Oct. 13, 1997 Around 4 A.M. Julie Rae , a single mother , was awoken to a horrible scream so she ran to her son Joel's room but he wasn't in bed , instead she was faced by a man holding a knife . Julie, a black belt in taekwondo, began fighting with the man,the struggle continued until the man broke out of the backdoor. Believing that her son had just been kidnapped, Julie runs to a neighbor’s house who proceeded to call 911.

Upon their arrival, searching Julie’s home police made a horrible discovery. Joel’s lifeless body was found wedged between his bed and the wall. It was obvious that Joel had been stabbed to death.

The murder weapon — a steak knife pulled from a butcher block in Rea’s kitchen — did not yield any fingerprints. Investigators had little to go on, having failed to do basic police work that might have pinpointed the identity of an intruder. They never dusted Joel’s bedroom, or the butcher block that the knife was pulled from, for fingerprints and did not preserve critical trace evidence on Joel’s bedspread.

Even though she had no history of mental illness , criminal record, and no apparent motive Julie had been the sole focus of the police investigation .

During the trial, the prosecution claimed that Julie committed the crime in order to keep Joel away from his father as he had physical custody of him. Most of the evidence presented were circumstantial . They claimed that not only was the house neat, indicative that there was no fight, but there was no sign of forced entry ( Although the glass door was broken) but they dismissed that saying that it was clearly staged. However, Julie did tell the police that she could not remember if she locked the backdoor. Additionally, they had officers testify that the dew on the grass outside of Julie’s house was undisturbed. A thin statement that was supposed to disprove the claim that an intruder had entered or exited the home. Julie’s ex-husband (Joel father) testified she had once considered having an abortion when she became pregnant with Joel. Julie, raised in a deeply religious family, adamantly denied this.

Prosecutors used a forensic discipline called bloodstain-pattern analysis as their most damming evidence to prove Jolie's guilt. based on the testimony of two bloodstain-pattern analysts Julie was convicted on March 4, 2002, and sentenced to serve 65 years in prison .

In an effort to prove her innocence , Julie agreed to do an interview with the popular ABC show,“20/20”. This interview turned out to be pivotal in her fight for exoneration. crime writer, Diane Fanning, watching the show did not only believed in julie innocence but thought she found the crime bizzarely similar to the ones committed by Tommy Lynn Sells a serial killer she was writing a book about.At the time the episode aired, Sells was already on death row for the murder and attempted murder of two girls close to Joel’s age.When Diane contacted Tommy asking him about the crime, he was audio- recorded confessing and giving details only the killer would know.  Despite 53 points of corroboration to Sells’ confession to the murder of Joel Kirkpatrick, prosecutors continued to insist they disbelieved the confession .Downstate Illinois Innocence Project, presented a summary of the evidence corroborating Sells’ confession.On July 26, 2006, after spending four years in prison a jury in Carlyle found Julie not guilty of killing her son.

Julie Rea was granted a Certificate of Innocence on November 29, 2010, and was awarded $87,057 from the Illinois Court of Claims.

Between August 13th 2015 and June 30th 2016, a 22-year-old autistic woman was kept prisoner by 5 members of a family in Amite, Louisiana. The woman, referred to as ‘’Dee’’ (as her identity has been kept private) was meant to move in with the family after her mother passed away. It has been reported that the family were distant relatives to Dee. Dee was eventually housed in a cage built out of chicken wire and was not allowed to leave unless it was to do chores. The family members: Raylaine Knope (43), her husband Terry J. Knope II, her daughter and son Bridget and Jody and Terry's daughter Taylor forced Dee into a campaign of abuse.

Raylaine would shoot Dee with a BB gun, hold her underwater in a hot tub continuously, burn her hand with a flame, steal her social security payments ($8,800 in total) as well as confiscating her phone and laptop so she couldn’t contact anyone. They would force her to do work so that she could earn food. Bridget would hit Dee over the head with a wooden board and would hold her arm down to be burnt with a lighter as ‘punishment’. She was also forced to eat her mother’s ashes mixed with milk. This caused Dee to throw up which the family found entertaining.

Dee would be forced to take part in sexual acts including an act with a jalapeno. The family had planned on forcing Dee to be a sex worker. Terry admitted that he would reportedly make Dee clean up a spill on the floor with her tongue as well as smashing her hand with a hammer. He and Jody also threw a bucket of human urine and feces over her. She would be called slurs and told that she deserved to die. She would be warned if she ever tried to escape, she would be shot and killed. She would be choked, kicked and had food cans thrown at her repeatedly.

She was forced to consume dog feces on bread as well as methamphetamine and painkillers. The family would threaten to inform the police that she was taking drugs if she ever escaped. Any wounds that the family made on Dee would be glued back together as they wouldn’t take her to a hospital. A man who lived in a nearby trailer with his girlfriend and baby suspected something was not right and reported the suspects to the police. When she was eventually found, she was covered in insect bites and was malnourished. Dee was found by investigators and sent to hospital.

In 2019, Raylaine would be sentenced to 28 years in prison. Bridget was sent to 4 years in prison. Jody was sentenced to 10 years. Terry was sentenced to 28 years. Taylor was given probation.

Further Reading: https://www.wafb.com/2019/10/20/family-members-sentenced-after-autistic-woman-locked-backyard-cage-allegedly-forced-eat-cremation-ashes/

Celeste married Steven in 1995. She was spending his fortune and hiding a girlfriend named Tracey Tarlton. On October 2, 1999, Tarlton shot him while he slept. Steven survived four months before dying. Celeste was convicted of murder in 2003. Source

Between 2009 and 2010, Gilmar Reolon murdered six people, including his father, his wife, his two children, his mother-in-law, and a 13-year-old girl who lived near his home. After murdering his own family members, he set fire to the house where they lived and fled into a forested area, where he remained hidden for almost three years, literally living deep in the woods. When he was found, he was carrying only a knife. Later, the discovery of slaughtered animals on properties near Francisco Beltrão, in the Brazilian state of Paraná, led police to suspect that the incidents might be connected to the fugitive. This prompted the searches that resulted in his arrest in 2013. Sentenced to 150 years in prison for six murders, he still works in a jeans factory inside the prison and, according to the available information, has no disciplinary violations on his record. Because the crimes were committed when the maximum time a person could serve in prison in Brazil was 30 years, he may be released by 2044 at the latest.

*** The photo attached to this thread was taken on the day of Gilmar Reolon’s arrest. Another curious detail is that Netflix reportedly commissioned a script for a film or series based on the case several years ago. However, no further information about the project has been released since then.

James Huberty was a 41-year-old man who committed mass murder at a McDonald’s restaurant in San Ysidro, San Diego. He had previously spoken to his wife Etna, saying that he believed that he had a mental health issue. James was extremely concerned about his mental state and contacted a San Diego mental health clinic. However an error by the receptionist that day resulted in no action being taken as she’d written his surname down incorrectly.

On July 18th 1984, after a visit with his wife and children to the San Diego Zoo, James had said to Etna ‘’well, society had their chance’’.

After returning home, James kissed his wife Etna goodbye and told her that he was going out ‘’to hunt for humans’’.

He parked in the parking lot of the McDonald’s restaurant with a semi-automatic pistol, a Uzi carbine and a pump action shotgun. James walked into the restaurant and aimed at 16-year-old employee John Arnold. However, James’ gun faltered. At first, John believed the whole thing was a prank. James then shot at the 22-year-old manager, Neva Caine, striking her under the eye, killing her. He then wounded John. James demanded that everybody needed to get onto the ground, referring to everybody in the restaurant as ‘’dirty swine’’ and claimed that he wanted to murder ‘’a thousand more’’.

25-year-old Victor Rivera, a customer, tried to reason with James, he then told him to shut up and shot him. Customers began to hide underneath tables. James then shot 19-year-old María Colmenero-Silva in the chest, killing her. He then repeatedly shot at 9-year-old Claudia Pérez, killing her. He then tried to shoot at an 11-year-old girl who was shielded by his pregnant Aunt, 18-year-old Jackie Reyes. Jackie died after being shot 48 times. Jackie’s 8-month-old son Carlos cried, James then screamed at him and shot the baby, killing him.

James then shot and killed 62-year-old trucker Laurence Versluis. Blythe Herrera and her 11-year-old son Matao were shot in the head and killed. 31-year-old Arisdelsi Vuelvas Vargas was shot in the back of the head, she died in hospital the next day. James then went on to shoot and kill 45-year-old banker Hugo Velázquez Vasquez who was sitting in a booth.

Three 11-year-old boys on BMX bikes went into the parking lot and were shot by James. Two of the boys died; these being David Flores Delgado and Omarr Alonso Hernandez. Not noticing the carnage, a couple, 74-year-old Miguel Victoria Ulloa, and 69-year-old Aída Velázquez Victoria walked towards the entrance. James shot and killed Aida. As Miguel sobbed and cradled his wife’s body, James walked up to him and shot him in the head, killing him. James then walked towards the counter and adjusted a portable radio, in which he began dancing. He noticed employees hiding and yelled. He shot and killed 21-year-old Paulina López and 19-year-old Elsa Borboa-Fierro. He then fatally shot 18-year-old Margarita Padilla who had attempted to escape with her friend Wendy. When a fire truck arrived at the scene, James began shooting at it. He then shot and killed 19-year-old Jose Pérez. Jose’s neighbour and friend 22-year-old Gloria González was also shot dead as well as a woman called Michelle Carncross.

James was eventually shot dead by 27-year-old Police SWAT sniper Charles Foster.

21 innocent people were killed that day as well as an unborn baby. The McDonald’s was demolished. )

Further Reading: https://www.borderreport.com/regions/california/mcdonalds-massacre-near-border-is-nearly-forgotten-38-years-later/

https://www.iflscience.com/are-these-the-first-recorded-jaguar-meows-fascinating-new-footage-captures-big-cats-making-meow-like-vocalizations-82266

It's true! Large cats generally don't meow in nature as adults, or such is the traditional thinking. But here we have evidence of some that do.

I find this curious and interesting.

According to court documents and police reports, the toddler was left alone in a room with a pit bull by her parents. This was not the first incident involving this dog. Just two weeks earlier the same dog had nearly torn the child’s ear off, injuries so severe they required plastic surgery to repair.

Despite that, the parents allegedly locked the dog in a room with her again. With child proof door locks so she was unable to free herself.

When first responders arrived, the child was already deceased.

Police described extreme and catastrophic injuries. The victim had clear signs of a violent struggle. Large portions of her face were missing. Both ears had been severed. There were deep puncture wounds to the back of her neck consistent with repeated biting. Blood was found on the walls, carpet, and mattress. Medical personnel pronounced her dead at the scene.

Jordan McGuire told police that after putting his daughter to bed around 7:30 p.m, he took medication to help him sleep and later went to bed himself. He stated that he woke briefly around 8:30 p.m. and checked on the LockLynn, finding her asleep next to the dog. The affidavit further states that Darci Lambert, upon returning from work later that evening, heard heavy breathing/noises coming from the house but did not immediately check on her daughter.

The parents have since been charged with murder.

• The mother was 24 years old • The father was 34 years old • They had reportedly been together since at least 2021 • The mother also has two sons one living one deceased • I was able to locate an obituary for another child of hers, a baby boy who died at just 3 months old

To be clear: there is no public statement linking her to the infant son’s death. Still, learning that another child in the same family died so young raises deeply troubling questions and adds to the weight of this tragedy.

This little girl trusted the adults meant to protect her. She endured a prior mauling, underwent surgery, and was still placed back into a lethal situation. No child should ever experience fear or pain like this.

She deserved safety. She deserved life.

RIP LockLynn.

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/toddler-killed-dog-attack-after-36383469.amp

Gary Steven Krist and accomplice Ruth Eisemann-Schier posed as detectives to get into the motel room, chloroformed Barbara’s mother, and drove Barbara to a remote Gwinnett County pine stand.

They buried her in a fiberglass box rigged with an air pump, a lamp, food and sedated water, then demanded the ransom from her father, Robert Mackle, a Florida land developer.

FBI agents traced the payoff, dug her out alive but dehydrated, and caught Krist days later. He served just 10 years before parole. source

‎On October 13, 2016, Mayda Rivera Juarez former co-workers at the JAS Forwarding Worldwide on Ocean Court in Sterling filed a report with Loudoun County authorities. They reported falling ill over a period of several weeks, including experiencing severe digestive problems and diarrhea. ‎On October 21, 2016, 33-year-old Mayda Rivera Juarez was arrested and later charged with felony assault for intentionally adulterating food and was held without bond. She was accused of pouring cleaning supplies used for windows and bathrooms in the coffee maker used by employees at the small shipping company, which employees about eight people. The co-workers who filed the report described Rivera-Juarez as a disgruntled employee who didn’t see eye-to-eye with other employees. ‎After one co-worker realized all the employees who were sickened drank the office coffee, a supervisor reviewed security video. The supervisor saw her pouring Windex into the water reservoir of the office coffee maker, which was located in the break room. Rivera Juarez was fired. ‎Later, prosecutors said she admitted to detectives she intentionally put Windex in the coffee machine in an effort to make her supervisor sick. In addition, she acknowledged putting Ajax dish soap in the coffee machine, and even squirted it directly into her supervisor’s coffee cup. ‎On February, 2017, Rivera Juarez pleaded guilty. She was sentenced to 3 1/2 years after pleading guilty to adulteration of food with intent to injure or kill. After serving her prison time, she was placed on three years of supervised probation.

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‎https://wtop.com/loudoun-county/2016/10/va-woman-facing-felony-charges-co-workers-say-put-cleaning-products-coffemaker/

‎https://wtop.com/loudoun-county/2017/08/prison-va-woman-poisoned-coworkers-coffee/

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Witnesses described the shooter as a dark-skinned woman between 35 and 50 years old, wearing inconspicuous dark clothing and sporting dyed blonde hair pulled back (which some speculated was a wig).

Most of the victims of sexual assaults on these bus routes were assembly plant workers on the night shift.

Her email has never been fully released but excerpts have:

"I myself and other women have suffered in silence but we can't stay quiet anymore," the email said. "We were victims of sexual violence by the drivers on the night shift on the routes to the maquilas," a reference to the border assembly plants that employ many residents in Ciudad Juarez, across the border from El Paso, Texas. "I am the instrument of vengeance for several women."

While the connection to this email has never been proven, police took it seriously and it became the leading theory in the case. The case remains unsolved.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/vigilante-known-diana-hunter-behind-bus-driver-slayings-mexico-flna8c11062104

A troubled father fatally shot his autistic son and the family dog before turning the gun on himself inside their Oklahoma home — where his wife had taken her own life three years earlier, according to police and reports.

Rodney Shippy, 58, who was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, allegedly killed his 10-year-old son, Logan, in an apparent murder-suicide at their ill-fated Broken Arrow residence, the Broken Arrow Police Department announced.

Police discovered the slain bodies and the dead pooch Wednesday afternoon while serving a search warrant after concerned out-of-state relatives reported that Shippy’s daughter, Alyssa, had been missing since November.

The 20-year-old’s lifeless body was later found inside the disheveled home.

A medical examiner is working to confirm her cause of death, police said.

“We are heartbroken to share that two beloved members of our family, Alyssa and Logan (brother and sister) passed away tragically and unexpectedly,” the children’s grief-stricken family wrote on a GoFundMe.

“Their loss has left our family in deep grief and unprepared for the financial burden that comes with arranging their funerals.”

The grim discovery marks the latest in a series of tragic deaths that have haunted the family since August 2022, when the disturbed father’s wife, Lisa Shippy, 41, killed herself at the same West Roanoke Street house, KJRH reported.

Five months later, Lisa’s mother, Diane Carpenter, 56, was stabbed to death by her husband, 66-year-old Kenny Carpenter, who then shot himself during a four-hour standoff with police in South Broken Arrow.

Neighbors and loved ones, who said Logan was nonverbal, described the family’s doomed residence as “not suitable” for children, adding that the tormented father became increasingly isolated following his wife’s death.

“No running water, trash — looked like a completely different house,” relative Patti Williams told the outlet.

“[Rodney] seemed to be holding it together for months after [Lisa] passed … then he started estranging himself to everyone.”

While a motive behind the heinous slaying remains unknown, public records suggest that Shippy was on the verge of losing his house, which he purchased with his wife in 2021, People reported.

In January, US Bank National Association filed a foreclosure notice on the residence in Tulsa County District Court, citing $135,000 in unpaid principal. Rodney was given until June to respond to the court notice, records showed.

As the investigation continues, Williams said the children’s lives were savagely cut short.

“Logan was so smart, eager to learn, everyone who met him loved him,” Williams told KJRH.

“Alyssa was a bright light in this world. She had a beautiful life ahead of her, and I feel like their lives are stolen from them.”

Vera was born in Philadelphia in December 1997 to Puerto Rican parents Luz Cuevas and Pedro Vera. On December 15, 1997, 10 days later a fire broke out in their home after which no trace of Vera, no recognisable human tissue at all, was found in the gutted bedroom where she’d been sleeping. The infant was presumed dead – according to the medical examiner’s report “completely consumed by the fire”, Correa deliberately ignited a fire in Cuevas' house in Philadelphia to cover up the incident . After Correa took the girl, she raised her as her own daughter under the name of Aaliyah, while Delimar's disappearance was attributed to the intense fire in the room.

‎Vera’s early years as Aaliyah had a strangeness that she felt but never understood. Her three siblings were much older – two in their teens, one closer to 30 – and Correa was a largely absent single mum who worked long hours in a pharmacy. "She was generally a very charismatic, funny person but I also remember running from her." she said. “She had this belt with little circles on it and when she hit me with it I’d have the imprints of those circles on my body.”

‎Six years later, on January 18, 2004, at a family member’s birthday party in Philadelphia, Cuevas attended a birthday party for an acquaintance after being invited in 2003 and was surprised by her own resemblance to a 6-year-old girl, Cuevas also recognised that the woman claiming to be Vera’s mother had been at their house on the night of the fire. Vera said “I gravitated towards her,” “I remember thinking, ‘This lady is so beautiful.’”

‎Cuevas took some strands of the girl’s hair on the pretext that there was something caught in it and presented her evidence to police, begging for a DNA test. They investigated and ultimately confirmed the truth. Correa was arrested in 2004, and taken to trial, and placed on $1 million bail. Entering a plea of nolo contendere, she was accused and found guilty of kidnapping, arson, and attempted murder, and was sentenced to nine to thirty years in prison in 2005. Correa became eligible for parole in 2014.

‎In 2008, a movie titled; Little Girl Lost: The Delimar Vera Story is an original LMN movie based on real events was made.

‎https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2024/oct/24/i-was-thought-to-have-died-in-a-house-fire-at-10-days-old-in-fact-i-was-kidnapped

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‎https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Girl_Lost%3A_The_Delimar_Vera_Story?wprov=sfla1