wanted to try to get an explanation for why Burns' DNA was found at the crime scene and to get a DNA sample from Burns to confirm the DNA obtained from the drinking straw. The prosecution did not resist either request, and the trial was rescheduled for February 10, 2020 in Scott County. [6] In September 2020, Burns filed a notice of appeal. 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. [2] A police spokesman said that "everyone's instinct is to say it was a guy", but they were not sure of the sex of the killer. [9] She was fully dressed, and the medical examiner determined she had not been sexually assaulted. Burns had previously been married to Patricia Burns, who died in 2008 from suicide. Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, was arrested Wednesday and . Her mother, Janet, died in 1998. Jerry Lynn Burns will raise two child. 20-1150). [9][2], Police had few leads and appealed to the public for tips. "I read the article and it talked about genetic genealogy. In 2018, Jerry Lynn Burns was finally arrested and charged with the teen's murder and, although it had been decades after the crime, the once cold case is now a subject of discussion on A&E's Killer Cases. He lived in Manchester at the time of his arrest in 2020 and owned a powder coating business in the city. State prosecutors also showed a video interview they secretly recorded in 2018, after matching Burns' DNA to the crime scene and getting a search warrant to obtain further DNA. Despite being known as a professional, Burns arrest got people talking about his family. 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). Denlinger interviewed Burns at his business. His cousin, Brian Burns, went missing on the 19th of December 2013. Parabon made predictions for "ancestry, eye color, hair color, skin color, freckling, and face shape," police said, and the department released the composite images to the public in May 2017. "Murder at . His ex-wife, Patricia, committed suicide in 2008, and his cousin . This really is an excellent true crimes podcast that is different from the many others that are being produced. The police then began procuring evidence secretly. Denlinger recorded him using a camera that was hidden inside a coffee mug. The judge ordered a $5 million cash bond, and Burns is set to return to court for a preliminary hearing on Dec. 28. Add newsletters@thegazette.comto your contacts. Derek Chauvin's ex-wife . People around him considered him to be a professional but everything fizzled out shortly after. Parabon. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Jerry Lynn Burns was finally arrested in October 2018 for the murder of Michelle Martinko, that took place 39 years prior. The company created a family tree starting with four sets of the woman's great-great-grandparents and reported that the killer was most likely descended from one of those couples. He may be one of the relatively rare "one and done" killers that we have learned about now that we have vastly improved DNA analysis technology. ), Press J to jump to the feed. Burns seemed to have a 'fetish for these violent, sexual themes, Cedar Rapids police Investigator Jeff Holst testified. The majority of the search activity and history on Burns' computer was sexually graphic and more 'deviant in nature, said Holst, who investigates sex crimes and internet crimes against children. Burns, charged with first-degree murder in the cold case stabbing of Martinko, is asking the court to toss out DNA and other evidence because they were obtained without a warrant and represented violations of privacy and other rights. Visitation will be held from 5 The defense team for . To learn the entire story of Michelle Martinko's murder, watch Dateline: Unforgettable at 10 pm on Oxygen 79. Dave Franzman, a longtime reporter at ABC Cedar Rapids affiliate KCRG, even covered the case at the time of Michelle Martinko's killing. He was born in Hundred, WV on April 24, 1930, a son of the late Robert Lee and Rebecca Taylor Merriner. In late June of 1995, Jodi Huisentruit, a young anchor at KIMT television in Mason City, Iowa, disappeared from the parking lot of her apartment building on the way to work, never to be seen again. [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. But detectives had been stymied. [9] The killer left no fingerprints, which led police to believe they had worn gloves. They had investigated more than 100 people over the years, and all were dead ends. Allison says Burns threatened him one day after a winning streak. Prosecutors played a covertly recorded interview that investigators conducted with Jerry Lynn Burns in December of 2018. [26] He was not able to provide an explanation for why his DNA would have been present at the crime scene. People who have worked on this game have also collaborated on the creation of the following games: Quest for Glory V: Dragon Fire, a group of 68 people. [11] As the investigation dwindled, a $10,000 reward was offered for information that would lead police to the killer. Head coach Jerry Burns of the Minnesota Vikings looks on during a 27-14 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh on Sept. 24, 1989. . 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. [1][5][6], Michelle Marie Martinko (October 6, 1961 December 19, 1979) was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. [9] She was last seen almost 9p.m. outside of a jewelry store in the mall. But her sister Janelle and Janelles husband John Stonebaker were present at Burns sentencing. He was born on December 09, 1952 to Harold Eugene and Virginia Burns in Osceola, Arkansas. 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. Her death was ruled a suicide. He had followed them and secretly recovered their DNA. The black dress Michelle Martinko was wearing when she was murdered was sent to the lab for testing. A witness testified he signed this image from a newspaper article about the case. [10] She wore a black jersey dress and black scarf, black tights and heels, and a waist-length white and brown rabbit fur jacket, and she carried a brown leather purse. 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. 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. 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. Jim grew up . But where is this cold-blooded killer now? He began to search for her, as did the police. But he never asked for an attorney, Denlinger said. Visitation with the family will be Monday April 10th from 4 to 8 PM and on. He was preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, Joan C. Plum Merriner, who passed away on January 4, 2019. Her killer will go undetected for almost 40yrs! 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. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and is currently being held at the Anamosa State Penitentiary. [22][12] From that, police were able to build a partial DNA profile. 'A complete shock': Family of suspect in Martinko murder releases statement, Bobcats and beyond are wearing orange to support Benton Communitys Tatum Schroeder, UIHC library offers resources for and about people with disabilities. Jerry Burns is still behind bars on a $5 million cash bond, charged with first-degree murder in the 1979 murder of Michelle Martinko. 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. Jerry Lynn Burns appeared in Linn County this morning on a video monitor from jail where he had his bail set at $5 million. Lighthouse: The Dark Being, a group of 43 people. [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. In earlier testimony, Matthew Denlinger, a Cedar Rapids police investigator who testified last week, was recalled to testify about Burns' interview with police Dec. 19, 2018. [2], On October 29, 2018, an investigator observed one of the brothers, Jerry Lynn Burns, drink multiple sodas using a plastic straw. Jerry Burns is still behind bars . Just before his arrest, Burns, unsolicited, mentioned the name of missing Iowa anchor Jodi Huisentruit as he was being questioned about the Martinko case. Spies asked if he had consent from Burns to take the lunch straw for testing. When the detectives first investigated this case, they thought of the homicide as being personal in nature - based on the 10 stab wounds . On December 20, 2018, a district judge set his bond at $5 million. I've seen several articles that said he might be tied to other murders. At the department, Burns sked for a lawyer. The case had remained a mystery for 39 years until police say new DNA genealogy technology identified Burns' DNA at the scene. A article mentioned that the police found his Internet search history had stuff like 'murder, rape, harm of blonde women'. "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. 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. The defense requested the case be declared a mistrial as a result, but the judge denied the request and asked the prosecutor to rephrase the question. Suspect in Martinko murder not suspected in wife's death or cousin's disappearance, Bobcats and beyond are wearing orange to support Benton Communitys Tatum Schroeder, UIHC library offers resources for and about people with disabilities. Familial matches let them narrow down the suspect list to three brothers from Manchester, Iowa. [10] Police considered the killing to be "personal in nature" based on the number and location of stab wounds. See if it is.. wife was deter mined to be a distant cousi n to many of the Subject's more . Denlinger does NOT believe Burns is responsible for Jodi Huisentruit - rather that he admired/fantasized about whatever happened to her. During the investigation, the police assumed that there were personal motives involved in the murder due to the nature of Martinko's stab wounds. He was arrested Wednesday on the exact day Martinko was last seen alive. DAVENPORT, Iowa (KWWL) - State prosecutors called a former cellmate of Jerry Burns in his murder trial, which continued Tuesday in Scott County. . Homerline, a soft-spoken woman who enjoyed teaching Sunday School, did everything possible to avoid attention. Thanks to advances in technology and DNA evidence, a jury in an Iowa courthouse . 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. During the trial, he initially denied knowing Martinko but his statements were found to contradict when his defense argued that evidence had been mishandled back in 1979 and that different articles of clothing from the crime scene should not have been stored together in one evidence bag. The Cedar Rapids teenager was found stabbed to death in her parents car parked at Westdale Mall. timing. We would also like to extend our sympathy to the Martinko family.. 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