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[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any
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preferred platform [Music] the three member Slayton family lived in a one-story two-bedroom duplex off of
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Brunell Parkway in the Florida City of Lakeland single mom Linda slept in one bedroom with her youngest son Tim in the
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other Linda's oldest boy 15-year-old Jeff slept on a cod in the living room it was early on Friday September 4
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1981 when Jeff Slayton woke to a strange s sound it was the crackle of a police radio Jeff quickly realized that several
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officers had gained access to his home and were quietly moving about what's going on he
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asked Jeff was told to get dressed and go outside he did so completely perplexed
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as to why the police were even there the officers made sure he exited out the front door away from his
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mother's bedroom Jeff wandered out into the morning light and was immediately taken
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aback it seemed like every cop in Florida was standing outside his home along with the news crews and
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reporters Jeff spotted his auntie Judy among the crowd she was crying Judy told Jeff that his mother
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had been [Music] murdered [Music] shortly before Jeff woke up that day Judy Butler arrived at the slayton's
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apartment to have her regular Friday morning coffee with her older sister Linda the sisters lived in the same
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government-owned complex just three doors away from each other Judy knocked on Linda's front door
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several times and waited when no one answered she headed back home along the way she glanced over at
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Linda's bedroom window it was wide open and its screen had been removed Judy went to examine
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it inside Judy could see her sister's still figure sprawled across the bed seemingly fast
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asleep but Judy thought it was strange that Linda was lying horizontally instead of vertically with her head on
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the pillow as Judy processed the scene she was suddenly hit with the realization of
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what she was seeing and let out a blood curdling scream a maintenance worker for the
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Housing Authority heard the scream and contacted police who arrived soon after 8: 3
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a.m. they observed 31-year-old Linda slayton's body through her bedroom window it was clear she was
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deceased the officers wandered around the property looking for a way in but all of the doors and every other window
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was locked they didn't want to disturb the scene by entering through Linda's bedroom
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window but Judy Butler was destroyed her nephews Jeff and Tim would be inside the apartment and she was
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scared they might have been hurt too left with no other option and facing an urgent situation officers climbed
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through the open window into Linda's bedroom the noise of their arrival woke Jeff Slayton in the living room his
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younger brother 12-year-old Tim was asleep in the second bedroom you need to wake up a policeman
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told a confused Tim go outside with your brother Tim wondered why the officer didn't mention his
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mother still wearing his pajamas Tim headed towards the front door the door to his mother's room was
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closed but when Tim walked by it swung open as a police officer emerged Tim caught a glimpse
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inside his mother's body lay awkwardly on the bed her dress was bunched around her
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abdomen exposing both her upper and lower naked body her underwear was on the floor and a wire was twisted around
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her blooded neck it was a sight that Tim would never be able to erase from his mind 53-year-old Sergeant Edgar picker
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led the Lakeland Police Department's crime scene unit he was a legendary fingerprint expert and only one year
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away from retirement when he was summoned to the slayton's apartment upon arriving a detective
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remarked to Sergeant picket who was African-American a black man don't have any business looking at a naked white
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woman despite his successful career and upstanding reputation picket still faced
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Prejudice on a daily basis of the many deaths he'd attended Piet had never seen anyone treated as
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brutally as Linda slaten she had been sexually assaulted then strangled to death with a wire coat
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hanger from her own closet all while her two young Sons slept close by aside from the displaced window
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screen everything else appeared to be in place Linda's purse was still in her room and her jewelry lay undisturbed in
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a box on her dresser there were no overt signs of a struggle indicating the altercation had
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taken place in highly on the bed Sergeant picket examined the entire room for evidence shoe prints were found on the
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carpet leading from the window to the closet Piet also discovered a partial pal print on the window
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sill it cemented the police's theory that Linda's killer had broken into her room as opposed to being invited
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in Linda's final movements were p together she and her sons had only been living in the apartment for about 2
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weeks the previous afternoon of Thursday September 3 15-year-old Jeff Slayton had
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arrived home to find there was nothing to eat the Slaton lived in government housing and relied on welfare they
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didn't have much but Jeff knew his mother loved her family and did the best she could there could be two cans and a
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bag of flour in the cupboard and Linda would still manage to make a feast her single priority was caring for
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her boys Linda took Jeff and Tim out to the beach parks and to concerts with her
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goal always being to have fun although she struggled to make ANS meet and keep her sons in line Linda
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maintained a positive and happy outlook on life when speaking with police Jeff Slayton admitted to being somewhat
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rebellious and clashing with his mother he maintained it was only ever typical teenage blowups and nothing
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serious they'd had one such conflict on September 3 when Jeff became angry over the lack of food at
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home he left the apartment and rode his bike to his maternal grandparents house they fed him and dropped him back home
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at around 9:30 that night 12-year-old Tim Slayton had spent the latter part of the day at football
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practice and was given a ride home afterwards he arrived at around 8:30 p.m. shortly before his older brother
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returned Tim then attended a get together at an apartment next door with his mother a small group inside were playing
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cards and Linda and Tim joined in at about 10:00 Linda went back to her apartment to let Jeff know where she was
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then returned to the card game she and Tim headed home at about 11:30 p.m. Jeff was still up in the
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living room watching television Tim went to bed as Linda washed the dishes in the
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kitchen Jeff said that by now the tension between them had eased as Linda passed him on the way to
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her room he said I love you Mom I'll see you tomorrow Linda replied I love you Jeff good
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night Jeff said he turned the TV off at around midnight then fell asleep though he described his 4 10in
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mother as weighing just 100 lb soaking wet Jeff maintained she was tough and capable of fighting back against an
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attacker yet neither he nor Tim reported hearing anything a Miss during the night Jeff insisted that if he knew his
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mother was in danger he would have rushed to help traces of seen found inside Linda
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formed the basis of a rape kit as forensic DNA analysis was still a few years away investigators had to
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narrow down potential suspects using more traditional means many people were questioned
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including those at the C game l under attended hours before she was killed and other
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neighbors police also spoke with a local construction worker named Bobby Dean who
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Linda had been dating they discovered the couple had reportedly broken up 2 days before Linda
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was killed and that Linda had told others that Bobby was possessive of her Bobby said he was at home with his
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sister and mother on the night of the murder they confirmed this but couldn't be certain if he stayed home after they
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went to bed Bobby agreed to take a polygraph test the results were inconclusive after that he refused to
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cooperate with police police also looked into Jeff and Tim's father Frank Slayton he was described by Linda's
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sister Judy as a mean no count scoundrel Linda and Frank met as teenagers and had their two children
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young they'd married wanting to provide their sons with a proper family experience for years the four of them
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had lived together in the neighboring state of Alabama but it hadn't been the happy
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family unit the young parents had hoped for Jeff and Tim both recall times when their father had beaten their mother
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Frank's violence escalated when he was drunk which was often when Jeff was 7 years old he saw
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his father grab his mother by the throat then press a gun to her head Jeff intervened by pulling Frank
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away he believed that if he hadn't done this Frank could have pulled the trigger in mid 1981 after 9 years of
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marriage Linda had filed for divorce that was when she relocated to Lakeland with her sons for a fresh
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start given Frank slayton's history of domestic violence and the sexual tone to Linda's murder he became a strong
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suspect Frank who still lived in Alabama insisted that he was at home when his ex-wife was
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killed after their mother's murder Jeff and Tim Slayton went to live with their maternal grandparents and never set foot
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in their apartment again the boys referred to to the unknown killer as the monster and lived
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in constant fear of him it took time before they felt comfortable leaving their grandparents
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house the local community shared the same anxieties believing the person responsible was among them and would
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strike again the Slaton boys spent many nights sleeping in their grandparents bed while
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their grandfather stayed up guarding them with a shotgun in hand the brothers eventually returned to
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school driven by advice their mom had once given them keep moving forward and never give
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up Tim went back to playing football finding support among his teammates and Coach meanwhile Jeff Slayton faced an
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entirely new battle you got big arms on you a detective once told him before adding
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and you're strong enough to put your hands around your mom's neck and kill her like his father Jeff was considered
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a suspect he was the last known person to have seen his mother alive and admitted
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to having a he argument with her that evening Jeff cooperated with authorities but felt like he was being interrogated
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all the time members of the Lakeland Police Department frequently took him out of
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school just to question him Jeff voluntarily took a polygraph test which he passed when the police
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wanted to perform the test again and floated the idea of putting Jeff under hypnosis his grandparents stepped in and
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said enough they told investigators to leave Jeff and their family alone and find
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their daughter's real killer being treated as a suspect caused the grief stricken Jeff even more
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Agony still he ultimately agreed to sit the second polygraph test once again he passed while police accepted there was
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nothing further implicating him he remained under a cloud of Suspicion the pressure took its toll
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both Jeff and Tim dropped out of school feeling aimless and indifferent Jeff fell into a deep
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depression during which he contemplated suicide the pair obsessively checked the
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news hoping to hear of a breakthrough in their mother's case yet there was none every person the police interviewed
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had their hand and Footprints compared to those from the crime scene none were a match and the slaten
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case inevitably went [Music] cold almost 20 years later in 1998 a Lakeland detective named Brad GCE was
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tasked with taking a fresh look at the case he told The Ledger newspaper they say a lot of times in a
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case like this it's someone close to you who did it he had the Killer's Seaman sample
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examined by a crime lab with updated technology permitting the extraction of a full DNA
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profile detective GCE met with the Jeff and Tim Slayton who were now in their 30s both voluntarily provided DNA
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samples neither matched the Killer Jeff Slayton was finally Vindicated and officially dismissed as a
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suspect Linda's ex-husband Frank Slayton had cleaned up his life and was no longer drinking instead committing to
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repairing his relationship with his sons he too gave a DNA sample which ruled him out of the
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investigation other Persons of Interest including Linda's ex-boyfriend Bobby Dean were also
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cleared detective Grace had reached a dead end then in September he received a compelling
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tip the year after Linda Slaton was murdered a 10-year-old Lakeland girl was abducted from her home the as salant had
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carried the girl out of her bedroom window where she slept he then drove her around for hours
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during which she was raped and strangled her ordeal ended at an interstate overpass her attacker forced her to
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climb over the side of the railing as she clung desperately onto it he pried her fingers loose causing her to fall 24
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ft to the ground she survived and the man responsible was identified as 24-year-old Lakeland local named
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jamesma he was charged with burglary kidnapping and attempted murder Alma was found to have a history
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of breaking into people's homes on one occasion he was caught standing over a sleeping teenage girl
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before fleeing it was also believed he was responsible for the death of another girl found dead at the base of an
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overpass yet Alma wouldn't cooperate with investigators it was discovered that in September 1981
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James Almer had been staying with a friend who lived in the same apartment complex as Linda
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Slayton in fact the apartment was directly across from hers and he was there on the night she was
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killed given Linda's murder shared striking similarities to W's known offending detective Grace was certain
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he'd found Linda's killer by the time James Almer was on ch's radar he had been dead for 5 years he
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passed away in prison reportedly from respiratory failure and had been cremated further complicating matters
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was the fact that Alma's DNA was never collected and stored when he entered the prison
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system detective gr spoke with the authorities who'd investigated Alma's previous offending because that case was
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closed everything to do with it including DNA samples had been disposed of yet an opportunity arose when
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detective Grace convinced Alma's mother to provide him with a DNA sample it could be used to determine if
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someone genetically linked to her had raped Linda Slayton the results concluded that James
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Elmer was not Linda's killer this was yet another major blow for detective GCE who was now back where he
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started he remained in contact with the Jeff and Tim Slayton promising them that
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he wouldn't retire until their mother's killer was caught he sent the Killer's profile to
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the FBI's National DNA database where it was continually compared against new submissions but they failed to generate
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a hit and a reward for information went unclaimed detective GCE told The Ledger there's still hope but man it's
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tough it's frustrating when you know if you could just identify that DNA it's like having the suspect you just don't
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have the name as years continued to pass detective Grace came to suspect that Linda's killer was likely
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deceased after working on the case for 17 years Brad GCE retired in 2015 for medical
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reasons he'd been unable to keep his promise to the Slaton brothers and felt he'd let them
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down although Jeff and Tim were disappointed they had no hard feelings they just resigned themselves
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to the fact that they'd likely take their last breaths without ever knowing who killed their
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mom Jeff Slayton quote it's been rough my whole life not knowing who it is always being scared to
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death I was friends with him always looking over my shoulder sleeping with a switchblade knife under my
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pillow Tim Slayton told The Ledger it could be that guy over there you just don't
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know by now more than two dozen detectives had actively worked on the Slate and case
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leads were pursued inter state in Louisiana and North Carolina Jeff and Tim Slayton continued
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to visit and call the Lakeland police department so the detectives wouldn't forget
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them they wound up befriending these officers who reassured the brothers that they were still very passionate about
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solving the crime but years continued to slip by with no arrests Hope was fading
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in 2018 parabon nanolabs a company that specializes in using genetic genealogy to investigate cold cases reached out to
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the Florida Department of Law Enforcement they asked if they wanted to send the DNA from the Slaton case for
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further testing due to the growing success of this new form of Investigation 38 years had passed since
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Linda's murder but the rape kit had been kept in pristine condition in anticipation For a Moment Like
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This CC Moore was the head of parabon nanolabs genetic genealogy unit she was an expert in the field and
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her team was given the slate and case File they began by uploading the Killer's DNA into a public Genealogy
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website called Jed match customers voluntarily submitted saliva swabs to J ological testing
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companies like Jed match in exchange for An ancestry report they could then connect with
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family members and distant relatives via online databases similarly Cold Case investigators uploaded Anonymous DNA
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from crime scenes to the same databases but with the intention of identifying suspects through their familiar
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lineage this method was used to help capture the Golden State killer a year prior as covered in episode 53 of case
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File unsurprisingly Linda slayton's killer had an uploaded his DNA to Jed match but genealogist CC Moore and her
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team constructed a family tree based on his distant relatives who had they filled in the gaps using birth
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certificates marriage licenses obituaries and social media it only took Moore's team a
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weekend to uncover three genetic networks individual branches that converged into one single
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family the family only had one son and he had roots in Lakeland in 1981 CC Moore was highly confident he
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was the DNA contributor Tim slayton's favorite sport was American Football weeks after his mother was
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killed killed 14-year-old Tim returned to the game finding Comfort among his teammates one of his biggest supporters
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was his team's assistant coach a 20-year-old man affectionately called Coach Joe coach Joe's full name was Joseph
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Mills when he wasn't volunteering with lakeland's youth football program Mills worked at a Dairy
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Warehouse he knew Linda Slaton was a single mom who couldn't afford a car and helped her out by giving Tim rides to
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and from practice in fact he had picked up Tim and driven him home on the very day
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Linda slayum was later killed the next day police interviewed Mills briefly over the phone he wasn't
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questioned any further meaning he'd failed to register on their radar it wouldn't have helped that those
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who knew him would have provided glowing character references when genealogist CC Moore was tracing
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Linda slayton's killer in 2019 all branches led to Joseph Mills better yet he was still
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alive the now 58-year-old who lived on Bailey Road 30 minutes from the crime scene it was the same place he delivered
00:26:50
in 1981 Mills had changed a lot since then he'd gone bold and his facial hair had
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gray he was still married to the same woman and not only did he have children of his own but grandchildren as
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well over the past three decades Mills had taken on a variety of jobs now he was running his own cleaning
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business Mills was also known to police in 1984 he had been convicted of Grand Theft after forging a will he
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didn't go to prison but his handprint were taken and kept on file these were compared to the partial
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P print lifted from Linda slayton's window sill it was a match the final piece of the puzzle was
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comparing Joseph mills's DNA to that of Linda's killer investigators covertly surveilled
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Mills for several weekends waiting for an opportunity to discreetly obtain a sample of his
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DNA this would be done by picking up something he discarded like a tissue or coffee
00:28:03
cup when this approach failed investigator secretly seized mills's trash from the curb outside his
00:28:11
home after digging through the garbage bags they uncovered a piece of used medical adhesive tape for a colostomy
00:28:18
back a 2013 photograph on mills's Facebook page showed he had a colostomy back the tape was most certainly his is
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but to be sure officers also collected two cotton swabs and a plastic spoon from the
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trash all the items were sent off for testing 11 days later the results were in Joseph mills's DNA matched the DNA of
00:28:47
Linda slayton's [Music] killer following this police spoke with the Joseph Mills at his home he said he
00:28:58
didn't remember Linda Slayton or her murder he was then shown photographs of Linda and her two
00:29:06
sons this prompted Mills to claim he did remember them but hadn't known Linda personally he also said that he didn't
00:29:14
recall coaching Tim Slayton or that he dropped him off at the slayton's home the night Linda was
00:29:21
killed 8 days later on Thursday December 12th 2019 police met with Mills again and placed him under
00:29:30
arrest he didn't seem surprised and never asked why instead he was unusually calm and showed no
00:29:40
emotion during a subsequent police interview Mills was now willing to open up about his history with Tim
00:29:47
Slayton he asserted that whenever he dropped Tim off at home after practice he stayed in his
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car Mills maintained that he had never been inside the slat home at any time for any
00:30:00
[Music] reason what we have tells us a different story a detective responded before
00:30:08
adding you were in that apartment Mills was informed that evidence placed him in Linda slayton's
00:30:15
bedroom with one detective remarking it's been 38 years and I'm sure you go to bed every night thinking
00:30:24
about this Mills remained in indignant reiterating that he had never been inside the
00:30:32
apartment upon learning that his handprints and DNA were found at the crime scene Mills changed his story
00:30:40
again he said that he had met Linda for the first time on Thursday September 3 1981 when he dropped Tim
00:30:49
home Linda approached mills's car to thank him according to Mills Linda gave him an open invitation to stop by for
00:30:58
quote a good time Mills took her up on her offer that night he entered her bedroom through her
00:31:07
unlocked window Linda was lying on her bed waiting for him Mills claimed that the wire coat
00:31:15
hanger was already around her neck and she asked him to tighten it for her pleasure they had consensual sex that
00:31:23
Mills described as wild during which he twisted the wire tighter and Tighter as per Linda's wishes Linda then lost
00:31:34
Consciousness after finishing Mills left back out the window without checking to
00:31:39
see if Linda had woken up he claimed that he'd only learned that she died when detectives questioned him about it
00:31:48
later Linda's autopsy results determined her injuries were inconsistent with consensual
00:31:55
sex there were even self-sustain claw marks to her neck consistent with her struggling to remove the
00:32:02
wire when detectives pointed out How Deep The Hanger was embedded in Linda's skin Mills maintained
00:32:10
quote it was a game detectives were unconvinced they were certain that after dropping Tim Slayton home Joseph Mills
00:32:21
returned to the apartment later having made the decision to rape Linda he broke in through her bedroom
00:32:28
window at around 9900 p.m. during a brief period of time when no one was home Mills then lay in wait in Linda's
00:32:37
bedroom likely hiding in the closet where he collected the wire hanger when Linda retired for bed that
00:32:45
night she walked into her room and closed the door oblivious that Mills was already in there waiting for
00:32:56
her [Music] Joseph Mills was charged with burglary sexual battery and first-degree
00:33:08
murder Jeff and Tim Slayton were stunned to learn a trusted family friend had killed their
00:33:15
mother the thought that Coach Joe could be responsible had never even crossed their
00:33:20
mind they hoped to see Mills face trial explain himself on the stand and face the death penalty
00:33:29
after being advised by his attorney that it was in his best interest to plead guilty to all charges Mills did
00:33:36
so yet he still refused to admit to killing Linda Slayton Jeff and Tim Slayton were in
00:33:46
court during sentencing in February 2022 surrounded by supportive friends and family they were both given the
00:33:54
opportunity to speak Jeff turned to Mills and tearfully asked over and over sometimes yelling
00:34:03
why I just want to know why Joe why'd you take my mama from me I loved my mama we were happy I hate you you can't die
00:34:15
and burn in hell fast enough for me Mills remained silent and stone faced in response Linda's sister Judy Butler was
00:34:26
met with the same reaction when she asked Mills do you have any Soul do you have any
00:34:36
remorse the court also heard from Linda's grandchildren who never got to meet her when the defendant was given the
00:34:44
chance to speak he told the court I am a good person I'm not that person that they're painting me out to
00:34:53
be he explained that he owned a successful business in which he gave people chances the judge was unmoved by these
00:35:03
claims he sentenced Joseph Mills to life in prison without the possibility of parole a tearful Jeff Slayton told the
00:35:14
metor outside Court I don't know if there's anything such as closure but it has been easier
00:35:22
knowing he's locked up Tim Slayton added it's not over in the sents cuz he's still walking and my mom's
00:35:32
[Music] not detective Brad G was one of the dozens of detectives who investigated
00:35:41
the slaten case over the near 40 years it went unsolved he had worked on it for 17 of
00:35:48
those years but had to retire before it was solved when Joseph Mills was identified
00:35:54
as the killer detective GCE blamed himself self for not having identified him sooner the Slaton Brothers felt
00:36:03
differently they expressed gratitude to all those who worked to find their mother's killer including detective
00:36:09
Grace whom they considered a friend in fact Jeff was so appreciative of the detective's effort he named one
00:36:18
of his sons after him the Slaton Brothers held the same regard for sergeant Edgar picket who
00:36:26
uncovered the Killer's part print on Linda's bedroom window sill this evidence helped solidify
00:36:32
Joseph mills's guilt by the time Jeff and Tim were able to meet picket and thank him he was 94
00:36:40
years old it was a case picket had never forgotten once his job at the crime scene was over his mind kept returning
00:36:50
to the two Slaton boys picket himself had children and was driven to solve Linda's Mur to give her
00:36:58
son's closure despite his involvement in the investigation picket had never heard the
00:37:05
name Joseph Mills and was unaware that the young man had been questioned early on in the
00:37:11
investigation in fact picket revealed that he had been told to compare the P print to a number of black men following
00:37:19
reports of suspicious activity by black individuals at the time picket who was African-American
00:37:26
himself had admitted that the Prejudice of his white colleagues influenced his own
00:37:32
mindset random black men were questioned and fingerprinted on mass meanwhile the
00:37:38
white football coach who'd been at the Slaton home the night Linda was murdered was completely
00:37:45
overlooked picket admitted that he didn't handle the case like he should have and it had been on his conscience
00:37:51
ever since despite this case detectives maintained that Joseph Mills didn't slip
00:37:59
through the cracks genealogist CCE Moore who had worked on hundreds of cases and solved
00:38:07
more than 50 using genetic genealogy said that Linda Slaton made her the angriest because the killer targeted
00:38:14
Linda while her children slept nearby when Joseph Mills blamed Linda denigrating her and making her look bad
00:38:23
in front of her own children Moore's disgust grew further CC Moore expressed gratitude to the
00:38:31
original crime scene investigators saying at the time this crime was committed they didn't even know DNA was
00:38:40
going to be used in criminal investigations and so the fact that they collected that and then it was stored
00:38:46
responsibly and carefully all these years by that department is so important if that hadn't happened we
00:38:54
couldn't have done our work in May 2019 Jed match the DNA database used to help solve the slaten case
00:39:04
changed its privacy rules it is now much more difficult to solve cold cases using this
00:39:12
method CC Moore said whatever one thinks about this decision it is inarguably a setback for
00:39:20
justice victims and their families Jeff and Tim Slayton have come to terms with the Joseph ms's outcome
00:39:30
but still lack closure it stung them that he was able to live a full life and raise a family
00:39:36
for four decades the brothers felt they were handed a far harsher sentence than he
00:39:43
was as they had to grow up and live without their mother still they harbored no resentment
00:39:49
towards law enforcement for taking so long to apprehend Mills with Tim Slayton explaining I know it's a lot of hard
00:39:58
work behind the scenes that people don't see that goes on you know what they do the hours upon hours they put in I mean
00:40:08
you could get mad but only so much could be done in a day the brothers have said that they
00:40:17
couldn't have survived their ordeal without each other over the years they stayed close living just a few miles
00:40:24
apart and sharing the same Hobbies so they could constant stly be each other's lives they visited their mother's
00:40:31
gravide often and lit a candle every year on the anniversary of her murder Jeff Slayton
00:40:39
quote my mom she's looking down on us and would want us to live our lives and do good I want to make her
00:40:51
proud after his mother's murder Tim Slaton cried for two weeks straight then he stopped and has been unable to
00:41:00
cry since some have seen his inability to cry as cold but it's as though Tim ran
00:41:08
out of Tears following Linda's death Joseph Mills continued to act as a friend to
00:41:15
Tim he continued picking him up and dropping him off at football practice during these trips Mills asked
00:41:23
about Linda's case and what leads police were looking into Tim didn't know it at the time but his
00:41:30
mom's killer was using him to scope out the ongoing investigation then a month after Linda's
00:41:39
murder Mills had a team photo taken in it Tim and his teammates stand side by side in their white
00:41:48
jerseys directly behind Tim was Coach Joe Tim saw his coach organizing this as a show of solid solidarity and
00:41:58
support he appreciated the photo so much that he hung it up in his bedroom at his
00:42:03
grandparents home he had no clue that he was looking at the face of his mother's killer
00:42:11
daily the photo was once a source of Pride for Tim but now it disgusts him he sees it as proof of how cold-hearted
00:42:21
Joseph Mills was worse still were the haunting memories of seeing his mothers brutalized a naked body in
00:42:30
situ Tim Slayton quote I've seen the crime scene it's in my head every day I've got to live with
00:42:42
that unlike his younger brother Jeff Slayton cries all the time he tells himself he won't but tears fall whenever
00:42:51
he starts thinking about his mother speaking with the journalist Paul's an about Joseph Mills Jeff said
00:43:01
tearfully the day he murdered my mom he murdered my childhood it was the last day me and my
00:43:09
brother were kids Jeff Harbor's immense guilt telling filmmakers of the CBS series the
00:43:18
Betrayal of Linda Slayton I would have died that night trying to save my mom I mean we're right
00:43:25
there in the house but but I didn't hear nothing how could you not hear something
00:43:30
like that it's so hard to live with that in order to explain why he and Tim didn't hear the attack Jeff believes
00:43:42
that Joseph Mills threatened their mother to keep quiet or else he'd hurt her children Jeff Slayton
00:43:50
quote so she saved us is the way we look at it she could have screamed and yelled
00:43:57
like a lot of people would have done if you're in that position but again she was looking out for us that was probably
00:44:05
the last thing on her mind was [Music] us [Music] e