A babysitter vanishes without a trace | Forensic Files

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without the r best fiends foreign [Music] deal with serious and often distressing
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our website [Music] it was around 6 30 pm on Saturday October 24 1953 when 15 year old Evelyn
Hartley left her home in the city of La Crosse Wisconsin mature and trustworthy Evelyn had been
tasked with babysitting the 20-month-old daughter of one of her father's colleagues
Evelyn had only been gone for half an hour when her mother Ethel was overcome by an urge to call Evelyn right away
she didn't know why but she felt a need to check in with her daughter Ethel expressed her concerns to her
husband Richard he didn't share her worry prior to leaving Evelyn said she would call her
parents to touch base at 8 30. Richard had no doubt that their daughter whom they called Evie would ring in just
over an hour's time as planned but 8 30 came and went without the promised phone call
Richard Hartley dialed the number for the Rasmussen family whom Evelyn was babysitting for
there was no answer he tried again and again but the phone continued to ring out
wondering whether revlan might have gone to one of the rasmussen's neighbors homes for some reason Richard started
calling some of them no one had seen his daughter by 9 15 Ethel Hartley was convinced
something was terribly wrong Richard drove straight to the rasmussen's home which was less than two
miles away on heshler Drive from their driveway Richard could see lights on inside the residence
he could also hear music playing faintly on a radio feeling slightly reassured Richard
knocked on the front door Evelyn didn't appear he banged louder and rang the doorbell
still nobody came grabbing the door handle to let himself in Richard found it was locked
he then peered through the front windows into the home's main living area it looked as though no one was home
[Music] Richard hurried around to the back of the house where there was a rear door
it too was locked he shouted while pounding on the door but his efforts were in vain
as Richard paced the perimeter of the house he suddenly tripped on something a mesh screen had been removed from the
basement window and was leaning against an exterior wall the window was open and Richard was able
to maneuver his body inside as he lowered himself into the dark basement his feet found a small
stepladder below [Music] he straightened up and turned on a light lying at the bottom of the stairs that
led into the house above was a small black shoe with tassels it belonged to Evelyn
[Music] [Music] The Straits of La Crosse were quiet that evening as the annual homecoming
football game was underway the town's team of La Crosse State Teachers College was taking on their
Arch Rivals River Falls La Crosse State hadn't lost a game all season into their beloved Captain was
being recognized in a special ceremony everyone who had been able to get a ticket was there
lacrosse State teachers college now known as the University of wisconsin-la Crosse was a big part of the small
Riverside City's identity although it only had 945 students the college played a significant role in the
community it employed a number of its residents including physics Professor Vigo
Rasmussen Vigo was looking forward to the homecoming game which he planned to attend with his wife and seven-year-old
daughter but his other daughter 20-month-old Janice was too young to join them about a week before the game Vigo
reached out to the family's regular babysitter to see if she could watch Janice on the night of Saturday October
24. she couldn't help her she was going to the game also vigo's regular babysitter was the
daughter of a colleague so Vigo again asked around at work to find a replacement
biology Professor Richard Hartley had a studious and kind fifteen-year-old daughter named Evelyn who came highly
recommended when Vigo asked if she would be able to watch Janice in a week's time Evelyn
agreed [Music] Evelyn soon began to have second thoughts she had a bad feeling about the
job plus she wasn't keen on staying in while everyone else was having fun at the homecoming game
Evelyn wondered aloud if she could back out of the agreement her mother Ethel reminded her that she'd
made a commitment to the rasmussens and should do the right thing by sticking to
it [Music] when Saturday night arrived Evelyn packed several textbooks so she could
study while Janice slept and waited for Vigo Rasmussen to collect her as planned
before leaving she promised to call her parents at 8 30 to check in as she always did when she babysat
Viggo Rasmussen picked Evelyn up at 6 30 p.m and drove her back to his family's house
Evelyn set up her textbooks in a living room and Madeleine Rasmussen viggo's wife gave her instructions
it was going to be a straightforward night Janice was to go to bed at seven o'clock
and then all Evelyn would have to do was check in on her at 7 15 and cover her with a blanket
at 6 45 PM the Rasmussen said goodbye to Evelyn and headed to watch the game two and a half hours later Richard
Hartley stood in the basement of the Rasmussen home he'd let himself in through an open
window to find out why his daughter wasn't answering the Home's phone or door having come across one of Evelyn's shoes
at the base of the stairs Richard raced up to the main part of the house foreign school books were scattered
across the living room her brand new eyeglasses were lying on the floor as was her other black shoe
smeared across the light-colored rug was a muddy shoe print there were also several drops of blood
Richard checked the rest of the house Janus was unharmed and fast asleep in her crib but Evelyn was nowhere to be
found thank you local police were preparing to go home after a quiet night when a call came
through at 9 49 about a missing teenage girl they weren't overly concerned believing
the girl had likely gone to see a boy and would be found within 10 minutes two officers arrived at the Rasmussen
residence where Richard Hartley was waiting to meet them the officers soon realized how serious
the situation was over a dozen more officers arrived along with detectives the district attorney
and to the La Crosse County Sheriff the rasmussens had moved into the house just a few months earlier
the ordinary ranch-style Suburban home had three bedrooms it was part of a new subdivision and
like many other residences in the neighborhood it was so new that its Windows had no blinds or curtains
it sat close to other houses on the street and there were enough people around that it didn't feel isolated or
remote even on a quiet night like this outside investigators noticed someone had used a screwdriver to try and pry
open three separate windows a flower bed below one window featured an imprint of a size 11 tennis shoe
matching the muddy shoe print on the living room rug after failing to Jimmy the other windows
open the Intruder finally succeeded with the basement window several red fibers on its surface
matched the genes Evelyn Hartley had been wearing that evening whoever had broken into the basement had
forced the 15 year old out via the same route while it was initially thought the
Intruder had placed to the stepladder under the basement window to secure their escape the rasmussens revealed
that they had propped the ladder there on a previous occasion the fact it said in such an opportune
location for the abductor was merely a coincidence traces of blood were found inside the
basement with more just outside about 10 feet from the window a large pool of blood on the ground
nearby was consistent with a severely injured person having laid down there to recover
a bloody handprint was smeared across the outside wall of the erasmussen house another was found on the exterior of a
neighbor's garage about 100 yards away pools of blood lined an external wall of a third house just around the corner
the blood was type A the same as Evelyn's Bloodhounds tracked the scent for two blocks but then stopped
it seemed Evelyn had been forced into a vehicle there and whisked away an alert was issued and descriptions of
Evelyn Hartley were sent out five foot seven 126 pounds straight brown hair and blue
eyes last seen wearing red jeans rolled up at the cuff bobby socks and a white blouse
Janice Rasmussen was in her crib but was not covered in a blanket this led investigators to assume that
Evelyn was confronted within the 15-minute window between Janice's bedtime at 7 and 7 15 when Evelyn was
supposed to cover Janice with a blanket Evelyn's attacker likely gave her a bloody nose which had caused the initial
blood spots on the living room rug once outside the basement the attacker had hit Evelyn with the window screen
causing a greater injury Evelyn had lost significant amounts of blood as her abductor forced her away
from the Rasmussen home she stopped periodically causing her blood to pull in certain areas
the bloody handprints were from Evelyn dragging her hand along the buildings they passed
when Richard Hartley saw the blood the next morning in the harsh light of day he feared his daughter hadn't survived
her ordeal there was simply too much it was a particularly tragic thought as Ethel and Richard Hartley had already
lost their eldest son to polio seven years earlier Ethel was too distraught to leave her
home until Monday when she was taken to the Rasmussen house and escorted through
the crime scene she remained calm as she looked at the living room and the basement
but when Ethel saw the blood outside she broke down and to lent on her husband for support
oh my Evelyn she cried we know she isn't alive now case File will be back shortly thank you
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stay tuned until the end of today's episode to hear the trailer people in La Crosse had been so absorbed
by the football game the night prior that it wasn't until they gathered for Sunday church that news of Evelyn
Hartley's abduction spread hundreds of locals soon descended on the Rasmussen property to offer assistance
or Gore could investigators police had to cordon off two blocks around the house to prevent the scene
from becoming contaminated although Knight had already fallen by the time Evelyn was taken the moon was
bright and Street lamps were lit like the rasmussens many residents along heshler Drive had yet to install
curtains or blinds in their newly built homes thus they could see directly outside
[Music] across the strait a couple had sat listening to music in a room with a clear view of the erasmussen's house
another man had been painting his basement interior his was one of the homes that was
smeared with Evelyn's blood many other neighbors were home as well one had even been doing some late night
gardening despite this no one had seen Evelyn or her assailant coming or going [Music]
however Elven soderbach had been sitting on his front porch at around seven that
night when two or three sharp screams suddenly rang out Elven couldn't tell where the screams
had originated but they sounded to him like children playing the final cry cut off abruptly as though
interrupted by something or someone Elven thought a parent had intervened to discipline the unruly children
elvin's wife who was in the kitchen also heard the screams she thought they sounded less playful
than her husband did to her it sounded like whoever was screaming was sending a message of stop
get away from me that night Ed Hoffa had been driving through the area to pick up his
brother-in-law on route to the homecoming game at 7 15 PM Ed pulled into Sunrise Drive
which ran parallel to heshler drive his car's headlights illuminated several people walking along the footpath
it was two young men with the young woman sandwiched between them the girl was staggering as though she'd
had a few drinks Ed paid them little attention as he pulled over and headed inside his
brother-in-law's house five minutes later Ed was driving again with his brother-in-law riding his
passenger he headed north on Sunrise a dark green two-toned 1942 Buick suddenly careened past in the opposite
direction its driver was speeding but Ed still managed to catch a glimpse inside as the
car whizzed by he was certain the car's occupants were the three young people he'd passed on
the street minutes earlier one of the men was driving the other sat in the back seat next to the woman
she was slumped forward her head pressed against the back of the driver's seat it looked as though she might have been
unwell Ed had written off the incident at the time as young people having fun on Monday he was at work when he heard
that a 15 year old girl had been abducted from a house just around the corner Ed then reported his Recollections to
the police he hadn't been able to get a good look at the car's driver he thought the man behind the wheel
might have been a local college student but when police followed up with the student they found he had an airtight
alibi [Music] pictures of a car matching the Buick's description were given to petrol
stations in the area with employees told to keep an eye out for similar vehicles
police also set up an incentive for people to volunteer their vehicles for searching
members of the public were encouraged to drive to local petrol stations and allow
the station's employees to check the back seat and trunk of their cars once they had been given the all clear
they would be given a sticker that read my car is okay the sticker would be displayed in the
car's window along with the date of the search any drivers who refuse to comply with
the search had their details noted by the petrol station employees who passed them on to police
40 000 stickers were printed and the aim was to search every car in the county Ed Hoffer's sighting indicated that
Evelyn was taken by two men working together the questions still remained was it an
opportunistic or planned abduction nothing had been stolen from the Rasmussen house but maybe the man had
broken in only to be surprised by Evelyn as she had been covering for the family's regular babysitter some
speculated that perhaps the other girl was the original Target the media wondered whether Evelyn
Hartley was a squeaky clean as everyone believed what if she had a secret life and ran
away with a boy this notion was entirely dismissed by investigators and everyone who knew her
it was far more probable that a pair of Prowlers had taken advantage of The Quiet streets that night to look for
potential victims one woman reported that recently she had been ironing clothes in her basement
only to look up to see an unknown man staring through a window at her he laughed and said I'm going to get you
investigators tracked down a man who was known to spy through people's windows they also interviewed a man who had been
convicted of sexually abusing his 12 year old daughter six years earlier neither of these lines of inquiry LED
anywhere nor did interviews with 48 other men who were wanted for or associated with the
various sex crimes Richard Hartley and a Vigo Rasmussen were also looked into but more so out of
procedure than anything else both men cooperated with authorities and were ruled out of the investigation
the cross residents businesses and organizations pulled together a reward for information that was the equivalent
of almost 71 and a half thousand dollars today upwards of 2 000 people joined the
search for Avalon bodies of water were dragged Farmers scoured their fields and Hunters were on
the lookout while in the woods recently Doug Graves at cemeteries were checked in case Evelyn's attacker had
thought to use one as an easy way to dispose of her many of those searching for Evelyn were
her peers from her school they were joined by the local Boy Scouts and other community groups
amongst the crowd was Evelyn's 22 year old brother Thomas he had rushed home from college upon
learning of Evelyn's disappearance Thomas and a friend covered three miles of Lacrosse removing manholes and then
jumping down into the storm sewers to check for Evelyn when it grew dark Thomas became upset
he didn't want to stop looking for his little sister Wednesday October 28 marked four days
since Evelyn Hartley went missing Highway 14 two miles south of LA crosse's City Limits had been searched
the previous day to no result yet on Wednesday a bra and a pair of women's underwear were recovered from
the area the garments were a popular brand and appeared to be Evelyn's size given they hadn't been spotted
previously it was believed that they'd been dumped within the past 24 hours they appeared to have been thrown from a
moving vehicle that was fleeing South both garments were stained with type A blood
as roughly 40 percent of the population had this blood type police couldn't be certain it was Evelyn's
days later on Friday October 31 a third search of Highway 14 was undertaken close to where the bra and underwear had
been found a search party came across two size 11 Goodrich brand sneakers day two had seemingly been tossed one at
a time from a vehicle traveling south the pattern on the soles of the sneakers matched the muddy Prince found in the
Rasmussen home they had a distinctive circular wear pattern as well which suggested whoever
owned them worked with some kind of machinery the shoes also had type A blood on them
it was determined that they had been worn by two different people one whose fate was a size larger than the sneakers
this particular model of sneaker was called the hood mogul they'd been available throughout
Wisconsin Iowa Michigan Minnesota and Illinois but hadn't been sold in Wisconsin for about three years
an unusual marking on the back of the shoes was traced back to a wizard motorbike meaning whoever owned the
shoes also rode this make of motorcycle registration and sales records for Wizard motorbikes were checked but the
line of inquiry went nowhere two and a half weeks later rumors had reached detectives pertaining to a
blood-stained jacket it had been found about 300 feet from where the sneakers were discovered
Farmers had noticed the jacket lying on the Highway's shoulder as they drove past each day
one had picked it up and thrown it in the back of his truck then promptly forgot about it
the police identified the farmer and took possession of the jacket it was Denim and looked like the kind of
jacket worn by people who worked Outdoors it had been cut along the bottom then re-hemmed with a sewing machine using
white thread this had resulted in strange shallow pockets and like the shoes it had spots
of type A blood on it on the front back and the sleeves smears of blood in the Rasmussen home
looked to be the result of a denim type fabric being rubbed against surfaces it seemed unlikely that the person who
owned the shoes had also owned the jacket the size 11 shoes indicated a tallerona
whereas a size 36 jacket would belong to a smaller man once again clues in the case seemed to
point to two perpetrators the jacket had faded spots under the armpits possibly caused by a safety
harness commonly worn by people who worked as steeple jacks they climbed tall structures like
chimneys and Steeples to carry out repairs detectives learned that a local man had
manufactured safety harnesses for two steeple Jacks the previous year but all he remembered about them was that they
were young and possibly from the area police had the bloodied jacket and shoes toured through 31 different towns within
a 40-mile radius of La Crosse they were displayed at local Affairs and in public places in hopes someone would
recognize them as all their leads dried up investigators sought to polygraph test
every male student and School faculty member within the area this would amount to a total of around
1750 tests making it the largest mass polygraph examination in United States history
students cooperated without complaint they were asked questions such as are you withholding any information
regarding the Evelyn Hartley disappearance case psychologist Dr Carl Smith was critical
of the strategy he told the Associated Press this is a dangerous use of a device that
is not even recognized in the courts the tests even though allegedly on a voluntary basis are equivalent to a
beating there actually is nothing voluntary about submitting to the tests however
because if a pupil fails to submit he will be suspected by members of his Society
no one in the lacrosse Community voiced any concerns about the process but the school board ultimately put a stop to it
around 300 boys had already been questioned none of the information gathered proved fruitful
[Music] every night since Evelyn disappeared her family left all of the lights on in
their house believing it would help her find her way back to them they also fronted the media begging for
those who knew anything about Evelyn's whereabouts to come forward they soon received two phone calls from
a man who said he had information about Evelyn he would give it to them in exchange for
500 cash it was to be placed inside a paper bag then left in the bathroom of a lacrosse
drugstore the man said he would leave a letter in the bathroom that revealed Evelyn's
whereabouts the family was warned not to go to the police with the money in her possession Ethel
Hartley headed into the store [Music] she went up a flight of stairs to the balcony where the bathrooms were located
Ethel looked for the letter the man said would be there but there was nothing she then left
the entire time a 13 year old boy was following Ethel when she walked out of the drugstore the
boy returned to the Shop's main floor there he met up with the 20 year old man named Jack duffrin
unbeknownst to Dufferin and the boy plain clothes police officers were stationed throughout the store despite
being warned not to the hartleys had told investigators about the phone call from the start
both duffrin and the boy were arrested with duffering insisting he had nothing to do with it
there was nothing to tie him to Evelyn's abduction but he was convicted of extortion and sentenced to one to three
years after this the hartleys avoided publicity they decided to leave the case to the
police and deal with their grief and anguish in private but they were never left alone
in November 1953 Richard Hartley received a letter postmarks revealed it had been sent from
North Dakota specifically the Devil's Lake area it read just a note to let you know that Miss
Hartley is in my power don't try to trace this letter because I didn't leave any evidence
I'll let you know the ransom later you stupid people almost had me but I managed to escape
scribbled on the ladder was a drawing of a skull and crossbones then in 1958 Evelyn's mother received a
parcel that contained a girl's gym shirt there was no explanation and apparently
no link to Evelyn though a note from the sender stated that the shirt would be of
some interest to Ethel that same year a man with a wild stair showed up at the Hartley's home and
ranted about knowing where Evelyn was police handled the matter but the man returned four days later
after visiting the hartleys he headed to the home of the rasmussens they had since moved to a new house
unable to Bear living in the place where Evelyn was taken both families were terrified of the man
who appeared to be a religious fanatic prone to nonsensical rants he continued to be fixated by the case
sending long confusing letters to investigators and making anonymous calls asking for leads
as far as detectives could tell his only connection to Evelyn Hartley was an unhealthy obsession with her
disappearance he wasn't the only one the police received countless letters phone calls and tip-offs from people
certain they knew where Evelyn was or who had taken her some were clairvoyants others spoke of
having prophetic dreams that solved the case multiple individuals falsely confessed
to the crime including at least two men in mental health facilities on several occasions teenage girls and
young women claimed to be Evelyn Hartley although the hartleys insisted they were
happy with the police's work and believed they would solve the case other locals were disgruntled
some remarked if you want to get away with murder move to Lacrosse they were also angry that the FBI hadn't
become involved in the investigation as they typically did with kidnappings the lacrosse law enforcement had
apparently asked for the FBI's assistance from the outset but described the case as a sex crime not an abduction
consequently the FBI refused to get involved 84 year old Howard George knew he didn't
have much time left and wanted to spend his money in a meaningful way before he passed
solving La crosse's most enduring and painful mystery seemed like the obvious answer
so in 1958 Howard hired some private detectives to look into Evelyn Hartley's disappearance
they hit a roadblock when La Crosse Police wouldn't share their files with them as a result they wasted time resources
and money looking into suspects who had already been cleared when Howard George's actions became
publicly known his small and modest home was ransacked though nothing was stolen
after he passed away and their funds dried up the private investigators had to reluctantly cease their involvement
in a final report they noted the innumerable unanswered questions that remained and concluded
the Evelyn Hartley disappearance will always be a thorn in the city of La crosse's side until solved
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thank you for listening to this episode's ads by supporting our sponsors you support casefile to continue to
deliver quality content thank you it was around 5pm on Saturday November 16 1957 when deputy sheriff Frank Warden
approached the entrance of a hardware store in the Wisconsin Town of Plainfield he tried the door only to discover it
was locked Frank was puzzled the hardware store was owned by his mother 58 year old Bernice and Frank had
arrived to help her out before closing time in one hour as it turned out no one had been inside
the hardware store since earlier that morning customers had approached but finding the
shop locked up they'd assumed it was closed at 9 30 am the store's truck was witnessed pulling out of the garage at
the rear of the property and driving away Frank broke into the store he didn't find his mother but the cash
register was open and there was a small pool of blood behind the counter there was also a receipt written in his
mother's handwriting for a gallon of antifreeze Frank recalled that the previous evening
a local handyman had been asking about anti-freeze and had promised to return to pick up a gallon the next day
a few hours later police found the man at a nearby grocery store and placed him under arrest
meanwhile other officers drove out to the man's property he lived alone in a large weatherboard
Farmhouse that had belonged to his parents the residents sat within a 155-acre farm much of which was cloaked
in snow and dotted with bare trees overall it had a grim and a gloomy atmosphere
a sheriff's deputy made his way towards a shed he walked inside and was immediately
confronted by the naked body of Bernice Warden hanging upside down from a crossbar
her wrists were bound with rope and she had been beheaded she had also been gutted like a deer with her internal
organs removed inside the nearby Farmhouse police found Bernice's organs wrapped inside a dress
her head was also there handyman would confess to entering the hardware store and marching straight to
the back where guns were displayed for sale he taken down a 22 caliber rifle which
Bernice Warden assumed he wanted to purchase as she stood waiting to ring it up for
him the handyman loaded it with one bullet he'd brought from home then fired a single shot into Bernice's head
then taken her body to his house where he mutilated it he had been busy a search of the man's Farmhouse
uncovered another 10 female skulls some of which had been put on top of bedposts
he'd upholstered chairs with human skin made masks from women's faces and a belt
out of nipples female genitals that had been removed were found stashed in a shoebox
the handyman was 51 year old Edward Gaine better known as Ed he would come to be known as one of the
most notorious killers in American history with his crimes providing the inspiration for novels and films such as
psycho and Silence of the Lambs Gene had a fixation with his mother who had been a devout Christian
she'd preached to her sons about the immorality of the world women were especially evil she said with the
exception of herself they were promiscuous and used to do the devil's bidding gaine's father died and then his brother
leaving just again and his mother after she suffered a debilitating stroke Gene devoted himself to her recovery
she died in 1945 at the age of 67 when gain was 39. devastated and all alone gain remained
living in the family home but boarded up the portions of the house his mother had
used his living quarters were reduced to the kitchen and a small room next door between 1947 and 1952 again visited
three nearby cemeteries at night to dig up the graves of recently buried women sometimes he took the bodies home with
him and mutilated them he particularly focused on the corpses of middle-aged women who resembled his
mother though body parts belonging to adolescent girls were also found in his house
his dream was to create a suit of human skin that looked like his mother so he could wear it and become her
as well as admitting to killing Bernice Warden Gaine said he'd murdered a Tavern
owner named Mary Hogan she had been missing since 1954 and her head was recovered from his house
the gruesome crimes of aired again led to him being dubbed at the butcher of Plainfield
he was ultimately diagnosed with schizophrenia and deemed Not Guilty by reason of insanity
Gaines spent the remainder of his life in a hospital for the criminally insane it was said that on the night Evelyn
Hartley disappeared in 1953 Ed Gein had been visiting relatives who lived in or near La Crosse
lacrosse was where gain was born before his family relocated more than 100 miles
east to Plainfield Hartley case investigators interviewed geen for more than an hour in relation
to the crime he told them that he hadn't been to Lacrosse since his family left when he
was eight Evelyn Hartley's dental records were compared to the remains found in Gaines
home none were a match the manner in which Evelyn was attacked was inconsistent with Ed Gaines modus
operandi he was only confirmed to have killed two middle-aged women whom he knew and who
reminded him of his mother in both instances he murdered them with a firearm the rest of the female body parts found
in his Farmhouse were the result of his grave rubbing in contrast Evelyn was unknown to gain
was in the wrong age group and the evidence from the crime scene was nothing like gains confirmed murders
investigators ruled had to gain out as a possible perpetrator in the Hartley case
[Music] as the 50th anniversary of Evelyn Hartley's disappearance approached in 2003 local newspaper the La Crosse
Tribune published a number of Articles reflecting on the case one focused on the efforts of a local
history buff who was determined to solve it a realtor in La Crosse by day Andrew
Thompson had a fascination with Unsolved Mysteries that occupied his spare time when his business partner Peggy Lovejoy
told him about their Town's very own ongoing mystery Andrew was intrigued hay and Peggy began looking into the
Hartley case with some help from local police they also hired a former lacrosse Tribune journalist named Susan Hassell
as they wished to publish a book about Avalon and needed a writer soon an article detailing their efforts
ran in the paper when a local man named Mel Williams read the article his mind began to tick
[Music] One Night in 1969 Mel visited a bar owned by his brother in the Wisconsin
town of LaFarge about 40 miles Southeast of La Crosse a group of patrons including Mel stayed
until after closing talking into drinking into the early hours one of them was Clyde tywee Peterson a
small man with a drinking problem and a reputation for stealing despite this Mel found Peterson likable
and amusing as the drinks flowed Peterson began telling a story about how he used to
smuggle whiskey into a ward that housed the alcoholics at a local psychiatric hospital
another man who was present named to whitey Barkley asked that's about the time you hauled that
Hartley girl down there that right Peterson avoided the question but Whitey persisted
you hold her from the cross down to another address and back to Lacrosse huh Peterson initially said no
Whitey was insistent you did haul her up there though he repeated Peterson finally replied
no witness no proof they haven't found her have they others listening in on the conversation
asked who the heartly girl was Whitey explained Evelyn Hartley's abduction and implicated two other men
in the crime as well one was named to jack a Gulf Air allegedly Jack had met Evelyn when they
attended the same parties he had known she was babysitting at the rasmussens that night
he Clyde Peterson and the other unnamed man abducted Evelyn then later killed her at a house elsewhere
[Music] Whitey claimed he had been the one to dig Evelyn's grave in a supposed location in LaFarge
the conversation lasted about seven minutes then Whitey noticed a device Mel Williams had brought with him to the bar
that night Mel was visiting from Nashville Tennessee where he'd relocated to in an
attempt to become a country music star bands were performing at the bar earlier that evening so Mel had set up a
reel-to-reel recorder to tape their sets he had left it on long after the music stopped capturing the conversation
between Clyde tyway Peterson and Whitey Barkley about Evelyn Hartley's murder upon noticing the recording device
Whitey told Mel to turn it off and the conversation was dropped Mel knew Jack of golf air and believed
he was capable of killing someone he would later describe him to author's Susan Hassell as violent and vicious but
thought little of the conversation at the time due to how drunk the men were maybe they were just trying to Big note
themselves he would later toss the tape recorded at the bar that night into a box along with
dozens of others he'd made over the years when the 50th anniversary of Evelyn Hartley's disappearance was making
headlines Mel retrieved to the tape he'd made at the bar 34 years prior which had
captured the confession now 76 years old Mel passed the recording to those collaborating on the
book about Evelyn's case they in turn handed it to the authorities investigators described the tape as
the best delayed we've ever had however Clyde tywee Peterson Jack of Gulf Air and the third man implicated in
the crime were all deceased [Music] golf air had taken his own life on Christmas Day 1967.
amateur sleuth Andrew Thompson visited Whitey Barkley's wife she believed Evelyn Hartley had been in
LaFarge the night before she vanished she took Andrea to meet her husband by this time Whitey had dementia and was
living in a nursing home when Evelyn's name was mentioned the elderly man froze but did not speak
LaFarge was one of the locations where the denim jacket and shoes that were believed to belong to Evelyn's abductors
had been put on display rumors had spread amongst the locals that the jacket was familiar they'd seen
an acquaintance of Peterson and Gulf airs wearing it before some have speculated that it was
Peterson who wore the jacket he was a small man and it was a small size the Goodrich sneakers recovered were
believed to have been worn by two men at different times one who was very tall and the other shorter
[Music] Peterson was known to wear second-hand clothing investigators had made inquiries about
Clyde Peterson and Jack golf air back in 1968. it was unclear how the man came to be on
their radar but they later said they'd never been able to substantiate claims they had killed Evelyn
when investigators looked into the man again in 2004 they were unable to come up with anything concrete tying them to
the case in her book where's Evelyn author Susan Hassell mentions the possibility that
the men's bodies could one day be exhumed for DNA testing attempts to obtain DNA evidence from
blood found at the crime scene have so far proved unsuccessful Susan Hessel published where's Evelyn in
2005 after extensive research alongside Andrew Thompson and Peggy Lovejoy as well as combing through archives and
police files Susan interviewed residents of Lacrosse who spoke about the loss of
Innocence experienced by the community in the wake of Evelyn's disappearance curfews were introduced doors were kept
locked girls no longer walked alone and family struggled to find babysitters the Rasmussen family were haunted by the
tragedy that had taken place in their home with the Vigo Rasmussen telling a journalist in 1978.
it's a nightmare whenever we think of it I don't mean it Praise on our minds constantly but we don't forget it no
matter how long ago it was Evelyn's remaining family members were too heartbroken to participate in Susan
hassell's book but some of her friends gave interviews including her best friend a girl named Mary Seacrest War
Mary shared some of her favorite memories with Susan she recalled Evelyn as someone who loved
music and would walk down the street playing a ukulele and singing Mary joined the hartleys on their many
trips to The Great Outdoors and they would all go hiking through the woods together
the girls would have sleepovers and laugh at silly jokes while Evelyn's parents made them popcorn
during one slumber party Evelyn and her friends snuck out of the house at dawn still wearing their pajamas and rode
their bicycles over to the local swimming pool it was closed but the girls climbed to
the fence and it jumped into the pool on the day that Evelyn went missing Mary had passed her driving test and obtained
her license that evening she felt disappointed that Evelyn was babysitting because she
wanted to share the exciting news at around 7pm she decided to call her and went to the telephone but because
she didn't know how to spell the surname Rasmussen she couldn't look up the family's phone number in a phone book
Mary told author Susan Hessel I put the phone back I thought I'd talk with Evelyn tomorrow
that was about the time it happened news soon broke that Evelyn had been taken Mary explained to Susan Hassall
it changed how I live I just have a hard time with it I feel so awful that it had to be her
and she is such a wonderful person as of mid-2022 Evelyn Hartley's case remains unsolved
her remains have not been found Richard and Ethel Hartley passed away without learning what happened to their
daughter [Music] [Music] casefile presents a new Spotify exclusive podcast Maddie no one is ever
prepared for a loved one to suddenly disappear that's the thing about missingness when
someone you love vanishes into thin air every family that experiences it has to figure it out for themselves we started
running around match friends what the hell is not doing your work and why hasn't even called them I just sat there
again oh my God oh my God something wasn't right the leversons grew more worried by the minute he's walking up
and down like a cage line and he's sweating and he's clammy the man has no emotions at all towards the Andy
wouldn't let Matt out of his sight narrated by Lauren O'Keefe the founder of the missing persons advocacy Network
and host of case File presents podcast what's missing the police informed Mark and Faye levison that they're no longer
considered Matt a missing person I told I know that the case had been transferred to homicide and he said I've
called the police I've found a grave there's a medic in the bush the receipt showed that two items had been purchased
duct tape and a garden Master brand Matic I think we were in shock for ages after that the world just seemed to
stand still hear how a family took on the system to try and find Justice for their son for the very first time made
us feel like the police and us were no longer on the same side and then he sat there and said to me it was Matt's
lifestyle that had him murdered no I just said the [ __ ] stops now that's that's ridiculous some people in this
world never take no for an answer especially when they're fighting for someone they love nothing is perfect and
we thought you know with a chance of finding math if I wanted to move one in team million but it wasn't zero
so we've got to give it a go he was never going to win against us not for finding Maddie Maddie the latest podcast
from casefile presents available September 19th only on Spotify it's not a justice system it's just a system

Case 224: Evelyn Hartley

When 15-year-old Evelyn Hartley agreed to babysit for the Rasmussen family on the evening of October 24 1953, it sounded like a relatively easy job...

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research & writing – Erin Munro Creative direction – Milly Raso Production and music – Mike Migas Music – Andrew D.B. Joslyn

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-224-evelyn-hartley

Brief Summary

Evelyn Hartley, 15, vanished while babysitting in 1953; her case remains unsolved despite extensive investigation and community efforts.

Key points

Evelyn Hartley's Disappearance. 15-year-old Evelyn Hartley goes missing while babysitting, sparking a frantic search.
The Blood Trail. Richard Hartley discovers blood in the Rasmussen home, indicating a violent struggle.
Community Response. The La Crosse community rallies to search for Evelyn after news of her abduction spreads.
Community Search for Evelyn. Evelyn's peers and local groups join the search for her, including her brother Thomas.
Blood-Stained Evidence Found. A bra and underwear believed to belong to Evelyn are discovered, raising alarms.
Polygraph Testing Controversy. Mass polygraph tests conducted on local males spark criticism from experts.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Oh my Evelyn, we know she isn't alive now.

Ethel Hartley's heartbreaking realization about her daughter.

14:50WatchSep 24, 2022

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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