Francis "Pat" Brown, age 17 and his close friend Sheldon Miller, age 14 were shot to death by an unidentified assailant with a .22 pistol at about 10:30 PM on 3 July 1964 in Northwest Detroit.
It was the eve of July 4th and the boys had purchased firecrackers which were being set off throughout the neighborhood that night and which masked the sounds of the gunshots.
Their bodies were found at 12:05 AM 4 July 1964 on Milan Playground near Emerson School by two boys walking a dog.
Francis Brown had been shot four times: twice in the chest and twice in the head. Sheldon Miller had been shot eight times: three times in the head, twice in the chest, twice in the abdomen and once in the back. Each boy had been shot behind the right ear - execution style.
Police investigators located eight expended .22 shell casings and one live round (not a misfire) a measured 78 feet away from the bodies, leading them to believe that the killer had moved away from the boys, reloaded his revolver, and returned to shoot them again.
The murder weapon was not found, but was believed to be a 9-shot .22 revolver, one of five makes: Hi-Standard Sentinel, Hi-Standard Double Nine, J.C. Higgins, Harrington and Richardson (H&R) 922 or H&R 923.
The subsequent, round-the-clock investigation was one of the most intense ever in Detroit's history. No motive could be determined. Both victims were described as nice, intelligent boys who were good students and who had never been in any trouble with the law.
A number of witnesses who had seen the boys that night and who were in the vicinity at the time were interviewed. One 17-year-0ld boy stated that he had seen an older youth or young man in the vicinity at about 10:45 PM (about 15 minutes after the estimated time of the murders). The witness ran from this older person because, although he did not know his name, he recognized him as a bully who had troubled him in the playground before. This possible suspect was described as large, possibly six feet tall, and heavy set.
Seven months later, an update press release in the Detroit News summarized the investigation. Ballistics tests had been conducted on 750 pistols, more than 700 persons had been questioned about their whereabouts that evening, another 1500 persons were interviewed in a door to door canvass of the neighborhood near the park. 53 Lie Detector tests had been administered to potential suspects or persons of interest. The number of investigators assigned to the casd had been reduced from 32 to 3 by 14 February 1965.
The case remains cold.
Source:
The Detroit News 4-12 July 1964
The Detroit News 14 February 1965
It was the eve of July 4th and the boys had purchased firecrackers which were being set off throughout the neighborhood that night and which masked the sounds of the gunshots.
Their bodies were found at 12:05 AM 4 July 1964 on Milan Playground near Emerson School by two boys walking a dog.
Francis Brown had been shot four times: twice in the chest and twice in the head. Sheldon Miller had been shot eight times: three times in the head, twice in the chest, twice in the abdomen and once in the back. Each boy had been shot behind the right ear - execution style.
Police investigators located eight expended .22 shell casings and one live round (not a misfire) a measured 78 feet away from the bodies, leading them to believe that the killer had moved away from the boys, reloaded his revolver, and returned to shoot them again.
The murder weapon was not found, but was believed to be a 9-shot .22 revolver, one of five makes: Hi-Standard Sentinel, Hi-Standard Double Nine, J.C. Higgins, Harrington and Richardson (H&R) 922 or H&R 923.
The subsequent, round-the-clock investigation was one of the most intense ever in Detroit's history. No motive could be determined. Both victims were described as nice, intelligent boys who were good students and who had never been in any trouble with the law.
A number of witnesses who had seen the boys that night and who were in the vicinity at the time were interviewed. One 17-year-0ld boy stated that he had seen an older youth or young man in the vicinity at about 10:45 PM (about 15 minutes after the estimated time of the murders). The witness ran from this older person because, although he did not know his name, he recognized him as a bully who had troubled him in the playground before. This possible suspect was described as large, possibly six feet tall, and heavy set.
Seven months later, an update press release in the Detroit News summarized the investigation. Ballistics tests had been conducted on 750 pistols, more than 700 persons had been questioned about their whereabouts that evening, another 1500 persons were interviewed in a door to door canvass of the neighborhood near the park. 53 Lie Detector tests had been administered to potential suspects or persons of interest. The number of investigators assigned to the casd had been reduced from 32 to 3 by 14 February 1965.
The case remains cold.
Source:
The Detroit News 4-12 July 1964
The Detroit News 14 February 1965
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