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#Post#: 164--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:38 pm
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HTML http://i.imgur.com/PjWMDe8.jpg
#Post#: 165--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:39 pm
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I didn't know the neighborhood. My mother drove for quite a
while, but we were still in Philadelphia. I'm pretty sure. The
houses were close together, and close to the street. Close
enough so I could hear after my mother parked the car in front
of this one house.
#Post#: 166--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:42 pm
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This is where the uncle was living.
HTML http://i.imgur.com/CP8y0uz.jpg
#Post#: 167--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:43 pm
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HTML http://i.imgur.com/qd4Svfb.jpg
#Post#: 168--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:45 pm
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Autopsy Information
On the evening of February 26, 1957, the Boy in the Box’s
autopsy was performed by Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Joseph W.
Spelman. One of his first problems was trying to determine the
time of death, the reason being Philadelphia’s weather is
generally cold in February, and in fact “in the last week of
that month, the temperature ranged from the chilly twenties to
the brisk forties . . . [and in such weather] human bodies do
not
decompose rapidly” (Selby 1958). Dr. Spelman indicated that the
time of death could have been within two to three days, or as
much as two to three weeks, though he tended to believe that
“the body [was not] in the field that long” (McIntyre 1957). On
the other hand, the cause of death was not a problem. Dr.
Spelman stated in his report that the boy died due to being
“beaten to death” (Englade 1999). The multiple bruising
throughout the body indicated the little boy was beaten in a
brutal fashion. Though the age of the boy is questionable due to
indications of malnutrition found when his x-rays
were analyzed, the boy was initially determined to be anywhere
from three to five years old, though many sources quoted the
ages as four to six years old.
The body of the boy again led to some problems. It had plenty of
small clues, such as identifying marks, but none were really
prominent. Of course, the body was completely nude, except for
the blanket covering his loin area. If you study the crime scene
photo of the boy inside the box, you can see how little the
blanket covers the body. The belly button is even visible.
Interestingly, the nails, both hands and feet, were cut,
and his hair had been freshly cut, though in a crude, rushed
manner, with small tufts of hair still clinging to the boy’s
body, as if the body had been wet just before or after death.
His arms were lying on each side of his torso with the palms
apparently facing down. The boy weighed 30 lbs. and was 40 1/ 2
inches tall. Of Caucasian ethnicity, he had blue eyes, partially
open, but the eyeballs had already started to sink back toward
the skull by the time of the autopsy. His hair was a light
brown. Four blatant bruises pocked his forehead, which indicated
someone had placed pressure there just before
or just after death perhaps to cut the boys hair in haste. Dr.
Spelman even considered the idea that the boy’s four bruises on
his head led to his death. Which, if the hasty haircut is
considered, could mean the death was accidental, albeit highly
unlikely based upon the totality of the evidence, i.e. multiple
bruising, dumping of the body, etc. The tiny lips were dry and
blotched with blood. His ribs were exposed, indicating
malnutrition. The boy’s “little tummy [was] already greenish
with rot,” by the time William H. Kelly, fingerprint expert for
the Identification Unit, took his prints (Erdely 2003).
Seven scars blotted the body, which were seen as possible clues
to the boy’s identity. Three were possibly surgical in nature:
two on the chest and groin, both well-healed indicating that
they had been created some time before. There was also a “scar
on [the] boy’s left ankle, which looked like a ‘cut down’
incision indicating [the] boy possibly received infusions”
(Philadelphia Bulletin 1957). Dr. Spelman later ordered an
examination of all records at Philadelphia General Hospital to
locate child patients with a record of operations involving
infusions or treatment of an illness.
As a side note, a recent reexamination of the boy’s autopsy by
“Philadelphia Medical Examiner Haresh Mirchandani concluded that
what had been thought to be signs of multiple intravenous
insertions into the boy’s leg - an indication that he might have
been chronically ill - were actually scars from hernia surgery”
(Lewis 1998). There was also a 1 1/ 2 inch scar on his chest,
closer to the left side. He had one round-shaped scar on his
left elbow. Interestingly, his chin had one “L” shaped scar, 1/
4 inch in either direction. There were no vaccination scars
evident, either.
The boy had three moles on the
left side of his face.: one small mole below his right ear;
three small moles on the right side of his chest; and one large
mole on his right arm, two inches above his wrist and in direct
line with his little finger.
Interestingly, the boy’s teeth were a full set, and slightly
buck-toothed, an indication of his age being more likely on the
older estimate of three to five years of age than the younger.
Also, his tonsils were present. Though a later analysis of the
boy’s body by Dr. Wilton M. Krogman considered him to be
minimally malnourished, the presence of tonsils indicates he had
a
somewhat healthy immune system, given that tonsillectomies were
quite common back then, or that his caregiver was uncaring about
the boy’s suffering if in fact he needed them removed. Given the
manner of death, the latter seems more realistic.
The boy’s body had signs of being held under water for some time
either just before or after death. The palm of his right hand
and the soles of both feet were waterlogged or “pruny,” what
investigators call the “washerwoman effect.” Was the boy
submersed in water, perhaps in an attempt to drown him? His left
hand unaffected because it was frantically holding on to the
side of the tub during the act? Dr. Spelman later ruled out
drowning.
Though forensics was limited in 1957 compared to today, the
investigators working the Boy in the Box’s case were very
intuitive. An ultraviolet light was used by Dr. Spelman to scan
over the body so as to look for tiny clues, small fibers,
anything which might reveal something significant. When the
boy’s left eye was exposed to the light, he noticed that the eye
fluoresced a bright blue, indicating a possible use of an eye
medicine to treat an eye infection. Like the cut-down incision,
this was another unique characteristic the investigators could
present when speaking to physicians, hospitals, etc.
A strange finding during the autopsy was the discovery of an
unidentifiable brown liquid in the boy’s throat. To the present
day, with the exception of “M”’ s statements below, no
conclusion has been reached as to what the liquid might have
been. In a later analysis of the body moreover, Dr. Spelman
concluded that the boy had not eaten for at least two to three
hours before death. Was Dr. Spelman mistaken? What significance
if any did this mysterious brown liquid have for the boy’s case?
Given that the official cause of death was being “beaten to
death” (Englade 1999) and that the boy’s body had “multiple head
injuries” (Rothenberg 2000), the x-rays of the boy’s skeleton
interestingly revealed no visible signs of any fractures, either
past or present.
Given that the investigation produced no viable evidence of the
boy’s name, or even of the exact manner in which he died, it was
determined by investigators to ask an anthropology expert to
look over the remains and see if he could come up with some more
clues. Dr. Wilton M. Krogman was Professor of Anthropology at
the Graduate School of Medicine at the University of
Pennsylvania. He was known by the moniker “The Bone Detective”
(Selby 1958). Prior to burial of the boy, he performed an
analysis of the boy’s physical characteristics, including x-rays
of the boy’s body. Anything to help point the investigators in
the right direction. He determined the boy to be 40 inches tall,
which gave the boy a “height age” of approximately three years
and eight months. Yet, the boy only weighed thirty pounds which
indicated a “weight age” of only two years and two months (Selby
1958). To Dr. Krogman, this was an obvious sign of malnutrition
and in fact the x-rays of the leg bones indicated “scars of
arrested growth” (Selby 1958). According to Krogman, this
evidence indicated that the boy’s growth could have been slowed
down “six months to a year” (Selby 1958).
Krogman also speculated that the boy was ill the last year of
his life. Hence, Dr. Krogman’s opinion that the boy’s caretaker
was probably constantly on the move. Perhaps carnival workers.
Perhaps, the boy was a victim of a kidnapping and thus
constantly kept on the run. When asked if he felt the boy might
have been mentally incompetent, and was being raised by an
unstable mother, he could not say. Interestingly, Krogman
recounted how, after his name was placed in the paper about the
case, he received a phone call from a woman. “Can you tell
whether the boy was weak-minded?” she prodded (Selby 1958). Of
course, the woman remained anonymous. But she added to her
initial query “Do you know what it is to take care of an idiot?
Sometimes you get so sick of their crying you can kill them in a
fit of anger. That might be your explanation” (Selby 1958). She
hung up. End of story.
Hoffmann, Jim. The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child
(Revised Edition) (Kindle Locations 195-198). . Kindle Edition.
#Post#: 169--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:47 pm
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Public Awareness
The police tried their best to make the boy’s plight public.
Initially, twelve thousand circulars with the boy’s
identifying information and profile were sent out after the
autopsy. Eventually hundreds of thousands were sent out, many
printed up and paid for by the Philadelphia Inquirer. They were
“handed out on street corners, hung in shop windows, [even]
enclosed with every gas bill” (Erdely 2003). A forty-eight state
police teletype went out as well. Of course, the press began
calling this the “Boy in the Box” case.
Police even “dressed the boy and propped him up in a sitting
position for a postmortem photo” (Rothenberg 2000) in hopes of
creating a flyer with a more natural appearance which might
trigger someone’s memory.
Hoffmann, Jim. The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child
(Revised Edition) (Kindle Locations 255-256). . Kindle Edition.
#Post#: 170--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:52 pm
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The Boy's DNA
Those in the room who understand the young science of DNA
testing see that these remains may present a special challenge.
Judging from the state of the remains, there may be a decent
chance of extracting mitochondrial DNA, but much less chance of
finding nuclear DNA.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 1787-1788). Kindle Edition.
People without degrees in chemistry or biology may find the
difference hard to grasp. Put most simply, nuclear DNA is
inherited from both parents; mitochondrial DNA is passed down
only from mother to offspring. And, crucially for the Boy in the
Box case, mitochondrial DNA is generally easier to extract from
hair, bones, or even teeth if the overall remains are badly
degraded.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 1789-1790). Kindle Edition.
Wearing surgical masks and gloves, the medical technicians
nicians gently poke and prod. At last one of them smiles beneath
his mask and holds up his tweezers to display the prize: a
tooth.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Location 1791). Kindle Edition.
After several failed attempts, mitochondrial DNA has been
obtained from the boy's tooth. If a female ancestor can be
found, maybe the boy can be given his name at long last. And how
will she be found? Perhaps by a computer check, or a
long-suppressed memory, or a confession. Or dumb luck. But, of
course, if a female ancestor had been found, investigators
wouldn't need DNA evidence. And it's been forty-one years.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 1807-1809). Kindle Edition.
But she recalls that her uncle was especially attentive and
affectionate ate toward the child whenever he visited the home
of Mary's parents. Alas, the uncle was on Mary's father's side
of the family, so the unknown child's mitochondrial DNA would be
useless in trying to establish a relationship-if the uncle could
be tracked down, that is.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 2208-2209). Kindle Edition.
"No further progress has been made during the past year," the
society says. "However, the investigators have begun a new
initiative. They are trying to determine if the DNA profile of
America's Unknown Child matches any of the DNA profiles in a
national mitochondrial DNA database."
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 2249-2250). Kindle Edition.
In 1998, the Vidocq Society centered in Philadelphia, a crime
investigation organization of veterans who specialize in cold
case, sought a court order to exhume the remains of the Boy in
the Box, who was laid to rest in the city’s potter’s field
forty-one years prior, for the purpose of DNA extraction. In
November, the order was granted by a judge and Sam Weinstein
oversaw the disinterment of the boy’s remains. He had the help
of Philadelphia investigators as well as the FBI’s Evidence
Recovery Team. Initially working alone, Weinstein was later
joined by Joseph McGillen and William H. Kelly, two other
stalwarts of the Boy in the Box investigation.
Hoffmann, Jim. The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child
(Revised Edition) (Kindle Locations 613-616). . Kindle Edition.
Thanks to the efforts of the Vidocq Society, the boy now had DNA
for future comparison, as well as a nice, respectable final
resting place, a new black granite tombstone, and a name:
“America’s Unknown Child.” The investigators fully felt that the
boy at least deserved something. He at least deserved a name.
Hoffmann, Jim. The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child
(Revised Edition) (Kindle Locations 785-787). . Kindle Edition.
State Police begin checking state-run institutions to coincide
with Welfare Commissioner Randolph E. Wise’s efforts. Police
announce theory that killer cut boy’s hair to conceal identity,
though unclear if hair cut immediately before or after death.
Police announce they believe boy lived locally and was not from
out of town.
Hoffmann, Jim. The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child
(Revised Edition) (Kindle Locations 918-920). . Kindle Edition.
On November 3, 1998, the boy’s remains were exhumed for the
purposes of DNA extraction, which was successfully taken from
the boy’s teeth. On November 11, 1998, the boy was reburied at
Ivy Hill Cemetery. The Vidocq Society, which paid for the
exhumation, DNA extraction, and reburial of the boy, chose to
name the boy, if just symbolically.
Hoffmann, Jim. The Boy in the Box: America's Unknown Child
(Revised Edition) (Kindle Locations 1302-1304). . Kindle
Edition.
#Post#: 171--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:53 pm
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Tom Augustine was a Philadelphia Detective who didn't believe
the daughter's story. He was antagonistic and spoke out that she
was not mentally stable.
Weeks later Augustine is accused of using cocaine. He insists
that the random departmental test came back wrong. But never
mind, he says. He doesn't want to spend time and money fighting
it. Because of his exemplary record, he is allowed to retire.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 2255-2256). Kindle Edition.
#Post#: 172--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:55 pm
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HTML http://i.imgur.com/pkWMtmH.jpg
HTML http://i.imgur.com/kG4WVwy.jpg
On the way my mother stopped at a little diner so I could get
something to eat. Imagine! I guess I was hungry. I think I had a
donut. But before we'd gone too far, I begged my mother to pull
over. Then I opened the car door and threw up. My mother was
angry about that, but I couldn't help it. Then we went home and
tried to act like everything thing was normal. Like we were
normal.
David Stout. The Boy in the Box: The Unsolved Case of America's
Unknown Child (Kindle Locations 2024-2027). Kindle Edition.
The diner above is a well known diner in the Mayfair section of
Philadelphia. It has been there for many years. I wonder if this
is where the librarian took her daughter after dumping the boy
in Fox Chase.
#Post#: 173--------------------------------------------------
Re: THE BOY IN THE BOX: WM, 4-6, found in Philadelphia, PA, Feb
1957
By: Akoya Date: November 25, 2018, 12:57 pm
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www.joesherlock.com
Crown molding on the roof is new - but continues to offer the
same delicious, generous servings which has made it famous since
its inception in 1932.
HTML http://i.imgur.com/t8s7p1A.jpg
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