Tell me your thoughts on cold case reviews of murders that are more than 1/2 a century old

[collectingcpd]

There have been 2 reports in the last 48hrs on BBC news about cold case reviews on child murders carried out 60 and 50 years ago. I’m prepared to be told I’m wrong, but I think this is a bit of a waste of scarce police money. If they haven’t found the killer in 50 years, they are unlikely to find him now (although I appreciate there are rare exceptions).The killer is probably dead. If he or she isn’t dead they obviously haven’t turned into a serial killer, so aren’t a significant risk to the public and we’ve already missed the opportunity to serve justice as they will have lived almost their whole lives as a free person. The parents of the child are dead, so they won’t see justice served or get closure, and I simply don’t believe one quote that says ‘a shadow will hang over this valley until justice is served’, how? As I said, I’m happy to be told why my views are wrong, with some explanation, but I think that police money would be better spent on crime prevention now, than trying to solve a case that in all likelihood is never going to be solved, and is going to be if no benefit to anyone living.

It also sends a message to modern day wannabe criminals who might be feeling confident that they could get away with murder/heinous crime, but upon seeing a cold case murder resolved might not want to spend the rest of their lives looking over their shoulder waiting to be caught knowing that the police do not give up.

Littleoakhorn

Snap!

With advances in technology cold cases can be re-reviewed with the hope that the killer/offender can be found.

Sometimes it also helps with time having passed, new people to a case can sometimes see what others haven't been able to or be able to view from another perspective.

In my personal opinion, if a person has killed/offended once, they may (not always) be of the mindset that they will or can do it again, which can assist in their capture and brought to justice.

I have been lucky enough to have never been in this situation, but I feel it is very important to those that have been bereaved to have closure, to know what has happened to their loved one / friends; it helps people to heal.

I too think it’s important that the people who commit these crimes feel hunted for the rest of their miserable existence. Also that for every investigation there are lessons learned to inform future ones.

I agree with you. The police are struggling to maintain services and the cash should be going to current crime. I wish it were otherwise but that has to be the priority.

A girl disappeared from the next village when I was growing up. Bike found in field, nothing more.
A couple of weeks ago saw the 50th anniversary of her disappearance and the police made a new appeal for information. This made national and local news, radio and newspapers.
Since then 18 contacts have been made to the police. As yet there are no new lines of enquiry but who knows?
Sadly the girl's parents are now dead but she had siblings and wider family, our whole community was affected at the time.

Surely OP if it is at all possible, she should be found and given a funeral/burial, laid to rest with dignity? Something she, like us all deserve, and which for now she has been denied.
You sound rather callous OP, but perhaps I am uncharitable and it is simply that you've not considered more than one perspective of this.

50 years would be nothing is it was your sibling, or your parent, or your toddler.

If you want to see how short 50 years is, when it is your dearest who has been killed, read up on the life of Winnie Johnson, mother of Keith Bennett. Then imagine if it wasn't about finding the body, but about securing justice.

There is no time limitation on when a criminal offence can be brought to trial. It's completely right that investigations into the most serious offences are never formally closed. And that active investigation is restarted whenever the police think they can make some headway.

As an aside, advances in DNA techniques mean that there can be new forensic evidence, and that if course can be a game changer.

You sound rather callous OP. Really not meaning to. I guess I’m just thinking of it from the perspective of limited resources and best use of the money the police have. IMHO that isn’t solving a crime committed 60 years ago where the criminal (quite possibly) and the victims parents are dead. Far better to use that money for crime prevention and helping the next generation. But I take on board that if it was my sister/friend/neighbour I may feel differently. I don’t think my view is very different from the view held by many on the high profile case where over £10m has been spent looking for one child who’s parents are still alive. It it was my child of course I’d want an answer (although in 50 years time I’m not so sure)But I think many people agree that the amount of resources spent looking for that particular child are are ridiculous.

My question hinges on ‘with limited resources’ not whether justice should be served (it should), whether a parent have a right to closure (they should), whether a body deserves a proper burial (it should). I’m not questioning whether all of these things should happen, but whether with limited finances this is the best use of money. Many of you think cold case reviews should be done, and I thank you for your time in responding.

I saw one recently where two children were murdered and no killer was cought

30 years later a DNA matched to a known criminal - the son of the killer, they were able to trace his father and arrest him for murder

Why should he be free to enjoy his pint and grandkids? He may linger be a danger to the community, but those children deserved justice however late in the day

So many new techniques and technologies have been developed over the last fifty years, e.g. DNA testing. Also increased communication and social media etc means that news of the investigation can be publicised better. Even people who moved away from the area years ago can be reached to see if they know anything.

Just think about what can be discovered by applying new techniques to old evidence though. They’re not just picking random 50 year old investigations, they’re picking ones that they think they can make a difference on.

I think the resources argument is misguided tbh. We don’t know the ins and outs of police resourcing. Some old samples sent to the lab and investigation work redone by CID doesn’t affect bobbies on the beat

It’s important that people who commit these crimes never get to rest thinking they have gotten away with it. May they always look over their shoulder.

Also at the time of the crime a lot of man hours would have been invested and in some ways continuing their work decades later is also respecting and supporting their colleagues efforts from years ago by implementing new technology, methods and forensics to resolve these cold cases.

I also agree with the communication, linking crimes, databases etc

Easiest I fit this all together

What’s also interesting is they now use the DNA tests people are sending off to see where they are from and find family etc

Police have access to this information and can find ‘links’ to potential criminals

So send your DNA off and catch some family member

Also you’ve got to think it was a different time and victims weren’t always treated fairly. Sex workers etc maybe didn’t get a through and fair investigation because no one really cared about them being murdered or thought they were asking for it. It’s never too late to right the wrongs

EastMidsGPs

I lived no where near where that young girl went missing but if it’s the girl who disappeared on her paper round I was a similar age at the time. Genette Tate, I will never forget that poor girl.

Your comment about if your own child went missing you would not be sure you would want to know in 50 years time stands you aside from almost all other humans. The Mother of one of the Moors murders victims, looked for him till her dying day. She knew he was somewhere on the moors.

I can kind of see your argument from a resourcing point of view.

But think, if it was your relative who had been murdered and no one caught, wouldn't there always be a part of you that was thinking "I wonder if it was him?" When you spoke to someone. Would you not feel some sort of anger that someone was still alive having taken the life of another.?

And while they may not have gone on to become a serial killer, who knows what other crimes they may have committed that had gone unreported?

What if it had been an opportunistic crime? And a similar opportunity presented itself fifty years later? An person committing a from at 18 would only be 68 fifty years later, plenty of strength compared to say a small child who fitted their criteria?

As others have pointed out, maybe someone always had their suspicions about someone but didn't say anything out of fear? Maybe 50 years gives them time to think, you know what, I'll just pass that name to the police and if they're innocent, no harm done.

Is the case in the news April Fabb? Terribly sad case.

Your comment about if your own child went missing you would not be sure you would want to know in 50 years time stands you aside from almost all other humans
Does it?
If someone came to me and said ‘we have £100k. We can spend it looking for your child/their murderer (from 50 years ago) or we can spend it on a crime prevention project in a deprived inner city area’ I’d honestly like to think I’d choose the latter.

I’ve already previously said I would want to know, but in a resource limited setting, is that the best use of money.

If spending money on the missing child Madeleine McCann is justified, then a police appeal after many years certainly is for those cold cases is. None of the cases mentioned are where a pre-school child or children have been left alone in a place a long way from home.

But things change
If you knew a friend had done something and you fell out they’d consider reporting it?
Look at the girls who’ve been abducted and have since been reunited with family, no all disappearances end in death.

It is not just a family but a whole community that is wounded by an unsolved murder/ disappearance. I grew up in the shadow of the disappearance of the 3 Beaumont children, 50 years ago. Recently they dug up part of a factory to see if they were there. They did not find anything but my heart was in my mouth all day while they were digging.

But parents of a child murdered 50 years ago may only be in their fifties or sixties.

I keep trying to see if I’ve missed the point here but I’m not sure they could be in their fifties?

These sorts of cases impact on a whole community. In a murder case locally (1960’s) 12,000 men and boys were questioned, one man was accused and then the trial was thrown out because of the lack of evidence, his whole life was ruined and his name even now is dragged up each time and his family contacted.