Elizabeth Olten~ A Nine-Year-Old’s Funeral. Murder Suspect in Jail.
Nine-Year Old Elizabeth Olten
A Cole County judge ruled that the next hearing for the 15-year-old murder suspect in Elizabeth Olten’s death will be open to the public. During the November hearing we will find out whether the female suspect, who is charged with first degree murder, will be tried as an adult. If the teen is tried as an adult, her name will be released to the public.
The judge also ruled that the suspect will remain in police custody until her trial. An attorney for the suspect argued that publicity from Olten’s death will make it impossible for his client to have a fair trial.
Elizabeth Olten, just 9 years old, disappeared October 21 while walking home from a friend’s house in St. Martin, Missouri. Investigators say “written evidence” lead them to the suspect. Days later, on October 23, the young suspect led police to Olten’s body (which was well concealed) in the woods behind the suspects home. It was also reported that the 15-year-old suspect is the older sister of Elizabeth’s friend. (Not a creepy neighbor guy preying on your children, not a registered sex offender, or a deranged psychopath, like many were probably thinking.)
Who would have thought this was possible? As a parent, I have had concerns with my children going to friend’s homes. Concerned about them getting hurt, wonder if they will be supervised by an adult, what are the rules there, do the parents have guns in the home, etc. Not once have I ever thought that I should be concerned about the siblings in the home. Sadly, I have added that to my list now, because of this disgusting and senseless crime.
Elizabeth’s funeral was this week. Some of the mourners wore pink shirts, Elizabeth’s favorite color. “She was a giver,’ said the Rev. Monte Shinkle. “She gave of her love to family and friends.”
Pink balloons were released at the burial of nine-year-old Elizabeth Olten.
Nine-year old Elizabeth Olten being carried to her final resting place by a horse-drawn hearse in Jefferson City, Missouri.
Somer Thompson Missing and Now Thought to be Dead
Missing 7 Year Old Child, Somer Thompson
It is looking more and more like this is yet another terrible tragedy. The beautiful 7 year old Florida girl has been missing for 3 days now. Today, police and detectives have announced that they found a body of a small white child. Not even able to tell the public if the body was male or female. Of course, everyone is thinking, it has to be sweet Somer Thompson. Many have first thoughts of ”I hope it is not her”, but then….WHO is it? No matter what, the fact is, a child’s dead body was found among trash in a landfill today.
What is going on in our country? Why does this keep happening? We need changes in our justice system. Predators who steal, rape, and kill our children need to be put away for life! An overwhelming concern is that we keep letting these monsters out and back into our society and around our children. We need to band together and make changes! There is too much violence against young, small, innocent, and defenseless children.
This beautiful little Somer was doing everything right. She was walking home from school with her older sister, her twin brother and other neighborhood kids. According to the other children, during the walk, Somer had a spat with another child and decided to run up ahead and walk alone. She was never seen again. Please pray for this little girl, her family, and her community. This is such a devastating situation.
Murdered Yale Student/Bride-to-Be
The body of a beautiful Yale graduate student, Annie Le, was found on September 13, 2009 inside a wall of a Yale lab where she was last seen alive. Annie Le went missing five days before on September 8, 2009.
Le, 24-years-old, was in her third year of graduate studies working on a doctorate in pharmacology. She was only 4′11″ and weighted approximately 90 pounds. She was born to Vietnamese immigrants in California and was raised by her aunt, Ngoc-Tuyet Bui, in Placerville, California. She has been described as a high achiever and hard worker by many family and friends who loved and adored her.
The day she went missing, she is seen on security cameras entering a Yale medical research building that has a lab in the basement where Le was known to work many hours doing medical research on animals. A place where only a few were allowed and needed ID cards to enter. However, she is NEVER seen leaving the building.
As if the story couldn’t get more disturbing, the day her body was found, was suppose to be her wedding day. Left behind was an abundance of evidence, including bloody clothes found above ceiling tiles….according to police, these clothes did not belong to Le. There was also a mysterious fire drill that took place around the time Miss Le went missing and probably was murdered.
This is so disgusting to me, the violence against people today. Violence against women and children. Especially something so senseless as this story. She had her whole life in front of her and had worked so hard with her education. The public is left asking “why?” and “who would do something like this?”.
According to police….this man….Raymond Clark III.
An arrest has been made and even more sick….this murder could have been over something as ridiculous as a disagreement over how to take care of the rats and their cages in the research room. Raymond Clark, a laboratory technician has been arrested and charged in Le’s murder. One of his duties was cleaning the cages where the experimental rodents lived, an occupation that is likely to have brought him into contact with Le. Police have declined to discuss the relationship between the two. Raymond Clark, also 24, did not enter a plea during his brief court appearance and he is being held on a $3 million bond.
Autopsy results show the cause of death as “traumatic asphyxiation” due to neck compression. It will be interesting as more evidence becomes public. Is there anyone else involved? Did he have help hiding the body? Or did he tell someone afterwards? Did his girlfriend/fiancee know or notice something strange about him? Is it possible no one knew anything?
