Victoria Hester

Blaine Pardoe

One brutal murder. Two possible suspects. And a “fascinating . . . puzzling case” that divided a Michigan community (Lansing State Journal). In the summer of 1982, the body of twenty-year-old Maggie Hume was found under a pile of blankets in the closet of her apartment. A Catholic school girl and daughter of a local football coach, Maggie had been raped and strangled. It was the only active murder investigation in Battle Creek, Michigan, suggesting the case would be an easy victory for authorities. Plus, they already had two persons of interest on watch. Maggie’s neighbor, Michael Ronning, confessed to the crime. Yet it was Maggie’s boyfriend, Jay Carter, who failed the polygraph, and whose account of his whereabouts on the night of the murder kept changing. Unfortunately, the Calhoun County Prosecutor’s Office and Battle Creek Police Department couldn’t agree on whom to charge. And the city soon took sides. Cracking open three decades of never-before-seen evidence, this real-life whodunit exposes the dark secrets and tragic infighting that turned the murder of Maggie Hume into an unwinnable contest of wills, egos, politics, and the law—a contest that, to this day, isn’t over.

Cold Case in Battle Creek

The Murder of Maggie Hume

Blaine Lee Pardoe

In 1971 and 1972, a killer stalked the streets of the nation's capital. His targets, young girls who he kidnapped, raped, and left their remains along busy roadways in plain view. Then, as mysteriously as he started, the Freeway Phantom stopped. Now, after nearly five decades, Washington DC's oldest unsolved serial killing spree is pried open.

The Pursuit Of The Freeway Phantom Serial Killer

Tantamount

Adam "Pump" Arnold was both feared and regaled in Victorian- era Battle Creek. He was a bootlegger and a pimp, a robber and a con artist, an arsonist and a loan shark and even an assassin. Arnold faced off with the city over illegal liquor sales and flaunted his victory with a life-size statue of the mayor dressed as a hobo. Called the "greatest criminal in the history of Battle Creek," Arnold was convicted in a captivating public trial for the murder of his own son. Join authors Blaine Pardoe and Victoria Hester as they explore the life and misdeeds of the unabashed criminal mastermind who rocked Battle Creek to its core.

The Original Battle Creek Crime King: Adam “Pump” Arnold’s Vile Reign

In the late 1980s, a predator stalked the Tidewater region of Virginia, savagely murdering his carefully selected his prey. He, or they, demonstrated a special kind of evil, and to this day have evaded justice. This is the first comprehensive look at the Colonial Parkway Murders and sheds new light on the victims, the crimes, and the investigation.

Victoria Hester

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