IL IL - Debbie Fijan, 10, DuPage County, 11 Feb 1966 - #1

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  • #201
Another from a snippet.


'We've Got Our Man,' Sheriff Says
[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 16, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]The husband of a teacher re- ported that, when he went to the school to pick up his wife shortly before 5:30 p. m., he saw a man in a white car parked in ... [/SIZE]

I've figured out if I take part of the sentence in the snippet found on google archive search and keep changed them, I can get more 'pieces' of the article.

the above is the first I recall seeing that one of the witnesses who saw Debbie near a white car was an adult and not just a student.
 
  • #202
The discrepancies in this case are really frustrating. I have ran across quite a few and at times I don't know what to think anymore. As far as finding LS's father...we really need to know his middle name. The one Joilet is most logical to me right now. I read a census report on that one.
 
  • #203
Here it is. At least with part of a timeline.

SIFT CHILD SLAYING CLEWS

[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 13, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]5:15 to 5:30 p. m.-Teacher's husband sees a child alongside a white car at St. Charles and Fairoaks roads. 5.30 p. m.-Mrs. Fijan ar- rives at school to pick ... [/SIZE]
 
  • #204
and another:


MATCH BOOT PRINT IN CAR TO SLAIN GIRL
[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 17, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Hopf said the car has been impounded by Sheriff Stanley Lynch and has been examined for possible evidence. No finger prints of Debbie's have been found in ... [/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]All 11 related[/SIZE] - [SIZE=-1]Related web pages[/SIZE]

I would like to know on what date was the car impounded. Was there a big enough barn on the Schofield farm for LS to have pulled the car into the barn the weekend after Debbie went missing and thoroughly clean it?

That leaves me to wonder again about JS not allowing LE on his property to search.
 
  • #205
The discrepancies in this case are really frustrating. I have ran across quite a few and at times I don't know what to think anymore. As far as finding LS's father...we really need to know his middle name. The one Joilet is most logical to me right now. I read a census report on that one.


I agre about the discrepancies. Incredibly frustrating! I think we just have to find what matches the most.

I have to disagree about Joliet. Wayne, IL is a very nice, expensive small cozy area west of West Chicago on Army Trail Rd. The area's were newer, and honestly, I can't see JS moving back to an older town that was already more developed like Joliet. I have family roots from Joliet, and it just is not a logical place for me having been in this immediate area all my life. Plus LS moved west to Genoa area, and another family member is listed in an even more rural area of DeKalb County.

I think the one who moved to Sarasota Florida is more likely.

I have tried to find a news article with a middle initial, or an obituary which we can match to him, and so far no go. Does anyone have access to that obituary.com? IIRC, the older obits are all ptv also. Maybe someone else could help.

Also, I don't think Schofield is that uncommon of a name. I knew some Schofields from further east in DuPage when I was in HS. I also knew someone with the last name Mertes but I don't know if or how they are related to the Mertes mentioned in the news articles.
 
  • #206
'We've Got Our Man,' Sheriff Says

[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 16, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]It was taken down by a court reporter and Schofield was not asked to sign it because it had not been transcribed at the time, Hopf said. ... [/SIZE]

What does this mean? Was there a court reporter there who took hand notes? Did they record the interogations back then? Why couldn't LS sign that statement? Why did it matter it had not been transcribed?

I don't know... would seem to make sense to ask the prime suspect to sign when he is about to or very close to confessing. Not sometime later after he has time to think about it and talk to others about it.
 
  • #207
Here it is. At least with part of a timeline.

SIFT CHILD SLAYING CLEWS

[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 13, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]5:15 to 5:30 p. m.-Teacher's husband sees a child alongside a white car at St. Charles and Fairoaks roads. 5.30 p. m.-Mrs. Fijan ar- rives at school to pick ... [/SIZE]


If this article is accurate this is getting us a little somewhere. At least with regards to questions.

(just another snippet)

'We've Got Our Man,' Sheriff Says

[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 16, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Schofield was one of three persons involved in the case who drove a white car. So did the custodian of the school, and so did Anthony Verive, 18, ... [/SIZE]

Anthony was the neighbor who found Debbie according to earlier posts, who was home from college for the weekend and joined in the search.

Did LE ever compare the tire marks of all three cars? Did they ever check the other two cars for evidence? How were the custodian and AV ruled out?
 
  • #208
and another:


MATCH BOOT PRINT IN CAR TO SLAIN GIRL
[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 17, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Hopf said the car has been impounded by Sheriff Stanley Lynch and has been examined for possible evidence. No finger prints of Debbie's have been found in ... [/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]All 11 related[/SIZE] - [SIZE=-1]Related web pages[/SIZE]

I would like to know on what date was the car impounded. Was there a big enough barn on the Schofield farm for LS to have pulled the car into the barn the weekend after Debbie went missing and thoroughly clean it?

That leaves me to wonder again about JS not allowing LE on his property to search.

Quoting my own post because it includes the info regarding the lack of finger prints found in LS's car. Considering it was February, it is likely Debbie wore gloves to school that day. If she did, it is likely unless she took them off to defend an attack, which she most likely would not have had time to do, there would not be any finger prints.

Which leaves me wondering did Debbie wear gloves to school that day? If so where they ever found? Did she have them on when she was found? If not, I still want to know more about those scratches on LS's hands.
 
  • #209
http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/273985/Wayne+T40N+R9E/DuPage+County+1968/Illinois/

ETA: You have to click and zoom on the map. then move until you see R2. Just a little right of that is the number 23. The Schofield Family farm is right to the left of the number 23.


I knew I would find it eventually. The farm was WEST of Fair Oaks, and 'kiddie corner' to Fair Oaks and Lies Rds.

This property is currently owned by the county and is part of the West Branch Lower Reserve County Forest Preserve. (outside of 1 home which still appears to be located on the property.)

It is difficult to tell from the above map where exactly the 'deep quarry lake' falls on this property. It is somewhere along the northern property line of the Schofield Family Farm and the Bernard H. Seger property just north of the Schofield family farm. This explains what Abbey5 read about 'near the old quarry'. I don't know when this quarry was an active quarry and when it might have been filled in.

I can see from this map:
1)LS would have had access to that lake, presuming it was filled with water in 1966, to toss the murder weapon in there.
2)Instead of turning left into the Schofield family farm, (dependent upon where the driveway was) whoever dumped Debbies remains turned east onto Lies Road, as Lies dead ends at Fair Oaks.

eta
3) On 90 acres when it was dark outside, it is very conceivable LS could have been on that property without anyone in the home knowing.

Now to see if I can find any more info on that Deep Quarry Lake.
 
  • #210
http://www.loislaw.com/ogpc/login.h...ernard+h+seger%22&um=1&ned=us&hl=en&scoring=a

I found the above regarding the Quarry on the property just north of the Schofield farm.

excerpt from above link:
county of Du Page which granted plaintiffs the special use permission to excavate sand, gravel and to quarry stone on an 84-acre tract until June 27, 1978, or the earlier termination of the mining operations.

So there was no water there in 1966, at least not in what is now Deep Quarry Lake which has a Bartlett address.
 
  • #211
John Zimmerman no longer works for The Daily Herald. They would not give me any more info.

I found a email addy on the Dupage County Cold Case website and I emailed them this morning.
 
  • #212
and another:


MATCH BOOT PRINT IN CAR TO SLAIN GIRL
[SIZE=-1]Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver[SIZE=-1] - Feb 17, 1966[/SIZE]
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Hopf said the car has been impounded by Sheriff Stanley Lynch and has been examined for possible evidence. No finger prints of Debbie's have been found in ... [/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]All 11 related[/SIZE] - [SIZE=-1]Related web pages[/SIZE]

I would like to know on what date was the car impounded. Was there a big enough barn on the Schofield farm for LS to have pulled the car into the barn the weekend after Debbie went missing and thoroughly clean it?

That leaves me to wonder again about JS not allowing LE on his property to search.

This to me is one of the more suspicious bits of info that's been unearthed. Debbie rode with Schofield quite often, according to all the other reports we've read...Her prints should be all over the car.

Has anyone read anything about whether Schofield's wife worked, and if so, what did she do?
 
  • #213
I would like to know on what date was the car impounded. Was there a big enough barn on the Schofield farm for LS to have pulled the car into the barn the weekend after Debbie went missing and thoroughly clean it?

That leaves me to wonder again about JS not allowing LE on his property to search.

An article on the 17th said the car was impounded. And I know that the house was searched on 17th. This would have given LS plenty of time to clean out the car. But considering the found muddy boot prints and feathers? I don't know what to think....was the car searched earlier than the papers reported it or did LS partially clean out the car?
 
  • #214
This to me is one of the more suspicious bits of info that's been unearthed. Debbie rode with Schofield quite often, according to all the other reports we've read...Her prints should be all over the car.

Has anyone read anything about whether Schofield's wife worked, and if so, what did she do?

She worked at Northern IL University Law Library.
 
  • #215
  • #216
She worked at Northern IL University Law Library.


I'm sure this was at least sometime later. When Debbie was murdered Mrs LS's oldest child was only 6 months old according to newspaper articles. I imagine she was probably a sahm while her children were younger and they still lived in the West Chicago/Bloomingdale area.
 
  • #217
An article on the 17th said the car was impounded. And I know that the house was searched on 17th. This would have given LS plenty of time to clean out the car. But considering the found muddy boot prints and feathers? I don't know what to think....was the car searched earlier than the papers reported it or did LS partially clean out the car?


Then that was a whole week to have the car detailed or thoroughly clean it himself.
 
  • #218
I purchased the article "We've Got Our Man", and I'm trying to figure out how to save it and share it...Acrobat is giving me fits though. I'm working on it.

Some interesting points---

*Remants of burned clothing found in the Schofield home and feathers found in the car were being sent for testing

*Clothing turned over to PD by MaryAnn Schofield, stated to be those worn by Loren on the Friday Debbie was murdered, appeared to have stains on them which may have been blood

*Debbie had borrowed a stuffed and mounted duck from a neighbor for class, which was found next to her body

*The penknife which Schofield turned over was believed to have been too small to cause the wounds present on Debbie's body

*Schofield taught 6th and 7th grade classes as well as boy's physical education

*Maryann Schofield told police that Loren had her burn pornographic literature and photos he had brought home. He explained to his wife that he had found the material along the road and didnt want kids finding it

*States atty Hopf released portions of an oral statement that Schofield had made which had been taken down by a court reporter but not signed as it had not been transcribed (I take this to mean the court reporter had taken the statement in shorthand and needed to transcribe it back into full text).

*Four months prior to the murder, the Schofields had moved into a home at 4N512 Gary St, Carol Stream, from the Schofield family home (the farm).

*Debbie's mother had gone to the school at 3pm to pick up the children of some friends, and Debbie was aware that she would return to pick up Debbie after the game

*The husband of a teacher reported that, at about 5:30, he had seen a man in a white car parked in St Charles Rd at Fairoaks Rd, and a girl was standing beside the car

*Anonymous calls were placed to sheriff's dep't stating that Schofield should be watched and that he "is your man". A deputy stated that he wouldnt have been surprised that Schofield placed the calls himself

*Schofield gave differing accounts of his route home that night

*Schofield told law enforcement that he had talked to Debbie at the swingset around 5:20 at which time she said she was waiting for her mother. Muddy tracks were discovered leading from the swings into St Charles Rd

*Schofield told police that he took a circuitous route home because he "wanted to see how the roads are"

Background on Schofield:

*attended St Isildore's Elem School in Carol Stream and St Edwards High School in Elgin

*left the seminary to attend Quincy (IL) College, graduating in 1962-began teaching at Benjamin School in Sept 1964

*met his wife, MaryAnn Schlugen of Lisle, while in college-She taught at parochial schools in West Chicago and Carol Stream
 
  • #219
Parts of the statement made by Schofield:

Q-Did you say you must have done it but that you cant recall because of different things in your past life?
A-Yes
(WTF????????)

Q-There is the possibility that you could have murdered the girl , isnt that right.
A-Yes.

Q-Can you absolutely deny that you murdered her?
A-No, I cannot absolutely deny it.

Q-Did your wife say anything to you about keeping your times straight when you were questioned by the police?
A-Yes, she did.

And here is the most disturbing bit of info to come out of all our research, as far as I'm concerned. Read this carefully.

Q-How did you feel toward Debbie?
A-I had mixed emotions. I had resentment toward her. I dont know why except maybe because she paid attention to my son.

Q-Can you explain that?
A-She was a very intelligent girl, a smart girl, but she could become annoying.

Q-From a personal or a school standpoint?
A-At school.
 
  • #220
Wow!!! This is awesome shadowangel!!! Thank you so much!!
 
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