The murders occurred at about 10:30 pm on 3 July 1964 in Milan Park near Emerson school in Northwest Detroit. The area is roughly in the center of the above map.
See link below for a more detailed area of the area:
MI MI - Francis "Pat" Brown, 17, & Sheldon Miller, 14, fatally shot, Detroit, 3 Jul 1964
- Thread starter Richard
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The murders occurred at about 10:30 pm on 3 July 1964 in Milan Park near Emerson school in Northwest Detroit. The area is roughly in the center of the above map.
See link below for a more detailed area of the area:
This unsolved double murder does not appear to be an active "cold case" on any of the lists. It was originally (and probably still is) in the jurisdiction of the Detroit Police. I brought it to the attention of the newly formed Michigan Cold Case investigation group, but have not heard anything regarding any recent efforts to reopen or reinvestigate it.
Pat Brown (17) and his close friend Sheldon Miller (14) were outside in the Milan Park, only a block from their homes at about 10:30 pm the evening of 3 July 1964. They purchased some fire crackers from another youth and were setting them off - as were many other kids that evening.
Some time about 10:30pm, they were gunned down by an unidentified person using a .22 revolver. Their assailant walked away from them about 78 feet, ejected 8 spent shell casings and one live round from the gun's cylinder, reloaded and returned to shoot them again, ensuring that they died by shooting each boy in the head.
Their lifeless bodies were found shortly after midnight on 4 July 1964 by two other boys out walking a dog, who reported the murder to police. An extensive investigation followed involving the entire Detroit Police department. Newspaper coverage was also extensive, until a city-wide newspaper strike occurred.
By the time six months passed, only three Detroit Police detectives were still working on the case. Although hundreds of leads had been followed, witnesses identified and questioned, and evidence gathered and studied, no viable suspects were identified or charged with the murders.
Pat Brown (17) and his close friend Sheldon Miller (14) were outside in the Milan Park, only a block from their homes at about 10:30 pm the evening of 3 July 1964. They purchased some fire crackers from another youth and were setting them off - as were many other kids that evening.
Some time about 10:30pm, they were gunned down by an unidentified person using a .22 revolver. Their assailant walked away from them about 78 feet, ejected 8 spent shell casings and one live round from the gun's cylinder, reloaded and returned to shoot them again, ensuring that they died by shooting each boy in the head.
Their lifeless bodies were found shortly after midnight on 4 July 1964 by two other boys out walking a dog, who reported the murder to police. An extensive investigation followed involving the entire Detroit Police department. Newspaper coverage was also extensive, until a city-wide newspaper strike occurred.
By the time six months passed, only three Detroit Police detectives were still working on the case. Although hundreds of leads had been followed, witnesses identified and questioned, and evidence gathered and studied, no viable suspects were identified or charged with the murders.
In July 2024, this Michigan Cold Case will be 60 years old. It would seem that with all the information available from the many witnesses questioned, that it might still be solved today, yet there is hardly any mention of it anywhere, except on this forum.
It's really a shame. Such a shocking murder in a nice neighborhood during a holiday. Innocent kids out shooting firecrackers in the park.
Detroit PD must be overwhelmed or understaffed. There are a number of cold cases followed here that get no assistance.
This case has always been in the jurisdiction of the Detroit Metropolitan Police. Initially, the entire police force was involved in it, but by five months later, there were only three officers still working it. It was literally "front page news" but shortly after the murders occurred, the Detroit newspapers went on strike and the major papers did not resume publication until 5 months later. After a one-time summary and revisit of the case, it went into obscurity.
The Michigan State Police head a cold case team with a lot of resources, but would need cooperation and a request from the Detroit Police to get involved in this case.
On 3 July 2024, this case will be 60 years old. Hopefully new interest in solving it might be generated.
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This cold blooded double murder was likely committed by a sociopath who had no feeling for his victims or their families. He may have committed similar murders before, and certainly after.
It would be interesting to know if the Detroit Police are still investigating it. If not, they should release all their files to other agencies or cold case units.
It would be interesting to know if the Detroit Police are still investigating it. If not, they should release all their files to other agencies or cold case units.
Melquiades
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If I was a cold-case detective the first thing I’d be trying to do here is nail down whether Matthew Charles Lamb is ‘in’ or ‘out’ as a suspect because, wow, when you look at his age/proximity/history/MO you really couldn’t get a more spot-on suspect.
Issue is that he was supposedly in a care home 2 hours away in London Ontario at the time of these murders and it would need to be pinned down whether he was unequivocally there or whether he was home with family in Windsor for a weekend or some such.
After that you’d probably want to take a deep dive into the ‘liar’ witness and confirm that this wasn’t a Lyon Sisters type situation with the murderer involving himself to try and divert the investigation.
Issue is that he was supposedly in a care home 2 hours away in London Ontario at the time of these murders and it would need to be pinned down whether he was unequivocally there or whether he was home with family in Windsor for a weekend or some such.
After that you’d probably want to take a deep dive into the ‘liar’ witness and confirm that this wasn’t a Lyon Sisters type situation with the murderer involving himself to try and divert the investigation.
rbbm.
'Dark Impulse Dark Action (Dark Impulse Dark Action Part One Book 1) Kindle '
''I am writing this to attest to the respect and admiration I have for the author of this book, Frederick Gibson. Though I have never met Mr. Gibson, I never met anyone quite like him. I am Richard Brown, brother of Pat Brown. He was murdered along with his friend Sheldon Miller July 3, 1964. For 47 years I have tucked these murders away in a dark place never really realizing the pain I was in. Then, early this year, 2011, I went to the Detroit Police Dept. in an effort to learn if DNA, unavailable in 1964, could be helpful in solving these murders. This same year, as I was discouraged, thinking nothing could ever be done to help solve this case, Frederick Gibson’s book "Dark Impulse Dark Action: The murders of Sheldon Miller and Pat Brown" was brought to my attention.''Richard Brown, age 20 in 1964, was serving in the US Coast Guard, but home on leave on 3 July 1964. He was the older brother of Pat.
In the early morning hours (just past midnight) of 4 July, Richard heard the sirens and saw the lights and commotion from the park, which was just across the street from the Brown and Miller residences. When daylight came, he was escorted by Detroit Police officers to view the murder scene.
He has always wanted to know why his brother and Sheldon were killed, and has sought answers from the Detroit Police Department.
In the early morning hours (just past midnight) of 4 July, Richard heard the sirens and saw the lights and commotion from the park, which was just across the street from the Brown and Miller residences. When daylight came, he was escorted by Detroit Police officers to view the murder scene.
He has always wanted to know why his brother and Sheldon were killed, and has sought answers from the Detroit Police Department.
60 years ago this month, Pat Brown (17) and Sheldon Miller (14) were shot to death by a yet unidentified assailant. The double murder occurred in a public park near their homes in Northwest Detroit at about 10:30 pm on 3 July 1964.
Their murders remain unsolved.
Their murders remain unsolved.
A 1964 advertisement for the Hi-Standard Sentinel Revolvers:
It has been discussed on this thread that the most probable murder weapon in this cold case was a .22 revolver made by Hi Standard. Although the specific pistol was never found, extensive tests were conducted on the fired bullets and ejected shell casings. These results were compared to some 750 Revolvers in hope of finding the murder weapon.
Two other Michigan murders of note were also committed with a Hi Standard .22 revolver: Jane Mixer and Alice Kalom were both shot to death in 1969 during what LE believed were a series of connected murders of young women. These were called by the press, "The Co-Ed Murders".
John Norman Collins was convicted of one of the murders, but believed by many to have committed others. He was linked to Alice Kalom by DNA testing in 2013.
Collins DID have a .22 revolver, but It was not obtained by police. Two days before Collins' arrest, his partner in crime, Andrew Manuel took the pistol and left Michigan by bus for Salinas, California. He later claimed to have disposed of it along the route.
John Collins was 17 years old when Pat and Sheldon were gunned down in Milan Park. He would have been entering his Senior year of high school. Perhaps an unlikely suspect, but a possibility.
It might be worth comparing the bullets found in Milan Park in 1964 with those taken from the bodies of Jane and Alice in 1969.
A double murder might be somewhat rare, and this case seems to have a random element to it, since the boys were in a public park walking around in the dark.
A triple murder, occurred only three weeks later and only a few miles west of where Pat and Sheldon were shot to death. William Parsons and his two elderly sisters were shot to death inside their Livonia, Michigan home. That case also remains unsolved.
A triple murder, occurred only three weeks later and only a few miles west of where Pat and Sheldon were shot to death. William Parsons and his two elderly sisters were shot to death inside their Livonia, Michigan home. That case also remains unsolved.
There were a number of persons in and around Milan Park on the evening of 3 July 1964. Police investigators had the names of at least 28 persons - most of them teenagers. They questioned everyone who lived in nearby homes, anyone known to be in the park, and the family members of both Pat and Sheldon.
A review of this case and re-interviewing any living witnesses or persons of interest might bring some answers and might even solve the case.