"Gene Leroy Hart wasn't the first guilty party to walk out of a courtroom after being charged with a crime, and he won't be the last. Reed, who spoke at length to ABC, said the latest DNA testing resulted in several partial profiles of the killer. OSBI Agent Larry Bowles is on the left with OSBI Agent Bud Ousley on the other side. The photo shows an aerial view taken of the Great Hall on June 24, 1977 at Camp Scott, the camp where three girl scouts were murdered earlier in June 1977. You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. They were sharing tent #7 in the camp's "Kiowa" unit which was located the farthest from the camp counselor's tent,[6] and partially obscured by the camps showers. They claimed evidence being planted to frame Hart, partly motivated by racial factors. But the fact that Hart had escaped Mayes Jail and evaded Sherriff Sherriff Glen Pete Weaver led many to believe there was a personal vendetta driving the manhunt. Family members of the victims spoke to ABC News Studios. To make sure none of the Girl Scout campers returning to Tulsa from Camp Scott were unaccounted for, each was checked off a list when her parents came by to pick her up on June 13, 1977. "She tried twice to get the genetic markers to make the call," Jeffries said. Hart died June 4, 1979, after suffering a heart attack while jogging at the state penitentiary in McAlester. For decades now, Ive been fascinated and horrified by true crime and I know that its because of those three little girls, those three angels whom Ive never forgotten. Unsolved 1977 murder and rape of three girl scouts in Oklahoma, "Convict Acquitted in Death of 3 Girl Scouts", "DNA points to longtime primary suspect in 1977 Girl Scout slayings, sheriff says", "Survivor Didn't Like Tent Where Girls Died", "12 Facts About The Unsolved Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders", "40 years ago, the murders of three Girl Scouts in Oklahoma stunned the nation, created shockwaves still being felt", "Jury Finds in Favor Of Scout Council Slain Girls' Parents "Shocked', "Girl Scout murders in Oklahoma remain unsolved 40 years after tragedy", "True crime: The Oklahoma Girl Scouts who didn't come home from camp", "Jury acquits suspect in Girl Scout murders", "Autopsy shows Hart died of heart attack", "DNA Tests Link Gene Leroy Hart to Girl Scout Deaths", "DNA Testing Inconclusive in Girl Scout Murder Case", "My Daughter Was Killed at Girl Scout Camp: How an Okla. Kristin Chenoweth revisits her hometown in new a ABC News original docuseries. Bo Farmer, the father of Lori Farmer, said that he believes Harts heritage mattered during the trial. Up until the day to go to camp, she was excited about it. Hart, 35, was serving sentences for earlier rape convictions. Given the DNA results, you have to wonder if there wasn't also a female who took part in the murders.". The swabs taken from the girls were not conclusive. One previous DNA effort, in 1989, also produced a partial profile matching Hart. Lori Farmer, 8, Michelle Guse, 9, and Doris Milner, 10, were brutally raped and murdered while away at summer camp in Locust Grove, Oklahoma nearly 45 years ago. WebThe Oklahoma Girl Scout murders took place on the morning of June 13 1977 at Camp Scott in Mayes County Oklahoma United States. She had head injuries and her hands were tied behind her back. "It was gradual. A flashlight lay on top. WebThe Oklahoma Girl Scout murders took place on the morning of June 13 1977 at Camp Scott in Mayes County Oklahoma United States. He had been found guilty of kidnapping and raping two pregnant women as well as four counts of first-degree burglary, when he managed to escape. The women were bound with duct tape and rope. Apart from Gene Hart, there was no other suspect in the case that had not been excluded by DNA, an alibi, or other evidence. The unusual date format is said to be used by both the military and the prison system. Really? "This DNA fingerprinting is nothing more than a subjective evaluation, X-ray type photographs and just like any other X-ray you get two or three people looking at them and they might have different opinions and interpretations," Isaacs said. Sheri Farmer, mother of Lori Lee Farmer, has always suspected there may have been a female present at the time of her daughter's death. She said she turned to theater and music to help cope with learning about the traumatic event at a young age. Reed says one of the big myths people have bought into is, there were two different knots used to tie up the girls, which would mean two people were involved, but Reed says he's proven that to be false. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, which was called in to assist with the initial investigation four decades ago, recently submitted physical evidence from the Girl Scout murders for new DNA testing with the No full DNA profile has ever been developed in the case, so officially the testing results are considered inconclusive.. WebThe Oklahoma Girl Scout murders took place on the morning of June 13, 1977, at Camp Scott in Mayes County, Oklahoma, United States. Reed says all the DNA from the scene matched the three girls and Hart. Bettye Milner, the mother of Doris Denise Milner, said that her pain still feels like her daughter was killed yesterday. In May 2022, the Hayes authorities announced more DNA tests had been carried out in 2019 that strongly pointed to Hart's involvement in the killings. Over time, DNA has been collected from potential suspects. Thirty years later, authorities conducted new DNA testing, the results of which proved inconclusive because the samples were too old. The forest was so dense in parts that it was not uncommon for some of the 600 searchers to become lost on occasion. And the focus was there will be justice for Lori and Michelle and Denise, said Farmer. My daughter was one of them, said Milner. The defense carefully dismantled the prosecutions case: The bloody footprint in the tent was too small to be Harts. One time, a dog returned to the tracker and had seemed to have been struck. But DNA evidence was not available then, plus, Reed's conclusions go far beyond DNA. He also helped found the Oklahoma Crime Victims Compensation Board. He said the two knots were technically the same. It was the largest manhunt in state history. Although police retrieved no weapon or fingerprints, they did uncover a single hair that analysis said could belong to a Native American such as suspect Gene Leroy Hart along with items possibly stolen from the camp that authorities linked to him. Reed says through his investigation he tried to find probable cause to prove someone else committed the crime. He says that frustration began in 1966, when Hart kidnapped two pregnant women at gunpoint, drove them to the middle of nowhere in Mayes County, tied them up, raped them repeatedly, covered them in brush and left them for dead. [12] In 2008, authorities conducted new DNA testing on stains found on a pillowcase, the results of which proved inconclusive because the samples were "too deteriorated to obtain a DNA profile". [21], A four-part ABC News documentary series, titled Keeper of the Ashes: The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders, about the case was released on Hulu on May 24, 2022, a few weeks before the 45th anniversary of the crimes. Keep scrolling for our 7-part podcast series chronicling the Oklahoma Girl Scout murders in 1977, Mayes County Sheriff Mike Reed said, Unless something new comes up, something brought to light we are not aware of, I am convinced where Im sitting of Harts guilt and involvement in this case.. In June 1977, three young girl scouts went off to summer camp for two weeks at Camp Scott, Mayes County, in the Ozark Hills of Oklahoma. Beyond that the family would have no comment, she said. Hart was charged with the killings but was found not guilty by a jury and acquitted in March 1979. I don't think this has anything to do to eliminate him," Jeffries said. Says Sheryl Stokes, Loris childhood friend: People just want to know what happened and who did this?. Girl Scout Murders: DNA Closes The Case 45 Years Later. The film uncovers the case of the 1977 Oklahoma Girl Scout murders and follows a new investigation of DNA evidence from the crime scene in an attempt to name the But, Gene Leroy Hart had size 11 feet. Hart was a Cherokee Indian. Statistically, DNA from 1 in 7,700 Native Americans would obtain these results. But I had gotten sick and mom said, You can't go. And I remember being devastated, said Chenoweth. [14] In 2022, authorities made public that DNA evidence strongly suggests Hart's involvement. Inside the empty doughnut box was a disturbing hand-written note, stating in capital letters, "We are on a mission to kill three girls in tent one." "On purpose, I tried to put and prove somebody else was there, somebody else did this, and it was not him. He was tried in March 1979. Harts reply was, apparently, Youll never pin it on me. [13] In 2017, $30,000 in donations were raised by the sheriff in order to do new DNA tests using the latest advances in testing. An aerial photo of the scene where Lori Lee Farmer, 8; Michele Guse, 9; and Doris Denise Milner, 10 were murdered when they camped out at Camp Scott during a Girl Scout outing 40 years ago. In 1985, by a 93 vote, jurors decided in favor of Magic Empire. A 10-month manhunt led authorities to arrest and charge a convicted rapist with ties to the area who had escaped from jail four years earlier. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. In the mountain overlooking Camp Scott, OSBI agent Arthur Linville found a cave with some unusual items. It's different than a death. A rope and towel were wrapped around the childs neck. Please subscribe to keep reading. The one that they missed, she said. In fact, Reed added, at this point, Hart excepted, theres no suspect attached to this case that has not been excluded in one way or another, whether its DNA, whether its alibi, whether its polygraph test, whatever.. And I never doubted their reasons for naming Hart as the suspect. Investigators utilized new DNA testing that wasnt available during Harts 1979 murder trial, according to Reed. A further link to the camp was made when it was discovered that part of the newspaper had been torn out and matched some found inside the red flashlight at the crime scene. At the time of his arrest, the Native American population did not trust the justice system and questioned if he was arrested because of his heritage. [18], Another parent, Sheri Farmer, founded the Oklahoma chapter of Parents of Murdered Children, a support group. "Every person that was looked at as a suspect, there is not a piece of DNA that we have not been able to identify, said Reed. Murder suspect Gene Leroy Hart is led from the Mayes County Courthouse back to jail following his arraignment on April 7, 1978. Which is located in Mayes County slightly northeast of Tulsa. On June 4, 1979, Hart collapsed and died of a heart attack, after about an hour of lifting weights and jogging in the prison exercise yard. This April 7, 1978 edition of the Tulsa World chronicles the apprehension of Gene Leroy Hart, the primary suspect in the 1977 killings of three Girl Scouts. They were brutally The civil trial included discussion of the threatening note and the fact that tent #7 was 86 yards (79m) from the counselors' tent. I tried to put myself on the other side of this, said Reed. S.M. It is evil from the get-go. The weapons themselves were never found. Since then, the killings of Farmer, Milner and And that means everything to Sheri Farmer and her husband Bo, who are grateful to Reed, the OSBI agents and all the others, who have finally given them the truth. Reed said at this point, Hart excepted, theres no suspect attached to this case that has not been excluded in one way or another, whether its DNA, whether its alibi, whether its polygraph test, whatever.. Barbara Day calls Highway Patrol officer Harold Berry. WebEarly in the morning of June 13, camp counselor Carla Emery, 18, was walking to the showers when she let out a shriek of horror. Nine years ago, Lori Farmers' parents sat down with current Mayes County Sheriff Mike Reed and asked him to take a new look at the case and give it a fresh set of eyes. Developed pictures of women found in the cave were linked to escaped convict Gene Leroy Hart but it would take 10 months to find him. They tried to frame him, Harts attorney, Garvin Isaacs, tells PEOPLE. Sent back to prison after the acquittal to complete his prior sentence, Hart died two months later, in 1979, leaving the mystery of who murdered 8-year-old Lori Farmer, 9-year-old Michele Guse and 10-year-old Denise Milner officially unsolved for more than 40 years. On June 4, 1979, two years after the murders, Hart collapsed and died of a heart attack at the age of 35 after about an hour of lifting weights and jogging in the prison exercise yard. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. [I] could have, would have, should have been on that trip. In 2022, Hulu followed Chenoweth back to her hometown as she hoped to breathe new life into the case and help the victims' families find closure.At the end of each camp, one of the girls would become the keeper of the ashes from the last bonfire. "I never thought I would still be haunted by these murders," she said. Hart was acquitted in March 1979 after the jury delivered a unanimous not guilty verdict. She was sexually assaulted, bludgeoned, and strangled to death. "If all five probes had matched it would have been one in 3 billion," one source said. Oklahoma City Gets A New Shrine And Maybe A Saint, Science And Secrets Underground: Utah Lab Studying Remains From Tulsa's Oaklawn Cemetery, Kobe Bryant Family Settles Photo Lawsuit For $28.5 Million, Long-Lost Ship Found In Lake Huron, Confirming Tragic Story, Man Killed In Cheyenne Tornado Identified. "There is no DNA to test. I mean, it doesnt diminish your pain, said Milner. I would say I did not know her, but did I maybe see her in the hallway and say, Hey, said Chenoweth. In 1989, DNA testing showed that Harts DNA matched three of the five samples, but the results were not enough to conclude that Hart was the murderer. The victims were three Girl Scouts, between the ages of 8 and 10, who were raped and murdered. [11], Two of the families later sued the Magic Empire Council and its insurer for $5 million, alleging negligence. Inside the empty doughnut box was a hand-written note, stating in capital letters, "We are on a mission to kill three girls in tent one." Fortunately, the women managed to untie themselves and raise the alarm. The victims were three. It was also leaked to the press that sperm was found in the semen evidence, but Hart was known to have had a vasectomy. Gene Leroy Hart, who died in 1979 while in prison on unrelated charges, was acquitted for the slayings two years earlier of Lori Farmer, 8, Michele Guse, 9, and Denise Milner, 10, at Camp Scott near Locust Grove. "Mike is one of those people. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. The layout of the camp meant that the tents were not evenly spaced, nor were the campsites placed equally along the Cookie Trail. Them another cave was found around 1 mile from the camp, on the land of Jack Shroff. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. WebABC News In 1977, three young Girl Scouts aged 8, 9, and 10 were found murdered after a camping trip. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! A prisoner told police about its existence, claiming he had met Hart there after the murders. I see a problem with that. Mayes County Sheriff Reed said that new DNA evidence developed would have convicted Gene Leroy Hart of the murders of Girl Scouts Lori Farmer, 8, Michelle Guse, 9, and Doris Milner, 10, during the 1979 trial at which he was acquitted. They probably were in the middle of finding their purpose, what they loved, what they would have been., 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Serial Killer Indicted in 1989 Murder of Author's Daughter, Denver Police Say Man Who Killed Cop 40 Years Ago Is Also Responsible for 4 Women's Murders, Fla. Police Say They've Identified a Serial Killer After 20-Year Investigation into 3 Women's Murders, 1995 Cold Case Murder of a 14-Year-Old Atlanta Girl Solved After More Than 25 Years, Suspect's Daughter Helps Wash. Police Solve 1959 Murder of 9-Year-Old Camp Fire Girl Out Selling Mints, My Daughter Was Killed at Girl Scout Camp: How an Okla. Mayes County Sheriff Glen "Pete" Weaver (wearing white hat) is on the far right. Chenoweth said that the year the girls were killed, she had begged her mom to attend the same camp but ended up staying home. The director of that camp session treated the note as a prank, and it was discarded.[3][4]. The arrest of Gene Leroy Hart by Agent Larry Bowles (to the left of Hart) April 1978. It's different than a loss because our daughter was murdered, said Lori Farmers mother Sheri. All three girls had been raped. Who was responsible for these infamous and terrible murders in the beautiful forest around Camp Scott? I will clarify some miss information [sic], Reed posted. In 2008, authorities conducted new DNA testing on stains found on a pillowcase, the results of which proved inconclusive because the samples were "too deteriorated to obtain a DNA profile". For the tests, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation officials tried to use a semen-stained pillowcase that had been retrieved from the crime scene. Kristin Chenoweth on the Twist of Fate That Saved Her from Being a Victim in the 1977 Girl Scout Murders, Murder of 12-Year-Old Girl Solved Nearly 43 Years Later in Texas, But Killer Was Executed for Other Killing, Notorious 'Torso Killer' Indicted in 1968 Murder of N.Y. Dance Teacher Who Was Found Strangled in Her Car, Skeletal Remains Found in 1974 Identified as Missing Teen Susan Poole, Possible Link to Florida Serial Killer. The rope and tape had recently been stolen from a farm a mile from Camp Scott. The case will not be closed unilaterally by any one investigative agency and will only be closed when and if the familys [sic], OSBI, the Sheriffs Office, and the District Attorneys Office all agree to do so.. Reed said the latest DNA testing resulted in several partial profiles of the killer. Chenoweth said that although she did not know the three girls personally, she had attended the same school as Michele Guse and Guse's mother had been her brothers teacher. On his left is Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agent Larry Bowles and on Harts right is OSBI agent Bud Ousley. Keeper of the Ashes: The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders is streaming on Hulu now. They found Hart not guilty of the murders. 5 People Vanished Along the Snake River Beginning in 1979: Will Police Finally Catch a Serial Killer? "All evidence every bit of the evidence points directly to him. To the detriment of the Oklahoma Girl Scouts case, Hart died at the age of 35 on June 4, 1979, from a heart attack. The victims were Lori Farmer, eight, Michelle Guse, nine, and Doris Milner, ten. On April 6, 1978, OSBI officers surrounded the shack and arrested Hart. Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. If there absolutely was no DNA, whatsoever, just the information that I know now, that was not allowed to be shown to the jury, there is absolutely no doubt whatsoever, Gene Hart is the person who committed these crimes, said Reed. "With three of five matching it is one in 7,700. The case was classified as solved when Gene Leroy Hart, a local jail escapee with a history of violence, and rape, was arrested. Mom Seeks Justice 40 Years After Slaying, Delphi Murders: 5 Years Later, Victim's Sister Clinging to Hope That Killer Will Be Caught, The Gruesome Murders of 2 Teen Hitchhikers Shocked an Ore. Community 43 Years Later, Police Close the Case, Man Charged with 2003 Kidnapping and Rape Also Suspected in Lindsey Baum's 2009 Disappearance. He said you can never rule out touch DNA or DNA from skin cells left behind by human contact. Two bodies were inside a sleeping bag crumpled towards the bottom of the bag, one body was visible on the outside. In 2016, Mayes County Sheriff Mike Reed raised $30,000 in donations to reopen the case and carry out new DNA testing, reported People. Ranker.com detailed that although experts were able to confirm the DNA did not belong to two of the victims, they could not exclude the possibility the DNA could belong to the third victim. He was arrested on April 6, 1978, 10 months after the killings. The polymerase chain reaction/short tandem repeat test that was used represents state-of-the-art forensics technology and has a good track record with old, deteriorated evidence. The sites were given Native American tribe names and consisted of canvas tents placed on wooden platforms, roughly set around a stone-encircled campfire, with enough room for four kids to share each tent. Less than two months before the murders, during an on-site training session, a counselor at Camp Scott discovered that her belongings had been ransacked and her doughnuts had been stolen. Agents said he evidence against Hart was "extensive for the murders of Farmer, Guse and Milner. He also places another sleeping bag over the naked lower half of Denise. Kristin Chenoweth, 53, is the host of the upcoming ABC News true crime docuseries Keeper of the Ashes: The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders. They were brutally sexually assaulted and murdered in their tent number 8, in the Kiowa sub-camp, under the nose of camp counselors. I don't know that. In the weeks after the murders, a security company was employed to guard the camp which had now been vacated of all staff. Doug Hicks/Tulsa World file, Gene Leroy Hart (center) is led into the Oklahoma State Penitentiary on April 6, 1978, after his capture. Gene Leroy Hart is escorted to the Mayes County Jail on April 7, 1978 by state law officer Roger Chrisco. The four-part series also explores the intricacies of the case, how authorities are still uncovering new leads and the impact of the killings on the victim's families. He shared the DNA results with them in 2019 and only recently decided to make them public at their request. Hart eventually admitted to both the rapes and burglaries, sentenced to a total of 305 years as he had tried to evade the first trial, attempted to kill his rape victims, and committed further crimes whilst on parole. Red underwear, a picture of two women (which looked like a wedding photo), and a newspaper were found along with a pair of glasses that belonged to a Camp Scott counselor. The latest testing was able to eliminate several who had not been previously eliminated, he said. It has stuck with me my whole life.. You have babies, eight, nine and ten year old babies, innocent, that were beat to death and sexually assaulted, said Reed. It does not appear that the OSBI pursued this informant as a suspect in the girl scout murders. BIOG: NAME: 2023 www.oklahoman.com. Mayes County Sheriff Glen "Pete" Weaver (wearing white hat) is on the far left. In 1979, Hart was tried and acquitted in the deaths of Michelle Guse, 9, of Broken Arrow, and Lorie Lee Farmer, 8, and Doris Denise Milner, 10, both of Tulsa. Tulsa World File, Gene Leroy Hart (center) is led into the Oklahoma State Penitentiary on April 6, 1978, the night of his capture. They had been left on a trail leading to the showers, about 150 yards from their tent. One later reported seeing what she thought was a flashlight and hearing moaning that she thought might be an animal. OSBI spokesman Paul Renfrow and Mayes County District Attorney T. Jack Graves said they could not discuss the test results because of Oklahoma law that prohibits public disclosure of OSBI investigative reports. Due to the size of Camp Scott, it was hard for law enforcement to secure it while they searched for evidence. At around 7 p.m. on Sunday, June 12, 1977, the night before camp started, the girls huddled in their tents. They also spoke of seeing silhouettes in the dense woodland on multiple occasions, and sometimes dogs were used to try and track whoever was out there. We were the parents of the kids from Tulsa Big Town, said Farmer. Doris Milner had been bound and her mouth stuffed with a pre-made gag before being walked over to the area where the bodies were eventually found. OSBI spokesman Chuck Jeffries said the recent efforts to extract DNA from the pillowcase were not successful. The four-part series, which will release on Hulu, is expected to premiere around the 45th anniversary of the crimes on June 13, although no official release date has been announced. On June 13, 1977, the bodies of three murdered Girl Scouts were discovered on a trail near where they were attending an overnight camp, known as Camp Scott, outside Mayes County, Oklahoma. According to these security guards, there was evidence that someone was still stalking the camp, leaving footprints in fresh sand and leaving doors opened that had previously been shut. Hart's mother, who lives in Locust Grove, could not be reached. OSBI agents Larry Bowles and Harvey Pratt were both from the same tribe, and they received help from a respected medicine man named Crying Wolf. They had no idea whathe and OSBI agents would uncover. and it was discarded. One day, the security guards returned to the great hall, which they used as an office when they found a bag had been left by the door. "It's a journey I wouldn't wish on anyone. All rights reserved. Later these would be confirmed as being Lori Farmer and Michele Guse. Gene Leroy Hart identified as a suspect in the killing of three Girl Scouts. Reed said the only reason he decided to relook at the decades-old case was that the families asked him to after he was elected in 2012. Two weeks after the murders a farmer reported that he had seen Gene Hart on a hillside. As she did so, she spotted something at the fork of the trail. But the jurors in rural Mayes County were unconvinced and found Hart, 33, not guilty. But over four decades later, the latest DNA testing in the case, although officially inconclusive, strongly suggests Harts involvement, officials say, while eliminating several other potential suspects. They were both sexually assaulted. The butts tested positive for the same O-type blood as Hart. It was 1977, when three young campers, Lori Farmer, Michelle Guse and Denise Milner were raped and murdered in Mayes County and even though a suspect was arrested and tried, he was also acquitted and that has led to questions and wild conspiracy theories ever since. He said there is nothing in the FBI's findings to warrant placing the case on active status again. DNA Testing Inconclusive In Girl Scout Murder Case. Kiowa camp happened to be set furthest west and more isolated away from the trail than the others. There was an arrest, a trial and a acquittal and ultimately, remained unsolved. Hart was raised about a mile from Camp Scott and was a native American, Cherokee. "But through the years and knowing what's been investigated, I feel comfortable that that was the person in the beginning and it is still the person who committed our daughter's murder. The April 7, 1978, edition of The Tulsa Tribune chronicles the capture of Gene Leroy Hart, the primary suspect in the 1977 killings of three Girl Scouts. Police were looking for a killer or VDOMDHTMLDOCTYPE html> Four decades after he was acquitted, the latest DNA testing in the case of the Oklahoma Girl Scout murders strongly suggests Gene Leroy Hart's involvement, officials say. DNA points to longtime primary suspect in 1977 Oklahoma Girl Scout slayings, sheriff says Keeper of the Ashes: The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders is the new true-crime documentary on Hulu about the tragic sexual assault and murder of Lori Lee Farmer, 8, Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. Carla Wilhites alarm went off at 6 am so that she could shower before her girls woke up. According to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Hart had been serving a sentence of more than 300 years fora series of violent burglaries he committed while on parole after being convicted of the kidnapping and rape of two pregnant women in 1966. EN RU CN DE ES. The accused was Native American and the population was a large percentage Native American. Glen "Pete" Weaver, Mayes County Sheriff, during the search for Gene Leroy Hart in 1977. The victims were three. "I heard it forever when I was growing up, oh they just looked at one person. The guards began leaving threads tied between trees to see which paths the intruder was using and they would find them broken on further investigations. It doesn't matter how many people have been through it. But evidence collection and preservation in the 1970s was not done with the care and precision that would make touch DNA valuable in this case, he said. 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