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Francke Murder

19. A laptop on the front seat
Back in August when I started this series on what is now quite officially the unsolved murder of Michael Francke, I suppose I had some vague hope that…
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Phil Stanford
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18. The gun under the pillow
Michael Francke’s home in Oregon was on an acreage outside Scotts Mills, a tiny country town about twenty miles east of Salem. On their first afternoon…
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17. "If you want to know who did it, he's over there"
A week after the trial Kevin got a call from Tom McCallum, the head defense investigator, asking him if he’d be interested in a copy of the state’s…
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16. Waiting for the other shoe to drop
It’s May 1991 and Gable’s trial is about to begin. But for all the doubts he has about the investigation, Kevin still hasn’t made up his mind about…
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15. Next time this could get real ugly
It’s the fall of 1990. Gable’s trial is coming up, and as we all know some thirty years later, it’ll be a railroad job. But Kevin doesn’t know that yet…
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14. Enter the Prince of Darkness
The unpleasant truth – based, if nothing else, on the rulings of two federal appeals courts which found that the Oregon State Police and Marion County…
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13. Suspect is armed and dangerous, approach with caution
When Liz’s story hits the news the state police swoop down on her apartment and try to convince her she doesn’t know what she’s talking about. What she…
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12. "That's him!" she says. "That's who I saw!"
So welcome to Salem, capital of the great state of Oregon, late summer 1990. And not just to Kevin Francke, who’s just driven across the country with…
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11. Two slashed tires – and a warning on the windshield
Without a shred of physical evidence linking Frank Gable to the crime scene, the state’s entire case would rest entirely on the testimony of so-called…
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10. Frank Gable is the perfect patsy
There is, in fact, reason to believe that the state police started setting up Gable up as early as May of 1989 – which, not too surprisingly, was just…
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Phil Stanford
9. "You're on to something big," says Johnny
A strange and violent character, this Johnny Crouse. Or maybe disturbed is the best way to put it. A troubled child who started running away from home…
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8. "Kevin," she said, "this is going to blow your mind"
After the funeral, Kevin returns to his construction business in Florida where he tries to keep up with the investigation – but it isn’t easy…
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