IL IL - Barbara, 15, & Patricia Grimes, 13, Chicago, 27 Dec 1956

[December]

I have read most of the inquest PDF. I tell you, i wish the family had a lawyer at that thing. It is horrible to imagine being in their shoes.

I read the confession that was read out in court. So, the one guy called Frank in the confession is actually named Bill and was in jail during the relevant time period. So, obviously, Bennie just pulled that guy out of thin air.

What is troubling is Bennie claims they picked up the girls and partied with them for days including having sex regularly. But then they go parking and these girls he is talking about say no, therefore they both "accidentally killed" or maybe purposely killed. But, definitely raped for days because they weren't allowed to say no, ever. What the heck?

I don't believe that even this coroner, who kept going on about cookies and candy, would have missed such violations. As these poor girls were found naked, i believe the police present would have been able to see if they had been violated to that degree.

Also, i don't think the lawyer should have been allowed to repeatedly ask the family about this seedy side of town. How do they know where the girls might have been taken? They can only say the girls would not choose to go to such a place.

I do believe the family is right and these were decent young girls. So, it must have been incredibly heartbreaking for them to read about their little daughters being accused of hanging out in bars and shaking up with randos. At first, i thought maybe some witnesses saw some older girls in the bar until it got to the part about them being killed.

Bennie might have made up a story that he thought explained how somehow they wanted this and accident. But, just because the confession is just absurd doesn't mean he didn't have a hand in whatever actually happened.

This entire inquest is a mess. And it's obvious people are regularly being thrown out of the room. This is Chicago, a major city... I think I am seeing why some old crimes go unsolved.

 

[Gunther Toody]

Jun 15, 2024 #coldcase #grimessisters #Banfield
One of Chicago’s most infamous unsolved murders has changed the city forever. In 1956, sisters Barbara and Patricia Grimes were on their way home from seeing an Elvis movie at a theater in Chicago's Brighton Park neighborhood when they went missing and were later found dead.

I have read most of the inquest PDF. I tell you, i wish the family had a lawyer at that thing. It is horrible to imagine being in their shoes.

I read the confession that was read out in court. So, the one guy called Frank in the confession is actually named Bill and was in jail during the relevant time period. So, obviously, Bennie just pulled that guy out of thin air.

What is troubling is Bennie claims they picked up the girls and partied with them for days including having sex regularly. But then they go parking and these girls he is talking about say no, therefore they both "accidentally killed" or maybe purposely killed. But, definitely raped for days because they weren't allowed to say no, ever. What the heck?

I don't believe that even this coroner, who kept going on about cookies and candy, would have missed such violations. As these poor girls were found naked, i believe the police present would have been able to see if they had been violated to that degree.

Also, i don't think the lawyer should have been allowed to repeatedly ask the family about this seedy side of town. How do they know where the girls might have been taken? They can only say the girls would not choose to go to such a place.

I do believe the family is right and these were decent young girls. So, it must have been incredibly heartbreaking for them to read about their little daughters being accused of hanging out in bars and shaking up with randos. At first, i thought maybe some witnesses saw some older girls in the bar until it got to the part about them being killed.

Bennie might have made up a story that he thought explained how somehow they wanted this and accident. But, just because the confession is just absurd doesn't mean he didn't have a hand in whatever actually happened.

This entire inquest is a mess. And it's obvious people are regularly being thrown out of the room. This is Chicago, a major city... I think I am seeing why some old crimes go unsolved.

If I recall, Bennie testified that he went into a Madison Street bar one night and Frank was sitting there with the sisters. According to Bennie, they drank and partied eventually ending up at a hotel.

The next day they were riding around drinking and ended up at the forest preserves after having hot dogs at a place on Harlem Avenue. Bennie and Frank wanted sex, but the girls said no.

Bennie, in the back seat with Patricia, stated that he hit her once in the mouth and she lost consciousness, Frank did the same with Barbara in the front seat. Both men disrobed the girls and Bennie said he did not know if they were alive. He said he carried them one at a time and set them over the guardrail. He and Frank left and went back to Madison Street, keeping their clothes, which Bennie said Frank later disposed of.

Here are some things we've learned along the way.
According to people who knew the girls, they did pretty much what they wanted and kept their own hours.

Acquaintances said Barbara had no problem hopping into cars with boys and taking off with them.

The night they disappeared, was the 10th or 11th time they saw Love Me Tender. Prior to that night, the only place it was showing was at the Oriental Theater in Downtown Chicago, so they ventured Downtown many times on their own.

On one occasion, the girls brought home two sailors for a visit. On a second occasion, after they disappeared, friends claim to have seen them in a red convertible with two sailors.

Bennie Bedwell also liked movies and no doubt went to theaters Downtown.

According to Bennie, it was snowing the day they disposed of the bodies (January 9th).
Weather archives also state that it snowed that day.

Both girls had bruising around their mouths, indicative of being beaten.

Coroner's Investigator, Harry Glos stated that he examined the bodies and found "goosebumps" on them. Goosebumps can only occur on a living body.

 

[Betty P]

If I recall, Bennie testified that he went into a Madison Street bar one night and Frank was sitting there with the sisters. According to Bennie, they drank and partied eventually ending up at a hotel.

The next day they were riding around drinking and ended up at the forest preserves after having hot dogs at a place on Harlem Avenue. Bennie and Frank wanted sex, but the girls said no.

Bennie, in the back seat with Patricia, stated that he hit her once in the mouth and she lost consciousness, Frank did the same with Barbara in the front seat. Both men disrobed the girls and Bennie said he did not know if they were alive. He said he carried them one at a time and set them over the guardrail. He and Frank left and went back to Madison Street, keeping their clothes, which Bennie said Frank later disposed of.

Here are some things we've learned along the way.
According to people who knew the girls, they did pretty much what they wanted and kept their own hours.

Acquaintances said Barbara had no problem hopping into cars with boys and taking off with them.

The night they disappeared, was the 10th or 11th time they saw Love Me Tender. Prior to that night, the only place it was showing was at the Oriental Theater in Downtown Chicago, so they ventured Downtown many times on their own.

On one occasion, the girls brought home two sailors for a visit. On a second occasion, after they disappeared, friends claim to have seen them in a red convertible with two sailors.

Bennie Bedwell also liked movies and no doubt went to theaters Downtown.

According to Bennie, it was snowing the day they disposed of the bodies (January 9th).
Weather archives also state that it snowed that day.

Both girls had bruising around their mouths, indicative of being beaten.

Coroner's Investigator, Harry Glos stated that he examined the bodies and found "goosebumps" on them. Goosebumps can only occur on a living body.

IIRC, the girls didn't have any alcohol in their system, so its a lie if they claimed the girls rode around drinking with them. JMO, if you find one lie in a confession, most of the other information is probably false, particularly if it fit their scenario that the victims were partly to blame.

JMO, in the context of the social mores at that time, criminals probably told false stories that victims partied with them, hung out in bars, drank, etc. because it worked for rapists on trial. Judges usually bought those stories and assumed the victims were lying or complicit. Not surprising they would use the same tactic in a murder investigation. Unfortunately, it worked then, too.

Personally, I don't believe the girls were hanging out in bars or going to hotel rooms with men. JMO

 

[Gunther Toody]

IIRC, the girls didn't have any alcohol in their system, so its a lie if they claimed the girls rode around drinking with them. JMO, if you find one lie in a confession, most of the other information is probably false, particularly if it fit their scenario that the victims were partly to blame.

JMO, in the context of the social mores at that time, criminals probably told false stories that victims partied with them, hung out in bars, drank, etc. because it worked for rapists on trial. Judges usually bought those stories and assumed the victims were lying or complicit. Not surprising they would use the same tactic in a murder investigation. Unfortunately, it worked then, too.

Personally, I don't believe the girls were hanging out in bars or going to hotel rooms with men. JMO

True, they didn't have any alcohol in their systems, however, the bodies were not discovered until 3 weeks after they disappeared, leaving plenty of time for alcohol to dissipate.

I know it is far-fetched for girls that age to have participated in such events but there are questions...Bedwell admitted his presence in the D & L restaurant at 1340 W. Madison with a male companion and two girls. Owners John and Minnie Duros and patron Rene Echols identified those girls as the Grimes girls to police. Minnie warned Bedwell that the girls they were with, were the missing Grimes girls that there was a city-wide search for.

Bedwell was a dishwasher for that restaurant.

The owners of the hot dog stand where the two couples stopped for food on the way to the forest preserves on the day they died, also positively identified the Grimes girls.

Bedwell allegedly admitted it to his mother.
“Did you do it?” a jail guard overheard Ethel Bradberry ask her son Bennie Bedwell–according to the Sun-Times.
“Yes, mom,” Bedwell answered quietly.
“Well, I didn’t think a son of mine would,” said Bradberry.

Bedwell confessed three times but recanted once he heard that the coroner adamantly stated that the girls died the same night they disappeared, for which Bedwell had an alibi.

There was a small amount of male sperm cells found inside Barbara.

Inexplicably, both girls entire genital area had been removed, which tells me that there was severe trauma that the coroner did not want the funeral director to see, maybe out of fear it would be released to the public.

Hard to believe but equally hard to disbelieve.

 

[Gunther Toody]

Here is a link to the handwritten autopsy notes that were taken as the autopsies were performed. Harry Glos is most likely the author, as he was in attendance.

These are a goldmine of information on the case...let's discuss if you wish.

Adobe Acrobat

acrobat.adobe.com

 

[December]

Bennie accounts for more than one day/night with the girls in his confession. It's not just one night and then they died the next day. It's several days and nights of them staying in various places, going to various bars or restaurants. And, if this is the case, i have to agree with the parents -- how did the police continue to miss them? How did no one notice they were too young to be in these places? I know some people who are legal look young, but not really when you put them beside someone who is really young to mid teens. I get maybe these were shady places, but still.

I think he and someone else (not this Bill guy who fit the description of Frank because Bill was in jail) were involved because of the detail of where they were left. From my understanding, Bennie was caught pretty early on by the police. I don't know how much about how they were found was known by the public yet.

People back in the day caught rides with other people a lot more than we can even imagine now. I guess it was like analog uber. So, idk if that really means anything.

I had forgotten about the coroner removing the relevant areas that could show trauma before sending them to the funeral home. I think, unfortunately, his desire to declare they died that night was due to sympathy for them that has muddied the case.

 

[Gunther Toody]

Bennie accounts for more than one day/night with the girls in his confession. It's not just one night and then they died the next day. It's several days and nights of them staying in various places, going to various bars or restaurants. And, if this is the case, i have to agree with the parents -- how did the police continue to miss them? How did no one notice they were too young to be in these places? I know some people who are legal look young, but not really when you put them beside someone who is really young to mid teens. I get maybe these were shady places, but still.

I think he and someone else (not this Bill guy who fit the description of Frank because Bill was in jail) were involved because of the detail of where they were left. From my understanding, Bennie was caught pretty early on by the police. I don't know how much about how they were found was known by the public yet.

People back in the day caught rides with other people a lot more than we can even imagine now. I guess it was like analog uber. So, idk if that really means anything.

I had forgotten about the coroner removing the relevant areas that could show trauma before sending them to the funeral home. I think, unfortunately, his desire to declare they died that night was due to sympathy for them that has muddied the case.

You are right, it was several days. I am typing from memory. I agree, it was not Willingham. I think witnesses described Frank as tall and dark. It's not inconceivable that Benny had just met up with them in a bar. Frank may have told Benny he needed a wingman of sorts, and that's how they got together.

I think a few hotel people refused to rent them rooms as well, due to how young the girls looked.

I think Benny said in his inquest testimony that he met the girls on the evening of the 8th or 9th, and dumped them in the forest preserves on the 12th, in the evening. That would leave from Dec. 28th until the 8th or 9th when the girls were with someone else. A friend of theirs claimed to have seen them in a red convertible with two sailors around January 2nd or 3rd, and I believe Barbara asked her to join them. This was after they disappeared...again, I am typing from memory here.

As for the coroner, he was a devout Catholic as were the Grimes family. He refused to allow a second autopsy team to examine the bodies and disallowed a lot of testimony that impeached the reputation of the girls. This did affect the inquest.

References to the genital areas being removed are in the autopsy notes that I posted.
Nowhere, in any documentation does it state the girls were virgins with an intact hymen.

I am glad this case has renewed interest.

 

[Gunther Toody]

This is probably one of the most fascinating documents within the autopsy notes. It is the handwritten account of the examination of Barbara Grimes, taken as the event occurred.

Points of interest:
Extensive facial bruising, from getting beaten (corroborates Bedwell's account)
Mention of Spermatazoa found in specimens, confirmed by Chicago Police Lab.
Note the phrase "Vagina area removed"

One of the interesting statements on the paper.
"Stomach opened - specimen taken.
Blood stained brownish fluid in stomach - two pieces of supposed curdled milk"

This means there were no remnants of the last meal found in Barbara's stomach as promoted by the coroner, which he used as a basis for the claim that they died the same night, less than four hours after their last meal.

24 total specimens were taken from Barbara, which must still exist somewhere. This is what our research group is trying to locate.

 

[Gunther Toody]

Here is Barbara's Autopsy Report.
What is most interesting is what is not in it.
Specifically, no mention of sexual activity, sperm found, obvious beating or a real cause of death.

Clearly, this was a whitewash by the coroner. He was a confidant of then-Mayor Daley and well-connected in the political machine.

Adobe Acrobat

acrobat.adobe.com

 

[Gunther Toody]

Mods, remove if you deem this inappropriate.

This is a blown-up image of the marks on Patricia's chest, claimed to have likely been made by an icepick or similar object. Although some have speculated that the injuries were made with a garden-fork-type implement, judging by the angles, it's clear that these wounds were done one at a time.

The autopsy report indicated that the wounds were between 3/4" to 1" deep and done post-mortem. (after death)

I have drawn red lines that indicate the angle of entry.

 

[Betty P]

Here is Barbara's Autopsy Report.
What is most interesting is what is not in it.
Specifically, no mention of sexual activity, sperm found, obvious beating or a real cause of death.

Clearly, this was a whitewash by the coroner. He was a confidant of then-Mayor Daley and well-connected in the political machine.

Adobe Acrobat

acrobat.adobe.com

I had forgotten Daley was in office so early. I remember him from the 60's. Why did they bungle this investigation? What did they hope to gain from it?

 

[Gunther Toody]

My opinion is that it was too close to the murder of the Schuessler Peterson boys, which occurred the previous year. Daley did not want any more negative press and I think everyone was sympathetic toward the family.

Mayor Daley did not live too far from the Grimes family, which may have factored into it.

We had a conversation with the man who was the editor of the local newspaper at that time. He said that city hall or the local politicians contacted him every time he ran a story that gave gory details on the case or even alluded to anything that would damage the girls' reputations.

They told him to either retract or not print at all. He got so fed up that he stopped printing anything about the case. We had to find stories from out of state for any real reporting...

 

[Gunther Toody]

This case is back on the radar. The police agency in charge has detectives investigating old case files, evidence, and statements.
That is all I can say for now.

 

[Gunther Toody]

deleted

 

[tarabull]

2 Sisters Vanished After an Elvis Movie — Found Naked in the Snow, Their Deaths Led to a Stunning Twist

Barbara and Patricia Grimes' disappearance led to hundreds of police officers searching Chicago and even caught Elvis Presley's attention.

people.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Decades later, the case still captivates. Retired Chicago Police detective James Hennigan spends his retirement probing the murders. He runs a Facebook page with thousands of followers dedicated to solving it. Hennigan suspects a link to the 1955 murders of brothers John, Anton, and Robert Schuessler, who vanished after a movie and were found dead in a forest preserve, WGN said. Retired officer Ray Johnson also continues the hunt for answers.

An Elvis Presley Classic Is At The Center Of A 70-Year Old Double Cold Case Murder

Two sisters left their Chicago-area home to see an Elvis Presley flick in December 1956. Their ensuing murder remains a mystery today.

www.wideopencountry.com

Innocence Lost: The Grimes Sisters Murders in the links below
Sisters’ killings blamed for Chicago’s loss of innocence
Did investigators overlook a crucial lead in girls’ murders?
Will detective’s discovery help solve Grimes murders?

https://wgntv.com/backstory/backstory-grimes-sisters-murders/

 

[Gunther Toody]

I have decided to revisit this case and have done in-depth analysis.
My conclusion is that the girls did in fact, die at the hands of Bennie Bedwell. He did not murder them, they did die of exposure to the cold. Bedwell and "Frank" had taken the girls to the wooded area to engage in sex. Both men were admittedly drunk.

Both men beat the girls about the face, marks of which were present at autopsy, knocking them out. Bedwell admitted that he got scared because he didn't know the extent of the injuries and the men proceeded to disrobe the girls and Bedwell stated that he carried them one by one and put them over the guardrail.

There was definite coverup and misrepresentation of the evidence, primarily by the coroner, in my opinion.
There are also numerous facts that support my contention, the least of which is that Bedwell's confession contains facts that only the killer would know.

 

[Gunther Toody]

OFFICIAL NARRATIVE INCONSISTENCIES AND CONTRADICTIONS

Timeline Contradictions:

Official: Girls died December 28, within hours of disappearance
Reality:Multiple credible witness sightings through January 11

Official: Bodies preserved by snow for 25 days
Reality:Weather records show minimal snow, above-freezing temperatures

Official: Bodies hidden by snow since December 28
Reality:Snow plow driver confirms bodies not there days before discovery

Autopsy Contradictions:

Official: No sexual assault occurred
Reality:Crime lab documented sperm in vaginal swabs

Official: Girls died from exposure/shock
Reality:Glos documented facial bruising from beatings

Official: Last meal (tuna/potatoes) found in stomachs
Reality:Glos notes only brownish fluid, no food remains

Official: No signs of physical violence
Reality: Puncture wounds in Patricia's chest, facial trauma

Evidence Handling Contradictions:

Official: Complete forensic examination performed
Reality:Genital areas surgically removed and disposed of

Official: All evidence preserved properly
Reality:Chain of custody gaps, suppressed lab reports

Body Condition Contradictions:

Official: Normal decomposition for 25-day outdoor exposure
Reality:No deterioration, minimal discoloration, no decomposition

Official: Frozen conditions preserved bodies naturally
Reality:Thin ice formation indicates warm bodies when dumped

Witness Dismissals:

Official: No credible sightings after December 28
Reality:Restaurant owners, drive-in employees, classmates all ignored

Official: Bedwell confession was false/coerced
Reality:Confession contained accurate non-public details

Official: Timeline makes Bedwell impossible suspect
Reality:Official timeline created AFTER confession to discredit it

Investigation Contradictions:

Official: Harry Glos was unreliable investigator
Reality:Experienced investigator with impeccable career record

Official: Coroner's findings were medically sound
Reality:McCarron had no medical training, political appointee

Official: Case thoroughly investigated before conclusions
Reality:Timeline announced before Bedwell became suspect

Physical Evidence Contradictions:

Official: Deceased when dumped by the road
Reality:Vital reactions (goosebumps) prove they were alive when dumped

Official: Girls found naturally deceased
Reality:Unnatural body positioning suggests deliberate placement

Political/Administrative Contradictions:

Official: Investigation free from political influence
Reality:Glos fired for revealing inconvenient evidence

Official: Public statements based on medical evidence
Reality:Statements contradicted investigator's real-time observations

Official: All leads properly investigated
Reality:"Frank" and blue Chevrolet leads abandoned after timeline change

Official: Case handled professionally throughout
Reality:Systematic evidence destruction and witness intimidation

These contradictions reveal not investigative incompetence, but deliberate suppression of evidence to protect family and institutional reputations over justice.

 

[Betty P]

JMO, they should try to retrieve and test evidence from either one of the victims. If there is any other evidence remaining (clothing, etc), it should be re examined to see if there's any DNA present. In older cases like this, analysts are sometimes able to find a perp's DNA on clothing, personal items or other physical evidence from a crime scene.

As for witness statements claiming they saw the girls out and about for days after they went missing, but before their bodies were found, it's often not credible information. Though people want to be helpful, they often report people who, on follow up were not the victims, but bore a resemblance to them. I also don't see the girls leaving with these men, then living with them for several days without trying to escape. I doubt they went voluntarily with their killer, or if they did, it was only a short time before they realized they were in danger. They had no previous history of disappearing for days at a time, so being gone that long before their bodies were found seems very suspicious. If they were alive during that time, they were probably captive.

Your other points are very relevant. The coroner either made mistakes or just fabricated some stuff. That wasn't too unusual for those times when coroners could be subject to political pressure. It's also not the first time we've read of suspicious cases where body parts went missing after autopsy, so that seems to be relevant.

JMO, your idea seems plausible that the girls were held for a number of days, then raped and left to die of exposure. A horrible thought, really.

Whether the girls had alcohol in their bodies also seems irrelevant, unless it was part of the killer's efforts to control them. It was obvious from the bruising that the girls didn't submit voluntarily.

JMO, just a few thoughts. I really hope they can retrieve some DNA evidence in the future.