ID ID - Lonnie Jones, 13, Orofino, September 1951

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Hi All-I am new to this case-great work from all of you....can someone please tell me how I can read the full text of the stories Ausgirl found,I am just get a LITTLE portion of them-I am very interested in this case.Thank you
 
Another idea I am toying with.....either it was a complete "oh sh--, why me" coincidence that George Wood happened upon Lonnie's body, or maybe....if he was the killer and tried to place the body somewhere it would be found, he got ticked off that it hadn't. So he'd have to come up with some excuse to "find" it himself. I was at first under the impression that the body was found the next day after Lonnie went missing - but after reading it was days later, it made me think of George Wood - before this, I just thought George Wood was the unlucky sob who had to live his life with the visual of finding poor Lonnie in that condition. If George Wood is truly innocent - then I would believe just about anything regarding his behavior after finding Lonnie's body - it must have truly been horrifying - especially for such a small town....
Just my opinions for this moment....
 
Oh and BTW....one time, when I was staying in a very remote part of Montana, I went outside to ready my stuff (hunting) at around 4am....out on the main dirt road ("main" meaning the only road that cut through this area - believe me, not much traffic even during the day), a pickup driving at a good clip, stopped short a few yards down from our cabin, got out - vomited and got back into his truck to keep going. Many guys drink long and hard on weekend nights only to hightail it off to the ranch where they work without stopping home with distances being huge from one ranch to another.....just a little something that might explain George's movements that early.
 
Interesting thread and good sleuthing. I have a question that popped into my mind while reading the newpaper article [first one]. Is there an autopsy report that can be obtained? Particularly Lonnie's fingers; were there particles of debris that contained dirt or leaves, grasses or seeds? If not, was he detained in the trunk of a car or the back of a pickup while bound? Was there any indication of animal remains or fur/hide? Was he contained in a pen of some sort that would cause his fingers to have wood fragments imbedded in them? If he was frantically scraping with his hands this suggests imprisonment.
Is there any indication of Lonnie's physicality? Was he a tall 12 year old or slight in build? That his hands were bound and he was blindfolded suggests, to me, that the perp needed to contain him. If it were a larger man and Lonnie was slightly built there would be no need for the hand binding, Lonnie could be easily controlled. The need to do that could also show that it was a 'mental exercise' by the killer; a mind game to induce more terror, as if more were needed. :(
 
Another thought; what was the age of the step brother? Older than Lonnie; if so how much older?
 
Creole said:
Oh and BTW....one time, when I was staying in a very remote part of Montana, I went outside to ready my stuff (hunting) at around 4am....out on the main dirt road ("main" meaning the only road that cut through this area - believe me, not much traffic even during the day), a pickup driving at a good clip, stopped short a few yards down from our cabin, got out - vomited and got back into his truck to keep going. Many guys drink long and hard on weekend nights only to hightail it off to the ranch where they work without stopping home with distances being huge from one ranch to another.....just a little something that might explain George's movements that early.
Click to expand...
A distinct possibilty(Wish could say ive never been there back in the day)
In my mind Wood remains a definite person of interest.
 
Jacie Estes said:
Interesting thread and good sleuthing. I have a question that popped into my mind while reading the newpaper article [first one]. Is there an autopsy report that can be obtained? Particularly Lonnie's fingers; were there particles of debris that contained dirt or leaves, grasses or seeds? If not, was he detained in the trunk of a car or the back of a pickup while bound? Was there any indication of animal remains or fur/hide? Was he contained in a pen of some sort that would cause his fingers to have wood fragments imbedded in them? If he was frantically scraping with his hands this suggests imprisonment.
Is there any indication of Lonnie's physicality? Was he a tall 12 year old or slight in build? That his hands were bound and he was blindfolded suggests, to me, that the perp needed to contain him. If it were a larger man and Lonnie was slightly built there would be no need for the hand binding, Lonnie could be easily controlled. The need to do that could also show that it was a 'mental exercise' by the killer; a mind game to induce more terror, as if more were needed. :(
Click to expand...
Lonnie was not a large boy from what ive been told even for twelve.
The condition of his fingers suggests some very disturbing scenarios to a very disturbing case.
Websleuther Ausgirl uncovered all the contemporary articles about the case for which I am very grateful.
Using that archive she provided I even found the article in the August 22nd 1954 edition of The LewistonTribune about my aunts death in that car crash not far from where Lonnie was found.
Its called " Three Orofino Youths Die in Crash"
 
Heya Kline - hope all's well now? I've been a little out of action myself, but still looking in now and then to see if there's anything new in this case.

SyraKelly, as far as I know you can get the full text of most of those articles just by clicking. I did - unless they've made the papers pay per view now (I --haaate-- when they do that! jeez.). You could try a different browser? I use Firefox.

Orrin (middle name George, from memory..?) Wood is a possible perp in my mind, too, Kline. I can't shake the feeling that something's off with him.

And hiya Creole, glad to see you here. I think the hand-binding was maybe like the blindfolding - probably not necessary, but it gave the perp a thrill.

Good questions, Jacie I wish we had details that could help, both understanding the crime and also to maybe link it to others.

As far as I know, the step-brother (Dell Jr) was several years older than Lonnie at the time - around 15, I think. He was playing team sports then, and was quite a local hero. Then he got some girl pregnant and joined the army a few years after Lonnie died, and ended up divorced because of mistreating his wife (she sued on grounds of 'cruelty').

I wonder who the relative was who skipped town right after the murder? The one who reupholstered his car, before he left. All I know is that it was said he was a 'cousin' or something. Mother's side, or stepdad's? A name could help us check if any other crimes dogged his footsteps over the years.
 
Lonnie's Grandmother dies

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...3443,186488&dq=alex+spence+weippe+idaho&hl=en

Could possibly be Lonnie's Grandfather

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...4432,435289&dq=alex+spence+weippe+idaho&hl=en

Don't know if this has been posted. It alludes to Lonnie having been taken from behind when his throat was cut.
''The Long ride home'
http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...046,5083323&dq=alex+spence+weippe+idaho&hl=en

Look here...''Logger in jail on morals charge'' Orrin C wood
http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AAIBAJ&pg=3690,3857288&dq=weippe+murder&hl=en
 
Holy cripes, Robin. Good find on the morals charge!

So Wood found Lonnie's precise location. Acted funny. Then molested a girl just two years older than Lonnie three weeks after the murder.

My gut feelings are rarely wrong. Wood is 'off' alright -- but is he a killer?

Truth serum... Okay so, let's check what's currently known about the reliability of sodium thiapental, or 'Pentathol', to give its brand name (truth serum).

My first bit of research turned up:

This drug received its nickname "truth serum" after its effects. After taking "truth serum" the patients become very communicative, sharing their thoughts without hesitation. It is common misperception to assume that the truth serum will make you tell the truth. The patient may lose the inhibition, but will not lose self-control. Therefore, the patient will not tell the truth if he/she chooses not to do so.

And Wiki says:

Some psychiatrists hypothesize that because lying is more complex than telling the truth, suppression of the higher cortical functions may lead to the uncovering of the truth. The drug tends to make subjects chatty and cooperative with interrogators; however, the reliability of confessions made under thiopental is questionable.

Which all means truth serum is quite beatable, if you're not terribly interested in telling the truth.

Ausguts - 1
Orrin Wood - 0

ETA: And that's his grandpa, alright. Did you see the personals ad about the waffle iron, just to the right of that? Lol. Fail.

ETAA: As for "contributing to the delinquency of a minor" - I can't be sure what that meant in Idaho in 1951, but here's a recent definition of the charge from West's Encyclopedia of American Law:

Any action by an adult that allows or encourages illegal behavior by a person under the age of 18, or that places children in situations that expose them to illegal behavior. Contributing to the delinquency of a minor can be as simple as keeping a child home from school and thus, making the child a truant. It also can manifest itself in more serious behavior. For example, an adult who commits a crime in the presence of a child can be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, as can an adult who serves alcoholic beverages to anyone under the legal drinking age. Still more egregious is sexual exploitation, which could include having sexual relations with minors or engaging in the production or trafficking of Child *advertiser censored*.
 
Hi Ausgirl!
And Robin,ditto on the excellent find!!
Wow. So Wood is jailed on a contributing beef involving a minor mere weeks after finding Lonnie's body.....
Forgive me if im not overwhelmed by the powers that be declaring it has 'nothing to do' with Lonnies case based on the administration of a vintage 1951 Sodium Penathol test under God only knows what circumstances...
It certainly changes my point of view vis Mr. Wood.
It would be interesting to know what other little problems Wood encountered over the years involving adolecents?
As far as the cousin with the car...
very probably unjustly he was always the punchline to the Urban Legend "and then one of Lonnie's older cousins had his car reapolestered and he left town..."
However Im starting to think my comment about Wood looking like Ted Bundy's Dad might not be that funny after all....
 
Holy cripes lol

I can't find it now but I'm sure weeks ago I found a farm where Woods was living and it was just off the Greer road going up to Weippe. I could of course be wrong and may have got it confused with another case.
Anyway, if I wanted to (trust me I don't) kidnap somebody on the spur of the moment wouldn't the best approach be surprise. Drive past, park up and wait. If it was just a moment thing it maybe wasn't supposed to end in murder, maybe just sexual assault.
Jump out in the dark, use his own hankerchief to blindfold him, use my trouser belt on his hands and bungle him into the truck. Take him to a secluded outbuilding, assault him and then take him away again and let him go. If Lonnie got a look at me then he would have to be killed, if he didn't then leave him by the road.
How many times do we hear that an attack got out of hand and wasn't supposed to end that way.
I would have expected the perp to do it again unless it was a one off 'mistake'
Just thinking out loud, a very serious crime that appears to not be repeated again in the area.
Apologies if my scenario is graphic and offends.
 
Just to throw this in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Tilden#Sexuality_and_morals_charges

William Tatem Tilden II ( Tennis Player)

Sexuality and morals chargesTilden was arrested in November 1946 on Sunset Boulevard by the Beverly Hills police and charged with a misdemeanor ("contributing to the delinquency of a minor") for soliciting an underage male, a 14-year-old boy with whom he was having sex in a moving vehicle. Because of his vanity he did not carry his glasses with him and signed a confession without reading it.[9] He was sentenced to a year in prison, but served 7½ months. His five-year parole conditions were so strict they virtually erased all his income that he earned from private lessons.[10] He was arrested again in January 1949, after picking up a 16-year-old hitchhiker who remained anonymous until years later, when he filed a lawsuit claiming he had suffered severe mental, physical and emotional damage from the encounter. The judge sentenced a year on probation violation and let the punishment for the charge run concurrently. Tilden served ten months. In both cases, apparently, he sincerely believed that his celebrity and his longtime friendship with Hollywood names such as Charlie Chaplin were enough to keep him from jail.[11] He therefore defended himself in court in both cases in a far less than vigorous fashion.
---------------------------------------------

Edited to add- would it be much of a stretch from a 12 year old boy (Lonnie) to a 14 year old girl ?
 
Couple of things :

The knife that was found in the construction site of the Freemason's building. Back in the day there were all kinds of rumors about Freemasons and human sacrifice etc. So, it's interesting that a knife was found in that location shortly after Lonnie was killed... Never did find out if there was any connection to the murder weapon.

Other thing is that Lonnie was,in effect, butchered like an animal. Pointing to a worker at the slaughterhouse.

IMO both of these things,the knife found where it was,and the method of killing were meant to distract and point away from the actual killer. Someone local who knew about animal slaughtering methods, and knew about the construction site.Someone both clever and convincing.MOO

My questions would be : did the logger who found Lonnie live alone ? Did he go to and return from the fair alone that night ? Was he alone when he was driving up the grade ? If yes, he could well be the killer MOO
 
Liz, I had some similar thoughts re the Freemason's building. My grand-dad and ex father-in-law (whom I like immensely) were/are both Masons. About as sinister as banana bread. On a local level, at least, I see the Masons as a social club. But maybe somebody wanted to implicate something about them, for whatever reason?

I'd love to know if that knife's still around somewhere, and what the finding was on it.
 
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