A juvenile found carrying a knife was interviewed and ruled out in her murder, as was a shopping center employee who had told police that he enjoyed following women and ogling store mannequins. Denlinger recorded him using a camera that was hidden inside a coffee mug. William Brangham: Turns out the murderer was a distant, distant relative of Jennings. (Supreme Court No. 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. "I am happy Michelle finally gets justice.". A Manchester man convicted of first-degree murder has announced he has hired a new attorney who will seek to exonerate him of the crime, a private investigator has told the Manchester Press . The victim was the younger of two daughters of Albert and Janet Martinko. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette). The victim, Martinko, was an 18-year-old high school student from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, who was visiting a mall to buy a winter coat. [16] Another rumor emerged that a second stabbing had happened in the following days and that police were keeping it secret, which police denied. [26] When the DNA sample was tested, it matched the blood sample found at the crime scene. He had worked for John Deere and co-owned a truck stop. 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 . Her case went cold for decades until DNA testing finally brought her family some peace and put her murderer behind bars. To learn more about the murder of Michelle Martinko, watch Dateline: Unforgettable on December 22, at 10:00 pm on Oxygen 79. 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. [2] The police received more than 100 tips following the release of the new images. What began to turn the case around was the emergence of DNA as a forensic tool for crime fighting in the late 1990s. Parabon. The new technique, started this year with the "Golden State Killer," has identified over two dozen suspects. Jerry Lynn Burns will raise two child. Log in or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know. 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. On May 29, 2020, Burns' attorneys filed a motion asking for a new trial, claiming his constitutional and . Please logout and login again. On December 19, 2018, he was arrested in Manchester, Iowa, on the 39th anniversary of Michelle's death. Thanks to advances in technology and DNA evidence, a jury in an Iowa courthouse . At long last, in 2018, Jerry Lynn was caught and blamed for the teen's manslaughter and, in spite of the fact that it had been a very long time after the wrongdoing, the once cool case is right now a subject of discussion on A&E's executioner cases. 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. In 2018, the company entered the DNA data from the case into the public genealogy website GEDmatch, where it found a familial DNA match. She never had any school problems. [26] He was not able to provide an explanation for why his DNA would have been present at the crime scene. Fifty-five-year-old Brian "Farmer" Burns was reported missing to the Delaware County Sheriff's Office in Manchester, Iowa, on Friday, Dec. 20, 2013, and the sheriff's office is asking for the public's help in locating him. . Ha ha. [2] Police determined from the lack of blood outside the car that Martinko had been killed while in the car, and the medical examiner later estimated she had died between 8 and 10p.m.[17] The murder weapon was "sharp-pointed" but not definitively a knife, and the medical examiner could not determine its size. Martinko's father Albert and mother Janet died in 1995 and 1998 respectively. Works at Target Distribution Center. ABC News' Matt Foster and Ahmad Hemingway contributed to this report. Now, her suspected killer is set to go on trial", "Search warrant shows how relative's DNA led police to Manchester man in Michelle Martinko's death", "40 years later: What we know about Michelle Martinko and the arrest that re-opened the cold case", "Jerry Burns found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Michelle Martinko", "BREAKING: Jerry Burns, convicted of killing Michelle Martinko, officially sentenced to life in prison", "30 years ago: Murder of teen haunts those who knew her", "Distant relative learns her DNA led to arrest in Michelle Martinko slaying", "Friends of man arrested in Martinko murder shocked", "Iowa community tries to reconcile a cold case arrest and its long history with a neighbor", "One-time suspect in unsolved Cedar Rapids homicide dies in prison", "Police collected DNA from dozens while investigating 1979 killing of Michelle Martinko", "UPDATE: Tips coming into CRPD since Martinko press conference", "39 years later, man charged in cold-case killing of high school student Michelle Martinko", "Jury Finds Burns Guilty Of First Degree Murder In Killing Of Martinko", "Trial for Jerry Burns, charged in the 1979 killing of 18-year-old Michelle Martinko, moved out of Linn County", "No delay in trial for man accused of killing Michelle Martinko", "Burns' Second Hearing Focuses on Pornography", "From the crime to conviction, a timeline of events in the murder of Michelle Martinko", "Witnesses describe murder scene in trial of man accused of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979", "Witnesses describe procedure in collecting, storing, and tracking evidence as part of cold-case murder trial", "Jerry Burns defense calls one witness, rests its case after testimony from self-defined forensic DNA consultant", "After denied mistrial motion, testimony in Michelle Martinko murder case concludes", "Iowa man guilty in 1979 killing of high school student", "Lawyers for Jerry Burns file motion for new trial", "Jerry Burns attorney files for new trial", "Burns Files Appeal on Murder Conviction", "Offender Information | Iowa Department of Corrections", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murder_of_Michelle_Martinko&oldid=1140457418, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 04:20. Unfortunately, this led the police nowhere at the time and the case gradually got cold. 39 years later after the murder, a person named Jerry Lynn Burns was arrested in Manchester, Iowa, and charged with first-degree murder. Jan. 16, 2020 7:49 pm, Updated: Jan. 17, 2020 2:37 pm. There is no known DNA evidence tying Burns to the Huisentruit case and no evidence that he knew Jodi Huisentruit. The murder of Michelle Martinko in the parking lot of Cedar Rapids' Westdale Mall has some eerie connections to the Huisentruit case. Life legacy Wallace Jerry Huggins Funeral services will be Tuesday April 11, 2017 at 1 PM from the Chapel of the Taylor Funeral Home with Bro. A funeral service for Jerry Calvin Lynn, 78, will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, July 16, 2022, at Rose-Neath Funeral Home, 2201 Airline Drive, Bossier City, Louisiana. Did you listen to the DNA: ID episode on the Martinko case? 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. [10][11] She was also a talented performer, joined the twirling squad as a sophomore, and performed in choirs and theater productions. Vikings PR. 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. The defense team for . Jerry was born May 22, 1944, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, to Fred Richard Lynn and Mary Ellen Manning and passed away on July 10, 2022. Burns' wife, Patricia . '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 Lynn Burns is accused of the 1979 cold case murder of Michelle Martinko in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Authorities believe Burns stabbed the Kennedy High School senior in the chest and face inside a car parked at Westdale Mall in Cedar Rapids. When Burns disposed of the straw, the investigator collected it and tested it for DNA. During the investigation, the police assumed that there were personal motives involved in the murder due to the nature of Martinko's stab wounds. 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. Dave Franzman, a longtime reporter at ABC Cedar Rapids affiliate KCRG, Michelle Martinko's high school friend, Elizabeth Laymon, told The Des Moines Register. Jerry Lynn Burns. [11] As the investigation dwindled, a $10,000 reward was offered for information that would lead police to the killer. Subsequently he interviewed Jerry Burns, who denied knowing or ever meeting Michelle Martinko. Jerry Burns . Michelle Martinko was an 18yr old student from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA. Jerry Burns may be a hitched man, having a . Martinko was 18, a senior in high school in 1979, when she was accosted as she was getting into her car on a chilly night in December following a trip to the mall. And he had the daunting task of trying to figure out who that could be, armed only with an unidentified sample of blood DNA. Michelle Martinko, pictured in a photo released by the Cedar Rapids Police Department, was stabbed to death in December 1979. He grew up in Manchester, Iowa, and graduated from West Delaware High School in 1972. May 12, 2021 at 04:20 PM. Her killer will go undetected for almost 40yrs! To learn the entire story of Michelle Martinko's murder, watch Dateline: Unforgettable at 10 pm on Oxygen 79. Updated on: August 4, 2021 / 2:29 PM 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. This really is an excellent true crimes podcast that is different from the many others that are being produced. Mail, proper postage prepaid, addressed to Jerry L. Burns, No. Offender records are public information pursuant to Section 904.601 (1)Iowa Code (1999). JERRY LYNN BURNS, Defendant-Appellant. I just began listening to the DNA:ID podcast. The police considered the murder personal in nature based on the manner of death, according to Little Village magazine. Denlinger said he intentionally chose that day to interview Burns because it was the anniversary of Martinko's death. "Burnsie was laying siege to New Orleans," said Lynn. 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. UPDATE: Trial set for Iowa man accused in 1979 killing of Michelle Martinko . Denlinger had to consider that Michelle could have been murdered by a stranger. Burns had previously been married to Patricia Burns, who died in 2008 from suicide. Jerry A. Burns, age 69, of Bryan, Texas went home to be with the Lord on Thursday, September 29, 2022 at 10:56 p.m. Denlinger had found the needle in the haystack. Thirty-nine years to the day after she was killed, a suspect was charged thanks to DNA and genetic genealogy. According to KWWL, at the sentencing, Stonebaker said that Burns stole those 39 years and many more from a sweet smart, talented girl who never got her chance at college, a career, marriage, children and by now, even grandchildren.. He was convicted of first-degree murder and received the mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole. Lives in Brentwood, Arkansas. Lighthouse: The Dark Being, a group of 43 people. [9] Martinko was found inside collapsed over the passenger seat and stabbed to death. [2], On October 29, 2018, an investigator observed one of the brothers, Jerry Lynn Burns, drink multiple sodas using a plastic straw. [14] Burns's cousin, Brian Burns, went missing on December 19, 2013 and has not been found. [9] After the event, she asked her friend and twirling squad teammate if she wanted to join her on a shopping trip to the Westdale Mall, which had recently opened, and where Martinko worked. State of Iowa. Accountability doled out to suspects. Derek Chauvin's ex-wife . See Photos. Things that make it difficult. Burns repeatedly said he didn't know how his DNA was found at the crime scene. CEDAR RAPIDS - Police investigators couldn't find evidence that Jerry Burns and Michelle Martinko knew each other. Exactly 39 years after her death, police took a Manchester man into custody after matching his DNA to blood found at the crime scene. And the crucial link is a man named Jerry Burns. Burns made an initial court appearance via video Thursday morning and said he would fill out an application for a court-appointed counsel. [7] Eventually, more than 125 people would have their DNA swabbed and compared against samples taken from the scene. She had been stabbed 21 times in the face, neck, and chest. As reported by CBS News, Burns was not arrested until 2018, when DNA evidence confirmed he was responsible for Martinko's death. [8][9] She attended Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School, where she was an above average student and well regarded by school officials. appeal from the iowa district court for linn county honorable fae hoover grinde, district court judge brief of amici curiae: american civil liberties union american civil liberties union of iowa electronic frontier foundation in support of defendant-appellant *pro hac vice application pending jennifer lynch* Cutting-edge DNA technology was used to solve the cold case. Jim grew up . Sign Up. 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. Police said they were able to connect Burns to the case with DNA evidence. Jerry Lynn Burns faces a first degree murder charge in the killing of Michelle Martinko. 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. Police sent the blood samples to CODIS the nationwide data base of DNA collected from arrested offenders but didn't get a hit. Jerry Burns, of Manchester, is led into a courtroom at the Scott County Courthouse in Davenport for closing arguments in his murder trial in February 2020. On December 20, 2018, a district judge set his bond at $5 million. 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. Over two dozen suspects log in or sign up for Facebook to connect Burns to the case! 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