The black dress Michelle Martinko was wearing when she was murdered was sent to the lab for testing. Jerry Lynn Burns (defendant-appellant), which is before the Iowa Supreme Court. Investigators struggled over the years to connect DNA collected at the scene to a suspect. [9] She was fully dressed, and the medical examiner determined she had not been sexually assaulted. [16] Based on cash found in Martinko's purse, police concluded that she had not been robbed. Ha ha. At the time of his arrest, Burns ran a powder-coating business called, Advanced Coating Concepts. Police said they were able to connect Burns to the case with DNA evidence. The Delaware County Sheriff said it did review the case after Burns' arrest and "feels that was clearly the case.". Did you listen to the DNA: ID episode on the Martinko case? 1, 2023 9:40 am7h ago, Crime and Courts Feb. 28, 2023 5:22 pm23h ago, Crime and Courts Feb. 28, 2023 5:19 pm23h ago, Jeff Linder High School Basketball 21m ago21m ago. Exactly 39 years after her death, police took a Manchester man into custody after matching his DNA to blood found at the crime scene. 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. They then used genealogical data as well as a covertly collected DNA sample from Burns to positively identify him, authorities said. Jerry knew he was called to be a preacher at the age of 13 and after many years of arguing with God. The detective looked through the case files and found what he thought to be the murderer's blood. DNA: ID. This really is an excellent true crimes podcast that is different from the many others that are being produced. More than 40 years after Jerry Lynn Burns stabbed Michelle Martinko to death, a family and a community has closure. The video of that is on YouTube and is mentioned around the 25:28 mark. It showed that she was a distant relative of the person whose DNA was found at the crime scene a second cousin once removed. This revealed everything, and Burns was ultimately declared guilty of first-degree murder. At the department, Burns sked for a lawyer. On December 19, 2018, he was arrested in Manchester, Iowa, on the 39th anniversary of Michelle's death. Through his research, he discovered that a woman named Brandy Jennings had uploaded her DNA to a website service to trace her own family history. Burns originally refuted every charge of involvement in this crime during interrogation by claiming he was unable to provide the authorities with a "plausible explanation" for why his DNA was found at the crime site. In 2018, the company entered the DNA data from the case into the public genealogy website GEDmatch, where it found a familial DNA match. After weeks pursuing a wide range of possible blood relatives, Parabon helped him narrow the search down to three middle-aged brothers in Iowa who would have been young men back in 1979: Ken, Don and Jerry Burns. They . The woman communicated her information to the daughter of the secretary of the Public Safety Commissioner and believed that it would be passed on to police if it was important. While these occurrences sounded suspicious, the police didn't believe Burns had anything to do with them. 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. Dr. Obrecht Learns if She's a Bone Marrow Match for Willow Plus, Nikolas' Whereabouts Are Revealed. Jerry Lynn Burns appeared in Linn County this morning on a video monitor from jail where he had his bail set at $5 million. [26] When the DNA sample was tested, it matched the blood sample found at the crime scene. She was seen inside the mall by friends and coworkers because Martinko worked in the mall. Grab your popcorn & get comfy as we dive into some dusty old cases revitalized thanks to genetic genealogy (& a bit of good ol' fashioned detective work! [11] As the investigation dwindled, a $10,000 reward was offered for information that would lead police to the killer. Jim grew up . He began to search for her, as did the police. A witness testified he signed this image from a newspaper article about the case. This sounds like a serial killer. After Burns arrest, several viewers questioned whether Burns could be a suspect in the death of his wife, Patricia, in 2008. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, was charged with first-degree murder and is scheduled to appear Thursday in Linn County Court. 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. During this time, according to the testimony, he made a reference to 'blacking out but didn't explain it. Investigators placed the three brothers under surveillance in an attempt to covertly collect their DNA, according to The Gazette. Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, was arrested on Wednesday after police said he was linked by DNA from blood found on Michelle Martinko's clothing and elsewhere in the car at the crime scene. 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. He testified last week he took the straw after it was discarded. JERRY M. LYNN "Bear" Crown Point, Indiana Jerry M. "Bear" Lynn, age 59, of Crown Point, IN passed away on April 4, 2010. She was stabbed multiple times in the face, neck, and chest. It was a cold case until 2018, when familial DNA identified a suspect 39 years after the crime who was charged, tried and convicted of her murder.[2]. But by 2 a.m., her father called the police because she had not returned home. Homerline, a soft-spoken woman who enjoyed teaching Sunday School, did everything possible to avoid attention. [2], On December 19, 2018, exactly 39 years after Martinko's murder, Burns was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. 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 Cedar Rapids on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020. "I am happy Michelle finally gets justice.". Allison also recounted a time when Burns tried to tear down a cellmate's bunk bed because he was snoring too loudly. Reporter covering state and federal courts. Parabon. It goes beyond the simple news reporting of case solved using genetic genealogy. The podcast explores who these perpetrators are, possible motives and features interviews with investigators who are willing to talk because the cases have already been resolved in court. Denlinger took over the case in 2015, part of a second generation of cops who had struggled for decades to solve this seemingly unsolvable murder. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Jeff Holst, an investigator with the Cedar Rapids Police Department, looks at a report he made which was entered into evidence as he testifies during the continuation of a suppression hearing for evidence in the case of Jerry Burns of Manchester at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020. On December 19, 2018, exactly 39 years after Martinko's murder, the police confronted Burns and arrested him after his DNA matched the one found on Martinko's clothes. In 2012, while serving a life sentence for an unrelated attack, the man died in prison from colon cancer. This "tragic case" had been "haunting this community for 39 years," Cedar Rapids Police Chief Wayne Jerman said Wednesday. 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 . According to Reusse, Burns would generally be a bit more careful with his language during a press conference or whenever there were cameras . The Cedar Rapids teenager was found stabbed to death in her parents car parked at Westdale Mall. [3] The brothers were placed under surveillance, and investigators began to attempt to collect their DNA secretly. Denlinger then told him he had a search warrant for his DNA. Jerry Lynn Burns was finally arrested in October 2018 for the murder of Michelle Martinko, that took place 39 years prior. Tests eliminated the other two brothers as suspects, but the DNA from Burns' straw matched the blood found on Martinko's clothing. The police then began procuring evidence secretly. Jerry Burns. There is no known DNA evidence tying Burns to the Huisentruit case and no evidence that he knew Jodi Huisentruit. In October 2018, an investigator was able to snag a straw used by one of the three brothers, Jerry Lynn Burns, and tested it against the sample, getting a match. To learn more about the murder of Michelle Martinko, watch Dateline: Unforgettable on December 22, at 10:00 pm on Oxygen 79. Burns was read his Miranda rights and taken to the police department. Jerry Burns enters the courtroom in 2020 (Image via We Are Iowa) Burns was born in Manchester, Iowa in 1953 and graduated from West . 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. READ NEXT: Serial Killers Ex Thinks There Were More Victims, Parents of Murdered Teenager Did Not Live to See Her Killer Brought to Justice, Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. [2] Once there, she perused the stores and spoke with friends and other people she knew who worked there. Burns made an initial court appearance via video Thursday morning and said he would fill out an application for a court-appointed counsel. Jim was born on April 20, 1933 in Walsenburg, Colorado to Geraldine Hudson McAlpine and Victor Paul Hudson and passed away on February 24, 2023 at his home in Amarillo, Texas with his family by his side at the age of 89. Burns maintained that he did not know Martinko and was not there when she died, although an investigator later testified that Burns did not specifically deny killing Martinko. . He would have been around 25-years-old when he killed Michelle Martinko in December of 1979. Denlinger had found the needle in the haystack. Sonny arrives at his restaurant and gives Dex, who is there, the night off. A composite sketch of the suspect was released in June 1980 with the help of two witnesses. His trial was originally scheduled for October 14, 2019, but in September the defense requested a delay in order to gather more evidence and interview witnesses. I just began listening to the DNA:ID podcast. Denlinger began contacting genealogy companies for help in trying to find a family tree that could lead to the person whose DNA matched that found at the crime scene. Hi! Denlinger said they were uploaded to GEDmatch by Parabon NanoLabs, a private company the department worked with. Doug Larison to reexamine the file and find what he believed to be the killers DNA in blood found on Martinkos dress that was not her blood. Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com, Trish Mehaffey Crime and Courts Sep. 12, 2021 10:48 am535d ago, Gage Miskimen Health Care and Medicine Jul. KCRG-TV9: 10PM Newscast, December 19, 2018 Arrest in Michelle Martinko Case, KCRG-TV9 Staff Anchors: Bruce Aune and Beth Malicki Meteorologist: Joe Winters Executive Producer: Aaron Hepker Producer: Ellen Kurt Director: Terri Walter Reporters: Dave Franzman, Forrest Saunders, Chantelle Navarro Photographers: Rebecca Varilek, Jay Greene, Michelle Martinko's Family Speaks to Law & Crime Network About the Jerry Burns Verdict, Michelle Martinko's Family Speaks to Law & Crime Network About the Jerry Burns Verdict #JerryBurns #JerryBurnsTrial #MichelleMartinko, Serial Killers Ex Thinks There Were More Victims. In 2018, familial DNA identified a suspect named Jerry Lynn Burns, and the case was finally laid to rest with the accused getting sentenced to life in prison without parole. 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