Unsolved

The murder of JonBenet Ramsey in 1996 drew international attention, and part of that intense media focus was on the Ramsey's Northern Michigan getaway in Charlevoix.

The family of Cassandra Durham has been trying to figure out what happened to her ever since she was last seen in Baltimore back in July 1987. There's strong evidence she found her way to Northern Michigan, but where she went after that is a mystery.

This year marked 45 years since Diane Chorba disappeared from her home in Lake County.

In May 2010, Kristin Spires was at a party on Woodward Avenue in Big Rapids. It was the last time anyone saw her alive.

Margie Ranshaw's daughter Ashley was just two months old in May of 1987 when her mom left their home to pick up some milk. Her vehicle was later found, but Margie hasn't been seen since.

The mystery of who killed Francis Lacey is one that has both baffled and fascinated the Mackinac Island for decades. It's the island's only unsolved murder.

Grand Traverse County Deputies recently began a renewed push to solve a 1989 cold case. The case of Linda Meteer is one that's never been far from the minds of detectives in the county. On April 19, 1989, 41-year-old Linda Meteer was spending the night out with friends in Grand Traverse County. She disappeared, and her body wouldn't be discovered until more than a week later.

In this edition of Unsolved, we take a look at the case of Jacob Cabinaw, who went missing from Grand Traverse County.

Unsolved looks in the case of David Gionet

Midland County deputies have spent more than three decades trying to solve a deadly hit-and-run. Gregory McRoberts was killed while riding his bike on Dec. 12, 1991. 9&10's David Lyden takes us through this long, winding case that continues to this very day.

Marvel Anderson was just 16-years-old when she was last seen in St. Ignace, late in the afternoon on May 2, 1994. Her body would not be found until September of the following year in a remote part of Mackinac County, and soon her death would be ruled as a homicide. David Lyden and videographer Josh Monroe spoke with detectives and those who knew Marvel about the long search for answers.

It's been 57 years since hunters made a discovery in the woods of Chippewa County when they came across a man's body near Trout Lake. However, the identity of the man remains a mystery more than half a century later. David Lyden and videographer Josh Monroe spoke to detectives who remain hopeful that someone can help identify Trout Lake's John Doe.

This month marks 10 years since someone hit and killed Kelly Boyce Hurlbert in Traverse City. Police have reviewed thousands of tips, but still haven't been able to make an arrest. 9&10's David Lyden and videographer Josh Monroe take an in-depth look at the case in this edition of Unsolved.

It's been almost 35 years since this Brenda Martinez disappeared while walking to use a pay phone. She vanished just before Christmas in 1988, and her body was found just after the new year in a park just outside of Flint. Brenda's death would be ruled a homicide and her 6-year-old daughter Stephanie, was sent to live with relatives in Northern Michigan. Now, more than three decades later, she hasn't given up trying to figure out what happened to her mom. David Lyden and videographer Josh Monroe spoke with Brenda's daughter for the latest episode of Unsolved.

Have you ever wanted to help solve a cold case? Some students at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo are doing just that. They've already helped Michigan State Police solve one case and are pouring through a fresh round of cases and evidence this semester. These student's aren't doing suspect interrogations but they are helping State Police with what can be one of the most time consuming parts of a cold case. “So at first we started scanning documents from cold cases that detectives have given us to do. Then we make that into a collapse pdf file for detectives to look through on their phone to make it easier for them to go through big binders full of just paperwork of all of these cases,” said one student. Condensing all that material down from boxes and boxes of files to a searchable PDF saves detectives countless time and energy when chasing down potential new leads, and sometimes those leads or ideas on where to turn next come straight from the students. All that meticulous work paid off in 2022 when State Police announced the arrest of a man tied to a west Michigan cold case. “I know it makes it sound really good, doesn't it? I love this. We have 100% success. I keep telling everybody that real quick,” said Dr. Ashlyn Kuersten who leads the program. “I think for me the kind of biggest moment was attending Patrick Gilham sentencing. I was involved with the Roxanne Wood case, and getting to go down there and see that moment of justice and closure and get to meet her family really just drove home how big and important the work we're doing here is,” said Student McKenzie Stomman And all that 'in classroom' experience is translating to invaluable 'real world' experience. “These students really are the leaders of tomorrow. They are the most educated people that we have in American society. And so regardless of what they decide to do, how cool is that that they have seen in detail what a police file looks like? They have seen in detail what good policing looks like? I think that's really important considering many of the controversies that are going on in American society today,” said Dr. Kuersten.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. t's been 53 years since two teenage girls disappeared in Oscoda, Michigan. And the Halloween mystery has baffled investigators ever since. Mary Buehrle was just 8 years old in 1969, but has plenty of fond memories of her older sister Pamela. Mary says the afternoon of Halloween 1969, Pamela and fellow Oscoda High School student Patricia Spender decided to skip part of the day before heading to the school's homecoming game and later a party with friends. Mary spent the night trick-or-treating. But as the night went on Pamela still wasn't home and that's when Mary and Pamela's mom started to worry. By all accounts, that was the last time anyone saw either of the girls. And as the days, weeks and months passed, there was still no sign of Pamela or Patricia. There've been occasional leads, tips and rumors about what happened that night but none have led to an answer. Mary and her husband still make trips to Oscoda, hanging flyers around town. In hopes one day a break in the case finally comes, after more than a half century of waiting. If you have any information about disappearances of Pamela Hobley or Patricia Spencer, please call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST or the Oscoda Police Department at (989) 739-9113.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. We told you back in July how Mackinac County Deputies finally solved a 25 year old cold case using forensic genetic genealogy. The case of Baby Garnet is one that's haunted investigators since 1997. Investigators immediately went to work gathering what evidence they could. Reports from 1997 say an autopsy showed they baby girl was practically a newborn. In the meantime, the close knit community surrounding the campground named the baby 'Baby Garent' and gave her a proper burial at the local cemetery. Detectives chased down what leads they had, but were never able to make an arrest. Fast forward several more years, and modern day technology entered the picture.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. The disappearance of Native American women in the U.S. is a crisis that's been ignored for decades. Native American women are killed and go missing at 10 times the national average, but only 2%of these cases receive federal attention and less than 5% get some kind of national media attention. But tribes here in northern Michigan are working to change that. The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians recently held red shirt day in an effort to draw attention to the issue of missing and murdered indigenous women. The issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women has plagued Native American tribes for years, but the hope is events like this help bring about much needed change.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. It is Mason County's oldest cold case: the shooting death of Luther Foster. Foster was a prominent community member and leader in the early days of Ludington.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. It's been 16 years since someone shot and killed 18-year-old Nicholas Beebe in his home as he was asleep on the couch. But after a decade and a half of investigating, there have been no arrests in the case.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. The 1989 murder of Shannon Siders in Newaygo County drew national attention as police spent decades trying to find who killed her. Brothers Matthew and Paul Jones were convicted in 2015 of killing Shannon, but the case is getting a fresh look. A private investigator is now convinced the jones brothers are innocent. Bill Proctor spent decades working as an investigative reporter. He now spends his days working as a licensed private investigator.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. This week marks 39 years since someone brutally murdered Janette Roberson in Reed City. There still hasn't been an arrest or charges in the case. But that's not stopping Janette's family from fighting for a break in the case.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. It's been six years since Michigan State Police say someone hit and killed Central Michigan University student Ryan Tsatsos as he was walking back to campus. But there still hasn't been an arrest in the case. Paul and Julie Tsatos say their son Ryan was always known as the life of the party, a young man who could make any bad situation good.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. This summer, hundreds of unmarked graves were discovered in Canada at what used to be Indigenous boarding schools. The discovery stunned people in Canada and around the world. It also put a spotlight on similar schools in the U.S. Michigan was home to three Native American boarding schools, one in Baraga in the Upper Peninsula, another in Mount Pleasant and a third in Harbor Springs.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. This summer, hundreds of unmarked graves were discovered in Canada at what used to be Indigenous boarding schools. The discovery stunned people in Canada and around the world. It also put a spotlight on similar schools in the U.S. Michigan was home to three Native American boarding schools, one in Baraga in the Upper Peninsula, another in Mount Pleasant and a third in Harbor Springs.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. It was September of 2015 when Michigan State Police say someone shot and killed 21-year-old Dakota Rico on the south side of Saginaw. And there remain no answers as to who may have killed the Midland native. For six years Sue Rico and Ryan Boshaw have waited and waited for an arrest, charges or any kind of answers as to who may have killed their son and brother, Dakota Rico.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. For this month's installment of our Unsolved series, we're taking a look at a case deputies are confident they've solved, but is stuck in the court system, with a key witness not cooperating. The trial against the man accused of shooting and killing William 'Billy' Buchanan in Free Soil back in April of 2019, was set to move forward, until a stunning turn.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. July 19 marked 32 years since state police say someone shot and killed John Skamelka as he was fishing near the Reedsburg Dam just outside of Houghton Lake. Detectives have chased several leads since then, but the case remains cold.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. After decades of helping solve crimes across northern Michigan, the director of the State Police Forensic Lab in Grayling, has called it a career. Connie Swander began working at the lab back in 1985 and has been its director for the 17 ½ years. A lot has changed in her time in the lab, especially the technology, from fingerprinting databases and the use of DNA. Both are now considered every day crime fighting tools. After more than three decades of working in the lab, testifying in court and working crime scenes, Connie's last day at the lab was in May.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. Victoria Salisz left her job at a Boyne City restaurant on April 15, 1988. That would be the last time anyone would report seeing her alive. Some 33 years later, there remains no sign of Vicky.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. The family of Lisa Knight has been looking for answers about her disappearance in Alpena County since June 2012. The case is now being investigated as a homicide. Knight loved just about everything that came with life in northeast Michigan and the easy going, happy go lucky, quintessential country girl, had big plans for her life. Plans that were tragically cut short.

Unsolved is a true crime podcast series from 9&10 News. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in northern Michigan. It's been three years since someone killed Evelyn Ware inside her Lake County home. Since then, investigators have followed a number of leads, even offering a reward for information they hope can help solve the case.

Unsolved is a new true crime podcast series from 9&10 News, Northern Michigan's News Leader. Each month, David Lyden will dive into an unsolved crime in Northern Michigan. On the debut episode, we head to the northern part of Emmet County for a case dating back more than 50 years. In the summer of 1968, the peaceful village of Good Hart was the scene of one of the most gruesome and notorious crimes in Northern Michigan history when six members of the Robison family were murdered in their vacation home.