Casefile True Crime - Case 111: Shauna Howe

Episode Date: May 18, 2019

In 1992, the children of Oil City, Pennsylvania were excited as Halloween approached. But when 11-year-old Shauna Howe fails to return home after a church Halloween party on October 27, the typically festive atmosphere quickly turns to one of anxiety and fear. ---  Episode narrated by the Anonymous Host Episode researched and written by Eileen Ormsby, author of ‘The Darkest Web – Drugs, Death and Destroyed Lives: The inside story of the internet’s evil twin.’ For all credits and sources please visit casefilepodcast.com/case-111-shauna-howe

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Music Our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents. If you feel at any time you need support, please contact your local crisis centre. For suggested phone numbers for confidential support, please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website. Today's episode deals with a crime committed against a child. It won't be suitable for all listeners. Music 11 year old Shauna Howe looked forward to Halloween every year.

She was enthralled by the spooky decorations, scary stories and costume parties that started a full week before the holiday. Culminating in the most exciting event of all. Trick or treating on the night of October 31st. In late October 1992, like every other town in America, Oil City in northern Pennsylvania's Venango County was preparing for Halloween. Oil City sits on a bend of the Allegheny River at the mouth of Oil Creek, about an hour and a half north of Pittsburgh. As its name suggests, the city was founded on the nearby oil fields and the wealth that came with the oil boom, and later, the steel industry. At its peak, the town boasted a population of 22,000 residents, with job seekers attracted by the thriving employment prospects.

But after being hit hard by the collapse of the steel industry, Oil City became the poster child for the Rust Belt. Locals calculated the decline in Oil City's population by reference to each closing gas station. The town offered a cheap cost of living, but gainful employment became scarce. As factories moved and entire industries were shifted offshore, jobs and people followed. The town had little to offer young people, many of whom dropped out of school and became trapped in a cycle of poverty. Those who grew up and moved away often never came back. On the morning of Tuesday, October 27, 1992, Lucy listened as her young daughter Shauna chatted about her upcoming plans as she prepared herself for the day ahead. That afternoon, Shauna intended to go straight from Seventh Street School to the local nursing home where she would join her Girl Scout troop in singing to the elderly residents.

Shauna sang in the children's choir at church so she was looking forward to performing for the senior citizens, but she was most excited about what was to follow. After the performance, she planned to head to the first free Methodist Church for a Halloween party. The Howe family didn't have the money for Shauna to spend on an elaborate fancy dress costume, so the 11-year-old improvised. She decided to dress up as a gymnast, wearing a turquoise bodysuit with black stripes, tights, sneakers and soft satin-y gloves that stretched up above her elbows. As she would not have time to come home after school to change outfits, she wore the leotard underneath her regular clothes. The 400 block of West First Street where Shauna lived with her mother, stepfather, 12-year-old brother and 5-year-old sister was in one of the poorer areas of the town. Nevertheless, it was regarded as safe by residents who rarely worried about locking their houses or cars, and Lucy had no hesitation in letting her daughter make her own way to and from school. Navigating the familiar streets at night time was different as Shauna was afraid of the dark, so her mother would arrange to have someone pick her up after the Halloween party that evening.

Later that night, Lucy was working her regular shift at a pizza shop in the nearby town of Franklin when she called home to check in on her family. Her de facto partner, John Brown, told her Shauna still hadn't arrived home from the Halloween party. Lucy realized she had forgotten to arrange someone to pick her daughter up from the event, but was reassured by the fact the church was only a short half-mile walk away from their block along familiar streets that Shauna had travelled many times before. By 8.30pm, long past the time she was expected to return, Shauna still hadn't arrived home. John didn't have the phone numbers of the friends she may have walked home with, and unable to contact anyone, he jumped into his car and drove the route she would have most likely taken, expecting to spot her along the way. Although there were a couple of different routes from the church to their home, John was certain Shauna would have stuck to the main roads. Failing to find her walking the streets, John progressed to the first free Methodist church where the Halloween celebrations were taking place, only to realize the party had long since finished and all the other Girl Scouts had already gone home. Although Shauna could be headstrong, she was otherwise obedient and not the type to take off to a friend's house without letting someone know, so John continued to scout the nearby streets expecting to find her.

After exhausting the search of the neighborhood, John returned home to find Shauna hadn't returned during his absence. At 9.30pm, Lucy found home again and suggested her daughter maybe at the home of her former husband, Shauna's father, Robert Howe. Although the ex-husband and wife had a tumultuous relationship, their four children remained close to their father, with Shauna's nine-year-old sister living with him in a neighboring town. Lucy contacted Robert, who swore Shauna was not with him. Unsure whether to believe him, Lucy finished her shift and rushed home. Upon her arrival, she called the parents of Shauna's best friend, Joyeel, who was a member of the same Girl Scout group. Joyeel confirmed Shauna had been at the church Halloween party and explained that when it ended, the two girls set off together in the same direction at around 8pm. When they reached the point where they needed to part ways to head towards their respective homes, Shauna expressed that she was afraid to walk in the dark and asked Joyeel to walk with her.

Joyeel suggested that they instead go back to her place and from there her father would walk Shauna safely home. Shauna declined the offer, saying, no, that's alright, before heading off alone on the ten-minute walk towards her home. By 10pm, Shauna had not been heard from for two hours, prompting her mother to call the police and report the 11-year-old as missing. At the time of Lucy's call, oil city police were in the midst of investigating an odd occurrence that had been reported earlier that night. At 8.06pm, local resident Dan Paydon had been walking along Reed Street, a leafy suburban neighbourhood lined with residential houses, when he sighted a young girl dressed in a top-and-shorts walking alone down West 1st Street. She was approaching the Reed Street intersection in front of a medical centre across the road from the Presbyterian Church. A tall, thin, scruffy-looking man wearing an army jacket and baseball cap was walking in the same direction on the opposite sidewalk, smoking a cigarette.

Dan observed the man cross to the other side of the road before appearing to scoop the girl up and run around the corner. Seconds later, he heard a muffled scream. Dan ran towards the intersection and witnessed a small, boxy, dark red sedan vehicle speed away. It looked to be an Oldsmobile with Pennsylvania State license plates, but it moved too quickly for Dan to catch the plate number. Although he hadn't seen the man put the girl in the car, both he and the girl were now gone. Dan immediately began banging on the doors of nearby houses until a woman answered before frantically telling her, I've just seen a little girl kidnapped and I need to call the police. As no one had reported a missing child at the time, police were unsure whether Dan had witnessed an abduction or simply a father picking up his errant child. But the phone call from Lucy later that night confirmed the worst-case scenario.

The Reed and West First intersection was a couple of blocks from Shawna House home, and if Dan Payden's recollections were factual, it appeared the child had been snatched whilst walking home. The oil city police set up a roadblock on the road leading out of town and informed every police station within a 99-mile radius of the situation unfolding. Local officers came to the area by patrol car and on foot and paid a visit to the home of Shawna's father, Robert Howe, to confirm the girl wasn't there. Seeing the unusual police activity around the typically quiet streets, locals soon joined in on the search for Shawna. By late morning, word had spread throughout town that Shawna Howe was missing, prompting hundreds of volunteers to comb the streets into nearby forests looking for any signs of the child. With police considering the possibility that Shawna may have been kidnapped for ransom, her mother remained housebound in case the perpetrators made contact, helplessly pacing back and forth awaiting any news. State troopers door-knocked along the route it was believed Shawna had taken the night prior, asking residents whether they had seen anything suspicious. But other than Dan Payden, no one had. Detectives were not convinced Dan was a particularly reliable witness, as there were elements of his story that didn't quite add up.

If he had seen the girl being taken, the question remained as to why he didn't try to intervene or stop the perpetrator from getting away. A suspicious eye was cast on Dan himself, who was questioned several times by police, but remained steadfast about his version of events. The next day, October 29, a search party led by Shawna's uncle Keith decided to take their efforts into the wooded area bordering Oil City. They headed in a southerly direction along Big Egypt Road towards Cranberry Township, before moving into the 60 acres of woodland of Waltonian Park. They then ventured seven and a half miles south of Oil City to the Rockland Township, heading out to Coulter's Hole, a secluded swimming and camping spot popular with fishermen, hunters and picnickers. At night, the area was frequented by teens participating in underage drinking and drug-taking, while the Oil City chapter of the Kingsman Biker Club was also known to use the location as a party spot. Upon reaching Coulter's Hole, Keith and his search party split up to cover more ground, but it wasn't long before he was being called to check something out. A searcher was crossing a long deserted railway bridge that overlooked the forest when he peered over the rail and spotted a flash of colour that looked like a piece of children's clothing.

When Keith joined the man on the bridge, he felt sick. The item that lay far below matched the description of the turquoise bodysuit Shauna had worn as part of her gymnast costume on the night she vanished. Police brought Shauna's stepfather, John Brown, to the scene, who confirmed the item of clothing belonged to his stepdaughter. A large-scale police search of the area commenced with assistance from a mass of volunteers, including members of Shauna's extended family. Despite their efforts, nothing else of significance was found. Flyers featuring Shauna's picture were distributed throughout town, describing her as five foot tall, weighing 78 pounds with straight brown hair, blue eyes, one scar behind her right ear, and another in the middle of her forehead. Her mother Lucy appeared on local television pleading for the safe release of her daughter, while her stepfather fronted the press, saying, It's hard holding on, but you've got to do it, because that's the only thing we have. At approximately 9am the following morning of October 30, just 500 yards from the location where Shauna's bodysuit was found, a man who had been camping at Coulter's Hole was walking in a desolate area underneath an abandoned Trestle railway bridge. As he navigated alongside the dry, rocky creekbed, he saw the body of a young girl lying face down between a rock and a log. She was dressed in shorts, knee-high socks, and a short-sleeved shirt which was inside out and back to front.

She wasn't wearing any shoes, and her feet were partially submerged in a shallow stream. Shauna's uncles Keith and Claire were on hand to identify the body, confirming their niece had been found. Police immediately cordoned off the area and initiated a search, discovering a lollipop wrapper and an abandoned campsite near where Shauna was found. They found Shauna's sneakers on the Trestle bridge, high above the dry creekbed. Police believed the child had either been running along the bridge when she tripped and fell the 33-foot drop into the creekbed below, or that someone had staged her shoes to suggest this outcome. Police were confounded as they had searched the area the day before and were positive they would have found Shauna's body if it was there at the time. When given the devastating news that her daughter had been found, Lucy was inconsolable. She later confirmed that the shirt and shorts Shauna was wearing were indeed her daughters, but she didn't know who the socks belonged to.

As Shauna's disappearance shifted into a homicide investigation, Oil City authorities announced that Halloween was officially cancelled, with police urging all parents to keep a watchful eye on their children and not let them out alone after dark. On October 31, instead of celebrating Halloween, hundreds of Oil City townsfolk participated in a silent candlelit procession to honour Shauna's memory. They prayed and comforted one another as they walked what they believed to be Shauna's final route, starting from the First Free Methodist Church to the Reed and West First Street intersection, less than two blocks from her home. Meanwhile, results of forensic testing revealed Shauna's death had been caused by severe blunt force trauma to the head and chest, caused by the fall from the trestle bridge to the ground below. She was alive at the time of descent and may have survived for up to 30 minutes before succumbing to her injuries. There was evidence of sexual assault, with stains present on her body suit testing positive for seminal fluid. Her knees were scuffed and scraped from a rough flooring surface, with investigators presuming it arose from the area she was held captive. In the previous 15 months, there had been three homicides in Oil City, and in each case, the victim was killed by a member of their family.

Based on this information, investigators fronting inquiries into Shauna Howe's murder requested that various males in her family provide DNA samples to rule them out as suspects. Her stepfather, John Brown, was the first to be tested, followed by her uncles, Keith and Claire. Shauna's mother accepted this intrusion on her family, but drew the line when police wanted to test her 12-year-old son. Wanting to do anything he could to help find the person who harmed his younger sister, the boy agreed to participate. But none of these tests resulted in a positive match to the DNA sample found on Shauna's body suit. Investigators expanded their search for a suspect to every adult male known to Shauna and her family. They questioned neighbors, teachers, family friends, school workers, shop owners, and the fathers of Shauna's classmates and fellow girl scouts. Men who fit the description provided by Dan Paydon were given priority, such as Eldred Walker, better known as Ted, a tall, lanky, pizza shop worker known to request hugs from young female customers.

Shauna and her friends described Walker as creepy and went out of their way to avoid him. He was a smoker who was known to drive a small red car in the past, although he currently drove a Chevrolet Monte Carlo of a different color. When questioned, Walker claimed to know nothing about Shauna's murder and willingly submitted a DNA sample which did not match her killer. Two doors down from the Reed and West First intersection, there lived a man with an unsavory past named Michael Cusowitz. The day after Shauna's body was found, Cusowitz boarded a bus out of town and had not returned since. His unexplained and abrupt absence led him to become a suspect in the murder, but detectives were unable to track him down. On November 2, three days after Shauna's body was found, 150 people gathered to pay their respects in a memorial service, during which the 11-year-old's favorite country song, Hakey Breaky Heart by Billy Ray Cyrus, was played over the loudspeaker. Mourner's reminisced over fond memories of the young girl who was described by her mother as sassy. Tension was palpable as Mourner's eyed each other with suspicion, wondering whether the child's killer was standing amongst them.

Two weeks later, the lack of news surrounding Shauna Howe's murder only served to fuel rumors and speculation. Some locals considered Shauna's uncle Keith to be a suspect, believing it was too coincidental that he had led the search party to the site where his niece's body suit was discovered. With the killer at large, paranoia gripped the town, as parents forbade their children from roaming the streets and waited with them until they were safely on board the school bus. Graffiti appeared on a wall near 7th Street School, ominously warning students that they could be next. But police concluded this to be the work of a sick of Andal. Desperate for leads, police rummaged through Shauna's school desk and questioned her classmates. One of her fellow Girl Scouts recounted an interaction she had with Shauna prior to her death, in which Shauna presented two lollipops, explaining she was saving one for herself and the other for her mother. Local Mothers established a child safety group called Operation Kidwatch, with their first meeting attracting 100 townspeople. Venango County Sheriff Jean Price attended the event, advising the crowd that police were sifting through hundreds of pieces of information provided by the public, and urged the concerned parents to be patient. Some attendees admitted to arming their young daughters with mace, whilst one parent advised that cans of hairspray could be used as a low-tech substitute. The sheriff strongly warned against this behaviour, explaining that an attacker could easily turn such items against the girls.

Until police had answers, he recommended that young girls travelling groups of three or more, and their parents should know when to expect their children home, and to always have them call once they reached their destinations. On November 16th, the Oil City Rotary Club put forward a $500 reward for any information that led to the arrest of Shauna's killer. Meanwhile, posters featuring an image of an early 1980s dark red ultimobile Omega appeared around town, requesting anyone who had seen this type of vehicle to contact police. Hundreds of calls came through, leading police to investigate hundreds of similar model cars, none of which seemed to belong to the perpetrator. As the investigation languished for two years, the Oil City Council, Venango County Crime Stoppers and an anonymous donor provided funds to increase the reward money currently on offer to $11,500. Although this was a substantial amount for local residents, nobody came forward with information. The case continued to impact daily life in Oil City, with the streets quiet at night and people now locking their doors. Halloween would remain synonymous with Shauna Howe's murder, with the council voting to ban trick or treating after dark until her killer was found.

As far as residents were concerned, little seemed to have been done to solve the case. Newspapers continued to report that police were investigating links between other crimes in the area, but none seemed to ever lead anywhere. According to a profile released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Shauna's killer was likely a Caucasian male of average size, possibly aged in his 20s, who worked a menial job and had his own form of transportation. His personality or behaviour may have undergone a noticeable shift since committing the murder, wherein he may have suddenly taken time off work, increased consumption of alcohol or drugs, and become obsessed with news reports on the investigation. Citizens were asked to recall anyone who may have been fired, skipped social gatherings, altered his meals or sleep, fought with friends, taken a sudden vacation, or appeared to be nervous or preoccupied around the time of Shauna's murder. Although the profile said it was unlikely the killer had struck before, FBI agents could not rule out the possibility he would strike again. In July 1995, police received a report of an attempted abduction on East Second Street, not far from where Shauna Howe was snatched two years and eight months earlier. The 22-year-old woman had been followed out of a bar by a man who grabbed her and tried to force her into the trunk of his vehicle.

When she resisted, he slammed her head against the sidewalk. Realising he was unable to get the injured woman swiftly into the trunk, the man climbed into his car and sped away. Upon hearing the survivor's description of her attacker, police knew exactly where to look. The O'Brien brothers, Timothy and James, also known as Tim and Jim, were well known to police, having lived in oil city all of their lives. When they weren't in prison, the pair worked factory and gardening jobs where co-workers described being in a permanent state of anxiety around them, unsure when an uncomfortable encounter or violent explosion was coming. The brothers, both aged in their 20s, had clocked up a string of criminal charges over the years, including sexual offences against both adults and children. In some instances, the two would team up to commit their crimes, with James O'Brien generally considered to be the more dominant of the two due to his older brother's learning difficulties and mental health problems. At the time of the botched abduction, eldest brother Timothy O'Brien was serving a prison sentence for plying a 16-year-old girl with alcohol and taking pornographic images of her.

Therefore, his brother James was identified as the assailant and was convicted of first-degree felony attempted kidnapping, assault and unlawful restraint. When handing down a lengthy jail sentence, the judge declared James O'Brien to be a menace to society. Many had suspected the O'Brien brothers of being involved in Shauna Howe's murder, but there were several factors that excluded them as suspects. Firstly, Shauna's kidnapper had been described as a tall and slender man, but Timothy and James were heavy set. Secondly, they had both been in prison at the time Shauna was killed, securing them airtight alibis. A telephone pole bearing Shauna's photograph marked the street corner where she was abducted, serving as a constant reminder to locals about the unsolved case. And every year, on October 27, oil city residents held a candlelight vigil to walk Shauna's incomplete, final route home. Police provided an annual update on the status of their investigation, reminding the public of the details released in the FBI's criminal profile.

Despite following leads to California, Ohio, New York and Kansas, they retained the belief that the child's killer was an oil city local. On October 29, 1997, almost five years to the day since Shauna Howe was kidnapped, four-year-old Shanae Freeman was playing with her friends Christian and Tiffany in a grassy area near the Ferncourt Council housing estate in Oil City. Christian had cut himself and ran inside his house to seek help from his mother. When he returned, Shanae was gone, and Tiffany reported that a man dressed in black had taken her into the woods. Word of the abduction spread quickly, and due to its occurrence right before Halloween, many feared Shauna House killer had struck again, with police questioning whether the month or holiday held some sort of significance to the perpetrator. A hundred volunteers searched for Shanae, who was wearing a long-sleeved white cotton dress adorned with love hearts, bright blue socks, white sneakers, and had her hair tied in pigtails using one red and one purple ribbon. As the day progressed and temperatures dropped, worries for Shanae increased as she was not wearing a coat, and her light dress would not be enough to keep her warm throughout the night. Amongst the search party was local teenager 17-year-old Nicholas Bowen.

Police suspicions were narrowed in on Bowen as he was dressed in black and witnesses had seen him playing with the children earlier that day after being suspended from school. Early in the search, he had offered a hug to Shanae's distraught mother, telling her not to worry, but he soon became agitated and wanted to go home. After very little questioning by the police, Bowen broke down, leading them into the woods and to Shanae's body. The four-year-old had been assaulted before being thrown into a ravine where she suffered a head injury that bled profusely. Panicking, Bowen kicked some dirt, sticks, and leaves over her before fleeing the scene, uncertain whether she was dead or alive. Twelve hours after she was reported missing, police charged Nicholas Bowen with Shanae Freeman's murder. Given the similarities to Shanae's house murder five years earlier, Nicholas Bowen seemed a likely suspect, but there was one problem. He was only 12 years old at the time Shanae was killed.

Any other possible connection was subsequently ruled out, with the similarities between the two crimes merely deemed a chilling coincidence. Later in 1997, in Armstrong County, a little over an hour south of Oil City, 32-year-old Richard Jobes and his 30-year-old wife Diane were charged with over 200 counts of sexual offences against three nurses who were hired to look after their sick children, a toddler with cerebral palsy, and an infant with a breathing disorder. The nurses alleged the husband and wife subjected them to numerous incidents of assault and indecent exposure, with one nurse claiming Diane held her down whilst her husband attempted to rape her. Most of the charges were dropped in return for a plea, with Richard Jobes convicted on 15 counts of indecent assault, and Diane Jobes convicted of simple assault, terroristic threats, and harassment. In sentencing, the judge stated, the depravity that went on is hard to comprehend, even as a judge. Shortly after her husband's sentencing, Diane Jobes told police she had lied about his alibi for the night of Shanae's house murder. At the time, the couple lived about eight miles from Shanae's family home. Following this revelation, police questioned Richard Jobes about his whereabouts on the night of October 27, 1992, but he denied having any involvement in Shanae's abduction.

His DNA was tested, but failed to reveal a match to Shanae's killer, and as there was no other evidence linking him to the crime, Jobes became just one more name in the list of over 2,000 men who had been questioned in relation to the murder. In the neighbouring state of New Jersey, the 1994 rape and murder of seven-year-old Megan Kanker by a repeat sexual offender resulted in the creation of Megan's law. The passing of this new federal bill meant the names and addresses of known sex offenders were entered into a database, enabling law enforcement to supervise their movements following their release from prison. In cases of high-risk offenders, the law allowed for limited community notification as well, meaning citizens were made aware when serious sexual offenders moved into their neighbourhoods. During this time, Shanae's mother Lucy learned how to search the Oil City sex offender registry, and was shocked to discover that 20 registered sexual offenders were living within blocks of her house alone. In mid-1999, police searched a two-and-a-half-story yellow brick home on Reed Street near the intersection where Shanae was taken almost seven years prior, concentrating on the basement and space under the back porch stairs. At the time of Shanae's murder, the house had been rented by Michael Cusowitz, the man of questionable character who suddenly left town on a bus and disappeared the day after the 11-year-old's body was discovered.

He had been a person of interest since the early stages of the investigation, as he vaguely fit the description of the tall, thin male suspect. Although police refused to comment on what they were looking for in this latest search of the property, local media speculated whether they were determining if the scuffs on Shanae's knees may have been caused by the flooring in Cusowitz's former home. But once again, their efforts led nowhere. Police eventually tracked Michael Cusowitz down to a Connecticut prison where he was serving time for drug-related charges. He was questioned multiple times in relation to Shanae's murder, and despite having no evidence to link him to the crime, he remained a strong person of interest. Upon learning of the search of his former residence, Cusowitz made the unusual move of writing a letter from prison to Oil City's local newspaper, The Derrick, in which he wrote, Well, God rest her soul, and with all due respect for the Howe family, her death has been a misery to me. Misery to the point of seven years worth of questions, blood tests, polygraph tests, and more done to me, because I'm told, being a male with a minor criminal record, I am a major suspect.

Later that year, on the seventh anniversary of Shanae's abduction, children were once again reminded to stay off the streets and warned to observe the long-running ban on trickle-treating after dark. Police made their annual statement to the press, claiming they had obtained evidence they believed could help in presenting a prosecutable case. The evidence was currently being analysed by the FBI, with Oil City police stating, We are feeling very good about the case as it stands today. Detective Richard Graham had served on the Pennsylvania State Police Force since 1970. At the time of Shanae Howe's disappearance, he was working as a patrolman and assisted in the search, but beyond that, he had little involvement with the case. Then, in 1995, the lead investigator in Shanae's murder retired, and six months later, the cold case was assigned to Detective Graham. Like many struggling working-class towns, Oil City law enforcement had limited resources, which meant they had to prioritise their cases according to a variety of factors.

Cold cases, or those where little new information was coming in, were often given the lowest priority. Complicating matters were the many problems that inevitably arise over lengthy criminal investigations, including misplaced evidence, poor record-keeping and lost leads. Although Detective Graham's workload consisted of up to 70 open files at any given time, Shanae Howe's murder continued to haunt him, and he often spent his own spare time revisiting the case. He sought the services of noted criminal profiler, Colonel Robert Restler, who had helped catch son of Sam Keller, David Berkowitz, and whose techniques inspired the crime thriller, Silence of the Lambs. When added to the investigation, Colonel Restler presented the possibility that Shanae Howe had been abducted by more than one perpetrator, a theory that had not previously been considered by police. He referenced the Dan Payden's witness account of the abduction, during which he hadn't seen Shanae being forced into the vehicle, nor had he seen the perpetrator jump behind the wheel of the vehicle, despite arriving at the side of her abduction just seconds after she was snatched. To Colonel Restler, Dan's account made much more sense if the perpetrator had handed Shana to an accomplice before running away on foot. This theory made sense to Detective Graham, as when he had initially revisited Shanae's cold case photographs, he noticed a new detail.

At the time her body was discovered, there was a shoe print on her cheek. This suggested Shanae's attack had been violent, but as there were no ligature marks around her wrists or ankles, she was likely held captive without restraint, a task requiring more than one perpetrator. When DNA samples were first collected from Shanae's body suit, some detectives had considered the possibility that DNA could have been transferred independently of her murder, as the home she lived in was not particularly well kept, and many people came and went. With recent advancements in DNA testing, Detective Graham ordered a test on a swab that had been taken from Shanae's mouth, with the swab returning a positive match for the seminal DNA that was on her clothing. The lab technician told the detective, if you find the DNA match, you'll have your killer. Thus, Detective Graham focused his efforts on collecting and testing DNA from as many potential suspects as possible. In late 2001, Detective Graham's investigation into an unsolved violent robbery brought him to the Venango County Jail to question a possible suspect, Timothy O'Brien. The eldest of the O'Brien brothers was serving time for an unrelated burglary, whilst his younger sibling James was completing his sentence for the 1995 attempted kidnapping of the 22-year-old woman.

As had become a habit when questioning any male criminal in Oil City, after questioning Timothy O'Brien about the robbery, Detective Graham requested he provide a DNA sample to rule him out of the Shanae Howe murder investigation. Timothy was startled but agreed, before saying he had to check with his lawyer first. Something about the way he said this made the hairs on the back of the detective's neck prickle. Timothy O'Brien's DNA sample came back a negative for a match to Shanae's killer, but Detective Graham couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. Then in early December 2001, he met with State Parole Agent Ed Flick to discuss an unrelated matter when the conversation turned to Shanae's murder. Ed remarked he always felt the O'Brien brothers could be involved, despite the fact that they were both in prison at the time of the crime, and therefore had solid alibis. It suddenly occurred to Detective Graham that when he inherited Shanae's case, he had simply relied on notes in the file that said the O'Brien brothers had been in prison at the time of Shanae's abduction, but had never confirmed these details for himself. To satisfy his curiosity, he decided to double check the official records, and what he discovered, rocked him to the core.

The records showed that while the O'Brien brothers had indeed been arrested around the time of Shanae's abduction, they had made bail, and were not in police custody on the night she went missing. Later that month, Detective Graham was transferred to a new unit, effectively removing him from Shanae's case. Before the transfer, he put in a final request for one of his fellow officers to visit James O'Brien in the Mercer State Correctional Facility to obtain his DNA sample. His request was obliged in early January 2002, and whilst awaiting the results, the case took another surprising turn. On January 9, 2002, a former cellmate of Timothy O'Brien told police they had been playing cards together when the prison went into lockdown during the September 11 terror attacks the previous year. According to the inmate, Timothy confessed to Shanae's murder during the game, saying he forced the young girl into the trunk of a vehicle before throwing her off a bridge. Then, in early February 2002, Detective Graham received a phone call from the forensic technician who had worked on Shanae's case for years, wanting him to be the first to hear the news. The results of James O'Brien's DNA test had returned a match for the DNA found on Shanae.

Following these breakthroughs, a team of law enforcement officers made up of state police and FBI agents met to strategize their next steps. James O'Brien's DNA indicated he had contact with Shanae, but didn't prove he was responsible for her death, and all they had linking Timothy O'Brien to the crime was the story provided by an unreliable jailhouse snitch. Law enforcement had to tread carefully before making an arrest, as any decent lawyer could tear the case to shreds. There were still elements of the crime that didn't add up. Neither Timothy nor James O'Brien matched Dan Payden's witness description of the man who snatched Shanae, nor did either of them drive a small red sedan at the time of the attack. Investigators speculated as to whether a third accomplice may have also been involved, and their suspicions returned to Ted Walker, the tall, lanky, local pizza shop worker who was known to act inappropriately around young female customers. Not only was he known to Shana, but one of the O'Brien brothers had been staying at his residence around the time of her abduction, assisting him with maintenance jobs. During the early stages of their investigation, police had questioned Ted Walker about a red car parked behind his house, which shared similarities to the description provided by Dan Payden.

Although Walker had explained the vehicle was a project he was working on, and it was currently inoperable, original investigators never confirmed whether the car was capable of being driven, and it had long since been sent to the scrap heap. Ted Walker had been questioned numerous times over the years, but had a habit of changing details every time, whilst giving answers that were noticeably well thought out and wordy. As the investigative spotlight narrowed in on Walker, he was brought in for questioning once again, during which he was informed that police had DNA evidence and witness statements linking the O'Brien brothers to Shanae's murder. This information prompted Walker to change his story yet again, telling investigators he may have taken in some real bad people, who may have done a disgusting thing. He then admitted he and the O'Brien brothers had been joking about the incompetence of oil city police when they came up with what they thought was a funny prank. They would snatch a child in front of a witness on Halloween, and watch as the inept cops made fools of themselves running around looking for the child. They aimed to grab someone they knew so their victim wouldn't be too scared, and once their actions had caused a bit of chaos, they would return the child safely. As investigators continued to mount their case against Ted Walker and the O'Brien brothers, they were alerted to a call made to the local fire department the night after Walker had told them about the abduction plot he concocted with the O'Brien's.

A neighbour of Walker's caught sight of the man burning something behind his house, believed to have been a mattress. Investigators obtained a search warrant for Walker's residence, and on the evening of March 14, 2002, they converged on Laurel Avenue, a quiet, unsealed road on the edge of town lined with ramshackle derelict houses with overgrown, neglected yards. With no evidence uncovered during the search of Ted Walker's property, investigators remained at a loss as to the location where Shauna had been held captive before she was killed. Ted Walker was at work at the time the warrant was enacted, and police refused to make an official statement to reporters. Regardless, word soon spread that the search was related to Shauna Howe, and local news ran the story alongside a picture of Walker. When Dan Payden saw the story, he placed a call to the police, telling them he was 90% certain that Walker was the tall, thin man he had seen smoking a cigarette near the Reed and West First Street intersection almost 10 years prior. When Walker was next interviewed by police, he admitted that on the night of October 27, 1992, he approached Shauna Howe and asked her about her Girl Scout cookies, before giving her a hug and handing her over to Timothy O'Brien as part of their abduction prank. Walker claimed he returned home, and a few minutes later, Timothy and James O'Brien arrived at his house with Shauna, before taking her upstairs.

Walker claimed he hadn't said anything about this to police earlier, because he feared for his son's life. On March 19, 2002, detectives approached James O'Brien with the news that his DNA had been linked to Shauna. James reportedly dropped his head to his lap and said, Alright, I'm not going to sit here and deny what you already know. However, when reporters arrived to interview James, he remained defiant, telling local newspaper The Derrick, I didn't do it. So I wasn't going to admit to it. I have a clear conscience. I don't know how you would go on living knowing you were responsible for a child's death like that. I understand why they want it solved. It's a horrific crime.

Despite all the information and evidence that police now had pointing to the three culprits, the district attorney needed a watertight case before proceeding with an arrest. With each defendant entitled to two lawyers, Venango County needed to procure the budget to go to trial and wanted time to ensure the prosecution's case would result in a conviction. The O'Brien brothers didn't present a threat to the public as James was still in prison and Timothy was currently under house arrest. Over the following months, investigators worked to solidify their case as the district attorney awaited the funds to proceed the trial. Meanwhile, in 2003, Timothy O'Brien was convicted of two child sex offences against a six-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy that occurred in 1999 and 2000. He was sentenced to 33 months to five years in prison. At a subsequent hearing to determine the threat he presented to the public under Megan's law, he was diagnosed with both antisocial personality disorder and pedophilic tendencies and labelled as sexually violent predator, the most severe classification of sex offender. Two more years passed before authorities were ready to take Shawna House case to trial.

On July 3, 2004, Timothy and James O'Brien were arrested and charged with first and second degree murder, rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and kidnapping. It was the biggest news story in Oil City's recent history. Journalists obtained the affidavit for the O'Brien's arrest, which included details about Ted Walker's role in the abduction and news crews converged on his house for comment. He expressed relief that police had finally caught the culprits, saying, Walker maintained the only reason he had been interviewed about the case in the past was that he matched the description of Shawna's abductor. He denied involvement in the crime, asserting, He maintained any admission of guilt he made was coerced by police threatening to take his son away. He also alleged police planted evidence when they searched his home, adding that he had no respect for anyone that would hurt a child.

The next day of July 4, state police officers sat outside Ted Walker's multi-story derelict house on Laurel Avenue, documenting all the comings and goings, before placing him under arrest without incident at approximately 11.45am. Under questioning, Walker quickly realized his lies had caught up with him. The next day, he accepted a plea deal, agreeing to plead guilty to kidnapping and third-degree murder, which carried a prison term of 20 to 40 years. In return for his testimony against the two O'Brien brothers, he would avoid the more serious charges for first or second-degree murder, which carried a possible death sentence and life in prison, respectively. Following his arrest, Ted Walker was interviewed by state trooper Vernon Brown, during which he provided a more detailed account of his version of the events of October 1992. According to Walker, the initial plan he concocted with the O'Brien brothers was supposed to be a prank to upset the oil city police department by making them look incompetent. They intended to grab a child in plain sight on Halloween night, making it obvious enough that the police would be called. The trio would then keep the child for 10 to 15 minutes before dropping them off safely at home.

They originally planned on taking the male friend of Walker's son, but decided a girl was a more worthwhile target, as she might cause more of a sensation. Once this plan was formed, the O'Brien brothers discussed the abduction with increasing frequency and intensity. Then, on the night of October 27, 1992, Walker drove to the A-plus convenience store to purchase coffee and cigarettes, when he saw the O'Brien's drive-by in one of his fixer-upper cars, a red Chevrolet Chevette, which the pair had taken without his permission. Walker followed them to the west-first and Reed Street intersection where both cars pulled over. When he approached the red Chevette, Timothy O'Brien told him, we've bumped up the plan. The O'Brien's explained they wanted to snatch a child that night, and they didn't care who it was. At that moment, the men saw 11-year-old Shauna Howe walking alone down the darkened street. Walker approached her, asking if she was selling Girl Scout cookies and requesting she give him a hug.

He then scooped her up and shoved her toward Timothy O'Brien, who was standing at the open passenger side door of the two-door Chevette, where his brother sat at the wheel. The front passenger seat had already been pulled forward, enabling the men to quickly shove Shauna into the back seat. Once the brothers had Shauna in the car, Walker jumped in his own vehicle and circled the block. When he returned, the red Chevette had gone. He stopped for more coffee and a loaf of bread before heading home, and minutes later, the O'Brien brothers arrived with Shauna under their arms. They carried her upstairs while Walker started to prepare dinner for his son in the kitchen. He claimed that at this point, he still believed the situation unfolding was just part of the original prank the trio had planned. Whilst he was cooking spaghetti, Walker heard a female voice crying from above.

He stormed upstairs to the room where Shauna was being held and called through the door, ordering the brothers to get the hell out of his house. Timothy O'Brien appeared, telling him to mind his own business and worry about his own son. Walker grabbed his son and left the residence for a short time, and when he returned, the brothers and Shauna were no longer there. Furious, the O'Brien had taken Shauna to his home. Walker later kicked the pair out when they returned without the girl later that night. Detectives didn't fully trust Ted Walker's version of events, believing he spun his tail to make himself out to be an innocent party. But as they relied on his testimony to secure a conviction for the crime that had hung over Royal City for nearly 13 years, they continued to work with him. And for the first time since Shauna Howe was abducted, things moved quickly.

Due to the high-profile nature of the case, the trial was moved out of Venango County after it was determined the accused were unlikely to receive a fair local trial. The court ruled that 39-year-old Timothy O'Brien and 33-year-old James O'Brien be tried together, followed by a separate trial for 46-year-old Ted Walker. When the O'Brien brothers' trial commenced, members of Shauna's family sat quietly in the courtroom. Ted Walker took the stand to testify against the brothers, but once again parts of his story changed. In his initial confession, he told police he was at home when he saw the O'Brien brothers carry Shauna upstairs. But he now claimed that when he returned home from buying coffee and bread, his son informed him that the O'Brien's had taken someone upstairs. He didn't ask his son any questions, but assumed the person he was referring to was Shauna. The defense argued that Walker was the sole culprit of the rape and murder and was lying in order to save himself.

They claimed he was not out buying coffee on October 27, 1992, but lying in wait for Shauna Howe to leave the church Halloween party. Walker testified to not knowing Shauna personally, but the defense presented two witnesses who argued otherwise. One was a former co-worker at the pizza shop who claimed Walker had met Shauna whilst working there, while another witness testified that Shauna had previously played with Walker's son. James O'Brien's attorney told the court, Ted Walker is evil. He's every parent's, every neighbor's worst nightmare. He's a child molester and he's a liar. He's hoping he gets less time because he's a weasel and he turned other people in. In an attempt to explain why James O'Brien's semen was found on Shauna's clothing and body, the defense claimed his client had sex in the bed at Walker's house earlier that day with a woman named Heather who he picked up in a bar. When Walker took Shauna into bed that night, the semen transferred onto her clothing, which was then stuffed into her mouth to silence her. The defense could offer no explanation as to why, if this was the case, there was no DNA found on Shauna from Ted Walker or the mysterious Heather, who they were unable to produce for trial.

Timothy O'Brien's lawyer James Goodwin claimed there was not a single piece of credible evidence to link his client to the crime, arguing he was only on trial because of his brother's DNA and the O'Brien's history of committing crimes together. Most of the evidence against Timothy O'Brien came from his alleged jailhouse confession to a fellow inmate in 2001. However, the credibility of the inmate making these assertions was thrown into doubt when it was established he had fabricated some of the details of Timothy's alleged confession. During the trial, members of the jury were escorted to Oil City where they walked the route that Shauna had taken on the night of her abduction and visited the abandoned railway bridge in Coulter's Hole where her body was found. The fact that the brothers were currently serving jail time for unrelated charges was withheld from the jury in case it prejudiced their opinion of them. Each day after the jurors left the courtroom, Timothy and James O'Brien were shackled and let out of the building. After two weeks of court proceedings and nearly 17 hours of deliberations, the jury reached its verdict. Just one day before the 13th anniversary of Shauna's abduction, her family sat quietly in the courtroom, holding each other's hands as they nervously awaited the decision. Across the room, the two accused casually chatted and chuckled with one another as they awaited their fate.

Both Timothy and James O'Brien were found guilty of second degree murder, third degree murder, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, kidnapping, and criminal conspiracy to commit kidnapping. They were found not guilty of first degree murder and rape. The brothers showed no emotion with James passively chewing gum as the verdict was delivered. Shauna's family celebrated quietly, hugging one another with tears in their eyes. When it came time for Judge Oliver Lobar to hand down prison sentences, he made certain the O'Brien brothers would never be released, telling the pair. The world was a better place because of Shauna, and the world will be a much better place without you walking free ever again. When reading the sentencing remarks, the judge said, When reading the sentencing remarks, the judge said,

The conduct of the defendants far exceeded the means necessary to commit these crimes. The victim did not have to be killed, and this was done in an attempt to cover up the terrible things that had been done to her and to prevent her from identifying her captors. The throwing of this young victim from a railroad trestle inflicted upon this young child a terror and horror that went far beyond the typical violation of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and criminal conspiracy to commit kidnapping. What extreme cruelty it was to throw a child who was alive off the trestle onto the rocks below. What a horrific way for anyone to die, especially a young child. The evidence in the form of photographic autopsy evidence clearly shows a cruelty that is not necessarily a typical part of these crimes. These crimes had a devastating effect upon the victim's family, the citizens of oil city, and all the members of our surrounding communities. Following Shauna's abduction and the finding of her battered and broken body, fear gripped our community.

Citizens changed the way they went about their day to day activities. Youth activities were restricted and even eliminated, and this effect continued for more than a decade. We find that both defendants have demonstrated absolutely no remorse for their despicable conduct. We find that both defendants are extremely dangerous predators, and we need to protect society from both of them as long as possible. Therefore, we have imposed consecutive sentences in this case in the event there would be some change in the law which would make them eligible for parole on the charge of second degree murder. We certainly believe that any lesser sentence would depreciate the seriousness of these crimes and their disastrous effects. As news spread that the verdicts had been delivered, Shauna's supporters drove past the courthouse beeping their horns and shouting derisive remarks about the defendants. The next day, the third accused, Ted Walker, filed a motion to withdraw his plea to third degree murder and kidnapping.

He believed the jury might find him not guilty due to the prosecution's argument during the O'Brien trial that he had not participated in Shauna's sexual assault or murder. His request to withdraw was denied, and for his involvement in the crime, he was sentenced to a maximum of 20 to 40 years in prison. Shauna's mother Lucy expressed relief at the result, saying, I needed this to be solved. These people will never hurt anyone again. They took a little girl's life. On October 27, 2005, 13 years after Shauna Howe embarked on her last walk home, the final candlelight vigil in her honor took place. A representative for the family said, This will be more of a celebration. We're just going to remember Shauna. It'll be a glorious day. Crowds of supporters walked alongside the 11 year old's family, holding posters with the words justice for Shauna,

as they traced the route from the First Free Methodist Church to the Reed and West First Street intersection. Those who were unable to attend but still wanted to honor Shauna's memory were asked to turn their porch lights on at the time of the procession. Three years later, Oil City took the final step in healing from the devastating crime that had defined their town. In August 2008, a local schoolgirl named Elizabeth stood before the Oil City Council at the Monthly Council meeting, holding a petition containing 175 of her classmate's signatures. Elizabeth lived on the same street that Shauna once did, but wasn't alive to experience the terror that gripped her hometown after the young girl's death. On behalf of the town's children, the 10 year old requested that the nightly Halloween celebrations that had been outlawed since Shauna Howe's murder be reinstated. Elizabeth presented the city with her list of reasons why the council should restore after dark trickle-treating, pointing out that Halloween decorations are best appreciated at night, and that many people aren't home during the day to hand out candy. Teachers from Shauna's former school, 7th Street School, encouraged Elizabeth and supported her petition.

The council vote was unanimous. By October 31, 2008, the ban on night-time trickle-treating was lifted, and for the first time in 16 years, Oil City's children took to the streets in costume as spooky celebrations were in full swing, albeit with twice the number of police on duty. Oil City police chief Robert Wenner, who was a patrolman at the time of Shauna's murder, said, No one will forget Shauna, and nor should they.