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recruiter the smartest way to hire [Music] our episodes deal with serious and often
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distressing incidents if you feel at anytime you need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested
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phone numbers for confidential support please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website
00:01:44
today's episode deals with a crime committed against the child it won't be suitable for all listeners
00:01:55
eleven-year-old Shauna hair looked forward to Halloween every year she was enthralled by the spooky decorations
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scary stories and costume parties that started a full-weight before the holiday culminating in the most exciting event
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of all trick-or-treating on the night of October 31st in late October 1992 like every other town in America Oil City in
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northern Pennsylvania's Venango County was preparing for Halloween Oil City sits on a band of the Allegheny River at
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the mouth of oil creek about an hour and a half north of Pittsburgh as its name suggests the city was founded on the
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nearby oil fields and to the wealth that came with the oil boom and later the steel industry at its peak the town
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boasted a population of 22,000 residents with the job seekers attracted by the thriving employment prospects but after
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being hit hard by the collapse of the steel industry oil city became the poster child for the Rust Belt locals
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calculated the decline in oil city's population by reference to which closing gas station the town offered a cheap
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cost of living but gainful employment became scarce as factories moved and entire industries were shifted offshore
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jobs and people followed the town had a little to offer young people many of whom dropped out of
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school and became trapped in a cycle of poverty those who grew up and moved away
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often never came back on the morning of Tuesday October 27 1992 Lucy listened as
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her young daughter Shana chattered about her upcoming plans as she prepared herself for the day ahead that afternoon
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Shana intended to go straight from 7th Street school to the local nursing home where she would join her Girl Scout
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Troop in singing to the elderly residents Shana sang in the children's choir at church so she was looking
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forward to performing for the senior citizens as she was most excited about what was to follow after the performance
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she planned to head to the first Free Methodist Church for a Halloween party the hell family didn't have the money
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for Shana to spend on an elaborate fancy dress costume so the eleven-year-old improvised she decided to dress up as a
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gymnast wearing a turquoise bodysuit with black stripes tights sneakers and soft satiny gloves that stretched up
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above her elbows as she would not have time to come home after school to change outfits she wore the leotard underneath
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her regular clothes the 400 block of West first Street where Shana lived with her mother stepfather 12 year old
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brother and five-year-old sister was in one of the poorer areas of the town nevertheless it was regarded as safe by
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residents who rarely worried about locking their houses or cars and - Lucy had a no hesitation in letting her
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daughter make her own way to and from school navigating the familiar streets at night time was different as Shana was
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afraid of the dark so her mother would arrange to have someone pick her up after the Halloween party that evening
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[Music] later that night Lucy was working her regular shift that have pizza shop in
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the nearby town of Franklin when she called home to check in on her family her de-facto partner John Brian told her
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Shana still hadn't arrived home from the Halloween party Lucy realized the she'd
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forgotten to arrange someone to pick her daughter up from the event but was reassured by the fact the church was
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only a short half-mile walk away from their block along familiar streets that Shana had traveled to many times before
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by 8:30 p.m. long past the time she was expected to return Shana still hadn't arrived home John
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didn't have the phone numbers of the friends she may have walked home with and unable to contact anyone he jumped
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into his car and drove the route she would have most likely taken expecting to spot her along the way
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although there were a couple of different routes from the church to their home John was certain Shana would
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have stuck to the main roads failing to find her walking the streets John progressed to the first Free
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Methodist Church where the Halloween celebrations were taking place only to realize the party had long since
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finished and all the other Girl Scouts had already gone home although Shana could be headstrong she
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was otherwise obedient and not the type to take off to her friend's house without letting someone know so John
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continued to scout the nearby streets expecting to find her after exhausting the search of the neighborhood John
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returned home to find Shana hadn't returned during his absence at 9:30 p.m. Lucy found home again and
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suggested her daughter may be at the home of her former husband Shawna's father Robert how
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although the ex husband and wife had a tumultuous relationship their four children remained close to their father
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with Shawna's nine-year-old sister living with him in a neighboring town Lucy contacted Robert who swore Shana
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was not with him unsure whether to believe him Lucy finished her shift and rushed home upon her arrival she called
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the parents of Shauna's best friend joy you who was a member of the same Girl Scout Group joy you'll confirmed Shana
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had been at the church Halloween party and explained that when it ended the two girls set off together in the same
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direction at around 8 p.m. when they reached the point where they needed to part ways to head towards their
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respective homes Shana expressed that though she was afraid to walk in that dark and asked joy heel to walk with her
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joy or suggested that they instead go back to her place and from there her father would walk Shawn her safely home
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Shana declined the offer saying no that's all right before heading off alone on the 10 minute walk towards her
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home by 10 p.m. Shana had not been heard from for two hours prompting her mother to call the
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police and to report the 11 year old as missing at the tone of Lucy's core oil city
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police were in the midst of investigating an odd occurrence that had been reported earlier that night at 8:06
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p.m. local resident Dean Palin had been walking along Reed Street her leafy suburban neighborhood lined with
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residential houses when he sighted a young girl dressed in a top and shorts walking alone down West first Street she
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was approaching the Reed Street intersection in front of a Medical Center across the road from the
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Presbyterian Church a tall thin scruffy looking man wearing an army jacket and a
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baseball cap was walking in the same direction on the opposite side walk smoking a cigarette Dan observed the man
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crossed to the other side of the road before appearing to scoop the girl up and run around the corner seconds later
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he heard a muffled scream Dan ran towards the intersection and witnessed the small boxy dark red sedan vehicles
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fade away it looked to be an Oldsmobile with Pennsylvania state license plates but it moved too quickly for den to
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catch the plate number although he hadn't seen the man put the girl in the car both hey in the girl we're now gone Dean
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immediately began banging on the doors of nearby houses until the woman answered before frantically telling her
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I've just seen a little girl kidnapped and I need to call the police as no one had reported a missing child at the time
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police were unsure whether Dan had witnessed an abduction or simply a father picking up his errant child but
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the phone call from Malusi later that night confirmed to the worst case scenario the Reid and West first
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intersection was a couple of blocks from Shauna house home and if Dan Peyton's recollections were factual it appeared
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the child had been snatched whilst walking home the oil city police set up a roadblock
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on the road or leading out of town and informed every police station within a ninety nine mile radius of the situation
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unfolding local officers came to the area by patrol car and on foot and paid a visit to the home of Shauna's father
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Robert hare to confirm the girl wasn't there seeing the unusual police activity around the typically quiet streets
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locals soon joined in on the search for Shauna but late morning word had spread throughout town that Shauna Hale was
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missing prompting hundreds of volunteers to comb the streets into nearby forests
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looking for any signs of the child with police considering the possibility that Shauna may have been kidnapped for
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ransom her mother remained housebound in case the perpetrators made contact helplessly pacing back and forth
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awaiting any news state troopers door knocked along the route that was believed to Shawna had taken the night
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prior asking residents whether they had seen anything suspicious but other than Dan Payton no one heard detectives were
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not convinced - Dan was a particularly reliable witness as there were elements of his story that didn't quite add up if
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he had seen the girl being taken the question remained as to why he didn't try to intervene or stop the perpetrator
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from getting away a suspicious eye was cast on Dan himself who was questioned several times by
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police but remained steadfast about his version of events the next day October 29 a search party
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led by Shauna's uncle Keith decided to take their efforts into the wooded area bordering Oil City they headed in a
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southerly direction along big age of - road towards Cranberry Township before moving into the sixty acres of woodland
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of wall Tony and park they then ventured seven and a half mile south of Oil City to the Rockland
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Township heading out to Coulter's hole a secluded swimming and camping spot popular with fishermen hunters and
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picnickers at night the area was frequented by teens participating in underage drinking and drug taking while
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the oil city chapter of the Kingsmen biker club was also known to use the location as a party spot upon reaching
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Cultus hole Keith and his search party split up to cover more ground but it wasn't long before he was being caught
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to check something here a searcher was crossing a long desert at a railway bridge that overlooked the forest when
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he peered over the rail and spotted a flash of color that looked like a piece of children's clothing when Katie joined
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to the men on the bridge he felt sick the item that lay far below matched the description of the turquoise bodysuit
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Shauna had worn as part of her gymnast costume on the night she vanished police brought Shauna's stepfather John Brown
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to the same who confirmed the item of clothing belonged to his stepdaughter a large scale police search of the area
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commenced with assistance from a mass of volunteers including members of Shauna's
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extended family despite their efforts nothing else of significance was found fliers featuring
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Shauna's pitcher were distributed throughout town describing her as five foot tall weighing 78 pounds with
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straight brown hair blue eyes one cigar behind her right ear and another in the middle of her forehead her mother Lucy
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appeared on local television pleading for the safe release of her daughter while her stepfather fronted
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the press saying it's hard holding on but you've got to do it because that's the only thing we have at approximately
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9:00 a.m. the following morning of October 30 just 500 yards from the location where Shauna's body suit was
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found a man who had been camping at Coulter's Hole was walking in a desolate area underneath an abandoned trestle
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railway bridge as he navigated alongside the dry rocky creek bed he saw the body
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of a young girl lying face down between a rock and a log she was dressed in shorts knee-high socks and a
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short-sleeved t-shirt which was inside out and back to front she wasn't wearing any shoes and her feet were partially
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submerged in a shallow stream Shauna house uncle's Keith and Claire were on hand to identify the body confirming
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their niece had been found police immediately cordoned off the area and initiated a search discovering a
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lollipop wrapper and an abandoned campsite near where Shauna was found they found - Shauna's sneakers on the
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trestle bridge high above the dry creek bed police believed the child had either
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been running along the bridge when she tripped into fell the 33 foot drop into the creek bed below or that someone had
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staged her shoes to suggest that this outcome police were confounded as they had
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searched the area the day before and two A+ they would have found Shawn his body
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if it was there at the time when given the devastating news that her daughter had been found Lucy was inconsolable she
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later confirmed that the shirt and shorts Shauna was wearing were indeed her daughters but she didn't know who
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the socks belong to - as Shauna's disappearance shifted into a homicide investigation
00:17:04
Boyle City authorities announced that Halloween was officially canceled with police urging all parents to keep a
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watchful eye on their children and to not let them out alone after dark on October 31 instead of celebrating
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Halloween hundreds of Oil City townsfolk participated in a silent candlelit procession - one us Shauna's memory they
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prayed and comforted one another as they walked what they believed to be Shauna's
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final route starting from the first Free Methodist Church to the Reed and West first Street intersection less than two
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blocks from her home meanwhile results of forensic testing revealed Shauna's death had been caused by severe
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blunt-force trauma to the head and chest caused by the fall from the trestle bridge to the ground below she was alive
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at the time of descent and - may have survived for up to 30 minutes before succumbing to her injuries
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there was evidence of sexual assault with stains present on her bodysuit testing positive for seminal fluid her
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knees were scuffed and scraped from a rough flooring surface with investigators presuming it arose from
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the area she was held captive in the previous 15 months there had been three homicides in Oil City and in each case
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the victim was killed by a member of their family based on this information investigators fronting inquiries into
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Shauna house murder requested that various males in her family provide DNA samples to rule them out as suspects
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her stepfather John Brown was the first to be tested followed by her uncle's Keith and Claire Shauna's mother
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accepted this intrusion on her family but drew the line when police wanted to test her twelve-year-old son
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wanting to do anything he could to help find the person who harmed his youngest sister the boy agreed to participate but
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none of these tests resulted in a positive match to the DNA sample found on Shauna's bodysuit investigators
00:19:21
expanded their search for a suspect to every adult male known to Shauna and her family they questioned neighbors
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teachers family friends school workers shop owners and to the fathers of Shauna's classmates and fellow Girl
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Scouts men who fit the description provided by Dan Payton were given priority such as
00:19:43
Eldred Walker better known as Ted a tall lanky pizza shop worker known to request
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hugs from young female customers Shauna and her friends described Walker as creepy and went out of their way to
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avoid him he was a smoker who was known to drive a small red car in the past although he current drove a Chevrolet
00:20:05
Monte Carlo of a different color when questioned Walker claimed to know nothing about Shauna's murder and
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willingly submitted a DNA sample which did not match her killer two doors down from the Reid and two
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West first intersection there lived a man with an unsavory past named Michael Q so it's the day after Shauna's body
00:20:31
was found q so it's boarded a bus out of town and had not returned since his unexplained and abrupt absence led him
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to become a suspect in the murder but detectives were unable to track him down on November 2 3 days after Shauna's body
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was found 150 people gathered to pay their respects in a memorial service during which the 11 year olds favorite
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country song achy-breaky heart by Billy Ray Cyrus was played over the loudspeaker mourners reminisced over
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fond memories of the young girl who was described by her mother as sassy tension
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was palpable as mourners eyed each other with suspicion wondering whether the child's killer was standing amongst them
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two weeks later the lack of news surrounding Shauna house murder only served to fuel rumors and speculation
00:21:32
some locals considered Shauna's uncle Keith to be a suspect believing it was too coincidental that he had led this
00:21:40
search party to the site where his niece's body suit was discovered with the killer at large paranoia
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gripped the town as parents forbade their children from roaming the streets and waited with them until they were
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safely on board the school bus graffiti appeared on a wall in his seventh street
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school ominously warning students that they could be next the police concluded this to be the work
00:22:06
of a sick of vandal desperate for leads police rummaged through Shauna's school desk and questioned her classmates one
00:22:15
of her fellow Girl Scouts recounted an interaction she had with Shana prior to her death in which Shana presented two
00:22:23
volley pops explaining she was saving one for herself and two the other for her mother local mothers established a
00:22:32
child safety group called Operation kid watch with their first meeting attracting 100 townspeople Venango
00:22:40
County Sheriff Jim Price attended the event advising the crowd that police were sifting through hundreds of pieces
00:22:47
of information provided by the public and to urge the concerned parents to be patient some attendees admitted to
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arming their young daughters with mace whilst one parent advised that cans of hair spray could be used as a low-tech
00:23:02
substitute the sheriff strongly warned against this behavior explaining that an attacker could easily turn such items
00:23:10
against the girls until police had answers he recommended the young girls travel in groups of three or more and
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their parents should know when to expect their children home and to always have them call once they reached their
00:23:25
destinations on November 16 the Oil City Rotary Club put forward a 500 dollar reward for any information that led to
00:23:35
the arrest of Shauna's killer meanwhile posters featuring an image of an early 1980s dark red Oldsmobile Omega appeared
00:23:45
around town requesting anyone who had seen this type of vehicle to contact police
00:23:51
hundreds of calls came through leading police to investigate hundreds of similar model cars
00:23:57
none of which seemed to belong to the perpetrator as the investigation languished for two years the oil city
00:24:07
council pfennig go counting Crimestoppers and an anonymous donor provided funds to increase the reward
00:24:14
money currently on offer to eleven and a half thousand dollars although this was
00:24:20
a substantial amount for local residents nobody came forward with information the
00:24:26
case continued to impact a daily life in oil city with the streets quiet at night
00:24:32
and people now locking their doors Halloween would remain synonymous with Shauna house murder with the council
00:24:40
voting to ban trick-or-treating after dark until her killer was found as far as residents were concerned little
00:24:49
seemed to have been done to solve the case newspapers continued to report that police were investigating links between
00:24:56
other crimes in the area but none seemed to ever lead anywhere according to a profile released by the Federal Bureau
00:25:05
of Investigation Shauna's killer was likely a Caucasian male of average size possibly aged in his 20s who worked a
00:25:13
menial job and had his own form of transportation his personality or behavior may have undergone a noticeable
00:25:21
shift since committing the murder wherein he may have suddenly taken time off work increased consumption of
00:25:28
alcohol or drugs and to become obsessed with news reports on the investigation citizens were asked to recall anyone who
00:25:37
may have been fired skipped social gatherings altered his meals or sleep fought with friends taken a sudden
00:25:44
vacation or appeared to be nervous or preoccupied around at the time of Shawna's murder although the profile
00:25:52
said it was unlikely the killer had struck before FBI agents could not rule out the possibility he would strike
00:25:58
again in July 1995 police received a report of an attempted abduction on East second
00:26:09
Street not far from where Shawna Hale was snatched two years and eight months earlier the 22 year old woman had been
00:26:17
followed out of a bar by a man who grabbed her and tried to force her into the trunk of his vehicle when she
00:26:24
resisted he slammed her head against the sidewalk realizing he was unable to get
00:26:30
the injured woman swiftly into the trunk the man climbed into his car and sped away upon hearing the survivors
00:26:38
description of her attacker police knew exactly where to look the O'Brien brothers Timothy and James also known as
00:26:47
Tim and Jim were well-known to police having lived in Oil City all of their lives when they weren't in prison the
00:26:56
pair worked factory and gardening jobs where co-workers described being in a permanent state of anxiety around them
00:27:03
unsure when an uncomfortable encounter or violent explosion was coming the brothers both aged in their 20s had
00:27:13
clocked up a string of criminal charges over the years including sexual offences
00:27:18
against both adults and children in some instances the two would team up to commit their crimes with James O
00:27:25
Brien generally considered to be the more dominant of the two due to his older brothers learning difficulties and
00:27:32
mental health problems at the time of the botched abduction eldest brother Timothy O'Bryan was
00:27:39
serving a prison sentence for plying a 16 year old girl with alcohol and taking pornographic images of her therefore his
00:27:47
brother James was identified as the assailant and who was convicted of first-degree felony attempted kidnapping
00:27:53
assault and unlawful restraint when handing down a lengthy jail sentence the judge declared a James O Brien to be a
00:28:02
menace to society many had suspected the O'Brien brothers of being involved in Shauna house murder
00:28:10
but there were several factors that excluded them as spec's firstly Shauna's kidnapper had
00:28:17
been described as a tall and slender man but Timothy and James were heavyset secondly they had both been in prison at
00:28:25
the time Shauna was killed securing them airtight alibis a telephone pole bearing
00:28:34
Shauna's photograph marked the street corner where she was abducted serving as a constant reminder to locals about the
00:28:41
unsolved case and every year on October 27 Oil City residents held a candlelight
00:28:47
vigil to walk Shauna's incomplete final route home police provided an annual update on the status of their
00:28:55
investigation reminding the public of the details released in the FBI's criminal profile despite following leads
00:29:03
to California Ohio New York and Kansas they retained the belief that the child's killer was an oil city local on
00:29:13
October 29 1997 almost five years to the day since Shauna how was kidnapped four-year-old Sinead Freeman was playing
00:29:22
with her friends Christian and patife aney in a grassy area near the phone court council housing estate in Oil City
00:29:30
Christian had cut himself and ran inside his house to seek help from his mother when he returned
00:29:37
Shinae was gone and the Tiffany reported that a man dressed in black had taken her into the woods word of the abduction
00:29:46
spread quickly enter due to its occurrence right before Halloween many feared Shauna House killer had struck
00:29:52
again with police questioning whether the month or holiday held some sort of significance to the perpetrator a
00:30:01
hundred volunteers searched fish an a who was wearing a long-sleeved white cotton dress adorned with love hearts
00:30:08
bright blue socks white sneakers and had her hair tied in pigtails using one red
00:30:14
and one purple ribbon as the day progressed and temperatures dropped worries fish and they increased as she
00:30:22
was not wearing a coat and her light dress would not be enough to keep her warm through
00:30:27
at the NOI amongst the search party was local teenager 17-year old Nicholas Bowen police suspicions were narrowed in
00:30:37
on Belen as he was dressed in black and witnesses had seen him playing with the children earlier that day after being
00:30:43
suspended from school early in the search he had offered a hug to shanae's distraught mother telling her not to
00:30:52
worry but he soon became agitated and wanted to go home after very little questioning
00:30:59
by the police Bowen broke down leading them into the woods and to shanae's body the four year old had been assaulted
00:31:08
before being thrown into a ravine where she suffered a head injury the bled profusely panicking Bowen kicked some
00:31:16
dirt sticks and leaves over her before fleeing the scene uncertain whether she was dead or alive 12 hours after she was
00:31:26
reported missing police charged Nicholas Bowen with Shanae Freeman's murder given
00:31:34
the similarities to Shauna house murder five years earlier Nicholas Bowen seemed
00:31:40
a likely suspect but there was one problem he was only 12 years old at the time Shauna was killed any other
00:31:49
possible connection was subsequently ruled out with the similarities between the two crimes merely deemed a chilling
00:31:56
coincidence later in 1997 in Armstrong County a little over an hour south of Oil City 32
00:32:08
year-old Richard Jobs and his 30 year old wife Diane were charged with over 200 counts of sexual offences against
00:32:16
the three nurses who were hired to look after their sick children a toddler with
00:32:21
cerebral palsy and an infant with a breathing disorder the nurses alleged the husband and wife subjected them to
00:32:28
numerous incidents of assault and indecent exposure with one nurse claiming Diane hold her down whilst her
00:32:35
husband attempted to rape her most of the charges were dropped in return for a play with Richard Jobs convicted on 15
00:32:44
counts of indecent assault and to Diane job's convicted of simple assault terroristic threats and harassment in
00:32:52
sentencing the judge stated the depravity that went on is hard to comprehend even as a judge surely after
00:33:03
her husband's sentencing Diane Jobs told police she had lied about his alibi for
00:33:09
the night of Shauna house murder at the time the couple lived about eight miles from Shauna's family home following this
00:33:18
revelation police questioned Richard Jobes about his whereabouts on the night of October 27 1992 but he denied having
00:33:26
any involvement in Shauna's abduction his DNA was tested but failed to reveal a match to Sean as killer and as there
00:33:36
was no other evidence linking him to the crime jobs became just one more name in
00:33:42
the list of over 2000 men who had been questioned in relation to the murder in the neighboring state of New Jersey the
00:33:52
1994 rape and murder of seven year old Megan Kanka by a repeat sexual offender resulted in the creation of Megan's Law
00:34:01
the passing of this new federal bill meant the names and addresses of known sex offenders were entered into a
00:34:07
database enabling law enforcement to supervise their movements following their early
00:34:12
from prison in cases of high-risk offenders the law allowed for limited community notification as well meaning
00:34:21
citizens were made aware when serious sexual offenders moved into their neighborhoods during this time Shauna's
00:34:29
mother Lucy learned how to search the oil city sex offender registry and was shocked to discover that 20 registered
00:34:36
sexual offenders were living within blocks of her house alone in mid-1999 police searched a 2 and a half story
00:34:45
yellow brick home on Reed Street near the intersection where Shawna was taken almost seven years prior concentrating
00:34:53
on the basement and space under the back porch stairs at the time of Shawna's murder the house had been rented by
00:35:01
Michael ku so it's the man of questionable character who suddenly left town on a bus and disappeared the day
00:35:07
after the 11 year olds body was discovered he had been a person of interest since the early stages of the
00:35:14
investigation has he vaguely fit the description of the tall thin male suspect although police refused to
00:35:24
comment on what they were looking for in this latest search of the property local
00:35:28
media speculated whether they were determining if the scuffs on Shawna's knees may have been caused by the
00:35:34
flooring in Kusa witters former home but once again their efforts led nowhere police eventually tracked Marko Keisha
00:35:45
Waites down to a Connecticut prison where he was serving time for drug related charges he was questioned
00:35:52
multiple times in relation to Shawna's murder and despite having no evidence to link him to the crime he remained a
00:35:59
strong person of interest upon learning of the search of his former residence Hewitt's made the unusual move of
00:36:07
writing a letter from prison to oil cities the local newspaper the derrick in which he wrote well god rest her soul
00:36:15
and with all due respect for the how family her death has been a misery to me misery to the point of seven years worth
00:36:25
of questions blood tests polygraph tests and more done to me because I'm told being a male
00:36:32
with a minor criminal record I am a major suspect later that year on the seventh anniversary of Shauna's
00:36:43
abduction children were once again reminded to stay off the streets and warned to observe the long-running ban
00:36:49
on trick-or-treating after dark police made their annual statement to the press claiming they had obtained evidence they
00:36:57
believed could help in presenting a prosecutable case the evidence was currently being analyzed by the FBI with
00:37:06
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[Music] detective Richard Graham had served on the Pennsylvania State Police Force
00:42:29
since 1970 at the time of Shauna house disappearance he was working as a patrolman and assisted in the search but
00:42:37
beyond that he had little involvement with the case then in 1995 the lead investigator in Shawna's murder retired
00:42:46
and six months later the cold-case was assigned to detective Graham like many struggling working-class towns Oriole
00:42:55
city law enforcement had of limited resources which meant they had to prioritize their cases according to a
00:43:01
variety of factors cold cases or those where little new information was coming in were often given the lowest priority
00:43:11
complicating matters were the many problems that inevitably arise over lengthy criminal investigations
00:43:16
including misplaced evidence poor record-keeping and two lost pleads although detective Graham's workload
00:43:25
consisted of up to 70 open files at any given time Seana house motor continued to haunt him
00:43:31
and he often spent his own spare time revisiting the case he sought the services of a noted a criminal profiler
00:43:40
Colonel Robert Rustler who helped catch the Son of Sam killer David Berkowitz and whose techniques inspired the crime
00:43:47
thriller Silence of the Lambs when added to the investigation Colonel Ressler presented the
00:43:54
possibility that Shana how had been abducted by more than one perpetrator a theory that had not previously been
00:44:01
considered by police he referenced the den Payton's witness account of the abduction during which he hadn't seen
00:44:09
Sean are being forced into the vehicle nor had he seen the perpetrator jump behind to the wheel of the vehicle
00:44:15
despite arriving at the site of her abduction just seconds after she was snatched sir Colonel Ressler Dan's
00:44:22
account made much more sense if the perpetrator had handed Shana to an accomplice before running away on foot
00:44:30
this theory made sense to detective Graham as when he had initially revisited Shauna's cold-case photographs
00:44:37
he noticed the new detail at the time her body was discovered there was a shoe print on her cheek this suggested
00:44:45
Shauna's attack had been violent but as there were no ligature marks around her wrists or ankles she was likely held
00:44:52
captive without restraint a task requiring more than one perpetrator when DNA samples were first collected from
00:45:01
Shauna's bodysuit some detectives had considered the possibility the DNA could have been transferred independently of
00:45:08
her murder as the home she lived in was not particularly well kept and many people came and went with recent
00:45:16
advancements in DNA testing detective Graham ordered a test on a swab that had been taken from Shauna's mouth with the
00:45:24
swab returning a positive match for the seminal DNA that was on her clothing the lab technician told the detective if
00:45:32
you find the DNA match you'll have your killer thus detective Graham focused his
00:45:39
efforts on collecting and testing DNA from as many potential suspects as possible
00:45:46
in late 2001 detective Graham's investigation into an unsolved violent robbery brought him to the Venango
00:45:54
County Jail to question a possible suspect Timothy O'Bryan the eldest of the o'brien brothers was serving time
00:46:03
for an unrelated burglary whilst his younger sibling James was completing his sentence for the 1995 attempted
00:46:10
kidnapping of the 22 year old woman this had become a habit when questioning any male criminal in oil city after
00:46:18
questioning Timothy O'Bryan about the robbery detective Graham requested he provide a DNA sample to rule him out of
00:46:25
the shona hell murder investigation Timothy was startled but agreed before saying he had to check with his lawyer
00:46:33
first something about the way he said this made the hairs on the back of the detective's neck prickle Timothy
00:46:43
O'Brien's DNA sample came back a negative for a match to Sean his killer but detective Graham couldn't shake the
00:46:50
feeling that something wasn't right then in early December 2001 he met with state
00:46:57
parole agent Edie flake to discuss an unrelated matter when the conversation turned to Shawna's murder
00:47:03
Edie remarked he always felt the O'Brien brothers could be involved despite the fact that were both in prison at the
00:47:11
time of the crime and two therefore had solid alibis it suddenly occurred to detective Graham that when he inherited
00:47:20
Shauna's case he had simply relied on notes in the file that said the O'Brien brothers had been in prison at the time
00:47:26
of Shauna's abduction but had never confirmed these details for himself to satisfy his curiosity he decided to
00:47:34
double-check the official records and what he discovered brought him to the core
00:47:41
the records showed that while the O'Brien brothers had indeed been arrested around at the time of Shauna's
00:47:47
abduction they had made bail and were not in police custody on the night she went missing
00:47:57
later that month detective Graham was transferred to a new unit effectively removing him from Shauna's case before
00:48:05
the transfer he put in a final request for one of his fellow officers to visit James O Brien in the Mercer State
00:48:12
Correctional Facility to obtain his DNA sample his request was obliged in early January 2002 and whilst awaiting the
00:48:22
results the case took another surprising turn On January 9 2002 a former cellmate
00:48:31
of Timothy O'Brien told police they had been playing cards together when the prison went into lockdown during the
00:48:37
September 11th terror attacks the previous year according to the inmate Timothy confessed to Shawna's murder
00:48:45
during the game saying he forced the young girl into the trunk of a vehicle before throwing her off a bridge then in
00:48:53
early February 2002 detective Graham received a phone call from the forensic technician who had worked on Shauna
00:49:00
house case for years wanting him to be the first to hear the news the results of James O'Brien's DNA test had returned
00:49:09
a match for the DNA found on Shauna following these breakthroughs a team of law enforcement officers made up of
00:49:17
State Police and FBI agents met to strategize their next steps James O'Brien's DNA indicated he had
00:49:26
contact with Shauna but didn't prove he was responsible for her death and all they had linking Timothy O'Bryan to the
00:49:33
crime was the story provided by an unreliable jailhouse snitch law enforcement had to tread carefully
00:49:40
before making an arrest as any decent lawyer could tear the case to shreds there were still elements of the crime
00:49:50
that didn't add up neither Timothy nor James O'Brien match to Dan Payton's witness description of
00:49:56
the men who snatched Sean our nor did either of them drive a small red sedan at the time of the attack investigators
00:50:05
speculated as to whether a third accomplice may have also been involved and to their suspicions returned to Ted
00:50:11
Walker the tall lanky local pizza shop worker who was known to act inappropriately around a young female
00:50:18
customers not only was he known to Shawna but one of the o'brien brothers had been staying at his residence around
00:50:26
at the time of her abduction assisting him with maintenance jobs during the early stages of their investigation
00:50:35
police had questioned Ted Walker about a red car parked behind his house which shared similarities to the description
00:50:42
provided by Dan Payton although Walker had explained to the vehicle was a project he was working on and who was
00:50:50
currently inoperable original investigators never confirmed whether the car was capable of being
00:50:56
driven and it had long since been sent to the scrap heap Ted Walker had been questioned to
00:51:03
numerous times over the years but had a habit of changing details every time lost giving answers that were noticeably
00:51:10
well thought out and wordy as the investigative spotlight narrowed in on Walker he was brought in for questioning
00:51:18
once again during which he was informed that police had DNA evidence and witness
00:51:23
statements linking the O'Brien brothers to Shawna's murder this information prompted Walker to change his story yet
00:51:31
again telling investigators he may have taken in some real bad people who may have done a disgusting thing he then
00:51:41
admitted he into the O'Brien brothers had been joking about the incompetence of oil city police when they came up
00:51:47
with what they thought was a funny prank they would snatch a child in front of a
00:51:53
witness on Halloween and watch as being napped cops made fools of themselves running around looking for the child
00:52:01
they aimed to grab someone they knew so their victim wouldn't be too scared and once their actions had caused a bit of
00:52:08
chaos they would return the child safely as investigators continued to mount their case against Ted Walker into the
00:52:17
O'Brien brothers they were alerted to a call made to the local fire department the night after Walker had told them
00:52:24
about the abduction plot he concocted with the O'Briens a neighbor of Walker's caught sight of the men burning
00:52:31
something behind his house believed to have been a mattress investigators obtained a search warrant for Walker's
00:52:39
residence and on the evening of March 14 2002 they converged on Laurel Avenue a quiet unsealed Road on the edge of town
00:52:49
lined with ramshackle derelict houses with overgrown neglected yards with no evidence uncovered during the search of
00:52:58
Ted Walker's property investigators remained at a loss as to the location where Shauna had been held captive
00:53:05
before she was killed Ted Walker was at work at the time the warrant was enacted and police refused
00:53:13
to make an official statement to reporters regardless word soon spread that the search was related to Shauna how into
00:53:22
local news ran the story alongside a picture of Walker when Dan Payton saw the story he placed the call to the
00:53:30
police telling them he was 90% certain that Walker was the tall thin man he had seen smoking a cigarette
00:53:37
neither Reid and West first Street intersection almost 10 years prior when Walker was next interviewed by police he
00:53:47
admitted that on the night of October 27 1992 he approached Shauna howl and asked
00:53:53
her about her Girl Scout cookies before giving her a hug and handing her over to
00:53:58
Timothy O'Brien as part of their abduction prank Wacka claimed he returned home and a few
00:54:04
minutes later Timothy and James O'Brien arrived at his house with Shauna before taking her upstairs Walker
00:54:13
claimed he hadn't said anything about this to police earlier because he feared for his son's life on March 19 2002
00:54:22
detectives approached to James O Brien with the news that his DNA had been linked to Shauna James reportedly
00:54:30
dropped his head to his lap and said all right I'm not going to sit here and deny
00:54:35
what you already know however when reporters arrived to interview James he remained defiant telling local newspaper
00:54:44
that Derrick I didn't do it soil wasn't going to admit to it but I have a clear conscience I don't know how you would go
00:54:54
on living knowing you were responsible for a child's death like that I understand why they want it solved it's
00:55:02
a horrific crime despite all the information and evidence that police now had pointing to the three culprits the
00:55:11
District Attorney needed a watertight case before proceeding with an arrest with each defendant entitled to two
00:55:18
lawyers Venango County needed to procure the budget to go to trial and wanted time to ensure the prosecution's case
00:55:25
would result in a conviction the O'Brien brothers didn't present a threat to the
00:55:31
public as James was still in prison and Timothy was currently under house arrest
00:55:37
over the following months investigators worked to solidify their case as the district attorney awaited the funds to
00:55:45
proceed to trial meanwhile in 2003 Timothy O'Bryan was convicted of two child sex offenses
00:55:53
against a six-year-old girl and an 11-year old boy that occurred in 1999 and 2000
00:56:00
he was sentenced to 33 months to five years in prison at a subsequent hearing to determine the threat he presented to
00:56:09
the public under Megan's Law he was diagnosed with both antisocial personality disorder and pedophilic
00:56:15
tendencies and labeled a sexually violent predator the most severe classification of sex offender two more
00:56:25
years passed before authorities were ready to take Shaun a house case the trial on July 3 2004 Timothy and James O
00:56:34
Brien were arrested and charged with first and second degree murder rape involuntary deviate sexual intercourse
00:56:41
and kidnapping it was the biggest news story in oil city's recent history journalists obtained the affidavit for
00:56:57
the O'Briens arrest which included details about Ted Walker's role in the abduction and a news crews converged on
00:57:04
his house for comment he expressed relief that police had finally caught the culprits saying good for them
00:57:12
I hope they cut their heads off I thought there were friends of mine they tried to say I was part of this and
00:57:19
destroyed my life Walker maintained that the only reason had been interviewed about the case in
00:57:26
the past was that he matched the description of Shauna's abductor he denied involvement in the crime
00:57:32
asserting I never met the little girl I don't even know who her mother is he maintained any admission of guilty
00:57:42
made was coerced by police threatening to take his son away he also alleged police planted evidence when they
00:57:49
searched his home adding that he had no respect for anyone that would hurt a child the next day of July for state
00:57:58
police officers sat outside Ted Walker's multi-story derelict house on Laurel Avenue documenting all the
00:58:05
comings and goings before placing him under arrest without incident at approximately 11:45 a.m. under
00:58:13
questioning Walker quickly realized his lies had caught up with him the next day
00:58:19
he accepted a plea deal agreeing to plead guilty to kidnapping and third degree murder which carried a prison
00:58:26
term of 20 to 40 years in return for his testimony against the two o'brien brothers he would avoid the more serious
00:58:35
charges for first or second degree murder which carried a possible death sentence and a life in prison
00:58:42
respectively following his arrest Ted Walker was interviewed by state trooper Vernon Brown during which he
00:58:51
provided a more detailed account of his version of the events of October 1992 according to Walker the initial plan he
00:59:00
concocted with the O'Brien brothers were supposed to be a prank to upset the Oil City Police Department
00:59:06
by making them look incompetent they intended to grab a child in plain sight on Halloween night making it obvious
00:59:13
enough that the police would be called the trio would then keep the child for 10 to 15 minutes before dropping them
00:59:20
off safely at home they originally planned on taking the male friend of Walker's son but decided a girl was a
00:59:28
more worthwhile target as she might cause more of a sensation once this plan was formed the O'Brien brothers
00:59:36
discussed the abduction with increasing frequency and intensity then on the night of October 27 1992 Walker drove to
00:59:46
the a-plus convenience store to purchase coffee and cigarettes when he saw the O'Briens drive-by in one of his
00:59:52
fixer-upper cars a red Chevrolet Chevette which the pair had taken without his permission
00:59:59
Walker followed them to the West first underage Street intersection where both cars pulled over when he approached the
01:00:07
red Chevette Timothy O'Bryan told him we've bumped up the plan do Brian's explained today wanted to snatch a child
01:00:17
that night until they didn't care who it was at that moment the men saw 11 year-old Shauna hair walking alone down
01:00:27
the dark industry Walker approached her asking if she was selling girl-scout cookies and
01:00:34
requesting she give him a hug he then scooped her up and shoved her toward Timothy O'Bryan who was standing
01:00:41
at the open passenger side door of the two-door Chevette where his brother sat at the wheel the front passenger seat
01:00:49
had already been pulled forward enabling the men to quickly shove Shawn her into
01:00:53
the backseat once the brothers had shown her in the car Walker jumped in his own vehicle and
01:01:00
circled the block when he returned the red Chevette had gone he stopped for more coffee and a loaf of bread before
01:01:09
heading home and two minutes later the O'Brien brothers arrived with Shana under their arms they carried her
01:01:16
upstairs while Walker started to prepare dinner for his son in the kitchen he claimed that at this point he still
01:01:24
believed the situation unfolding was just part of the original prank the trio had planned whilst he was cooking
01:01:32
spaghetti Walker heard a female voice crying from above he stormed upstairs to the room where Shawna was being held and
01:01:40
called through the door ordering the brothers to get the hell out of his house Timothy O'Bryan appeared telling
01:01:48
him to mind his own business and worry about his own son Walker grabbed his son and left the residence for a short time
01:01:56
and when he returned the brothers and Shawna were no longer there furious the O'Briens had taken Shana to his home
01:02:05
Walker later kicked the Perry out when they returned without the girl later that night
01:02:16
detectives didn't fully trust Ted Walker's version of events believing he spun his tail to make
01:02:23
himself out to be an innocent party but as they relied on his testimony to secure a conviction for the crime that
01:02:30
had hung over Royal City for nearly 13 years they continued to work with him and for the first time since Shana Hal
01:02:37
was abducted things moved quickly due to the high-profile nature of the case the trial was moved out of Venango
01:02:47
County after it was determined the accused were unlikely to receive a fair local trial the court ruled the 39
01:02:56
year-old Timothy O'Bryan and 33 year-old James O Brien be tried together followed
01:03:02
by a separate trial for 46 year-old Ted Walker when the o'brien brother's trial commenced members of Sean his family sat
01:03:11
quietly in the courtroom tent Walker took the stand to testify against the brothers but once again parts of his
01:03:20
story changed in his initial confession he told police he was at home when he saw the O'Brien brothers carry Sean her
01:03:28
upstairs but he now claimed that when he returned home from buying coffee and bread his son informed him that the
01:03:35
O'Briens had taken someone upstairs he didn't ask his son any questions but assumed to the person he was referring
01:03:43
to was Shawna the defense argued that Walker was the salt culprit of the rape and murder and was lying in order to
01:03:52
save himself they claimed he was not out buying coffee on October 27 1992 but lying in
01:04:00
wait for Sean O'Haire to leave the church Halloween party Walker testified to not knowing Shawna
01:04:06
personally but the defense presented two witnesses who argued otherwise one was a
01:04:12
former coworker at the pizza shop who claimed Walker had met Shaw now whilst working there while another witness
01:04:19
testified that Shawna had previously played with Walker's son James O'Brien's attorney told the court
01:04:27
Ted Walker is evil he's every parent's every neighbor's worst nightmare he's a child molester and he's a liar he's
01:04:37
hoping he gets less time because he's a weasel and he turned other people win in an attempt to explain why James
01:04:47
O'Brien's semen was found on Shauna's clothing and body the defense claimed his client had sex in the bed at
01:04:54
Walker's house earlier that day with a woman named Heather who he picked up in a bar when Walker took Shawn her into
01:05:01
bed that night the semen transferred onto her clothing which was then stuffed into her mouth to silence her the
01:05:09
defense could offer no explanation as to why if this was the case there was no DNA found on Shawna from tent Walker or
01:05:17
the mysterious Heather who they were unable to produce for trial Timothy O'Brien's lawyer James Goodwin
01:05:26
claimed there was not a single piece of credible evidence to link his client to the crime arguing he was only on trial
01:05:33
because of his brother's DNA and the O'Briens history of committing crimes together most of the evidence against
01:05:41
Timothy O'Bryan came from his alleged a jailhouse confession to a fellow inmate in 2001 however the credibility of the
01:05:50
inmate making these assertions was thrown into doubt when it was established he had fabricated some of
01:05:56
the details of Timothy's alleged confession during the trial members of the jury were escorted to Oil City where
01:06:04
they walked the route that Shawna had taken on the night of her abduction and visited the abandoned railway bridge in
01:06:11
koltes Hall where her body was found the fact that the brothers were currently serving jail time for unrelated charges
01:06:18
was withheld from the jury in case of prejudice to their opinion of them each day our avid jurors left the courtroom
01:06:26
Timothy and James O Brien were shackled and a let out of the building after two weeks of court proceedings and
01:06:37
in nearly 17 hours of deliberations the jury reached its verdict just one day before the 13th anniversary of Shauna's
01:06:46
abduction her family sat quietly in the courtroom holding each other's hands as they nervously awaited the decision
01:06:53
across the room the two accused casually chatted and chuckled with one another as
01:06:58
they awaited their fate both Timothy and James O Brien were found to guilty of second-degree murder
01:07:06
third-degree murder involuntary deviate sexual intercourse kidnapping and criminal conspiracy to commit kidnapping
01:07:14
they were found not guilty of first-degree murder and rape the brothers showed no emotion with James
01:07:23
passively chewing gum as the verdict was delivered Shauna's family celebrated quietly
01:07:30
hugging one another with tears in their eyes when it came time for judge Oliver lobar to hinder down prison sentences he
01:07:39
made certain the O'Brien brothers would never be released telling the pair the world was a better
01:07:46
place because of Shauna and to the world will be a much better place without you
01:07:51
walking free ever again when reading the sentencing remarks the judge said the conduct of the defendants far exceeded
01:08:01
the means necessary to commit these crimes the victim did not have to be killed and - this was done in an attempt
01:08:08
to cover up the terrible things that had been done to her and to prevent her from
01:08:13
identifying her captors the throwing of this young victim from a railroad trestle inflicted upon this
01:08:20
young child a terror and horror that went far beyond the typical violation of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse
01:08:26
and criminal conspiracy to commit kidnapping what extreme cruelty it was to throw a child who was alive off the
01:08:35
trestle onto the rocks below what a horrific way for anyone to die especially a young child the evidence in
01:08:45
the form of photographic autopsy evidence clearly shows a cruelty that is not necessarily a typical part of these
01:08:52
crimes these crimes had a devastating effect upon the victim's family the citizens of Oil City and all the members
01:09:00
of our surrounding communities following Shauna's abduction and to the finding of
01:09:06
her battered and broken body fear gripped our community citizens changed the way they went about their
01:09:12
day-to-day activities youth activities were restricted and even eliminated and to this effect continued for more than a
01:09:20
decade we find that both defendants have demonstrated absolutely no remorse for their despicable conduct we find that
01:09:29
both defendants are extremely dangerous predators and we need to protect society
01:09:34
from both of them as long as possible therefore we have imposed the consecutive sentences in this case in
01:09:42
the event there would be some change in the law which would make them eligible for parole on the charge of
01:09:47
second-degree murder we certainly believe that any lesser sentence would depreciate the seriousness of these
01:09:54
crimes and to their disastrous effects as news spread that the verdicts had been delivered
01:10:02
Shauna's supporters drove past the courthouse beeping their horns and shouting derisive remarks about the
01:10:08
defendants the next day the third accused Ted Walker filed a motion to withdraw his
01:10:15
plea to third-degree murder and the kidnapping he believed the jury might find him not guilty due to the
01:10:22
prosecution's argument during the O'Brien trial that he had not participated in Shauna's sexual assault
01:10:27
or murder his request to withdraw was denied and for his involvement in the crime he was sentenced to a maximum of
01:10:36
20 to 40 years in prison Shauna's mother Lucy expressed relief at the result saying I needed this to be solved these
01:10:48
people will never hurt anyone again they took a little girl's life on October 27 2005 13 years after Shauna
01:11:00
how embarked on her last walk home the final candlelight vigil in her honor took place a representative for the
01:11:08
family said this will be more of a celebration we're just going to remember Shauna it'll be a glorious day crowds of
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supporters walked alongside the 11 year olds family holding posters with the words justice for Shauna as they traced
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the route from the first Free Methodist Church to the Reed and West first Street
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intersection those who were unable to attend but still wanted to wanna sureness memory were asked to turn their
01:11:39
porch lights on at the time of the procession three years later oil city took the final step in healing from the
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devastating crime that had defined their town in August 2008 a local school girl
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named Elizabeth stood before the oil city council at the monthly council meeting holding a petition containing
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175 of her classmates signatures Elizabeth lived on the same street that Shauna once did but wasn't alive to
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experience the terror that gripped her hometown after the young girl's death on behalf of the town's children the
01:12:18
ten-year-old requested that the nightly Halloween celebrations that had been outlawed since Shauna house murder be
01:12:24
reinstated Elizabeth presented the city with her list of reasons why the council should
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restore after dark trick-or-treating pointing out that Halloween decorations are best appreciated at night and that
01:12:38
many people aren't home during the day to hand out candy teachers from Shauna's former school seventh straight school
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encouraged Elizabeth than supported her petition the council vote was unanimous by October 31 2008 the ban on nighttime
01:12:58
trick-or-treating was lifted and for the first time in 16 years oil city's children took to the streets
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in costume as spooky celebrations were in full swing albeit with twice the number of police on duty
01:13:14
boy your city police chief or Robert when our who was a patrolman at the time of Shawna's murder said no one will
01:13:23
forget Shawna and nor should they [Music] [Music] you