WEBVTT 1 00:00:32.840 --> 00:00:36.600 Welcome back to the Path Went Chili for part two of our series on the 2 00:00:36.719 --> 00:00:41.240 unsolved murder of Tracy Kirkpatrick. Robin, do you want to catch everyone up 3 00:00:41.280 --> 00:00:45.560 on what we talked about in our previous episode? Well, Tracy Kirkpatrick was 4 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:48.600 a seventeen year old girl who had a job at a clothing store at a 5 00:00:48.640 --> 00:00:52.799 shopping center in Frederick, Maryland, and one night she didn't come home and 6 00:00:52.880 --> 00:00:55.640 when her parents drove to check on her, they found out that she had 7 00:00:55.640 --> 00:01:00.679 been stabbed seven times in this backstoreroom of the clothing store. They found out 8 00:01:00.679 --> 00:01:03.799 that a security guard said that the last confirmed sighting of her was around eight 9 00:01:03.879 --> 00:01:07.400 forty five PM, but even though the store was supposed to close at nine, 10 00:01:07.480 --> 00:01:11.560 the security guard said that when he passed by it at ten forty five, 11 00:01:11.840 --> 00:01:15.319 the lights were still on, so he went inside and discovered that Tracy 12 00:01:15.439 --> 00:01:18.200 had been stabbed to death. A couple of months later, a guy called 13 00:01:18.280 --> 00:01:23.879 a confession hotline calling himself Dawn and said that he was responsible for Tracy Kirkpatrick's 14 00:01:23.959 --> 00:01:27.439 murder, and he left a recording of it that played on Unsolved Mysteries on 15 00:01:27.519 --> 00:01:33.680 a number of other media outlets. They eventually tracked down a guy who went 16 00:01:33.719 --> 00:01:36.319 by the name Sean, who lived in any town that was near by to 17 00:01:36.359 --> 00:01:38.560 Frederick, and he was a guy who was obsessed with the case. He 18 00:01:38.599 --> 00:01:42.159 had a lot of newspaper clippings and was always inquiring about it. But they 19 00:01:42.159 --> 00:01:46.319 would say a few years later that he was ruled out as a suspect, 20 00:01:46.359 --> 00:01:49.079 and it's unclear to me if he was the same man who left the recording 21 00:01:49.120 --> 00:01:53.480 of the confession. In nineteen ninety four, a police inspect investigator tried to 22 00:01:53.519 --> 00:01:57.079 take the case to a grand jury and indict a suspect, but they declined 23 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:01.079 to prosecute because they felt that the evidence wasn't strong enough, and the suspect's 24 00:02:01.159 --> 00:02:06.599 name has never been released publicly, but I know that the investigator was certain 25 00:02:06.640 --> 00:02:08.520 that they had the right guy and that the case should have been solved a 26 00:02:08.520 --> 00:02:12.919 long time ago. There have been a lot of rumors about the security guard 27 00:02:12.960 --> 00:02:16.479 who found Tracy's body, because his full name was Don Barnes Junior, and 28 00:02:16.639 --> 00:02:20.439 as you know, the person who called to leave the confession, his name 29 00:02:20.479 --> 00:02:23.680 was done and he also happened to be a sheriff's deputy who was the son 30 00:02:23.719 --> 00:02:28.439 of another prominent law enforce an official. So there's been a lot of whispers 31 00:02:28.520 --> 00:02:30.680 that he may have been the killer, and that the reason this case hasn't 32 00:02:30.680 --> 00:02:35.479 been solved is because he hailed from a very prominent family and the police have 33 00:02:35.520 --> 00:02:39.240 either covered things up or they're just too reluctant to prosecute him without rock solid 34 00:02:39.240 --> 00:02:44.159 evidence. And sadly, the case is still unsolved thirty four years later. 35 00:02:44.800 --> 00:02:47.520 So this is definitely one of the more heartbreaking crimes we featured on a respective 36 00:02:47.520 --> 00:02:52.360 podcast, at least when it comes to having a long term negative impact on 37 00:02:52.400 --> 00:02:57.080 the victim's family. Sadly, it sounds like the trauma of Tracy's murder completely 38 00:02:57.120 --> 00:03:01.120 destroyed her parents. In our last episode, we mentioned that Diane Kirkpatrick went 39 00:03:01.159 --> 00:03:05.879 into shock and had to be treated at the hospital after learning about her daughter's 40 00:03:05.960 --> 00:03:08.879 murder. But in addition, she had to quit her job in retail managements 41 00:03:08.879 --> 00:03:14.800 because of the stress. She subsequently suffered from medical ailments and underwent multiple back 42 00:03:14.879 --> 00:03:17.719 surgeries which pretty much kept her confined to one room in her house for years. 43 00:03:19.159 --> 00:03:22.800 In an interview she gave twenty years after the crime, Diane stated that 44 00:03:22.840 --> 00:03:27.280 she hardly went outside. Diane stated that she hardly went outside anymore unless one 45 00:03:27.280 --> 00:03:30.199 of her other kids was with her. Billy Kirkpatrick also had to quit his 46 00:03:30.280 --> 00:03:34.520 job as a trucker because he gave him too much time on the road to 47 00:03:34.639 --> 00:03:38.759 think about what happened to his daughter. The couple eventually moved into an apartment 48 00:03:38.800 --> 00:03:43.120 because they couldn't handle the memories of living in their old house. Decades later, 49 00:03:43.439 --> 00:03:46.680 Billy and Diane said that they were both still on medication to help them 50 00:03:46.680 --> 00:03:50.840 deal with the trauma. You can also find a video on YouTube titled Who 51 00:03:50.919 --> 00:03:55.080 Killed Tracy Kirkpatrick, which was produced in twenty sixteen and features an interview with 52 00:03:55.120 --> 00:04:00.719 Billie and one of Tracy's sisters, Dianda. It's obvious that they are still 53 00:04:00.719 --> 00:04:03.159 in great pain from losing Tracy, and you can see Dionda break down in 54 00:04:03.199 --> 00:04:08.639 tears several times. The unsaw a mystery saying and put a lot of emphasis 55 00:04:08.639 --> 00:04:13.479 on Tracy's fascination with a Christine or Rossetti poem Remember, which was inscribed on 56 00:04:13.479 --> 00:04:17.319 our tombstone. Ironically, the poem's central message is not to grief someone once 57 00:04:17.319 --> 00:04:21.199 they are gone, and it's better to forget them and be happy rather than 58 00:04:21.279 --> 00:04:26.160 remember them and be sad. Well, Tracy's death had the opposite effect on 59 00:04:26.160 --> 00:04:29.879 her family, since they have done nothing but grief her during these past thirty 60 00:04:29.879 --> 00:04:33.040 four years. In cold case homicides, this is one of the things that 61 00:04:33.319 --> 00:04:38.800 really is devastating because, as one family I interviewed put it, when we 62 00:04:38.879 --> 00:04:42.560 don't know what happened to our loved one and who did it, we also 63 00:04:42.560 --> 00:04:46.920 don't know who didn't do it, and so it's that constantly looking over your 64 00:04:46.959 --> 00:04:50.879 shoulder wondering are the people in the boothnecks to you talking about your daughter's case? 65 00:04:50.959 --> 00:04:55.480 Are they the ones who did it? Write what happened, and not 66 00:04:55.600 --> 00:04:59.920 having those answers. There's also this element though, when you don't have someone 67 00:05:00.120 --> 00:05:02.759 to blame for Tracy's death, so there is no offender to say this is 68 00:05:02.800 --> 00:05:06.920 who did it, then you start to try to take your trauma and place 69 00:05:08.000 --> 00:05:13.079 blame on other individuals, and sometimes that becomes yourself as well. Remember that 70 00:05:13.160 --> 00:05:16.560 Diane had gone to take Tracy dinner just a few minutes before you know the 71 00:05:16.680 --> 00:05:20.040 store manager is coming to check on her as well, So in her head 72 00:05:20.040 --> 00:05:24.120 as a mom, I did everything I thought I was supposed to do. 73 00:05:24.160 --> 00:05:26.759 I showed up, I checked on her. You know, I knew another 74 00:05:26.800 --> 00:05:29.759 adult was coming to check on her. But what if I had stayed, 75 00:05:30.079 --> 00:05:31.000 or what if I had sat in the parking lot for a little bit, 76 00:05:31.000 --> 00:05:33.680 actra, What if I had come to pick her up or made sure she 77 00:05:33.720 --> 00:05:38.279 wrapped up that night the first time? Okay? And then of course for 78 00:05:38.360 --> 00:05:41.439 mom and dad, you're not supposed to bear your kids. We hear that 79 00:05:41.480 --> 00:05:45.160 cliche saying all the time, but it's this idea that as a parent, 80 00:05:45.360 --> 00:05:48.480 it is my job to simply protect my baby. And unfortunately, in our 81 00:05:48.519 --> 00:05:53.199 world you don't get that luxury all the time. And that was stolen from 82 00:05:53.240 --> 00:05:57.600 Diane and Billy. And so it is one of those elements why I became 83 00:05:57.639 --> 00:06:02.800 fascinated and driven to help families affected by unsolved murders is because we forget that, 84 00:06:03.399 --> 00:06:06.959 yes, it's been thirty years with this cold case file, but that 85 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:11.160 files filled with people who have to live with this case every day. And 86 00:06:11.480 --> 00:06:15.160 so Diana and Billy's story after the death of their daughter and their children who 87 00:06:15.240 --> 00:06:20.959 are watching their parents fall apart and break down and struggle as they also are 88 00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:26.120 dealing with trauma and breaking down and struggling, it is. It's devastating. 89 00:06:27.319 --> 00:06:30.360 And they were obviously such good parents too, like the fact that she was 90 00:06:30.399 --> 00:06:33.560 seventeen years old. Like, I couldn't have seen my parents coming and checking 91 00:06:33.600 --> 00:06:36.839 in on me when I worked in a store in the mall an hour before 92 00:06:36.920 --> 00:06:40.600 clothes, being like, are you o, Katie wants some food. They'd 93 00:06:40.600 --> 00:06:45.040 be like, ah, she's fine. So they really did everything aside from 94 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:48.120 sitting beside her or like sitting on a bench in the mall and watching her, 95 00:06:48.480 --> 00:06:51.079 which as a parent, I think there's a point where you've got to 96 00:06:51.120 --> 00:06:55.319 cut the cord and go, Okay, I've checked in on her. She's 97 00:06:55.360 --> 00:06:59.319 good. She closes in an hour, so she's coming straight home after the 98 00:06:59.439 --> 00:07:01.879 latest is going to take you to do closing, It is probably thirty minutes. 99 00:07:02.120 --> 00:07:05.720 She should be home really shortly, and you're going to trust that nobody's 100 00:07:05.720 --> 00:07:09.759 going to do anything horrible to your baby. And this is just one of 101 00:07:09.759 --> 00:07:14.839 those situations where it's completely outside the realm of either Diane or Billy's control. 102 00:07:15.279 --> 00:07:19.199 Somebody decided to hurt Tracy and there's really nothing that they could have done to 103 00:07:19.279 --> 00:07:23.680 have stopped it, and it's just so sad that you can tell that it 104 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:29.360 has impacted them so greatly. I'm sure physically mentally, psychologically, and just 105 00:07:29.759 --> 00:07:31.839 you know, I'll always come back to Julie Murray because it's somebody that we 106 00:07:32.000 --> 00:07:38.000 all three of us have spoken to and got to know. And I really 107 00:07:38.040 --> 00:07:41.319 really always remember the way that she referred to it as like her open ended 108 00:07:41.360 --> 00:07:44.839 trauma. It's something that you cycle through over and over and over again. 109 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:48.920 I mean, Moura's missing and she disappeared and they don't know where she is, 110 00:07:48.959 --> 00:07:53.000 so there's another element to that. But in a case where your child 111 00:07:53.040 --> 00:07:56.680 you know that they've been murdered and you just want to know by whom, 112 00:07:56.720 --> 00:08:00.439 and you want some kind of justice, and then when you don't get that, 113 00:08:00.920 --> 00:08:05.560 there just has to be this incredible sense of like not only loss, 114 00:08:05.639 --> 00:08:11.759 but just like loss of this ability to face the person who did this and 115 00:08:11.839 --> 00:08:15.360 to go, okay, like there's a resolution. Now I know who did 116 00:08:15.360 --> 00:08:18.240 this, and I know who to point all of my hatred at, because, 117 00:08:18.279 --> 00:08:22.279 like you said, Ash, they are cycling through all those emotions and 118 00:08:22.319 --> 00:08:26.759 sometimes the blame will then land on themselves, even when there's nothing that they 119 00:08:26.759 --> 00:08:30.000 could have done to have stopped this. And I remember in this case, 120 00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:33.799 they felt they might be close to a resolution. In nineteen ninety four when 121 00:08:33.840 --> 00:08:37.360 the case was taken to a grand jury, and they never publicly state if 122 00:08:37.399 --> 00:08:41.799 they personally believe that the suspect who was the case was against was the person 123 00:08:41.919 --> 00:08:43.720 they believe did it. But it must be rough knowing that you were that 124 00:08:43.799 --> 00:08:48.879 close to possibly bringing someone to trial and finally getting a resolution in this case, 125 00:08:48.120 --> 00:08:52.399 but that fell through, and here we are twenty twenty three and they 126 00:08:52.399 --> 00:08:56.120 still haven't got any answers. By all accounts, Tracy was a very kind, 127 00:08:56.360 --> 00:09:00.759 generous person with a bright future, and but he seemed to have a 128 00:09:00.799 --> 00:09:03.759 bad word to say about her. This is one of those older cooled cases 129 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:09.200 which might have turned out differently with today's technology. As nowadays, I'm sure 130 00:09:09.240 --> 00:09:13.679 there would be security cameras all over the sportswear store and the shopping center to 131 00:09:13.759 --> 00:09:18.879 capture Tracy's killer and perhaps dissuade them from going through with a crime. It 132 00:09:18.919 --> 00:09:22.639 also might seem surprising that a seventeen year old girl would be closing a store 133 00:09:22.679 --> 00:09:26.519 by herself at night, which sounds pretty unsafe. It was just a much 134 00:09:26.559 --> 00:09:30.559 different time period, and I'm sure that no one envisioned that something like this 135 00:09:30.600 --> 00:09:33.799 would happen. I can't help but wonder if there's some significance to the fact 136 00:09:33.879 --> 00:09:37.919 that Tracy was killed on the very first night she was working alone, but 137 00:09:39.000 --> 00:09:41.480 if she was willing to do this, that might be an indication that she 138 00:09:41.600 --> 00:09:46.879 never suspected her life was in danger and was taken by complete surprise when the 139 00:09:46.879 --> 00:09:52.039 perpetrator attacked her right from the outset. Investigators believed Tracy knew her killer, 140 00:09:52.399 --> 00:09:56.480 as the lack of sexual assault or robbery suggests that the crime was not a 141 00:09:56.600 --> 00:10:00.759 random attack and was very personal in nature. I have to agree with this. 142 00:10:00.919 --> 00:10:05.960 I think it's somebody who really had a connection to Tracy, or at 143 00:10:05.039 --> 00:10:09.000 least an illusion, you know, this illusion of having a connection with Tracy. 144 00:10:09.440 --> 00:10:13.799 They walked in with a knife, they were they left money in the 145 00:10:13.840 --> 00:10:18.279 cash register and even on the counter, while still taking some of her personal 146 00:10:18.279 --> 00:10:22.480 items like her wallet and her car keys. And there's just kind of no 147 00:10:22.559 --> 00:10:28.039 explanation for why Tracy other than she's vulnerable, she's alone, and she had 148 00:10:28.080 --> 00:10:33.559 this charisma that had captured this person's attention. I do not think it's random. 149 00:10:33.960 --> 00:10:37.960 I also, like I said in episode one, I at first was 150 00:10:37.000 --> 00:10:39.159 like, oh, man, as seventeen year old, like, I'm thinking 151 00:10:39.159 --> 00:10:43.080 of my seventeen year old and this idea you like, rebels baby is seventeen 152 00:10:43.120 --> 00:10:48.360 And would I trust Bella to be working by herself somewhere Yes, in our 153 00:10:48.440 --> 00:10:52.919 little small town. But I'd be like Diane, I'd be running by, 154 00:10:52.960 --> 00:10:56.320 like do you need a drink? Do you need dinner? Oh? Your 155 00:10:56.320 --> 00:10:58.519 boss is coming good? Who? Right? Like there'd be a lot of 156 00:10:58.559 --> 00:11:03.879 anxiety around that because you just don't know, Like even in a tiny town 157 00:11:03.919 --> 00:11:07.960 like we are, you just don't know. And in some ways it's scarier 158 00:11:07.279 --> 00:11:11.679 in a small town because of how close people think they are to you and 159 00:11:11.720 --> 00:11:15.720 your family when you don't really know them that well. I feel like this 160 00:11:15.879 --> 00:11:20.120 person had You've had a lot of knowledge of the mall and some level of 161 00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:24.720 comfortability because in working in a mall when I was a teenager, and like 162 00:11:24.200 --> 00:11:28.960 this was like just coming up on y two k right, like just like 163 00:11:30.000 --> 00:11:35.399 the year before. So basically it was it was just like I grew up 164 00:11:35.399 --> 00:11:37.840 somewhere pretty small. It was like thirty five thousand people, but I knew 165 00:11:37.879 --> 00:11:41.960 all the people that worked in the mall, like in my area, especially 166 00:11:41.000 --> 00:11:46.320 the people that were also teenagers. And so for Tracy, I've got to 167 00:11:46.320 --> 00:11:50.480 believe that there was a little bit of a little bit of comfort in the 168 00:11:50.559 --> 00:11:54.799 sense that you probably knew the people in the adjacent stores. So for somebody 169 00:11:54.840 --> 00:11:58.080 to make a bold move and to feel comfortable enough to do that, it 170 00:11:58.120 --> 00:12:03.399 feels like this is somewhere where it's like they're stomping ground in some capacity. 171 00:12:03.440 --> 00:12:07.559 And maybe I'm reading it wrong, but just my own mall experience in my 172 00:12:07.600 --> 00:12:13.399 teenage years makes me think that. So now let's talk about the confession from 173 00:12:13.399 --> 00:12:16.720 the man calling himself down. If you go to the Unsolved Mystery's website or 174 00:12:16.720 --> 00:12:20.559 watch this segment on Amazon Prime or YouTube, you're going to see a text 175 00:12:20.639 --> 00:12:24.200 update which states that this guy has been cleared as a suspect. But there's 176 00:12:24.200 --> 00:12:28.440 still a lot of confusion here. As you recall, police were contacted by 177 00:12:28.440 --> 00:12:31.960 Martha Woodworth, who claimed she had been corresponding with a guy named Sean, 178 00:12:33.360 --> 00:12:37.879 and after hearing the recording of Don's confession, Woodworth became convinced that it was 179 00:12:37.919 --> 00:12:41.480 Sean's voice. Now, we do know that police tracked this guy down and 180 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:45.039 found out his name was not Down or Sean and Will. A search of 181 00:12:45.080 --> 00:12:48.320 his residence proved that he had an obsession with Tracy Kirkpatrick's murder. There was 182 00:12:48.360 --> 00:12:52.279 no evidence that he was actually involved at the time. They took blood and 183 00:12:52.360 --> 00:12:56.679 hair samples from him, but I see no indication that they took his DNA, 184 00:12:56.039 --> 00:13:00.840 as this was back in nineteen ninety when DNA profile was still in its 185 00:13:00.879 --> 00:13:05.279 infancy in criminal investigations, so I have to wonder if they tested his DNA 186 00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:07.840 at a later time, which is when he was officially cleared as a suspect. 187 00:13:09.120 --> 00:13:11.240 I'm getting the impression that this young man may have simply been a mentally 188 00:13:11.320 --> 00:13:16.960 unbalanced person who developed an unhealthy fixation with Tracy's case and desperately wanted to solve 189 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:20.799 it, even though he had no personal connection with her. I'm feeling like 190 00:13:20.919 --> 00:13:26.279 that's more the case here, because if not if really someone's calling, especially 191 00:13:26.279 --> 00:13:30.039 if it was Dawn using his real name, or it's somebody who was the 192 00:13:30.159 --> 00:13:35.960 killer, it seems like there's enough information given location of the call, the 193 00:13:35.080 --> 00:13:41.120 name, the voice, all of that's able to be used with certain witnesses, 194 00:13:41.200 --> 00:13:46.440 people right individuals in the community, and we don't have an arrest based 195 00:13:46.480 --> 00:13:48.960 on that call. So I'm thinking it's more of the vein of someone who 196 00:13:50.039 --> 00:13:52.840 said, wow, there's a seventeen year old girl. Maybe there was even 197 00:13:52.919 --> 00:13:58.480 a physical connection to her picture that's being shown. It's an interesting case, 198 00:13:58.679 --> 00:14:03.360 and so they become there's a need for them to be part of it in 199 00:14:03.399 --> 00:14:07.919 some way, and if that means asserting myself as this post killer, then 200 00:14:07.000 --> 00:14:11.720 maybe that's how I do it. Now, what we do know for certain 201 00:14:11.279 --> 00:14:16.879 is that this man corresponded with psychic Martha Woodworth while using the name Sean since 202 00:14:16.879 --> 00:14:22.600 the return address on the envelope center was tracked back to his residence in Walkersville. 203 00:14:22.440 --> 00:14:28.399 But what's not clear as whether or not they conclusively established if he called 204 00:14:28.399 --> 00:14:33.080 the confession hotline. Remember, this guy pleaded the Fifth Amendment and refused to 205 00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:35.879 answer any questions, so I'm guessing he never admitted to making the call. 206 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:41.159 I think there's a good chance he was responsible for the call, because not 207 00:14:41.320 --> 00:14:45.879 only did Martha Woodworth recognize his voice, but after the recording of the confession 208 00:14:45.960 --> 00:14:50.759 was broadcast on the radio, no fewer than three people came forward to identify 209 00:14:50.879 --> 00:14:56.720 him. But here's where the complication comes in. If you visit the Unsolved 210 00:14:56.720 --> 00:15:01.480 Mysteries board at the Sitcoms online for him, which Robin always frequents, you'll 211 00:15:01.480 --> 00:15:05.600 find an extensive thread there dating back to two thousand and five. It was 212 00:15:05.639 --> 00:15:11.039 started by a poster with the user name Dino Guy eighty eight, who corresponded 213 00:15:11.039 --> 00:15:13.960 many years ago with a person claiming to be the daughter of Don Barnes Junior, 214 00:15:15.279 --> 00:15:20.440 the security guard who found Tracy's body. This person eventually ceased all contact 215 00:15:20.480 --> 00:15:24.279 with Dino Guy eighty eight. So you'll have to take everything we say here 216 00:15:24.320 --> 00:15:28.399 with a huge grain of salt, since we have no idea if she actually 217 00:15:28.519 --> 00:15:31.919 was Don's daughter or if any of the information she shared was true. But 218 00:15:33.120 --> 00:15:35.720 she claimed that she recognized the voice on the confession tape as her father. 219 00:15:37.320 --> 00:15:41.279 So if the young man from Walkersville did not actually make that phone call, 220 00:15:41.679 --> 00:15:46.919 could this mean the confession was actually genuine? I don't know what person's like, 221 00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:50.519 Hey, Dino Guy eighty eight, I'm the killer's daughter, Like why 222 00:15:50.639 --> 00:15:54.639 him? You're like, why wouldn't she tell somebody else or tell a friend 223 00:15:54.679 --> 00:15:58.799 that tells the police that it seems odd? And I also, I mean, 224 00:15:58.840 --> 00:16:03.399 like how dumb would Don be to make a call say, hey, 225 00:16:04.039 --> 00:16:11.919 my name's Don. There's a lot of us in this town voice my name 226 00:16:12.080 --> 00:16:15.679 Don? Like Don, that guy who found the body and called you. 227 00:16:17.360 --> 00:16:19.039 Um, Like, it just doesn't make any sense. I mean, if 228 00:16:19.080 --> 00:16:22.679 Don's the killer and he's a security guard who would have known the area, 229 00:16:22.759 --> 00:16:26.600 would have known Tracy's whereabouts, would have known she was alone, those kinds 230 00:16:26.600 --> 00:16:30.840 of things. Um, is he really going to call in and use his 231 00:16:30.879 --> 00:16:33.759 own name? And again, like I said before, once you record your 232 00:16:33.840 --> 00:16:38.000 voice, once you give details, how hard would it really be to link 233 00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:41.679 you to the crime. I just don't see. I don't see reaching out 234 00:16:41.679 --> 00:16:45.320 to Dinah guy eighty eight. I mean that doesn't seem like, oh I'd 235 00:16:45.320 --> 00:16:49.919 reach out to Yes, yes, I actually know him. He's a pretty 236 00:16:49.919 --> 00:16:57.360 cool guy. Yeah. But apparently the woman claiming to be a Don's daughter 237 00:16:57.480 --> 00:17:03.000 asked him to send like or a VHS tape of the original Unsolved Mystery segment, 238 00:17:03.159 --> 00:17:04.839 and after you sent it, she apparently ghosted him after that, and 239 00:17:04.880 --> 00:17:08.799 that's when he never heard from her again. Well, okay, let me 240 00:17:08.880 --> 00:17:11.279 change my tune. Then what if she gets it she's like, holy crap, 241 00:17:11.279 --> 00:17:15.279 it's my dad. It is him. Oh. But that's the thing 242 00:17:15.359 --> 00:17:18.160 is that even if she does recognize him, like a lot of people in 243 00:17:18.160 --> 00:17:22.119 the community would have known Don Barnes junior because he was a sheriff's deputy. 244 00:17:22.200 --> 00:17:26.519 He was the security guard there. So, as far as I can tell, 245 00:17:26.559 --> 00:17:29.920 no one ever came forward and said that this guy is the guy on 246 00:17:29.960 --> 00:17:33.000 the confession tape. It's Don Barnes Junior. All the people who came forward 247 00:17:33.039 --> 00:17:37.039 said it's this other guy from Walkersville. So that's why I've always been really 248 00:17:37.039 --> 00:17:41.720 skeptical that Don Bard's junior was the caller. And the wording was so like 249 00:17:41.960 --> 00:17:45.440 laz fair, like, yep, committed the murder, but you know there's 250 00:17:45.480 --> 00:17:48.799 the death penalty in Maryland. You know, we just can't bring her back, 251 00:17:48.960 --> 00:17:52.160 so you know, I'm just gonna do nothing type of ental. It 252 00:17:52.200 --> 00:17:56.839 would just seem like there was no passion behind the words, and if you're 253 00:17:56.839 --> 00:18:00.920 calling it a confession hotline, you'd think there would be some passion and like 254 00:18:00.000 --> 00:18:04.440 some pent up feelings of like there was this great act that I did, 255 00:18:04.480 --> 00:18:08.319 and like how he was Like I realized after that it caused so much pain. 256 00:18:08.720 --> 00:18:12.359 It's like, did you not think beforehand that committing a murder would cause 257 00:18:12.480 --> 00:18:18.160 a lot of emotional ramifications for her family and all of those who loved her 258 00:18:18.200 --> 00:18:23.160 and the community at large. It just seemed very like you just wrote it 259 00:18:23.200 --> 00:18:26.359 one day. I was like, hah, this would be funny if I 260 00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.960 called it in. And I'm sure they never expected that it would be broadcast 261 00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:33.079 on national television on Unsolved Mysteries. So maybe it's just been a stupid prank 262 00:18:33.119 --> 00:18:37.559 that escalated out of control, hence the pleading of the fifth Yeah, exactly. 263 00:18:38.440 --> 00:18:41.880 Well, it's worth noting that even though the police seemed to think that 264 00:18:41.960 --> 00:18:45.200 confession sounded convincing, it does not sound like the call it provided any specific 265 00:18:45.240 --> 00:18:48.759 details about the crime, which were not already public knowledge at that time. 266 00:18:49.400 --> 00:18:55.119 And even though this tippet has never been publicly confirmed, Martha Woodword herself once 267 00:18:55.160 --> 00:18:59.279 made a post on the Unsolved Mysteries message board in two thousand and nine claiming 268 00:18:59.319 --> 00:19:03.039 that information about the confession hotline in Las Vegas was found inside the residence of 269 00:19:03.079 --> 00:19:07.240 this young man from Walkersville. So I think the most logical explanation is that 270 00:19:07.279 --> 00:19:11.160 the phone call was made by this guy, but it was nothing more than 271 00:19:11.200 --> 00:19:15.160 a hoax and he had no direct knowledge about the murder. However, here's 272 00:19:15.200 --> 00:19:18.119 the thing I have trouble with. The caller specifically said his name was Don, 273 00:19:18.400 --> 00:19:22.599 and we know that was not the real name of the guy from Walkersville, 274 00:19:22.119 --> 00:19:25.519 So if he was the one who made the call, why did he 275 00:19:25.599 --> 00:19:30.799 choose that particular name. It seems like quite a coincidence that another individual whom 276 00:19:30.839 --> 00:19:34.240 some people believe is the real killer, would also be named Don. For 277 00:19:34.440 --> 00:19:37.839 me, I think it has to be information in the media right that the 278 00:19:37.960 --> 00:19:41.680 last person to be seen with the individual is often the most suspected person. 279 00:19:41.799 --> 00:19:47.279 So, oh, Don Barnes Jr. Finds her body, I'm just gonna 280 00:19:47.319 --> 00:19:48.559 assume as Don, I'm going to use that name and go with it. 281 00:19:48.680 --> 00:19:53.119 So because they didn't keep that information out of the news stories, I think 282 00:19:53.160 --> 00:19:57.079 that could be a simple explanation from why they picked that name. You think 283 00:19:57.119 --> 00:20:02.640 they'd be looking for some kind of guilt knowledge, something that wasn't released publicly 284 00:20:02.920 --> 00:20:06.720 that this caller is divulging. But like you said, there's just nothing that 285 00:20:06.920 --> 00:20:11.279 isn't already released to the media that any you know, Joe Schmo or Larry 286 00:20:11.400 --> 00:20:14.680 or whatever could be like, Hey, I'm just gonna make a prank call 287 00:20:14.920 --> 00:20:18.599 and here's the information. And I mean people did a lot of prank calls 288 00:20:18.640 --> 00:20:22.440 at that time, like it was a pretty popular pastime. Well, we 289 00:20:22.440 --> 00:20:26.039 talked in a last episode, like how we didn't know specific details about how 290 00:20:26.119 --> 00:20:29.000 Tracy was stabbed, like how many times was she stabbed in the front, 291 00:20:29.000 --> 00:20:30.880 and how many times was she stabbed in the back, and was she found 292 00:20:30.960 --> 00:20:36.319 on her front or her back? But they've never released that publicly, probably 293 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:38.680 to withhold it to weed out false confessions. So I think that if the 294 00:20:38.720 --> 00:20:42.799 caller was the real killer, he would have shared information like that or some 295 00:20:42.880 --> 00:20:45.839 kind of specifics like you said, like why are you so remorseful? Like, 296 00:20:45.960 --> 00:20:51.119 man, you know, when I stabbed her here, it was really 297 00:20:51.160 --> 00:20:52.519 devastating, Like I wish I had, you know, Like I mean, 298 00:20:52.519 --> 00:20:57.119 he seems so nonchalant anyway, So I'm shocked he wouldn't provide some piece of 299 00:20:57.160 --> 00:21:00.319 information of like, you know, this is the part that's really been bothering 300 00:21:00.400 --> 00:21:04.960 me, or something that would go, wow, he really was there, 301 00:21:06.319 --> 00:21:10.000 you know, or even something from her wallet, information that was in her 302 00:21:10.039 --> 00:21:17.079 wallet. But it's such a vanilla and bland confession. I don't buy it. 303 00:21:17.079 --> 00:21:22.559 It's detached and impersonal. Yes, some of the original newspaper articles about 304 00:21:22.599 --> 00:21:27.319 the case did name Don Barnes Junior as a security guard who found Tracy's body 305 00:21:27.720 --> 00:21:32.720 but they didn't give off any impression that he might have been involved. If 306 00:21:32.799 --> 00:21:37.079 John Barnes Junior wasn't the person who called the confession hotline, part of me 307 00:21:37.160 --> 00:21:40.960 wonders if it was someone who suspected Don might be the killer, like we 308 00:21:41.039 --> 00:21:45.000 said earlier, but were too scared to come forward, so they decided to 309 00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:49.160 make a false confession in which they called themselves down in hopes appointing the investigation 310 00:21:49.240 --> 00:21:52.839 in his direction. Of course, I have no idea if the man from 311 00:21:52.839 --> 00:21:57.960 Walkersville would have known Don. But here's another interesting piece of information that was 312 00:21:57.960 --> 00:22:03.799 shared on the Unselvedsteries bored by one person claiming to be Don's daughter, And 313 00:22:03.920 --> 00:22:07.839 once again take this with a huge grain of salt. Apparently, around the 314 00:22:07.839 --> 00:22:11.680 time of the murder, Don lived in Walkersville and had a roommate named Sean. 315 00:22:11.240 --> 00:22:15.079 We have no idea if that's true or not, but if it is, 316 00:22:15.240 --> 00:22:18.640 I find it quite interesting that another guy from Walkersville would decide to start 317 00:22:18.680 --> 00:22:23.359 poking around into this case, using Don and Sean as his false names. 318 00:22:23.960 --> 00:22:27.319 He may have uncovered something which made him believe that they were connected to the 319 00:22:27.400 --> 00:22:33.160 murder somehow, and for whatever reason, decided to convey this information in the 320 00:22:33.359 --> 00:22:37.839 most bizarre fashion imaginable. Whatever the case, it sounds like it's been conclusively 321 00:22:38.000 --> 00:22:44.480 established that the person who received the most attention during the Unsolved Mystery segment was 322 00:22:44.559 --> 00:22:48.480 not the killer. Okay, question, if Don and Sean really lived together, 323 00:22:48.640 --> 00:22:53.319 if this combo really exists and they're in Wakersfield, is it possible that 324 00:22:53.359 --> 00:22:56.960 these are the two guys that were going to be indicted or the one guy 325 00:22:57.000 --> 00:23:00.640 that's going to be indicted, and Sean was the one that was that concern 326 00:23:00.759 --> 00:23:04.119 for them. That is possible because I do suspect that Dawn was the one 327 00:23:04.160 --> 00:23:07.519 that servia Check thought was the most likely suspect. But I know that the 328 00:23:07.559 --> 00:23:11.279 grand jury had concerned about another person they thought was a promising suspect. So 329 00:23:11.359 --> 00:23:15.319 for all we know, maybe it could have been the person named Sean. 330 00:23:15.759 --> 00:23:18.119 I mean, they never revealed this publicly. We don't know if he actually 331 00:23:18.200 --> 00:23:22.559 did have a roommate named Sean, but it could have been someone who maybe 332 00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:26.079 had knowledge or maybe helped Zahn cover up the crime or something like that. 333 00:23:26.480 --> 00:23:30.119 But it is interesting that for the past thirty years we have talked about two 334 00:23:30.119 --> 00:23:34.640 promising suspects who apparently both have like promising evidence against them, but just not 335 00:23:34.799 --> 00:23:38.599 enough to indict either of them. What if Sean liked to hang out at 336 00:23:38.599 --> 00:23:42.920 the mall, because you know, people sometimes do, and especially during that 337 00:23:42.960 --> 00:23:47.200 time period, especially if you're in a small town, he may have liked 338 00:23:47.240 --> 00:23:49.279 to hang out at the mall, especially if his buddy Dawn was a security 339 00:23:49.279 --> 00:23:52.480 guard. And if he was the creepy guy that like maybe it had made 340 00:23:52.519 --> 00:23:59.680 advances towards Tracy, that like we hypothesized him part one, then maybe he 341 00:23:59.759 --> 00:24:03.079 was one that acted impulsively carried the knife, and Don helped him cover it 342 00:24:03.160 --> 00:24:06.799 up. That could be a way that they were both involved. I just 343 00:24:06.839 --> 00:24:11.359 couldn't see any way that two people would have been involved in the crime in 344 00:24:11.440 --> 00:24:15.119 any other way, in that one was the perpetrator and one helped after the 345 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:19.559 fact, because there was no sexual no overt sexual element, nor was there 346 00:24:19.559 --> 00:24:23.599 a robbery. Oh yeah, Like I definitely think that only one person actually 347 00:24:23.599 --> 00:24:27.319 did the stabbing. But I can see, because there would have been blood 348 00:24:27.319 --> 00:24:30.319 on the scene that if the killer had an accomplice, he could have helped 349 00:24:30.359 --> 00:24:34.519 him clean up himself or something like that, or dispose of evidence to help 350 00:24:34.599 --> 00:24:40.240 cover up the crime. So it appears that we have two unnamed promising suspects 351 00:24:40.240 --> 00:24:42.480 in this case, and neither of them were the guy from Walkersville. The 352 00:24:42.519 --> 00:24:47.759 authorities had never indicated that they believed these two suspects worked together, but that 353 00:24:47.880 --> 00:24:52.039 may be the biggest obstacle against getting an indictment, since there is apparently compelling 354 00:24:52.119 --> 00:24:55.960 evidence against both of them if one of these suspects, If one of these 355 00:24:55.960 --> 00:24:59.680 suspects went on trial, they could simply point to the other suspect to create 356 00:25:00.119 --> 00:25:03.200 moll doubt. And of course, if either or both of these suspects were 357 00:25:03.200 --> 00:25:07.400 acquitted, double jeopardy would prevent the authorities from taking either of them to trial 358 00:25:07.440 --> 00:25:12.240 again. Formerly investigator Bob Servachek had his own ideas about who the correct suspect 359 00:25:12.400 --> 00:25:17.440 was and tried to present evidence against him to a grand jury. Even though 360 00:25:17.480 --> 00:25:21.119 two thirds of them voted for an indictment, The state's attorney's office felt the 361 00:25:21.119 --> 00:25:23.799 evidence was insufficient enough to take the case to trial and secure a conviction. 362 00:25:25.559 --> 00:25:27.839 But it makes you wonder if things might have turned out differently had there not 363 00:25:27.880 --> 00:25:33.440 been a second potential suspect around to create complications. Yeah, I mean, 364 00:25:33.480 --> 00:25:37.880 I definitely think that things would have been different. There's always this this fear 365 00:25:38.079 --> 00:25:41.960 that if there's any element that we think a defense attorney can bring up that 366 00:25:42.039 --> 00:25:45.640 can even put a question mark in our jury's head, we just can't go 367 00:25:45.720 --> 00:25:51.359 to trial because here it's not ninety six percent certain. Do you need to 368 00:25:51.400 --> 00:25:57.480 be ninety nine point certain that the person that you have on trial is guilty 369 00:25:57.640 --> 00:26:03.200 and that there is no other reasonable explanation for what happened in that crime. 370 00:26:03.440 --> 00:26:07.000 And here it sounds like there was at least a handful of people who said, 371 00:26:07.000 --> 00:26:10.440 this is not the time to take a shot at this individual because there's 372 00:26:10.480 --> 00:26:14.880 too much risk if the answer could be not guilty due to insufficient evidence. 373 00:26:15.279 --> 00:26:18.279 And so as sad as that is, and as frustrating as it is and 374 00:26:18.440 --> 00:26:22.240 scary because there's a killer out there right or somebody who suspect of murder, 375 00:26:22.839 --> 00:26:27.160 I agree with their decision if there was a risk of not winning that case. 376 00:26:27.720 --> 00:26:32.079 When you have a murderer, you only get one shot. You gotta 377 00:26:32.079 --> 00:26:34.119 do it right. But in the words of Michael Jordan, you miss one 378 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:37.519 hundred percent of the shots you don't take. And how many years on is 379 00:26:37.559 --> 00:26:41.400 it now? Are we still just sitting on our hands? I feel like 380 00:26:41.440 --> 00:26:44.920 I understood at the time why they didn't take the shot, But I think 381 00:26:44.920 --> 00:26:48.960 once you get another ten years on from nineteen ninety four or whenever it was 382 00:26:48.559 --> 00:26:52.240 when they were going to do those indictments, then you go, okay, 383 00:26:52.240 --> 00:26:56.039 like we might not have a perfect case here, but maybe we owe it 384 00:26:56.079 --> 00:27:00.839 to the families to give it a try because maybe we're not going to get 385 00:27:00.880 --> 00:27:03.640 any more evidence. It just it feels like we're how many years on do 386 00:27:03.720 --> 00:27:08.160 we know, Robin, thirty four years since the murder took place. Totally 387 00:27:08.160 --> 00:27:11.920 agree with you in that case, the further out we get, and when 388 00:27:11.920 --> 00:27:15.640 it's becoming decades and decades, what people are dying right, like, the 389 00:27:15.759 --> 00:27:21.759 case changes, the urgency changes, and there is that need of like now, 390 00:27:22.200 --> 00:27:23.519 just even as a sentiment, even if he's found let's say, not 391 00:27:23.559 --> 00:27:27.039 guilty, the respect and dignity it would give to the family to say it 392 00:27:27.119 --> 00:27:30.839 was worth taking this case to trial. Jules, I think you nailed it 393 00:27:30.960 --> 00:27:34.000 right there. You're you're right, at a certain point it's worth taking like 394 00:27:34.079 --> 00:27:38.000 this half court shot to try. Well, that's pretty much happened with the 395 00:27:38.279 --> 00:27:41.559 murder, with the conviction of our good friend Steve Pink for the murder of 396 00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:45.680 Janelle Matthews because that was a case they did not have a smoking gun. 397 00:27:45.759 --> 00:27:48.359 All they had was weird statements he had supposedly made. But I think they 398 00:27:48.400 --> 00:27:52.039 felt this case is nearly forty years old. He's seventy years old. He 399 00:27:52.160 --> 00:27:56.400 might not get another shot to indict him while he's alive, so why don't 400 00:27:56.400 --> 00:27:59.000 we take a shot at it. And even if he's acquitted, we at 401 00:27:59.079 --> 00:28:02.160 least tried, and he's not going to live too much longer because of his 402 00:28:02.200 --> 00:28:04.359 advanced age, and wound up paying off. So who knows. Maybe the 403 00:28:04.359 --> 00:28:08.799 same thing would happen if they tried to indict someone for Tracy Kirkpatrick's murder today, 404 00:28:10.519 --> 00:28:12.880 And if only they would do the same thing with Jewel Kayler, Oh 405 00:28:12.960 --> 00:28:17.720 exactly, yeah, Oh my gosh. He's in his eighties. And would 406 00:28:17.799 --> 00:28:19.720 I would pay good money to watch him go on trial and see him testify. 407 00:28:19.759 --> 00:28:23.680 He would be quite an experience. Robin do his voice, tell us 408 00:28:23.680 --> 00:28:30.079 a sentence. I'm here to testify at the trial and maintain my innocence since 409 00:28:30.119 --> 00:28:33.319 I was acquided, things are really pretty good. Do you like salad's jewel? 410 00:28:33.720 --> 00:28:37.240 Oh? Yes, I'm the best salad maker. In fact, I'm 411 00:28:37.240 --> 00:28:40.359 going to spend the next hour telling you what a great salad maker I am. 412 00:28:44.319 --> 00:28:45.720 I get see him doing that, like just going on the way to 413 00:28:45.799 --> 00:28:48.839 stand and rambling on and on and on about stuff that has nothing to do 414 00:28:48.880 --> 00:28:52.480 with the case. His attorney's going to be like, no, you can't 415 00:28:52.480 --> 00:28:53.440 take the stand, sir. He's gonna be like, no, no, 416 00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:57.119 I am taking that stand. It is my right. That's what happened with 417 00:28:57.160 --> 00:29:00.079 Steve Panky. He took the stand and he just would shut up and kept 418 00:29:00.119 --> 00:29:04.200 rambling on, and he got convicted. So was his downfall. Think narcissists 419 00:29:04.200 --> 00:29:07.839 just love to go up there because they really just love the sound of their 420 00:29:07.839 --> 00:29:11.359 own voice. But they think that they can somehow convince other people that they're 421 00:29:11.400 --> 00:29:15.640 correct because they also think of the smartest people in the room. Servicheck has 422 00:29:15.680 --> 00:29:19.839 always been very outspoken about his belief that the State's Attorney's office have made the 423 00:29:19.880 --> 00:29:25.039 wrong decision, and given some of the rumors that are floating around about this 424 00:29:25.119 --> 00:29:30.279 case, some of his comments are pretty interesting in hindsight. Servicheck said that 425 00:29:30.279 --> 00:29:34.400 the whole thing was derailed by quote politics and personal agendas, and that certain 426 00:29:34.440 --> 00:29:40.440 people did not do their jobs well we don't know the identity of the particular 427 00:29:40.480 --> 00:29:45.000 suspect he wanted to indict, but let's just assume it was Don Barnes Junior. 428 00:29:45.480 --> 00:29:48.759 Don's father was a former Frederick County sheriff, and from what we've read 429 00:29:48.759 --> 00:29:52.519 about him online, he seems to be a very well respected figure in law 430 00:29:52.599 --> 00:29:56.599 enforcement. At the time of Tracy's murder. It sounds like Don was attempting 431 00:29:56.640 --> 00:30:00.079 to follow in his father's footsteps, since he worked as a deputy with the 432 00:30:00.119 --> 00:30:04.720 same sheriff's office. Well, Servicheck did not want to elaborate on those comments 433 00:30:04.759 --> 00:30:10.160 he made about politics and personal agendas, it's really easy to read between the 434 00:30:10.200 --> 00:30:15.319 lines and figure out what he was trying to imply there. Servicheck also specified 435 00:30:15.559 --> 00:30:18.640 that the suspect was an acquaintance of Tracy's, and while it's never been publicly 436 00:30:18.759 --> 00:30:23.240 established that Tracy and Dawn knew each other, it's reasonable to assume that they 437 00:30:23.240 --> 00:30:27.480 would have crossed paths since Dawn was a security guard at the shopping center, 438 00:30:29.200 --> 00:30:33.319 for sure, and the fact that even Don's own statement said like he went 439 00:30:33.359 --> 00:30:37.359 in and called for her and things like that, so he likely knew her 440 00:30:37.480 --> 00:30:41.599 she was working there. It is interesting that he'd be super concerned. Like 441 00:30:41.720 --> 00:30:44.799 for me, I don't know if I was closing up my shop. I 442 00:30:44.839 --> 00:30:48.319 wonder would anyone be weirded out if I was there an extra hour and a 443 00:30:48.359 --> 00:30:52.759 half or so here, Because I think he knew that there's a seventeen year 444 00:30:52.759 --> 00:30:56.720 old working there. It was scary to him that, you know, the 445 00:30:56.960 --> 00:31:00.279 store lights are still on and everything's not closed up the way it too too. 446 00:31:00.720 --> 00:31:02.680 But if he really walked in and was like, Hey, Tracy, 447 00:31:02.799 --> 00:31:06.200 are you here, then yeah, he knew her, and yes, he 448 00:31:06.200 --> 00:31:08.920 would likely also know no one else was working with her, and that you 449 00:31:08.960 --> 00:31:15.319 know, she's seventeen and a loan and that's really scary. Maybe we've said 450 00:31:15.319 --> 00:31:19.880 before, but Robin wasn't the same Sheriff's department heading up this case that Don 451 00:31:19.880 --> 00:31:25.279 Barnes Junior was a deputy at or was it the local police department? It 452 00:31:25.319 --> 00:31:29.839 was the local police department, So this was investigated by the Frederick Police Department, 453 00:31:30.000 --> 00:31:33.559 not the Sheriff's office, so they didn't actually handle the case. So 454 00:31:33.839 --> 00:31:36.240 that's why I'm a bit skeptical here. I'm thinking, well, it's two 455 00:31:36.279 --> 00:31:38.240 different departments, and I don't know if they would be willing to cover up 456 00:31:38.319 --> 00:31:42.119 for a deputy with another department. But at the same time, if there's 457 00:31:42.119 --> 00:31:45.839 a lot of politics going around, a good old boy system, and Don's 458 00:31:45.880 --> 00:31:49.480 father is a very respected former sheriff, then I could see why a lot 459 00:31:49.519 --> 00:31:52.400 of rumors have gone through that there was a cover up that took place. 460 00:31:53.359 --> 00:31:56.400 Don't you think there's also just as many people who are like God, I 461 00:31:56.440 --> 00:32:00.720 hated that sheriff, and I don't give a crud who this is, right, 462 00:32:00.720 --> 00:32:02.599 Like we've got a killer in our police force. Like I feel like 463 00:32:02.640 --> 00:32:07.839 in many situations, especially if we're talking about the police department and not the 464 00:32:07.839 --> 00:32:10.160 sheriff's department, our whole teams willing to put our neck on the line like 465 00:32:10.200 --> 00:32:14.880 that. Law enforcement doesn't like to investigate itself. And it might be the 466 00:32:14.920 --> 00:32:19.359 sheriff's office versus the police department, but we don't know how closely intertwined they 467 00:32:19.359 --> 00:32:22.000 were. This was a small place, so I've got to believe that they 468 00:32:22.039 --> 00:32:25.200 all know each other socially, because I think in those situations, law enforcement 469 00:32:25.240 --> 00:32:30.039 puts themselves in a position where if I was going to be in the same 470 00:32:30.039 --> 00:32:34.160 position as Don Barnes Junior, would I want to be investigated like this by 471 00:32:34.240 --> 00:32:37.359 one of my brothers, you know, like the thin Blue line or whatever. 472 00:32:37.319 --> 00:32:40.599 Service check sery seems to be that the killer had feelings for Tracy, 473 00:32:40.759 --> 00:32:44.440 but when she told them she only wanted to be friends, that set them 474 00:32:44.480 --> 00:32:49.119 off. And here's another interesting side story. Tracy worked another shift at the 475 00:32:49.160 --> 00:32:52.119 clothing store on the night before murder, but was late arriving home after the 476 00:32:52.160 --> 00:32:57.039 store closed. Her father decided to drive to the shopping center to check on 477 00:32:57.160 --> 00:33:00.599 her and found Tracy talking to a former boyfriend her well. They had previously 478 00:33:00.640 --> 00:33:04.359 broken up, the two of them had now made a decision to get back 479 00:33:04.400 --> 00:33:07.519 together, but then the very next night, Tracy wound up dead. I've 480 00:33:07.519 --> 00:33:13.480 seen speculation online that Tracy's boyfriend might be the second unnamed suspect in this case, 481 00:33:13.559 --> 00:33:16.240 but there's nothing to substantiate this. But if the boyfriend was not the 482 00:33:16.359 --> 00:33:21.279 killer, and Servicheck's theory is correct, I can totally see how this murder 483 00:33:21.400 --> 00:33:23.960 might have played out. Tracy was killed right before the store closed, and 484 00:33:24.000 --> 00:33:28.039 if the killer knew she was working alone that night, he might have felt 485 00:33:28.079 --> 00:33:30.279 it was an ideal time to stop by and express his feelings for her. 486 00:33:30.720 --> 00:33:35.240 But if Tracy told this person that she was now back together with her boyfriend 487 00:33:35.240 --> 00:33:37.559 again. This could have been the breaking point which caused this man to turn 488 00:33:37.680 --> 00:33:45.200 violent and commit murder. Whoa, whoa. I love this theory. That's 489 00:33:45.279 --> 00:33:46.640 one of the things that I was thinking early on when you guys started telling 490 00:33:46.680 --> 00:33:51.559 me the story was Listen, someone had an infatuation with her. Someone thought 491 00:33:51.680 --> 00:33:57.799 Tracy's kindness and charm and lightheartedness was a sign that she liked them, or 492 00:33:57.839 --> 00:34:00.480 that she you know, there was potential there for them to swoop in and 493 00:34:00.519 --> 00:34:05.079 be with Tracy. And I had this feeling that she had put up a 494 00:34:05.160 --> 00:34:08.360 boundary of some sort, like you're making me uncomfortable no, or in this 495 00:34:08.400 --> 00:34:12.639 case, like you just said, Robin, I'm actually have a boyfriend. 496 00:34:12.679 --> 00:34:15.599 I'm back with my boyfriend. And then that hope and that kind of delusion 497 00:34:16.039 --> 00:34:21.360 that Tracy was going to be with them sets them off. It's and what's 498 00:34:21.400 --> 00:34:24.480 real scary is that they arrive with a knife, like just in case things 499 00:34:24.480 --> 00:34:29.760 go weird, I have a weapon too. Question Ash, have you ever 500 00:34:29.840 --> 00:34:32.920 experienced, and I'm sure most of the women listening probably have, where you've 501 00:34:32.960 --> 00:34:39.039 had a situation where somebody has been intensely hitting on you and you tell them 502 00:34:39.440 --> 00:34:44.039 I've taken I have a boyfriend, I'm married type of a deal, and 503 00:34:44.079 --> 00:34:47.320 they get very angry. Oh for sure, Oh for sure. And honestly, 504 00:34:47.360 --> 00:34:51.400 I've done that a million times when I didn't have a significant other, 505 00:34:51.480 --> 00:34:53.280 you know, or like asked a man next to me to like pose as 506 00:34:53.280 --> 00:34:57.880 someone who cared about me because get this person to stop. But yes, 507 00:34:58.000 --> 00:35:01.519 it's a how dare you? Like? I'm like, I don't get told 508 00:35:01.599 --> 00:35:06.159 no. I've had people say that. You're like, people don't tell me 509 00:35:06.239 --> 00:35:07.559 no, or I usually get what I want or what and you're like, 510 00:35:07.679 --> 00:35:15.639 geez, Louise, very very uncomfortable, like where people fixate and create in 511 00:35:15.679 --> 00:35:20.199 their head that you're going to be with them or at least they have this 512 00:35:20.280 --> 00:35:23.599 amazing shot to be your partner, and then when that's not true, it's 513 00:35:23.639 --> 00:35:28.880 that ego deflation and that kind of dream being popped that you go, WHOA, 514 00:35:28.880 --> 00:35:30.440 I didn't expect you to get angry, like you don't even know me. 515 00:35:30.920 --> 00:35:37.360 It's like an aggressive sense of sexual entitlement where they feel like there is 516 00:35:37.440 --> 00:35:42.920 no other response than to aggressively get angry or to like braate you because they 517 00:35:43.000 --> 00:35:46.599 no longer have a shot and in their minds, they'd somehow crafted this narrative 518 00:35:46.639 --> 00:35:51.960 that you will be together, whether in a relationship capacity or sexually, and 519 00:35:52.079 --> 00:35:55.079 you've gone and burst their bubble and like, how dare you? Well, 520 00:35:55.119 --> 00:35:59.920 we're skeptical that the person who called the confession hot line was Tracy's kill. 521 00:36:00.599 --> 00:36:04.760 I will say that his description on the murder would fit the scenario we just 522 00:36:04.800 --> 00:36:08.320 described. Remember he said, quote one night when she was in the storeroom 523 00:36:08.679 --> 00:36:13.360 and we were talking, our conversation turned into an argument, and so I 524 00:36:13.400 --> 00:36:15.519 took out a knife that I have on me at all times, and I 525 00:36:15.639 --> 00:36:20.840 killed her due If this was a spur of the moment rage killing, it 526 00:36:20.960 --> 00:36:23.960 would explain why there was no sexual assault and nothing was stolen from the store. 527 00:36:24.519 --> 00:36:29.320 It is interesting that Tracy's purse, car keys, and store keys were 528 00:36:29.320 --> 00:36:31.920 missing, and I'm not sure if they were ever recovered, but if the 529 00:36:32.039 --> 00:36:37.119 killer was obsessed with Tracy, they might have decided to keep her purses a 530 00:36:37.159 --> 00:36:40.880 memento. We should also mention that if you believe Don Barnes Junior is the 531 00:36:40.920 --> 00:36:45.400 most promising suspect, well, who would have a better idea about Tracy being 532 00:36:45.440 --> 00:36:51.679 alone in the store that night than the security guard Okay, do police officers 533 00:36:51.719 --> 00:36:54.000 typically carry a knife with them? Because this is where is this Maryland? 534 00:36:54.480 --> 00:37:00.239 Yeah? Yeah, if you told me this was like Arkansas or Florida or 535 00:37:00.280 --> 00:37:05.719 I don't know, other southern states. I tell you that almost every man 536 00:37:05.800 --> 00:37:09.119 I walk by has a like a pocket knife or like a box cutter or 537 00:37:09.159 --> 00:37:13.679 something on their hip because a lot of them do a lot of construction and 538 00:37:13.719 --> 00:37:17.000 things like that. But in Maryland, I wonder if that's the same kind 539 00:37:17.039 --> 00:37:21.320 of culture, and if police officers have a knife other belt, do we 540 00:37:21.360 --> 00:37:23.719 have any idea like what size knife was actually used to stab her? Is 541 00:37:23.760 --> 00:37:28.000 this a small pocket knife? Is this a butcher knife? Is this a 542 00:37:28.039 --> 00:37:30.079 type of knife a law enforce an officer would carry on their belt. That's 543 00:37:30.079 --> 00:37:32.920 a good question. It's never been specified what type of knife it is, 544 00:37:32.960 --> 00:37:36.480 so I don't know if it's a smaller one or if it's it's a much 545 00:37:36.559 --> 00:37:37.960 larger one. I mean, if it was a smaller one, I can 546 00:37:38.039 --> 00:37:42.840 kind of believe like just a random police officer or person just carrying it around 547 00:37:42.840 --> 00:37:45.719 with them all the time it is protection. But if it's something like a 548 00:37:45.760 --> 00:37:49.480 butcher knife, and that would definitely point to premeditation because there's no way they 549 00:37:49.480 --> 00:37:52.000 should just be casually carrying that around when they go to visit a girl at 550 00:37:52.000 --> 00:37:57.000 a clothing store. One thing about this case which has always struck people as 551 00:37:57.000 --> 00:38:00.400 odd is that Tracy was stabbed seven times. She'd assume would cause the killer 552 00:38:00.440 --> 00:38:04.639 to get a lot of blood on them, but nobody reported seeing anything. 553 00:38:05.280 --> 00:38:07.599 We do have one witness who was in the shopping center parking lot around this 554 00:38:07.679 --> 00:38:12.800 time period and didn't see or hear anything, But since blood drops were found 555 00:38:12.800 --> 00:38:15.480 in a rear hallway which led to the loading dock, the killer probably escaped 556 00:38:15.519 --> 00:38:20.239 that way, and once again, a security guard would probably know the best 557 00:38:20.239 --> 00:38:23.840 place to slip out of the shopping center undetected. People who believed Don Barnes 558 00:38:23.920 --> 00:38:29.559 Junior was the killer think this might account for the time discrepancy before he reported 559 00:38:29.599 --> 00:38:32.840 Tracy's murder to the police. Back when I first became familiar with this case 560 00:38:32.880 --> 00:38:37.039 on UNSAWD Mystery thirty years ago, I had no idea who Don Barnes was 561 00:38:37.239 --> 00:38:40.360 or that he worked as a security guard, But I still found it odd 562 00:38:40.360 --> 00:38:45.599 that after the clothing store closed, nearly two full hours passed before the guard 563 00:38:45.679 --> 00:38:49.000 noticed the lights were still on and went in there to find Tracy's body. 564 00:38:49.559 --> 00:38:52.000 I have no idea what Don's schedule was for making his rounds, but that 565 00:38:52.079 --> 00:38:55.519 seems like an awful out of time for him to not notice that something was 566 00:38:55.559 --> 00:39:00.360 amiss. It does, especially when you described to me strip mall that we're 567 00:39:00.400 --> 00:39:07.400 not talking about this outdoor mall center complex right where there's two hundred and fifty 568 00:39:07.480 --> 00:39:10.199 stores and six anchor stores and things like that. If this is really just 569 00:39:10.239 --> 00:39:14.559 a little strip mall, and he was concerned enough to know, like, 570 00:39:14.599 --> 00:39:17.480 okay, this is who works where. I know they're timing. An hour 571 00:39:17.519 --> 00:39:22.079 and forty five minutes is quite a long time to say the lights are still 572 00:39:22.119 --> 00:39:27.119 on. I'm inclined to think okay, he had to have known that Tracy 573 00:39:27.199 --> 00:39:30.719 was working by herself that night, But would he like I wonder how often 574 00:39:30.760 --> 00:39:34.719 he stopped it and checked on people, because like for us, even our 575 00:39:34.760 --> 00:39:37.719 local law enforcement on my street, they'll stop in my store throughout the day 576 00:39:37.719 --> 00:39:40.440 and say, hey, just check in on you. Shoot the crudway some 577 00:39:40.519 --> 00:39:44.519 time. I wonder if he had that kind of dynamic with each of the 578 00:39:44.559 --> 00:39:47.519 people in the shops. Given his age, he was in his mid twenties, 579 00:39:47.639 --> 00:39:52.280 right, if he read in similar circles. He may have been like, 580 00:39:52.360 --> 00:39:53.599 Hey, you know, oh, cute girl working at the store, 581 00:39:53.719 --> 00:39:58.760 I'm going to go chatter up. If he was a social person, then 582 00:39:58.840 --> 00:40:01.440 it would seem natural. The time frame still doesn't seem to add up, 583 00:40:01.480 --> 00:40:06.719 though, but the fact that nobody saw or heard anything doesn't seem that strange, 584 00:40:06.800 --> 00:40:09.800 considering this may have happened after everybody else had finished their closing, and 585 00:40:09.880 --> 00:40:15.119 that might have been by design, and or if it happened in the storeroom, 586 00:40:15.199 --> 00:40:17.079 it might have just been such a snake attack that he could have had 587 00:40:17.119 --> 00:40:20.800 his hand over her mouth. And then when it came to the blood on 588 00:40:20.840 --> 00:40:23.599 the clothing, he's got the cover of darkness working in his favor, and 589 00:40:23.639 --> 00:40:29.679 that it's evening. So if Don was guilty, this nearly two hour window 590 00:40:29.760 --> 00:40:32.199 would have given him plenty of time to dispose of the murder weapon, clean 591 00:40:32.280 --> 00:40:36.519 up all the evidence which pointed to him, and go change into a different 592 00:40:36.599 --> 00:40:39.400 uniform if he got any blood on himself. Once he's covered his tracks, 593 00:40:39.519 --> 00:40:44.840 Don then returns to the murder scene to discover Tracy's body, hoping that this 594 00:40:44.880 --> 00:40:49.119 will make himself look less suspicious. There's also the fact that Tracy was murdered 595 00:40:49.159 --> 00:40:52.239 inside the rear storage room. Judging from the physical evidence of the scene, 596 00:40:52.679 --> 00:40:57.800 it doesn't seem like Tracy was attacked inside the actual store, so she was 597 00:40:57.840 --> 00:41:01.199 either forcibly dragged into the storage room or she went in there voluntarily with her 598 00:41:01.280 --> 00:41:06.360 killer. Anyone who worked in retail can tell you that it was usually a 599 00:41:06.400 --> 00:41:09.760 major no note for employees to allow outsiders into the back rooms, even if 600 00:41:09.800 --> 00:41:14.199 they were close friends or family. But if it was a security guard, 601 00:41:14.320 --> 00:41:16.719 Tracy might have thought it was okay to take him back there. Even if 602 00:41:16.800 --> 00:41:21.920 Don had stopped by the store and made advances towards Tracy on previous occasions, 603 00:41:22.239 --> 00:41:24.960 it may not have raised any red flags with her since it was his job 604 00:41:25.000 --> 00:41:29.440 to patrol the area, and he also happened to be a deputy sheriff. 605 00:41:30.199 --> 00:41:32.960 Even if she took down into the storage room in order to privately rebuff his 606 00:41:32.960 --> 00:41:38.679 advances, she probably didn't expect him to turn violent, exactly. And she's 607 00:41:38.679 --> 00:41:44.000 a seventeen year old girl who at this time was likely trained to trust law 608 00:41:44.159 --> 00:41:49.320 enforcement, to be kind, to basically be a yes girl, because that's 609 00:41:49.320 --> 00:41:52.000 what you do. She's in customer service. She's also seeming to be this 610 00:41:52.079 --> 00:41:57.360 amazingly charming kiddo from a really good family. She's social and driven. So 611 00:41:57.559 --> 00:42:00.880 I could absolutely see almost no matter who it was, But especially if someone 612 00:42:00.960 --> 00:42:06.320 in uniform, especially someone who's a law enforcement agent or to come in and 613 00:42:06.840 --> 00:42:10.159 be kind to you repeatedly, you would instantly have a trust with them and 614 00:42:10.239 --> 00:42:13.960 a bond with them of like, Wow, this person cares about me. 615 00:42:14.320 --> 00:42:17.280 They want to make sure I'm safe. I feel so secure knowing that he's 616 00:42:17.360 --> 00:42:21.480 here, right or I just I could see that'd be in a very real 617 00:42:21.480 --> 00:42:24.480 scenario. Could you, either of you see a scenario where he comes in, 618 00:42:24.559 --> 00:42:27.440 he's chatting with her, and then he's like, oh, hey, 619 00:42:27.639 --> 00:42:30.760 do you mind if I use the restroom in the bath and then he goes 620 00:42:30.800 --> 00:42:35.400 into the restroom, maybe after he's been rebuffed, goes into the restroom and 621 00:42:35.480 --> 00:42:37.320 pretends that he has to go to the bathroom, and then waits for Tracy 622 00:42:37.360 --> 00:42:40.519 to come back and check on him, and then uses that moment to attack 623 00:42:40.559 --> 00:42:45.320 her. That would definitely make sense because they said that the money she had 624 00:42:45.320 --> 00:42:49.119 been counting was still left out on the counter, and I think that if 625 00:42:49.119 --> 00:42:52.480 she wanted to go back there with don Or the killer, she would have 626 00:42:52.519 --> 00:42:54.440 just put the money in the register into a safe place, since the store 627 00:42:54.519 --> 00:42:59.880 was still technically open and unlocked. But if it's a scenario where he goes 628 00:43:00.039 --> 00:43:02.159 back there alone and she wants to go check on him because she's concerned he's 629 00:43:02.159 --> 00:43:05.920 been back there a long time, that maybe she will leave the money on 630 00:43:05.960 --> 00:43:07.880 the counter and then just go back there, and that's when she's ambushed. 631 00:43:08.599 --> 00:43:13.440 Now we must reiterate that Don has never been publicly named as a suspect or 632 00:43:13.519 --> 00:43:16.880 person of interest. Any suspicions you'll find about him online are nothing more than 633 00:43:17.000 --> 00:43:22.559 uncorroborated rumors and hearsay, So we're going to stop short at conclusively naming him 634 00:43:22.559 --> 00:43:25.920 as the killer. But Man Tracy being murdered by the same security guard who 635 00:43:25.960 --> 00:43:30.000 found her body is a scenario which makes a lot of sense. The main 636 00:43:30.039 --> 00:43:34.719 reason I doubt that Don Barnes Junior was the guy who called the confession hotline 637 00:43:35.079 --> 00:43:37.800 is because he was a deputy sheriff and his father was a prominent law enforcement 638 00:43:37.840 --> 00:43:43.119 official. So I think someone from the Frederick Police Department would have recognized Don's 639 00:43:43.199 --> 00:43:45.639 voice if the caller was him. Yes, if you believe the theory that 640 00:43:45.639 --> 00:43:50.239 there was a cover up, you could assume that perhaps the police only pretended 641 00:43:50.400 --> 00:43:53.840 not to recognize Don's voice. But remember they asked a bunch of local radio 642 00:43:53.840 --> 00:43:58.639 stations to play the full recording of the confession, which I don't think they 643 00:43:58.639 --> 00:44:01.320 would do if they were trying to protect the person on the tape. The 644 00:44:01.400 --> 00:44:05.920 listeners who called in to say they recognize the caller's voice all pointed to the 645 00:44:05.960 --> 00:44:08.360 young man from Walkersville, but as far as I can tell, none of 646 00:44:08.360 --> 00:44:13.360 them pointed to Dawn. In addition, if Dawn was the suspect of the 647 00:44:13.440 --> 00:44:16.639 grand jury voted to indict in nineteen ninety four, I think having a recording 648 00:44:16.679 --> 00:44:21.559 of his voice confessing to the murder would have been strong enough evidence to bring 649 00:44:21.599 --> 00:44:24.320 the case to trial. So I leaned towards the color not being the actual 650 00:44:24.440 --> 00:44:29.599 killer. But did he have vulterior motives for saying his name was Dawn. 651 00:44:30.400 --> 00:44:34.199 It's hard to say, as without knowing more specific details about the guy from 652 00:44:34.199 --> 00:44:37.639 Walkersville, I'm not sure if he would have had any inside knowledge of the 653 00:44:37.679 --> 00:44:42.199 crime. Again, the only reason I could think that Dawn would come to 654 00:44:42.239 --> 00:44:45.000 mind is that he saw that that was the last person who was with her 655 00:44:45.119 --> 00:44:51.119 or found her body. It would be really crazy and powerful if someone was 656 00:44:51.119 --> 00:44:52.400 like, I'm going to slip this in because he is the real killer, 657 00:44:52.400 --> 00:44:54.639 and this is how I'm going to do it. But at that point, 658 00:44:54.639 --> 00:44:59.559 why not just actually go say this guy's name anonymously, like it is this 659 00:44:59.719 --> 00:45:02.880 off sir from the police department period in a story, there's my confession, 660 00:45:02.920 --> 00:45:08.000 bity, and do it anonymously that way. It's also worth noting the well 661 00:45:08.079 --> 00:45:13.679 done Barnes and his father worked for the Frederick County Sheriff's Office. Like we 662 00:45:13.760 --> 00:45:16.559 said when I asked Robin if it was the Sheriff's office or the police department, 663 00:45:16.880 --> 00:45:22.880 the actual investigation into Tracy's murder was performed by the Frederick Police Department, 664 00:45:22.119 --> 00:45:27.239 which is a municipal agency, though I'm sure the Sheriff's Office would have had 665 00:45:27.239 --> 00:45:30.199 a lot of influence over them. If the Frederick Pete were involved in a 666 00:45:30.239 --> 00:45:35.159 cover up and trying to protect Don, I do wonder why they would have 667 00:45:35.159 --> 00:45:38.239 allowed the case to be broadcast on Unsolved Mysteries to begin with. But then 668 00:45:38.280 --> 00:45:43.280 again, if they knew for certain that the caller to the confession hotline wasn't 669 00:45:43.360 --> 00:45:46.400 Don, they might have been more than happy to allow false lead like that 670 00:45:46.480 --> 00:45:52.000 to garner attention on national television and take all the focus away from the real 671 00:45:52.119 --> 00:45:54.960 killer. Whatever the truth, it does sound like quite a few people believe 672 00:45:55.079 --> 00:46:00.639 that those in power have played a role in allowing the perpetrator to get away 673 00:46:00.679 --> 00:46:05.119 with it for over thirty years. And that could be someone that's not Dawn, 674 00:46:05.360 --> 00:46:07.800 Like, is it the mayor's son? Is it, you know, 675 00:46:07.519 --> 00:46:10.440 someone who just has a lot of money. Is it a big business developer? 676 00:46:10.679 --> 00:46:15.679 Is it you know who? Is it? Right? A beloved coach? 677 00:46:15.760 --> 00:46:21.199 I mean, we do see where depending on your financial cloud and your 678 00:46:21.320 --> 00:46:23.519 position in the community and what your last name is, that there definitely is 679 00:46:23.760 --> 00:46:30.239 differential treatment. It is like stomach turning to think that you would cover for 680 00:46:30.320 --> 00:46:34.840 someone's murder because of who they are. But I mean, this would not 681 00:46:34.880 --> 00:46:37.760 be the first case where that happened. So does it just have to be 682 00:46:37.880 --> 00:46:40.480 Don who's involved in law enforcement? My god? Know, there's a lot 683 00:46:40.519 --> 00:46:46.119 of people in a community, the son of Blank that could easily be covered 684 00:46:46.119 --> 00:46:49.840 for in the same manner that a law enforcement officer would be covered for. 685 00:46:50.320 --> 00:46:53.800 Don't you want to know more about this potential roommate of Don's name Sean And 686 00:46:53.880 --> 00:46:58.039 maybe who he was connected to, Like, I really wish that we could 687 00:46:58.079 --> 00:47:01.559 confirm that this was a real person exactly. And if I ever met Bob 688 00:47:01.639 --> 00:47:06.280 Servicheck, I would always want to ask off the record who he believed was 689 00:47:06.320 --> 00:47:08.880 the killer and did he believe it was Don Barnes Junior gives you mean all 690 00:47:08.920 --> 00:47:14.199 those cryptic remarks about politics and personal agendas, so it clear. It seems 691 00:47:14.199 --> 00:47:17.920 clear that he believes that people in power are preventing this case from getting solved. 692 00:47:19.159 --> 00:47:22.159 But as you're referring to the Barnes family or could he be referring to 693 00:47:22.199 --> 00:47:25.280 someone else? I know that an articles published about this case in two thousand 694 00:47:25.320 --> 00:47:30.079 and nine, it was mentioned that touch DNA evidence was being submitted to a 695 00:47:30.159 --> 00:47:35.280 private contractor for the Maryland State Police, and that investigators had DNA samples from 696 00:47:35.320 --> 00:47:38.559 the two people they consider to be the most promising suspects. But since it 697 00:47:38.599 --> 00:47:43.239 doesn't sound like anything ever came of this, that suggests to me that either 698 00:47:43.280 --> 00:47:47.199 the DNA evidence wasn't sufficient enough to make a conclusive determination, or the DNA 699 00:47:47.320 --> 00:47:52.360 did not match either the two suspects. But if there is still usable DNA, 700 00:47:52.760 --> 00:47:55.599 perhaps they can submit it to a genealogy website and track down the killer 701 00:47:55.679 --> 00:48:00.599 that way. This process has helped solve a number of cold case these past 702 00:48:00.639 --> 00:48:04.960 few years, so there's no reason it cannot happen again. It's pretty heartbreaking 703 00:48:05.000 --> 00:48:08.880 to watch that aforementioned YouTube interview with Tracy's sister, Dionda, who becomes very 704 00:48:08.960 --> 00:48:14.079 upset over the possibility that our parents might not live long enough to find out 705 00:48:14.079 --> 00:48:17.880 who killed Tracy and see the perpetrator brought to justice. This is one family 706 00:48:17.960 --> 00:48:22.920 that definitely deserves some closure after all the devastation and emotional turmoil they've endured. 707 00:48:23.239 --> 00:48:28.079 So if you happen to have any information on the unsolid murder of Tracy Kirkpatrick, 708 00:48:28.480 --> 00:48:32.960 please contact the appropriate authorities. Jules Ashley any final thoughts on this case. 709 00:48:34.800 --> 00:48:38.079 I think one of the most powerful things we talked about on this episode 710 00:48:38.079 --> 00:48:45.000 and in this case is that it's a prime example of the emotional, physical, 711 00:48:45.280 --> 00:48:52.159 familial community impact of a homicide and unsolved murder on the family, on 712 00:48:52.320 --> 00:48:54.679 the people that cared about Tracy, and on the people who function in a 713 00:48:54.719 --> 00:49:00.920 society where one of their seventeen year old members was murdered at her work. 714 00:49:00.800 --> 00:49:06.320 You see with Diane and Billy that the loss of their daughter, especially the 715 00:49:06.360 --> 00:49:09.639 loss in such an extreme manner right, being stabbed to death in her workplace 716 00:49:10.719 --> 00:49:15.639 devastated their life, right, and it was the inability to know exactly what 717 00:49:15.800 --> 00:49:19.920 happened to her, who did it, and to be able to hold them 718 00:49:19.960 --> 00:49:25.239 accountable. It destroyed them. And so I am so grateful that so many 719 00:49:25.280 --> 00:49:29.440 people are interested in true crime, because the more attention we can bring to 720 00:49:29.519 --> 00:49:35.039 these cases, we're also drawing attention to the physical and mental repercussions of these 721 00:49:35.039 --> 00:49:38.159 crimes for the people that really matter, not the offender, it's the family. 722 00:49:38.519 --> 00:49:43.239 And so I'm grateful you share this case. It truly is one of 723 00:49:43.280 --> 00:49:49.840 the more devastating ones because we are able to document what happened on the day 724 00:49:49.840 --> 00:49:52.960 that Tracy died in Ford that took her family to a place they never imagined 725 00:49:53.000 --> 00:49:57.039 being. None of us are immune from these kinds of crimes, which is 726 00:49:57.039 --> 00:50:00.800 really scary to think about. So my heart goes out to their whole family 727 00:50:00.840 --> 00:50:04.639 and to the community, and my goodness, if there is someone who knows 728 00:50:04.639 --> 00:50:08.079 information a seventeen year old little girl was murdered thirty some odd years ago, 729 00:50:08.599 --> 00:50:13.840 the risks, the consequences of coming forward with information at this point are so 730 00:50:14.119 --> 00:50:19.119 different and reduced after so much time that I pray that if someone knows something, 731 00:50:19.159 --> 00:50:23.960 they say something been thirty four years. This is just so heartbreaking. 732 00:50:24.079 --> 00:50:28.519 Tracy was seventeen years old and had her whole life ahead of her, and 733 00:50:28.559 --> 00:50:32.400 there is just something that just adds an extra layer of atrocity to a murder 734 00:50:32.639 --> 00:50:37.639 when it's a kid. She was a kid and her family never got any 735 00:50:37.679 --> 00:50:40.000 answers. And if somebody has any information, like you said, Ash, 736 00:50:40.119 --> 00:50:44.880 I really hope that they come forward because the clock is ticking. I'm sure 737 00:50:44.880 --> 00:50:49.119 that a lot of people who are related to this case are getting very old 738 00:50:49.639 --> 00:50:52.639 and some people are dying, Like there isn't an unlimited amount of time. 739 00:50:52.679 --> 00:50:57.719 I understand what they were doing in nineteen ninety four when they decided not to 740 00:50:57.960 --> 00:51:00.360 indict, but I feel like at this point, like Robin had mentioned, 741 00:51:00.360 --> 00:51:06.880 with a Steve Panky case, I think that there is a general consensus that 742 00:51:07.280 --> 00:51:13.159 who else would have better access than the security guard. And also Don Barnes 743 00:51:13.239 --> 00:51:16.960 Junior, given his connections, it makes sense with what Serviceeck was saying about, 744 00:51:17.039 --> 00:51:22.960 you know, basically getting blocked politically, that would totally be an alignment 745 00:51:22.159 --> 00:51:27.280 with that situation. I want to know who the second suspect is. Is 746 00:51:27.320 --> 00:51:30.960 it possible that it was a roommate. Is it possible that maybe Don didn't 747 00:51:30.000 --> 00:51:35.360 do it and maybe he helped his friend cover it up, or maybe it 748 00:51:35.400 --> 00:51:37.719 was the other way around, Maybe he had a friend hanging out with him 749 00:51:37.760 --> 00:51:39.480 and his friend was like, Okay, i'll help you out. One thing 750 00:51:39.519 --> 00:51:44.280 that is befuddling to me is if he did, indeed do it. If 751 00:51:44.280 --> 00:51:49.039 you sab somebody seven times, you're going to have an incredible amount of blood 752 00:51:49.079 --> 00:51:53.360 on you. And I don't know how many uniforms a mall will issue. 753 00:51:53.559 --> 00:51:58.119 I would only think one. So if that is the case, maybe he 754 00:51:58.159 --> 00:52:01.559 got multiple uniforms, but usually establishments like malls are going to try to cut 755 00:52:01.599 --> 00:52:05.360 costs and you're only going to get one, and you're just going to wash 756 00:52:05.440 --> 00:52:08.840 it when you finish your shift. So I do find it curious that obviously 757 00:52:08.880 --> 00:52:13.559 he's probably wearing it unless they did their security in playing clothes, but I 758 00:52:13.599 --> 00:52:17.280 doubt it most small security wears a uniform. That one thing is the only 759 00:52:17.280 --> 00:52:21.679 thing that kind of like nags at me. But I still think overall he 760 00:52:21.800 --> 00:52:25.840 is a really promising suspect. I don't think the caller from Walkersvelt had anything 761 00:52:25.880 --> 00:52:30.079 to do with it. They didn't give any guilt knowledge. There's nothing that 762 00:52:30.239 --> 00:52:34.079 wasn't already out there and available in the media, and we'll never truly know 763 00:52:34.199 --> 00:52:37.840 their motivation if they were just somebody who was obsessed with the case, or 764 00:52:37.880 --> 00:52:42.199 maybe they had some kind of knowledge of Dawn and wanted to just put it 765 00:52:42.239 --> 00:52:45.079 out there. Oh yeah, Like I mentioned, like, I watched this 766 00:52:45.199 --> 00:52:47.480 on Unsolved Mysteries back in the early nineties, and it's kind of crazy how 767 00:52:47.519 --> 00:52:52.280 my viewpoint about this case has changed over the years, because when I first 768 00:52:52.280 --> 00:52:54.239 watched it, I was convinced that the guy who made the call was the 769 00:52:54.360 --> 00:52:59.480 killer. But as the years have gone on, this investigation is headed in 770 00:52:59.519 --> 00:53:04.440 a complete different direction. And in the original segment you see a re enactment 771 00:53:04.480 --> 00:53:07.039 with a security guard finding Tracy's body, but they don't mention his name or 772 00:53:07.079 --> 00:53:10.679 give any indication that he could be a potential suspect. But it seems there 773 00:53:10.679 --> 00:53:15.400 have been a lot of rumors around that this is the most likely scenario. 774 00:53:15.880 --> 00:53:17.960 I mean, it is such a heartbreaking situation because you have a seventeen year 775 00:53:17.960 --> 00:53:22.920 old girl working alone on what should have been a routine shift, and as 776 00:53:22.960 --> 00:53:25.679 far as I can tell, she never expressed any concerns to her family or 777 00:53:25.679 --> 00:53:30.559 her co workers that anyone was coming in there harassing her or bothering her, 778 00:53:30.760 --> 00:53:32.920 So she probably never envisioned that anything bad was going to happen to her. 779 00:53:32.960 --> 00:53:37.360 But just a few minutes before she was scheduled to close, someone it went 780 00:53:37.400 --> 00:53:40.079 in there and stabbed her seven times. And it does seem like it could 781 00:53:40.119 --> 00:53:45.679 be a solvable case that there's a lot of people who believe that the grand 782 00:53:45.760 --> 00:53:50.400 jury should have handed down an indictment back in nineteen ninety four and solved this 783 00:53:50.400 --> 00:53:52.960 case a long time ago. But without knowing any specific details, I have 784 00:53:53.039 --> 00:53:58.840 no idea how strong the case really is. But it does sound like possibly 785 00:53:58.920 --> 00:54:02.159 that there are some personal politics involved and this has prevented the killer from being 786 00:54:02.159 --> 00:54:06.639 brought back to justice. And once again I want to reiterate, Don Barnes 787 00:54:06.719 --> 00:54:09.280 Jr. Has never been publicly named as a person of interest or suspect, 788 00:54:09.320 --> 00:54:14.039 and no one in law enforcement has ever given any indication that he might be 789 00:54:14.079 --> 00:54:17.920 the killer. It's all rumors and hearsay that you'll find online. But let's 790 00:54:17.920 --> 00:54:22.199 just say that if he was charged with this murderer would not surprise me at 791 00:54:22.239 --> 00:54:24.679 all if the killer turned out to be him. But after all this time, 792 00:54:25.360 --> 00:54:30.880 time is running out because Diane and Billy Kirkpatrick are getting old, and 793 00:54:30.320 --> 00:54:35.880 Tracy's sister says she fears that they will pass away without seeing the perpetrator receive 794 00:54:36.000 --> 00:54:38.760 justice or receive answers. So I do wish that. I don't know what 795 00:54:38.840 --> 00:54:43.559 kind of evidence they have against either these suspects, but if it's even a 796 00:54:43.599 --> 00:54:45.920 decent sized case, I really wish that they would take a shot at it 797 00:54:46.039 --> 00:54:51.280 and maybe try to bring the suspect to trial if they believe it's a strong 798 00:54:51.400 --> 00:54:54.280 enough case, because enough time has passed and I really would like to see 799 00:54:54.320 --> 00:55:00.199 this one resolved before Tracy's parents pass away. Robin, do you I want 800 00:55:00.199 --> 00:55:02.400 to tell us a little bit about the Trail Went Cold Patreon? Yes, 801 00:55:02.440 --> 00:55:06.840 The Trail Cold Patreon has been around for three years now, and we offer 802 00:55:06.880 --> 00:55:12.079 the standard bonus features like early ad free episodes, and I also send out 803 00:55:12.320 --> 00:55:15.679 stickers and sign thank you cards to anyone who signs up with us on Patreon 804 00:55:15.880 --> 00:55:21.760 if you join our five dollar tier Tier two. We also offer monthly bonus 805 00:55:21.800 --> 00:55:25.239 episodes in which I talk about cases which are not featured on The Trail Went 806 00:55:25.320 --> 00:55:30.639 Cold's original feed, so they're exclusive to Patreon and if you join our highest 807 00:55:30.639 --> 00:55:34.000 tier, Tier three, the ten dollar Tier. One of the features we 808 00:55:34.079 --> 00:55:38.599 offer is a audio commentary track over classic episodes of UNSAWD Mysteries, where you 809 00:55:38.679 --> 00:55:44.559 can download an audio file and then boot up the original UNSAWD Mysteries episode on 810 00:55:44.599 --> 00:55:49.599 Amazon Prime or YouTube and play it with my audio commentary playing in the background, 811 00:55:49.679 --> 00:55:53.079 where I just provide trivia and factoids about the cases featured in this episode. 812 00:55:53.400 --> 00:55:58.199 And incidentally, the very first episode that I did a commentary track over 813 00:55:58.400 --> 00:56:01.480 was the episode featuring this game. So if you want to download a commentary 814 00:56:01.519 --> 00:56:06.760 track in which I make more smartass remarks about Jewel Kaylor than be sure to 815 00:56:06.840 --> 00:56:08.880 join Tier three. So I want to let you know a little bit about 816 00:56:08.880 --> 00:56:13.679 the Jewels and Ashley. Patreon, so there's early ad free episodes of The 817 00:56:13.719 --> 00:56:16.760 Path Went Chili. We've got our Path Went Chili vinis, which are always 818 00:56:16.800 --> 00:56:20.559 over an hour, so they're not very many, but they're just too short 819 00:56:20.599 --> 00:56:23.239 to turn into a series, and we're really enjoying doing those, so we 820 00:56:23.280 --> 00:56:28.119 hope you'll check out those patreons will link them in the show notes. So 821 00:56:28.159 --> 00:56:30.920 I want to thank you all for listening, and any chance you have to 822 00:56:30.920 --> 00:56:34.639 share us on social media with a friend or to rate and review is greatly 823 00:56:34.639 --> 00:56:37.079 appreciate it. You can email us at the path Went Chili at gmail dot 824 00:56:37.079 --> 00:56:42.039 com. You can reach us on Twitter at the path Went So until next 825 00:56:42.039 --> 00:56:45.880 time, be sure to bundle up because cold trails and chili pass call for 826 00:56:45.960 --> 00:56:50.000 warm clothing. Music by Paul Rich from the podcast Cold Callers Comedy