K: The lost evidence and the hiring of Gilley in the first place played major roles in the Benham-Sloan case, but so did the alleged obstruction by the various law enforcement agencies. She did have a couple of chest wounds, but there was not a lot of bleeding internally in that. Splashed along the front pages of newspapers and TV station headlines were two words: not guilty. And theres probably a million cases like that This one is really unique in that it involved a police officer and I think that if we had had 100 percent cooperation from the get go, that we could have cleared it., K: It wasnt until 1972 that the case seemed like it might pick back up again. Recording of Brake: They asked, Were you acquainted with Frank Gilley when he was employed by the Norman Police Department? As the night hours of May 9 wear on, Sheryls dadbecomes worried. So he opens the trunk and he stands there with the rifle and just starts emptying the rifle into them. Recording of Pearo: Ken never gave up on the case. Police traveled to the WebFOX23 spoke with survivors who are just grateful to be alive following Sundays EF-2 tornado that ripped through Norman at around 9:20 p.m. Dallas in De Soto, Texas, in the early 90s. He says he found the gun in Aug. of 1970,, Recording of Pearo: but kept it for 20 years and didnt know that there was any significance to the fact that it was a .22 rifle and that it may have belonged to Gilley So we didnt know if this was the gun or not, but it sort of caught Gilley in a lie. I think when he came back he stood back and fired a couple rounds in the side of the car to see if they were still in there and alive and he probably heard them oh please you know and he popped the trunk and started killing. Seven: How much Henslee knew but wasnt letting on? Not anyone can walk into property custody Everything is labeled and stored and organized at such a different ballgame and so a lot of those concerns about obstruction, evidence, we as an agency have put a lot of safeguards into place to ensure these things are not happening and that there is a trail. Munoz told investigators he knew nothing about a dead body in the basement and gave them his consent to conduct a search. I did not see the flashlight myself, but as he was shoving me out the door, my head hit the door. Who knows.. And my mother still to this day, Why did she give that to me? Was there a premonition, I dont know, no one will ever know.. What do you think was the change there? Based on a tip, investigators discovered Sandovols decomposing body in a residential basement at 715 W Lindsey St. Detectives interviewed Miguel Munoz at the home, according to an affidavit for a search warrant. But he signed off on the search warrant.. There were press conferences asking for information and a reward fund was set up, raising thousands of dollars to give to anyone who could provide helpful details. Hundreds of thousands of college students were protesting the Vietnam War. Most of the trial information was kept from the public, but news articles indicated that Henslee and other officers testified, as did Jacobson and the other investigators. One: Why a man with an aggravated assault charge in Texas had been hired as a Norman cop? Having a conversation with Gilley in reference to his activities when he was a deputy sheriff in Amarillo, he told me of several investigations he had made and also relayed to me that during patrolling for our police department, he asked where any parkers went. Recording of Solorzano: Theres definitely more rules in place documented. Recording of Pearo: You could see some of the resentment from people who are now adults still going back to their college days and being really critical on the police. Particularly a lot more nowadays than there was back in the 1970s.. Instead, immediately call the Cleveland County Sheriff's Department at 405-701-7700. Sloans was in Amarillo at the First Presbyterian Church that Wednesday. But it was one that, it was kind of a taboo subject., Recording of Kayla: Why? On the night of the murders , his car logged only about 30. K: With Gilley arrested, Pearo believes detectives can finally charge him with the murders of Sheryl and David, but the Cleveland County DA wants to give a grand jury another try. Joshua Bookout. Any kind of doubt that he could create was important to him. Those pressing to charge Gilley uncover what they believe to be undeniable evidence, but the stakes may have been too high for those who wished to keep Gilley from being arrested. But the DA at that time was adamant that the case was going to go to trial with what we had because, you know, the case wasnt improving. And then, on the last full day of trial, on Friday, Nov. 8, Perrine put Gilley on the stand. We think David recognized him from that trial in Amarillo, Recording of Brake: Heres whats interesting about the autopsy report that told me at the time how I think it transpired. Why? The judge for the jury was the former Cleveland County DA who had previously refused to go after Gilley, Jacobson said. K: Eventually, Norman prosecutors declared they would be seeking the death penalty for Gilley due to the period of torture and terror David and Sheryl endured while being locked alive in the trunk. Enhanced Cost of Living Calculator Now includes childcare, taxes, health, housing for home owners vs renters, insurance costs and more when you upgrade to premium. When we got upstairs, Mr. Gilley was filling out the paperwork on the Mexican boy and he asked the boy how much money he had and the boy said $10. Date: 2/28 #1 stephens co hold. WebNorman man arrested in connection with murder of woman found at Lake Thunderbird; Former Norman car dealer accused of tampering in criminal case; Body recovered at Lake On Saturday, May 9, 1970, Dave was 21. K: Slowly, multiple other young couples started to come forward and they told stories like this one, of being out in a lovers lane area and getting harassed by a man claiming to be with the sheriffs department. Jacobson and a few other agents, like Norman detective Floyd Nash, dedicated themselves to finding enough hard proof to convict Gilley. Sanchez was charged with possession of a firearm after a former felony conviction. K: In fact, for 20 years, he, the initial investigator and pursuer of justice, kept a single shell casing in an envelope, one he picked up while walking the fields after finding the bodies of Sheryl and Dave. Perrine put in dozens of requests, ranging from declaring a mistrial to requesting that words like grotesque not be allowed in the courtroom. K: There were clothes, a bloody blanket, hair and the roughly 30 shell casings that were all missing. Recording of Brake: He told me that if anyone asked me about a .22 rifle, which he might own, to tell them no. They walked up and down the field, finding a few things more bullets, mostly. That's -25.38% lower than the national rate of 387.8 per 100,000 people. Why?, Recording of Brake: I think Gilley was just out there trying to get a glimpse of some boobies and harass some kids like hed done many times before and runs into somebody that knew who he was.. In the coming months, detectives tailed Gilley as he went to work at his various odd jobs. Jacobson pointed to the unusual handling of the case and what he considered obstruction that interfered with the investigation. I hope he died alone and a very painful death. In the safe we found some more weapons, one of them was a sawed-off shotgun, which is illegal. Recording of Ken: Im thrilled that somebody is still interested enough in it to try to put something together, thats why I didnt hesitate to meet with yall. He brought up the likelihood that Butch Green, his former partner who died a year after the murders, was the real potential suspect. Tornadoes tore through Oklahoma, leaving severe damage in Norman, home to the University of Oklahoma. That happens all the time at OU. Forty years ago, Gregory W. Canatis got into a fight with his father in their Midwest City apartment and killed him with a brand-new butcher knife. -36.90% lower than the Oklahoma violent crime rate of 458.6 per 100,000 people. K: Most of these testimonies didnt come as a shock to those intimately involved with the case. We walked into his office and we had our probable cause for the search warrant and then he kind of looked at the case and looked when it was and said, Trails kind of cold, isnt it boys? and we said yeah.. K: Welcome back to Uncovered: The Lovers Lane Murders. K: Many of the individuals named in our investigation died within 10 or 15 years of the case going to trial. Well start back up with thoughts from Linda, Recording of Kayla: Now what does that mean?, Recording of Pearo: Because of the way it was handled back in the 70s and the fact that the main suspect had been a Norman officer. And I think he did use time as an ally to just cast some doubt on the allegations that were made and the accuracy of the allegations and the accuracy of the witness recollection. She suggested we go to the police station and see if anythings come up. And then we were afraid that if we didnt let him know, we wouldnt know when he was coming home. Not only does the department interact with the Norman community on a more regular basis, but the hiring protocols for officers have completely changed. He was taken before a grand jury in Amarillo and indicted, given a suspended sentence and put on probation for an aggravated assault charge, though it was deemed a misdemeanor. Ended up, I dont know how many days and nights we first worked on that, several, and now 48 years later, its terrible.. Its seized, its packaged. College students going out together, laughing with friends, looking forward to the future. They arrested a man who was picked up on the side of the road in a different town because someone reported him as having blood on his clothes. As a matter of fact, he, even all those years later, he kept track of where Gilley was on the sly, would leave him a little note on his car every once in a while, Gilley wouldnt know where it came from, but were still looking at you, that kind of stuff, a little psychological warfare. And we started to hear this idea that the Norman police were covering themselves and trying to make up for the public outcry against them 20 years earlier. Three, four and five: Why before Gilley was hired, he didnt take a polygraph test, have a background check or enter his fingerprints into the system? DNA testing began right around the time this case was reopened for trial, but when it was discovered that almost all of the evidence had disappeared, it didnt matter. WebBest Places to Live | Compare cost of living, crime, cities, schools and more. That was good enough for me to go after him with everything I had.. WebRT @dtblove05: Oklahoma University football team helping out one of their teammates clean up after a tornado destroyed his house in Norman, OK. 28 Feb 2023 01:09:39 What truly happened to Dave and Sheryl is still and may always be speculation, but some people believe they have a pretty good guess. When the couples started coming to police, investigators put together a line up of photos of officers. He hoped to become director of the OSBI, Jacobson said, and a mark like this on someones record could derail a rising career. Most of the case takes place in central Oklahoma and Northern Texas, but our story begins five days earlier in Kent, Ohio, on Monday, May 4, 1970. Pearo retired in 2004 and moved to Florida where he spends time scuba diving. Re-reading articles and court documents, its clear he challenged every step of the trial. The highest number of murders were reported on K: Back to that Tuesday in 1970: the OU protest ended peacefully, but police and residents were on edge for the rest of the week. A woman who was a clerk for NPD in 1970, said Gilley was in the office around 3:30 a.m. Sunday, within a few hours of the murders, and acted unusual. We still do polygraph examinations. K: Along with the drive NPD felt to clear its name, the clock was ticking. Here, Linda, K: NPD responded to public criticism of its officers over the years, said. And they did a good job, far as cleaning it up and everything.. Words he said he believes she would have said.. It chronicles what Gilley called a scandal, telling detectives and reporters there was a plot against him. Web9801 DEERFIELD DR, NORMAN, OK 73026 Get a FREE Property Report for this home. ADVERTISEMENT The OSBIs Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program and State Incident-Based Reporting System (SIBRS) are part of a nationwide, cooperative statistical effort A reporter there had a tip about someone on Normans police force. The violent crime rate in Norman is 289.4 per 100,000 people. There is a picture of him in a 1969 OU yearbook with his racket. August Murders accounted for 1.5% of all violent crimes and 0.2% of reported index crimes. K: For Ken Jacobson, that was his introduction to the murders of Sheryl Benham and David Sloan. WebAbout 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Oklahoma City, the Norman Police Department responded Sunday night to storm damage on the south and eastern sides of Norman. Born on Dec. 28, 1935, he was in his mid-30s during the early 1970s. He gets the rifle, which is a high capacity rifle, a .22 rifle might have a magazine of 22 rounds or more. And even though the gun turned over by Gilleys landlord wasnt the murder weapon, it gave Pearo a path to officially reopen the case. The OSBI later identified the K: The phone call from the Amarillo TV station eventually prompted some case investigators to seriously look into Gilley. He told them that Gilley was their main suspect, but they were struggling to convince other law enforcement officials, like the DAs office or the OSBI, that he could be charged with the murders of Sheryl and David. We were never able to get in contact with any of these family members, though. Recording of Ken: Well it was open but they didnt do anything on it The agent that was signed to that after I left, I doubt if he did half a dozen interviews. Grady. K: After finding the car and the bodies, officers from all of the agencies came together to sweep the area. Recording of Linda: This was one of the weirdest things ever. I got to know her parents very well. Once completed, we will present the case to the District Attorneys office, who will review the case and file the appropriate charges., Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. They felt the options were running slim, until February 1991. K: 1970. Recording of Pearo: We went down and we talked to a judge in Dallas. Come on home. So I hung up. That's 22.24% higher than the national rate of 2,346.0 per 100,000 people In the following months, officers deliberated how best to pin Gilley down for the murders. The calls got further apart, but somebody would always call and would say what do you think about this thing, did you look at this, and all that. Davids keys, wallet and shoes were all missing, too. K: Almost two days later, their belongings were found dropped in and around Daves car, a 1966 Pontiac GTO. We were very close. We flipped through the following days, seeing article after article following police officials and community groups. The OU Daily, in a new podcast series called Uncovered, investigated a pair of murders that took place May 9, 1970 in Norman. NORMAN, Okla. - Special agents from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation have arrested a man in connection to the murder of a woman who was found at Lake Thunderbird. WebCrime Statistics. If you see them, do not try and apprehend them yourself as they are most likely armed and dangerous. WebHome / Select Cities / 2023 Comparing Bakersfield, CA vs. Norman, OK 2023 Compare Crime Rates: Bakersfield, CA vs Norman, OK Change Cities : Bakersfield, CA: Norman, OK: United Police are still investigating the homicides of Elijah Mothershed, his fiancee Carnesha Powell and their daughter Roshawna Stevens. K: Solorzano said protocols for handling evidence have become much more strict in the last 50 years, every step being documented in a complex computer program. WebForty years ago this month, Oklahoma suffered one of its most horrific murder scenes near the small town of Locust Grove. So theres checks and balances to make sure the stuff isnt happening. The verdict was inevitable in my opinion. They just couldnt get past the death penalty portion., Recording of Brake: I think there were people on that jury who said I believe he did it but I can not send him to the electric chair When NPD first contacted me back then and said they were going to try and revitalize the case and they started running through all the material again, I remember sitting down there in the homicide office down in Norman with the file sitting on the desk between us saying Its great what you guys are doing but I dont think you can nail him. Because those guys werent even policemen when this thing happened. He still lives in the area. The call came from a TV station in Amarillo, Texas, a few days after the murders. Officers also started looking into Gilleys personal life, interviewing the woman he was married to in the 70s about his whereabouts the night of the murders. Except one, a few days later. Due to the current status of the case, information is limited at this time, Jensen said. Did they find Sherry? Yes. Henslee backed him, saying Gilley wasnt the kind of man to commit any serious crimes, definitely not murder. K: Youre listening to Uncovered: The Lovers Lane Murders. Date: 2/28 #1 DRIVING W/ LICENSE CANC/SUSP/REVOKED. WebCrime in Norman, Oklahoma. And they said Well Mr. Gilley, Im standing here in your living room and it looks like somebody broke into your house.. Recording of Ken: But we jumped in the car in Oklahoma City and drove out to Lubbock, drove all night. In July, a hearing was held to determine whether the case had enough evidence to go to trial. The cloudy past of the man suspected for the murders is investigated in episode 3, as well as the beginnings of a cover-up, a retracted alibi and testimony from various couples who were also harassed on Lovers Lanes. On the last day of the pretrial, one of the most interesting pieces of evidence emerged, though it was never corroborated, when a new witness was called to the stand. What more do you want me to say?, Recording of Linda: What all he did to how many people after Sherry and Dave? You know You had this last so where is it?. K: Articles about the murders were all over the central Oklahoma news, and Linda said her family was asked to do multiple interviews those next few days. Hundreds of court documents back that up. Recording of Linda: I would just love to look him straight in the face and say What happened? K: Frank Gilley lived in Texas working odd jobs until he died in March 2002, according to the Amarillo Globe-News. The sawed-off shotgun allowed them to arrest him for an illegal weapons charge, but eventually he was released to go home in Desoto, Texas. He said the politics were too much, that true policing was impossible because of it. Then here we can and were visiting it again, making the news again. What happens is you have blood seepage into the lung., Recording of Ken: I think he came out of that car and Frank had to shoot him a couple times, I dont think he intended to shoot anybody, he just wanted, you know, to do his thing. (The US average is 22.7) Norman property crime is 40.9. K: NPD responded to public criticism of its officers over the years, said Major Kevin Foster. He said yes Do you know if Gilley owned or had in his possession any .22 caliber weapons? So if you come across something at a department where something may have beentried to be swept under the rug because the department didnt want to look bad, the current chief or sheriff didnt want to look bad for whatever reason you might think that happens. When Gilley started work for the Norman police, he was described by other officers as just having shown up one day. youve got this policy thats a lot stronger than some other places. David was shot 11 times and Sheryl 14. You know and Frank and David were both described as hotheads and so you put two hotheads together I think Frank his only choice was to shoot him to protect himself and then Sherry probably just did whatever he wanted her to do., Recording of Brake: heek. Recording of Kayla: Can you speak about the relationship between Henslee and Gilley? Crime at 6400 BLOCK OF 36TH AVENUE NW on 02/19/2023 1:20 PM. I would just bawl. NOTES: GRADY CO Whether he actually knew or rather it was just oh my gosh this is embarrassing, I dont know, I think more likely the latter. Heres a quote about Sher right there: She loved life and lived to make people happy. Dr. Bailey said he told her young friends that detailing her high moral character and firm Christian beliefs, then urged the crowd especially the young to trust in God. Said if I went out in the woods and took off all my clothes, he wouldnt take me to jail.. About 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Oklahoma City, the Norman Police Department responded Sunday night to storm damage on the south and eastern sides of Norman. Theyd see Gilleys pictures in the papers, on TV Amarillos not that big of a town. Detectives are actively completing a thorough and detailed investigation. Cold Cases, Missing and Unsolved Crimes. Said hes shoot rabbits with it and stuff. 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