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who died at a nursing home in
Richmond on June 20, 1996, and 47-year-old William R. Merrill, a homeless man whom Burchart had supposedly strangled with his own shirt on the street on June 18. Reed also claimed that his supervisor had forced him to classify Burchart's testimony, as the higher-ups feared that even more negative publicity would ruin the department entirely.
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prime suspect. Shortly before his death in 2002, Burchart suddenly recanted his confessions and proclaimed his innocence. Debates about his culpability have continued since then, with those supporting his claims of innocence pointing out that his confession should be considered dubious at best, as
Burchart was a
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In
November 2013, retired police detective Ron Reed, who had been involved in Burchart's arrest and conducted interviews with him, stated his belief that Burchart had likely killed much more people than those he was convicted of. Among those he named as likely victims were 81-year-old Rachel Henshaw,
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As victims, the perpetrator chose women aged from 55 to 89 who lived by themselves. The first six victims, all of whom were black, were stabbed to death between July 1990 and May 1992, while the remaining seven were white and were all strangled. Despite a rising homicide rate in the city at the time,
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In his testimony, Burchart described in detail the circumstances under which the murders took place and demonstrated knowledge that was supposedly known only to the investigators. However, as there was insufficient evidence to charge him with any of them, he was never tried, although he remained a
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A few days later, representatives from the
Richmond Police Department released a statement denying the claims, but indeed admitted that Henshaw and Merrill had died in June 1996. According to them, however, there was no sign of foul play in either death, as forensic analysis had determined that
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In the mid-1990s, with assistance from the
Richmond Police Department, several human rights organizations were allowed to form citizens' patrols. As time passed, the officials investigating the murders were accused of negligence and racism, with accusations from members of the
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As of
September 2022, the majority of the murders remain unsolved and Burchart's guilt remains in question. If he was indeed responsible for killing the victims he admitted to, there is a possibility that the remaining cases were perpetrated by unrelated offenders.
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these particular murders caused outrage due to the victims' vulnerability. As a result, precautions were taken, with a sharp increase in sales for guns, doorlocks and watchdogs and a more wary attitude from the female residents of
Richmond.
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340:. Three years later, he confessed to killing four of the victims on the official victim list for the Golden Years Murders: Jane Foster, Elizabeth Seibert, Mamie Verlander and Lucille Boyd.
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Initially, 17 women were considered possible victims, but four were later excluded after the killers in their respective cases were caught. The remaining thirteen are the following:
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claiming that they focused more attention to solving the murders involving the white victims.
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523:"On Your Side Investigators: Second detective backs claims of serial killings coverup"
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569:"On Your Side Investigators: Police release details on Golden Years investigation"
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A suspect in the crimes eventually emerged in 2000 – the man was 51-year-old
475:"HOLMBERG: Virginia serial killers have been mad geniuses, hard to catch"
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437:. April 25, 1996. Archived from the original on September 23, 2022
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Henshaw had died of natural causes while
Merrill died from
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Rachel DePompa and Shawn
Maclauchlan (November 20, 2013).
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Rachel DePompa and Shawn
Maclauchlan (November 13, 2013).
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is the name given to an unsolved series of murders in the
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THE WORLD ENCYCLOPEDIA OF SERIAL KILLERS: Volume Two E-L
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405:"LIVING A LIFE OF FEAR IN RICHMOND'S WEST END"
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656:Deaths by strangulation in the United States
379:List of serial killers in the United States
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691:Unsolved murders in the United States
429:"PATTERN SOUGHT IN RICHMOND KILLINGS"
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681:Serial murders in the United States
666:Violence against women in Virginia
403:John W. Fountain (July 18, 1996).
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473:Mark Holmberg (October 3, 2014).
646:20th-century American criminals
612:Susan Hall (August 20, 2020).
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661:History of Richmond, Virginia
676:Serial killers from Virginia
651:Crime in Richmond, Virginia
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641:1990s crimes in Virginia
287:Mamie Harris Verlander
417:on September 23, 2022.
189:Robinette Mickleberry
85:Golden Years Murders
25:Golden Years Murders
410:The Washington Post
251:September 14, 1994
49:Span of crimes
671:Murder in Virginia
616:. WildBlue Press.
301:Elizabeth Seibert
245:Inez J. Childress
231:Phyllis G. Harris
209:December 17, 1991
93:Richmond, Virginia
434:The Roanoke Times
363:alcohol poisoning
338:life imprisonment
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273:Gertrude Gardner
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195:May 6, 1991
175:Mary Coffee
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203:Pearl Gash
635:Categories
385:References
161:Eva Jones
589:cite news
545:cite news
497:cite news
451:cite news
352:Aftermath
53:1990–1996
373:See also
89:West End
72:Virginia
67:State(s)
480:WTVR-TV
130:Number
103:Murders
58:Country
40:Victims
35:Details
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133:Name
114:NAACP
618:ISBN
595:link
581:2022
573:WWBT
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489:2022
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136:Age
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