On December 19, 1979, when 18-year-old Cedar Rapids, Iowa inhabitant Michelle Martinko, vanished, it transformed into a case that before long ran cold. "Every TV was on the news.". WebJerry Burns is 68 years old and was born on 12/23/1953. 'We've also had a lot of customers come in from out of town and a lot of them asked about it.'. "Ialso feel bad for, you know, his current family and friends because now they have to go through all this as well. Burns' son, James Burns also briefly took the stand. Jerry Burns, 66, of Manchester, was arrested in Dec. 19 2018, 39 years to the day after Michelle Martinko was found dead in her parents car outside a shopping mall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. after he was asked if his DNA would match the DNA at the crime scene. If you know some information, please comment below. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Jerry Lynn Burns makes a statement before his sentencing by Sixth Judicial District Judge Fae Hoover at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. He was taken into custody in the evening. (Stephen Mally/The Gazette), Jerry Burns as a senior in a 1972 West Delaware High School year book at the Manchester Public Library in Manchester on Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018. Using newer technology, Cedar Rapids police last yearcreated profiles fromDNA procured from case evidence in 2006. "But the world's a big place and we dont know anything about anybody. In a court document made public Friday, he wrote that he makes $30,000 a year. Hiscousin, Brian Burns, vanished Dec. 19, 2013 exactly 34 years after Martinko was killed. "We left Cedar Rapids, but Cedar Rapids never left us," he said, choking up outside the courthouse while his wife nodded in agreement. "It's a small community; everybody kind of knows everybody," he said. Burns' arrest prompted a round of whispering about two of his family members. Select the best result to find their address, phone number, relatives, and public records. Burns was arrested on Wednesday and charged with first-degree murder on Thursday in the 1979 death of Michelle Martinko. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Friends and family of Jerry Burns react as he is led from the courtroom following his sentencing hearing at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. It was a case,Cedar Rapids Police Chief Wayne Jerman said, "that has haunted our community for decades. The cold-case murder has drawn intense public interest, and Friday's hearing was livestreamed because of limited seating. In his statement, Stonebraker said he will never forget Janet Martinko calling them early Dec. 20, 1979, after she had identified the 'bloody, torn, broken body of her beautiful daughter. As the investigation slowed, a $10,000 reward was offered. A need Mr. Burns kept hidden all his adult life. Dec. 20, 2018 8:16 pm, Updated: Dec. 21, 2018 8:24 am. Cedar Rapids police then used DNA genetic genealogical research to narrow the profile "down to a specific pool of suspects, which included Burns, according to a criminal complaint. 'The community can be very proud of its law enforcement, and for the tremendous comfort and support area residents have extended to our family over the thirty-nine years since Michelle's death. But we are sure that it is not available and his spouses name is not available. Low 18F. 'Shock, anguish and horror permeated the family them they first learned that 18-year-old Michelle Martinko was killed Dec. 19, 1979, John Stonebraker, her brother-in-law, said Friday in a videotaped victim impact statement. Fathers name is Not Available. Burns pleaded not guiltyin January. The two had done business beforeWendling owns a body shop, Paint-N-Place, and Burns owns a powder-coating company, Advanced Coating Concepts. 28, 2021 7:50 am610d ago, Trish Mehaffey Crime and Courts Feb. 28, 2023 6:39 pm, Crime and Courts Feb. 28, 2023 5:22 pm6h ago, Crime and Courts Feb. 28, 2023 5:19 pm6h ago, Caleb McCullough, Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau State Government Feb. 28, 2023 7:17 pm, State Government Feb. 28, 2023 6:04 pm5h ago, Jeff Linder High School Basketball 38m ago38m ago. Burns was arrested on Wednesday and charged with first-degree murder on Thursday in the 1979 death of Michelle Martinko. Defense attorney Leon Spies declined to comment immediately following the verdict. 'You'll never convince me he did something like that.'. "We thought it was extremely probative. ", In closing arguments Monday, Spies repeated a phrase from his opening arguments: "Genetic information tells us much about what we are, but not necessarily who we are or where we've been.". Jerry Lynn Burns, 65, is set to face a jury in February, bringing momentum to a case that was left cold for years. Iowa community tries to reconcile a cold case arrest and its long history with a neighbor, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. While waiting to He also said it was difficult to believe that law enforcement never came across such information in the nearly 40 years of investigation. In a court document made public Friday, he wrote that he makes $30,000 a year. "If you saw him out in thepublic, he would sit there and talk with you and say 'hi' to you every time he'dseen you.". Burns owns a powder-coating company, Advanced Coating Concepts, in Manchester. Burns, who was convicted in February of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979, was sentenced to life in prison. Investigators then narrowed down family trees of great grandparents to a first cousin and then Burns and his two brothers. District Associate Judge Casey D. Jones set Burns' bond at $5 million on Dec. 20, 2018. She could hardly speak.. When 18-year-old Cedar Rapids, Iowa resident Michelle Martinko went missing on Dec. 19, 1979, it became a case that soon ran cold. In any case, not a lot about his family has been unveiled at this point, because of a few private matters. On June 19, 1980, police released a composite sketch, developed based on descriptions provided by two witnesses, of the man they believed stabbed Martinko. The 42-year-old remembers serving Burns his final cup before he was detained. 2023 www.desmoinesregister.com. As Becky Moreno stopped for lunch on Thursday afternoon, she reflected on growing up just down the street from Jerry Burns and his family. Investigators later sought the services of a company that specializes in DNA phenotyping, which Cedar Rapids police described as the process of predicting physical appearance and ancestry from unidentified DNA evidence. A retired teacher, John Curran, of Manchester, said he knows Burns from Bob Stephen Motors, a Manchester car dealership where the men occasionally would see each other and talk. Wendling's father, Randy, who's knownBurns since high school, said he was "floored" by the news. His family and friends remained seated after Martinkos family left the courtroom. Burns, 66, was arrested at his Manchester, Iowa, business on Dec. 19, 2018 the 39th anniversary of Martinko's death and charged with first-degree murder in Martinko's slaying. Exactly 39 years after her death, police took a Manchester man into custody after matching his DNA to blood found at the crime scene. Jerry Burns, of Manchester, was arrested for the murder on the 39-year anniversary of her death. Before 6th Judicial District Judge Fae Hoover sentenced Burns to life in prison without the possibility of parole, Burns, who never showed any emotion during his trial in February, gave a short statement. With Jerry Burns having been found at risk and in prison, Martinkos family at last made them feel of end. Burns, who would have been 25 at the time of Martinko's death, said he could not offer a "plausible explanation" forwhy his DNA was found at the crime scene, authorities said at the time of his arrest. Moreno said, "I would have never guessed. A pathologist said the fatal stab wound was to her heart and that she bled to death. Here's the Update in His Case. The Jan. 28, 2021 episode also sheds light on the trial that led to Burns' sentencing and how he still denied having anything to do with the murder, to the best of his knowledge, leading up to it. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Jerry Lynn Burns is led from the courtroom following his sentencing hearing at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Family and friends of Jerry Burns react as Burns is sentenced at his sentencing hearing at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. Based on the number of stab wounds particularly to the young womans face police considered the homicide personal in nature. The main argument from Burns' defense team was that the evidence used in the case from back in 1979 was mishandled at the time, but on Feb. 24, 2020, Burns was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. Very nice gal, you know, she was straight A student, you know, she was one we looked up to," Moreno remembered. You will begin to receive our Daily Courts & Public Safety updates. ', Authorities said they questioned Burns at his workplace later the day. CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KWWL) -- On the third day of a hearing to suppress evidence in the cold case killing of Michelle Martinko, the man accused of the brutal crime took the witness stand, speaking publicly for the first time. Follow the Register onFacebookandTwitterfor updates. Burns is presumed innocent, and we look forward to the evidence showing otherwise. Recalling telling investigators, "I don't know, test it." At The businessman sold the gas station several years ago, Wright said, but still frequented it, grabbing coffee and conversing with employees. Burns is being held at Linn County Jail on a $5 million cash bond. By the time of Burns' arrest, both of Martinko's parents had been gone for decades: Martinko'sfather died in 1995 and her mother in 1998. In 2018, Jerry Lynn Burns was finally arrested and charged with the teen's murder and, although it had been decades after the crime, the once cold case is now a subject of discussion on A&E's Killer Cases. The wait ended Monday, when a jury convicted Jerry Lynn Burns of first-degree murder in the 1979 stabbing death of 18-year-old Martinko. Maybanks noted that even though Martinko interacted with at least half a dozen friends the night of her death, including at the mall, none of their DNA was found at the crime scene. Detectives found no weapon or fingerprints to identify a suspect and said Martinko had not been robbed. ", "This is Michelles day," he added. Burns was arrested Jerry also answers to Jerry L Burns "When the news came on last night, everybody just shut up and the bar was full," said Cheryl Hollrah, a cook at the bar. But we are trying hard to collect all the information about him and will update you soon. In January 2019, he pleaded not guilty and a trial date was set. While Burns attorneys didnt offer an alibi for where he was the night of Martinko's murder, Spies did suggest that since Burns had been to Westdale Mall with his family before, DNA he left behind at the mall couldve transferred to Martinko while she was at the mall Dec. 19. He wasn't carrying any identification at the time of his disappearance, doesn't have a driver's license, and doesn't own a car or cellular phone, making him difficult to track. Previous to Jerry's current city of Manchester, IA, Jerry Burns lived in Cedar Falls IA. Hiscousin, Brian Burns,vanished Dec. 19, 2013 exactly 34 years after Martinko was killed. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Jerry Lynn Burns listens as First Assistant Linn County Attorney Nicholas Maybanks (not pictured) speaks at Burns' sentencing hearing at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. 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