MD MD - LaTanya Wallace, 11, Baltimore, 2 Feb 1988

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Jacie Estes

Jacie Estes

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Still searching for more info about this child.

That case is the molestation and murder of La-Tonya Kim Wallace, an 11-year-old schoolgirl found dead in a Reservoir Hill alley in February 1988. The case received more attention from the Police Department than any other murder investigated that year -- so much so that the primary investigator in the case, Detective Thomas Pellegrini, was actively working on a few remaining leads as late as last year.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/19...unsolved-slayings-unsolved-cases-drug-murders
 
Death of 68-lb. angel shocked entire city

On those rare nights when city streets are quiet, and he has time to think, Detective Tom Pellegrini drags a large cardboard box from beneath his desk and meticulously picks through it.

It is a box filled with terror, of stark police photographs and related evidence detailing the murder of a child. The detective works slowly. The box weighs nearly 75 pounds. The child weighed only 68 pounds.

LaTanya Wallace would have been 14 years old next Wednesday, and Pellegrini knows how best to pay homage to the bright-eyed little girl from West Baltimore: He wants to arrest her killer.

But that may never happen. LaTanya was slain nearly three years ago, and her murder continues to confound police.

One item in the box always stops Pellegrini. It is the girl's cheery school portrait, taken in fifth grade, several months before she was sexually assaulted, strangled and stabbed repeatedly.

The homicide detective stares long and hard at the photograph of the girl whose violent death incensed a city. Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke attended her funeral. U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski called LaTanya "the angel of Reservoir Hill."

In time, the city forgot. The detective did not.

"I had hoped for an arrest, as a testimony to her name," says Pellegrini.

"I still go to sleep thinking about this case."

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1991-01-11/news/1991011101_1_pellegrini-latanya-girl
 
I haven't watched the video, Jacie. Do you know if DNA is available? If not, then I wonder if Alexander Wayne Watson, Jr., has been looked at for this crime. He's serving a life sentence for the murders of two Gambrills women in 1986 and 1988, and the 1993 rape and murder of a 14-year-old in Glen Burnie. He killed a fourth woman in Prince George's County in 1993. All victims were raped, stabbed and strangled like little Letonya. Glen Burnie is about 12 miles from Reservoir Hill.

ETA: I watched the video. LE had a suspect, but he was never charged due to lack of physical evidence.
Inmate Pleads Guilty in Years-Old Killings
By Raymond McCaffrey, Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 17, 2007

Alexander W. Watson Jr., imprisoned since 1994 for stabbing a woman in Prince George's County, admitted in Circuit Court in Annapolis that he killed Boontem Anderson, 34, who was stabbed, strangled and sexually assaulted in her Gambrills home in 1986; Elaine Shereika, 37, who was raped, stabbed, strangled and sexually assaulted while jogging near her Gambrills home in 1988; and Lisa Haenel, 14, who was stabbed and strangled on the way to school in the Glen Burnie area in 1993. -- cont. at the link
Suspect charged with 3 long-unsolved slayings
DNA ties convicted murderer to serial killings, police say
July 13, 2004|By Julie Bykowicz | Julie Bykowicz,SUN STAFF

A man serving a life sentence for a 1994 murder was charged yesterday with sexually assaulting and killing three Anne Arundel County women more than a decade ago - a serial murder case that police say they pieced together using DNA evidence. -- cont. at the link

Killer gets 5 life terms
As part of plea deal, Watson meets families, avoids death penalty
August 17, 2007|By Andrea F. Siegel, Sun reporter

Jennifer Shereika Scott said she wanted to confront the man who had killed her mother nearly 20 years ago because she wanted answers to questions she had carried for more than half her life. She got her chance Monday, in an extraordinary meeting arranged by prosecutors. In exchange for pleading guilty, which he did yesterday, and meeting with the families of the victims, serial killer Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. escaped a possible death sentence and will instead spend the rest of his life behind bars for three brutal killings between 1986 and 1993. -- cont. at the link
Alexander Wayne Watson, Jr.

Serial Killer: Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. raped and killed 4 women

 
I have been searching and not coming up with much on this child. I sent what I did find to a friend who does advocacy work in Baltimore to see if she has anything in her files or can find anything.

bessie said:
I haven't watched the video, Jacie. Do you know if DNA is available? If not, then I wonder if Alexander Wayne Watson, Jr., has been looked at for this crime. He's serving a life sentence for the murders of two Gamibrills women in 1986 and 1988, and the 1993 rape and murder of a 14-year-old in Glen Burnie. He killed a fourth woman in Prince George's County in 1994. All victims were raped, stabbed and strangled like little Latanya. Glen Burnie is about 12 miles from Reservoir Hill.

ETA: I watched the video. LE had a suspect, but there was never charged due to lack of physical evidence.
Inmate Pleads Guilty in Years-Old Killings
By Raymond McCaffrey, Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 17, 2007

Alexander W. Watson Jr., imprisoned since 1994 for stabbing a woman in Prince George's County, admitted in Circuit Court in Annapolis that he killed Boontem Anderson, 34, who was stabbed, strangled and sexually assaulted in her Gambrills home in 1986; Elaine Shereika, 37, who was raped, stabbed, strangled and sexually assaulted while jogging near her Gambrills home in 1988; and Lisa Haenel, 14, who was stabbed and strangled on the way to school in the Glen Burnie area in 1993. -- cont. at the link
Suspect charged with 3 long-unsolved slayings
DNA ties convicted murderer to serial killings, police say
July 13, 2004|By Julie Bykowicz | Julie Bykowicz,SUN STAFF

A man serving a life sentence for a 1994 murder was charged yesterday with sexually assaulting and killing three Anne Arundel County women more than a decade ago - a serial murder case that police say they pieced together using DNA evidence. -- cont. at the link

Killer gets 5 life terms
As part of plea deal, Watson meets families, avoids death penalty
August 17, 2007|By Andrea F. Siegel, Sun reporter

Jennifer Shereika Scott said she wanted to confront the man who had killed her mother nearly 20 years ago because she wanted answers to questions she had carried for more than half her life. She got her chance Monday, in an extraordinary meeting arranged by prosecutors. In exchange for pleading guilty, which he did yesterday, and meeting with the families of the victims, serial killer Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. escaped a possible death sentence and will instead spend the rest of his life behind bars for three brutal killings between 1986 and 1993. -- cont. at the link
Alexander Wayne Watson, Jr.

Serial Killer: Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. raped and killed 4 women
Click to expand...
 
I recently read finished reading the book, Homicide by David Simon that discussed this case in detail. There was a suspect that knew LaTonya Wallace, just named as the Fishman in the book. He had a prior sexual assault conviction and she worked a bit at his pet shop. He failed a polygraph and I believe had a fire at his house or maybe the pet shop shortly after the murder. There was so little evidence there wasn't enough to charge him. He was questioned repeatedly and the cops tried to get a confession, but it never came. Some of the cops weren't convinced the Fishman was guilty.

I really doubt there was DNA evidence, as this was in the late 80s. I wouldn't bother looking into local rapists, as the cops checked that out, and there were many. None of the checked out.
 
I was best friends with Latanya she was a couple yrs older than me I was around 9yrs old. We would walk to schools everyday i went to John Eager Howard at the time. Latanya would walk with me to my school then across north ave to hers. We also went to the same kufu class. She was a beautiful bright talented girl. Thinking about her murder as a child we all new Willy the fish man did it. He worked or owned a store that sold fish latanya would work there with him after school. I don’t know why he wasn’t arrested. Shortly after her murder my family didn’t feel safe for me and we moved
 
Due to the age of this case. Would there be any DNA evidence that BPD would have? Clothes, rope etc. Was wondering about the now often used forensic genetic genealogy that could be used to possibly identify a suspect.
 
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