The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case
On a warm night in September 1985, teenagers Kimberly Dowell and Ethan Dixon were brutally murdered in Westside Park in Muncie, Indiana. Their killer has never been charged. Early on, police focused on a family member of one of the teens as a primary suspect. The investigation even ruled out fantastic scenarios, including a theory that the perpetrator was a Dungeons & Dragons devotee. The case grew cold. Only decades later did a dogged police investigator narrow the scope to a suspect whose name has never been publicly revealed until now. Keith Roysdon and Douglas Walker, authors of Wicked Muncie and Muncie Murder & Mayhem, have followed the investigation into the Westside Park murders for decades and, for the first time, report the complete and untold story.
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The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case
On a warm night in September 1985, teenagers Kimberly Dowell and Ethan Dixon were brutally murdered in Westside Park in Muncie, Indiana. Their killer has never been charged. Early on, police focused on a family member of one of the teens as a primary suspect. The investigation even ruled out fantastic scenarios, including a theory that the perpetrator was a Dungeons & Dragons devotee. The case grew cold. Only decades later did a dogged police investigator narrow the scope to a suspect whose name has never been publicly revealed until now. Keith Roysdon and Douglas Walker, authors of Wicked Muncie and Muncie Murder & Mayhem, have followed the investigation into the Westside Park murders for decades and, for the first time, report the complete and untold story.
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The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case

The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case

The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case
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The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case

The Westside Park Murders: Muncie's Most Notorious Cold Case

Overview

On a warm night in September 1985, teenagers Kimberly Dowell and Ethan Dixon were brutally murdered in Westside Park in Muncie, Indiana. Their killer has never been charged. Early on, police focused on a family member of one of the teens as a primary suspect. The investigation even ruled out fantastic scenarios, including a theory that the perpetrator was a Dungeons & Dragons devotee. The case grew cold. Only decades later did a dogged police investigator narrow the scope to a suspect whose name has never been publicly revealed until now. Keith Roysdon and Douglas Walker, authors of Wicked Muncie and Muncie Murder & Mayhem, have followed the investigation into the Westside Park murders for decades and, for the first time, report the complete and untold story.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781439671962
Publisher: The History Press
Publication date: 02/08/2021
Series: True Crime
Sold by: Bookwire
Format: eBook
Pages: 160
File size: 2 MB

About the Author

Keith Roysdon is a lifelong writer and journalist. He has won more than two dozen state journalism awards and two national journalism awards--many for his work with writing partner Douglas Walker. Their work includes dozens of articles about cold cases or unsolved murders. The two won the Indiana Society for Professional Journalists 2018 award for best nonfiction book for Muncie Murder & Mayhem. They also wrote Wicked Muncie. Roysdon, who also writes fiction, is married (wife Robin) and has a son (James).


Muncie Murder & Mayhem. They also wrote Wicked Muncie. Roysdon, who also writes fiction, is married (wife Robin) and has a son (James).

Table of Contents

Introduction 7

1 The Friday Before 9

2 That Night 13

3 Word Spreads 16

4 The Autopsies 19

5 The Early Investigation 22

6 Back to School 26

7 A Violent History 29

8 More Investigation, More Murders 31

9 Fear and Loathing in Muncie-and Florida 33

10 Muncie in 1985 36

11 A School in Controversy 39

12 "Ethan Got What He Deserved" 42

13 Movie Theaters, Cruising and Hanging Out 44

14 Indian Hill 47

15 The Mall Was King 49

16 The Traffic Stop 52

17 Middletown, the Typical Small American City 54

18 Political Players in Muncie 57

19 A Nice Place 60

20 Lovers' Lane Murders 63

21 The Concordia, Kansas Murders 66

22 The Friend, Rambo and Other Theories 68

23 The Year Following Westside 70

24 Tragedy and the Winters Brothers 73

25 Anniversaries of the Case 77

26 Through Fresh Eyes 80

27 The Railroad Killer 82

28 "You Know What For" 85

29 The Group 88

30 The Murder of Brian Insco 90

31 "One Homicide After Another" 92

32 Sixteen of 160 95

33 The Tragic Death of Sam Drummer 97

34 The Focus Narrows 100

35 "You Talking About the Park? Kids?" 102

36 "My Son Was a Sweet Boy" 104

37 "It's a Dowell. There's No Question." 107

38 "We Were All Suspects" 110

39 The Prosecutors 115

40 The Homicide Team 117

41 Second-Guessing the Investigators 122

42 The Appeal 125

43 The Second Encounter 127

44 Cold Gases as Entertainment 130

45 Justice Delayed 133

46 "What Were They Thinking About?" 135

Bibliography 139

Index 153

About the Authors 157

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