Other attacks had occurred off of this main road, and its believed that the killer couldve entered the area from that point. I'm a very strong person, though, but when it comes to my family that was the most important thing to me in the whole world.". The bludgeoned bodies of husband and wife, Bruce and Debra Bennett, were discovered and it soon became evident that both were attacked with a knife and beaten to death. Jason Bennett described his heartbreak following the deaths of son John and daughter Lacey in Killamarsh. AURORA | Police and prosecutors say they have solved the brutal 1984 hammer slayings of the Bennett family in Aurora, one of the citys most-shocking and tough-to-crack cold cases. This case impacted not just the victims, but it also terrorized an entire community, he said. Three members of the Bennett family were brutally killed in their Aurora home. View the map. SOMERVILLE Sandra G. Bennett, 76, died March 2, 2023. Bruce Bennett ~ 27 ~ Found Murdered January 16, 1984, Debra Bennett ~ 26 ~ Found Murdered, Sexually Assaulted January 16, 1984, Melissa Bennett ~7 ~ Found Murdered, Sexually Assaulted January 16, 1984, Vanessa Bennett ~ 3 ~ Found Alive,Jaw Crushed, Severly Beaten About the Face. The McStay family murders occurred on or near February 4, 2010, after the family disappeared from their home in Fallbrook, California, United States; their bodies were found in the desert near Victorville, California, on November 13, 2013. When he arrived in Aurora almost four years ago Metz said he spoke to detectives about the citys cold cases and this one, which he said shocked the conscience of the community, stuck with him. Vanessa Bennett sat under a picnic shelter on a muggy Arizona morning and talked for the first time about the physical and emotional toll she bears as the only surviving victim of one of. My best friend lived around the corner from the Bennetts, and that previous night (or night of) after dinner when she was cleaning the kitchen, she saw a man staring at her through the window. After a string of several burglaries and escalating events on this night, the offender crossed the line to murder and he never looked back. The 3-year-old sister, Vanessa, was the only survivor. He is awaiting extradition to Colorado, police and prosecutors announced Friday. He went on to continually beat the mans wife as she attempted to shield her husband from the blows of an ax handle while simultaneously on the phone to 911. Ewing, then 23, was arrested again two days later about 15 miles (24 kilometers) away by park rangers at Lake Mead. ~Then on Jan. 10, 1984, someone used a hammer to strike 50-year-old Patricia Louise Smith several times in the head in her Lakewood home thus killing her sometime between 3pm and 5pm. Twenty-eight-year-old Donna Dixon, fresh off a shift working as a flight attendant, had been out running some errands. In 2015, information leaked that there was important clue found at the Bennett scene. The FAIR School, Minneapolis Public Schools and West Metro Education Program. He'd been in the Navy, where he worked on high-tech sonar equipment at Pearl Harbor. The large hammer was recovered, still on the seat of the car where the attacker had left it. Their disappearance was widely reported by the national news media. The jury found Ewing guilty on all counts. Profiling like that is a great place to start, yet it can also mean that its a great place to leave a crime long enough that it goes cold. Prosecutors said they will ask Gov. Bennett Family Then, just as the community was reeling from this attack, 50-year-old Patricia Smith became a murder victim at her Lakewood, Colorado, home on January 10, 1984. As a workaround, a well-known forensic genealogist named Colleen Fitzpatrick analyzed the case, and her research came up with the possible surname of Ewing. This finding was announced an the television show, On the Case With Paula Zahn, in February 2018. Victims: Richard Keith Call (20) and Cassandra Lee Hailey (18) Thankfully, this community, these families and everyone impacted by the horrific crimes now knows this defendant will never hurt anyone ever again., 2022 - DISTRICT ATTORNEYS OFFICE 18 JUDICIAL DISTRICT, Murderer of Auroras Bennett family sentenced to life in prison, Victim Impact Statement and Restitution Information, Bad Check Restitution Program DISCONTINUED, Senior Law & Safety Summit: May 21, 2022, Peace Officer Credibility Disclosure Notification. For some reason the killer had to or wanted to be near this artery more so than the major arteries through and around Denver at that time. Serve as lead administrator of a K-3, 9-12 urban site . The mandatory minimum sentence for each count is life with possibility of parole after 20 years, according to the prosecution. Reporters and detectives subsequently learned that very little of the evidence from the scenes had been combed through using modern forensic technology, including DNA testing. She was last seen at about 8:30 PM while on her way to meet friends. Police are still looking for information on the cases connected to Ewing and are asking the public for help. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); Copyright 2023 He could have found other ways to feed the need. Ramirez heads to Sierra Madre, CA, where he attacks Whitney Bennett, 16, with a tire iron as she sleeps. It took 37 years, but on Tuesday, the families of Bruce and Debra Bennett saw justice served. The police found her posed with her arms crossed over her chest, as if she was in a coffin. She was born August 12, 1946 in Mississippi. Dont you feel cheated a little? The family was discovered by Constance Bennett who has since raised little Vanessa. Alexander was not identified as a suspect until a DNA hit in July 2018 linked him to semen left at the crime scene. He usually tied them so tightly that circulation was restricted, used the same types of knots, and would often have the wife tie up the husband (and then retie the husband himself). Police later linked the murder of the Bennett family with another rape and murder that happened just less than a week before. Youve done this with other cases to. Ewing is arrested and incarcerated. The victims may not have ever known one another but the killer found them somehow, it was not random although it appears that way. Another resident, Donna Dixon, was also struck with a hammer. Jun 2004 - 201612 years. This mans only motive was to inflict as much pain as possible and kill his victims. He shouted her name, but she could only groan in response. So I guess Ill be the first to post. About a week later, a different hammer was used to kill the Bennetts and their 7-year-old daughter Melissa in Aurora. Most importantly take the need to judge them and all of your own emotions and personal beliefs out of the picture. I dont believe that. First published on August 17, 2021 / 3:31 PM. No immediate leads could be generated in the case. <p>Bruce Bennett, 27, was fatally stabbed and bludgeoned. HE had to get knife in addition to the hammer just to ward off Bruce who was trying to protect his family. Rather than wait until 2019 when the book will be published, we thought wed at least share the results with you. A day or two after receiving the DNA results, Law Enforcement met with victims and their family members. A hammer. Begins: Fri, 03/03/23 10:00 AM EST. They do value daylight hours and work them whenever they can during the winter months. The couples youngest daughter, 3-year-old Vanessa, was also attacked by the hammer-wielding assailant. Its probably nothing that will move the case forward, but that show is coming out pretty soon so youll be able to find out what that is in just a couple months! Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window), Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window), Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window), Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Twelve Twenty-Six Seventy-Five by Tony Reid, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Seemingly, nothing they did showed investigators any reason someone would want to kill them. There is no innocent explanation for how you explain all of the evidence.. "I have seen all kinds of evil and wickedness nothing compares to the level of depravity that your actions show in this case," Vahle told Ewing. Your email address will not be published. Is it not true that you usually get police closer to a suspect faster than they ever could without using dna? She left her hometown and moved to Arizona, at one point spending half a year homeless, living under a bridge. The blow was so severe that her jaw was shattered and her skull was fractured in several places. Ewing would not stop hitting her the entire time and eventually the woman realized that she would have to play dead in order to get him to stop. I lost the person who I was supposed to be.. Medical professionals werent sure if the hammer attack would leaveVanessa with permanent brain damage or not, but the girls family held on to the hope that she would make a full recovery. Sole survivor of 1984 Aurora hammer attack testifies on opening day of murder trial Some of the ligatures matched across scenes. Umesh Pal murder case: Bulldozer action against Atiq Ahmad's close aides continues in Uttar Pradesh. Never profile someone using the box as your guide. The family originated from Ancient Greece, then eventually settled in the town of Salem. Were happy to at least have a little bit of science behind us on this and it was worth exploring, even though the result was inconclusive. One of the most terrifying aspects of the case is the sketch of his mask, made with the assistance of survivors who caught a glimpse of him. He faced six counts of first-degree murder. They immediately knew something was wrong. The bludgeoned bodies of husband and wife, Bruce and Debra Bennett, were discovered and it soon became evident that they had both attacked with a knife and beaten to death. Patricia had only been living in Lakewood for about three and a half months, having moved there from Nebraska with her daughter, who was recently divorced. Here are the days of the week the alleged killer struck each victim (s). She recently gave an interview, which you can view here (, Summary of Press Conference on 1984 Hammer Murders, you can review my extensive post from yesterday, Secret Origin of the Golden State Killer: Visalia Ransacker, High-resolution version of Mr Cruels mask, Tribute to Robert Offerman and Debra Manning, Ligatures Used by the East Area Rapist / Golden State Killer, he almost always forced his penis into his victims bound hands, Audio Comparison of EAR Calls The Results, Phone Calls where the East Area Rapist Spoke, https://www.coldcase-earons.com/phonecalls.php, Visalia Ransacker Incident Chart: Prowlings vs Ransackings over time. Perhaps, though put in tp the system (and hopefully still there, maybe for good), his DNA was never taken to match the DNA from the crime scenes. While closure and peace may be forever out of reach, the panelists hope for a sense of justice among those affected. A childhood photo of Vanessa Bennett, who survived the hammer attack, and Alex Ewing as seen in a mid-1980s booking photo . Only the calls or phone events where the caller was believed to be the rapist are included. It was Colorado Bureau of Investigation Director John Camper who got to break the news to Aurora PD that there had been a DNA match. They were almost always in good shape/new condition, and lab analysis revealed almost nothing about them except the occasional hair. See them as the killer did, see the victims as the killer did at that moment. During sentencing Aug. 17, members of the Bennett and Large families submitted impact statements and came to the courtroom. In the papers, the most attention is paid to the last state witness, the DNA analyst at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. January 16, 1984: Bennett family is attacked in their Aurora, Colorado home with 3 out of the 4 family members murdered by an intruder wielding a hammer. On night of January 16 th, 1984 a gruesome discovery was made at a house on 16300 East Center Drive, Aurora, Colorado. Police examining the scene were able to reconstruct the basic chain of events. There was the sound of children and maybe a woman in the background, which couldve potentially come from a television or some other source. The cases are commonly known as the 1984 Colorado Hammer Murders. About six weeks later, hunters came upon their bodies in a remote location in the woods near a logging road. The court heard how . There was evidence of a struggle in the bedroom. The hammer stuck her in the jaw, shattering the bone which splintered in an explosion of small fragments that punctured her windpipe. And I hate what I had to go through and still go through. Yvonne Woods was on the stand for more than three hours . It was believed that the main garage door was left open throughout the night and that the door leading from the garage to the house was possibly left unlocked. The Bennett family murders is a case that goes back more than three decades. Police felt that the killer brought his own weapon to the scene it didnt appear that any of the tools or hammers at the home had been rifled through. Even to this day, she has absolutely no recollection of the next several hours. Dont profile by LOOKING AT the behavior in an attempt to findclues to his or her psychology in an effort toaid in capturing a criminal. By clicking Accept All Cookies, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. James, who posts online from time to time, discusses how vividly the case still haunts him even to this day. It was a match, proving that the same unknown offender had killed all four victims. Late on Jan. 9 or early on Jan 10, a flight attendant was beaten, possibly with a hammer, and sexually assaulted after she pulled into the garage of her home in Aurora. You can also see what seems to be escalation and a frenzy of activity at certain points. A 3-year-old daughter, Vanessa, was injured and survived. She was also raped. Investigators did not forget about the hammer murders, however, nor did the town of Aurora. Her head was constantly swimming with thoughts of her parents. Add some text book, some psychological profiling and presto, they have a profile. The first sign of trouble came in the afternoon, when Patricia failed to pick them up. Bruce Bennett tried to climb the staircase several times in an attempt to ward off the perpetrator and save his young family. They pledged to continue to support the families via their victim services organizations. Family medicine doctors are primary-care physicians trained. He also appealed to other district attorneys and lawmakers who might be watching (singling out Montana briefly) to change their DNA collection laws and practices and to begin participating in CODIS. The police after searching the home believe that the intruder brought his own weapon, a hammer or some other type of blunt object yet, he took a knife from the kitchen which is what he used to slash and cut Bruce with. January 27, 1984: Ewing attacks a man in Kingman, Arizona in his home; beats man's head with a hammer. Blood was all over the garage floor. It begins with a woman killed with a hammer in Lakewood and, a week later, a family killed the same way. All rights reserved. "I lost the person who I was supposed to be. Investigators did not forget about the hammer murders, however, nor did the town of Aurora; for years the authorities and true crime sleuths never gave up trying to identify the sick individual responsible for the murders and assaults that happened that year. He picked all of his victims for a reason, something about them attracted him to them, they all had one common denominator that drew him to those specific individuals. Bruce had mentioned wanting to run to the store before bed. Part of our book involves some very in-depth detective and forensic work. The wheels were put into motion to submit dozens of pieces of evidence to the FBI lab. It was dusted for prints, but none were found. The killer then ascended the staircase and entered the couples bedroom where he attacked Bruces 26 years old wife, Debra, simultaneously he raped and killed her. All four family members were assaulted, only one survived. It helps bring the other EAR phone escapades into the fold. Required fields are marked *. Autor do artigo Por ; Data do artigo estranged from family and happy; benson funeral home worthington, mn obituaries em bennett family murders address em bennett family murders address Required fields are marked *. Expand the list of suspects because on this case it was always bigger than investigators thought it was and the killer was always the least obvious or least likely to stand out. It seemed that robbery was not the primary motive only the personal jewelry that Patricia was wearing was missing from the scene. They are more likely to begin work before sunup rather than stay much after sundown. She survived. Mendelian Genetics | Mendelian Theory, Principles & Applications, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973: Composition & Important Sections, Indian Penal Code, 1860: Amendments, Composition & Provisions, Difference Between Autonomous vs Automate Process With Examples, Indian Evidence Act, 1872: Amendments & Important Sections. Vanessa was saved, though she went on the live with permanent physiological affects from the assault. Then in 2010, cold case investigators, who long theorized that the person who killed Patricia Smith in Lakewood was the same person who had committed the crimes in Aurora, compared the DNA from the Patricia Smith murder to the DNA found at the Bennett household. This article in the Denver post describes how after he murdered the Bennetts he went on to enter the house of a man in Kingman, Arizona and attempted to bludgeon the man to death with a 20lb rock. There were very few leads to go on only a hazy physical description from Kim. This killer did in fact re-offend, the issuehe was in the learning phase of actually killing humans during this time frame in Colorado. The Associated Press contributed to this report. He tossed it onto the seat of the car and began pulling her from the vehicle. Calls Toyota Celica was found at a river overlook several hours after he and Hailey went on their first date. The hammer struck her in the jaw, shattering the bone which splintered in an explosion of small fragments that punctured her windpipe. From 1987 to 1991, a serial offender known as Mr Cruel abducted children around Melbourne, Australia. One of those techniques was an innovative imaging tool by Parabon Nanolabs which provides an approximation of what they offender mightve looked like at both the time of the crimes and in the current day. The killer pummeled and sexually assaulted his 26-year-old wife, Debra, and 7-year-old daughter, Melissa. Keep in mind that the offenders last known murder was in 1986, which makes the last few particularly creepy. Book Synopsis . It could be the store they all shopped in, the road that they all traveled daily to and from work, school, library they attended etc. Are you suggesting that initially investigators missed certain details based off the profile of the dude? Coincidence is just an illusion that we all tell ourselves myself included, when we are unable to explain how something actually came to be. KERRVILLE, Texas (AP) _ Two men were arrested Friday in the killing of an elderly man and his wife, a crime whose brutality traumatized this small town and went unsolved for more than a year. The scene in the home traumatized the daughter and grandchildren for life. Vanessa Benn. Sometimes it works, sometimes its sort of right, sometimes not even close. Two young boys were asleep in other rooms in the house. In 2002, Arapahoe County filed a John Doe arrest warrant for the perpetrator of the Bennet murders based on the DNA profile. That is very clear. He was currently working at a family-owned furniture store, but was taking classes at the local college and would soon be working as an air traffic controller. The Bennett family was attacked in their home in Aurora, Colorado in Jan. 16,1984. Constance, her grandmother, immediately set up a vigil (which she kept up for days) as the paramedics, nurses and doctors worked feverishly to save the girls life. Between 1986 and 1989 though, a crime spree took place that left three pairs of travelers missing and another pair of travelers gone without a trace. As one of the investigations were doing for the book,we hired an audio expert to do some work on the three recordings attributed to EAR: The dumb fuckers call, the Is Ray there? call, and the Gonna Kill You call. Or any of the other angles he was pursuing? Now we know that Patricia's murder is connected to the Bennett Family murders in Aurora, Colorado. Not only was he hanging on the situation for any sign of improvement, but he was afraid that the killer would find out that she survived, might be able to identify him, and might come back to attack her again. He tore her clothes off, tossed them about the garage, and then he raped her on the concrete floor. Jason Bennett, who is understood to be the father of two of the. Donna pulled into the driveway, hit the remote to open the garage, and pulled her car in. Lakewood Chief Dan McCasky was among those echoing those sentiments, and mentioned that the Smith family members will be releasing a statement later in the day. This phone call occurred 25 years after the attack. The Bennett family. They are asking tipsters who know anything about the Aurora case to call 303-739-6400 and the Lakewood case to call 303-763-6800. Recently, he was exploring forensic genealogy techniques. A hammer. Read more true crime, cold cases and unsolved mysteries from meHERE<<. The family had been celebrating Melissas birthday that night. It was a blitz attack for no reason, said Marvin Brandt, who investigated the case as a homicide detective between 1984 and when he retired from the Aurora Police Department in 2002. Connie's son Bruce, his wife Debra and 7-year-old Melissa were found dead.. A brief question and answer session involved the police asking any residents or witnesses to come forward with anything they might know in relation to these crimes so that the prosecution can continue to build its case. You see it in the last known crime that the killer committed. Its nothing more or less than that. When he did use something at the scene (electrical cord, towel, husbands shoelaces, necktie) it was only to supplement the ligatures that he had brought himself. Ewing was convicted of killing 27-year-old Bruce and 26 year-old Debra Bennett, as well as their 7-year-old daughter Melissa, in Aurora. Nevada inmate charged in 1984 hammer killing of Lakewood grandmother. Special recognition was given to Detective Steve Conner from the Major Crimes Unit who, incidentally was at the scene of the Bennett crime as a young deputy, and who has worked the case for many, many years. By far, easier prey lay in wait just north which would be Colfax Ave and at the time might not have hit the news like the murder of the Bennett family did had the crime occurred in a neighborhood more near Colfax. During the winter in Colorado its difficult to find a construction crew working well into the night. Let us know all the details about yourself and send us a message. Investigators were able to determine that the girl had died by drowning, but at first they couldnt agree on whether it had been accidental or whether there was foul play involved. Donna was rushed to the hospital while police worked the scene. There were reportedly no signs of robbery or sexual assault both women were clothed and their purses were still with them. We often times want answers that fit into a box and I am sorry to say in this case we will not get them. I would re-profile the killer, re-examine the details of each victims daily life, re-examine the suspect pool, re-examine the crime scenes without any emotion whatsoever. DENVER- The Bennett family murders is a case that goes back more than three decades. A neatly-folded Winnie the Pooh comforter lay under her, a portion of it obscuring her head. The previous week, on the 10th of January,awoman in her fifties named Patricia Smith had also been murdered in her own home in a townhouse in Green Mountain, Lakewood, which is just a 25 minute drive from the Bennetts home in Aurora. There are potentially other crimes that Ewing could be charged for, and Brauchler emphasized that he wont prosecute a crime that he cant ethically prove theres a high standard for evidence in these types of cases. Medical professionals werent sure if the hammer attack would leaveVanessa with permanent brain damage or not, but the girls family held on to the hope that she would make a full recovery. His sentence runs through 2037 but he would be eligible for parole in 2021. He noticed a gaping wound on the left side of her skull. On August 7th, 2018, it was announced that there were significant new developments in the Smith/Bennett case, and that a news conference would be held at 10:00 AM on Friday, August 10th with more information.
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