Maria Ridulph, 7, Illinois
Maria Ridulph, 7, disappeared on December 3, 1957 in Sycamore, Illinois. She was found stabbed to death a few months later. Air Force veteran John Tessier (aka Jack McCullough) of Seattle, Washington, 17 at the time, was convicted in 2012 of the kidnapping and murder of Maria and sentenced to life in prison. It was the oldest cold case in the country to be solved but soon that victory would be lost and conviction overturned on appeal. A prosecutor found evidence that supported McCullough’s long-held alibi that he had been 40 miles away at the time of the disappearance. As a matter of fact, the former Captain was enlisting in the Air Force and left for active duty service a few days later. A certificate of innocence was issued and Jack McCullough was set free on April 15, 2016. Despite the past sexual abuse of minors allegations, which McCullough doesn’t deny, he wants to clear his name of the homicide. McCullough is suing the State of Illinois for wrongful conviction. The case remains unsolved to this day.
Related Links:
Jack McCullough: The Last Man Standing
48 Hours: Cold as Ice
Jack McCullough Case: A Timeline
Footsteps in the Snow: The Cold Case Murder of Maria Ridulph
Train ticket could solve 50-year Maria Ridulph murder mystery
Maria Ridulph Alleged Killer Arrested: How Cops Finally Found Jack McCullough
Man guilty of murder in 1957
Jack McCullough, 72, convicted in 1957 murder of Maria Ridulph, 7
Former cop convicted in 1957 murder of 7-year-old Illinois girl
McCullough gets life for 1957 killing of 7-year-old
Ex-police officer convicted in murder of 7-year-old Illinois girl ,Maria Ridulph, snatched from a small-town street corner 55 years ago
Oldest U.S. cold case closed in Illinois
The murder that became the oldest solved cold case in America
Illinois: People v. McCullough (2015)
Newly discovered evidence in one of the oldest unsolved crimes in U.S. history to ever make it to trial means a 76-year-old convicted and sentenced to life in the 1957 slaying of a 7-year-old Illinois girl has a chance to go free
Prosecutor moves to dismiss 1957 cold case murder conviction
Police eye new suspect over 1957 murder of seven-year-old girl after receiving an anonymous letter in the mail possibly naming her real killer
Illinois prosecutor: Wrong man convicted of 1957 murder of 7-year-old girl
Judge: I’m not ready to free ’57 cold case convict
Jack McCullough freed after conviction vacated in ’57 Sycamore murder
Prosecutor: Man wrongly convicted of 1957 cold-case murder
Man wrongfully convicted in 1957 cold case murder declared innocent
Schmack: Jack McCullough falsely convicted in 1957 Maria Ridulph murder
Man wrongfully convicted in 1957 cold case killing of Maria Ridulph, 7, ruled innocent
Jack McCullough Free After Judge Orders New Trial In 1957 Murder Of Maria Ridulph
Wrong Man Convicted of 1957 Murder in Illinois, Prosecutor Says
Seattle man wrongly convicted in 1957 child’s killing goes free
Schmack Posits McCullough’s Innocence
The Sad Tale Of Maria Ridulph’s Disappearance And The Trial Of Jack McCullough
The Bizarre Murder Of Maria Ridulph — Still Unsolved!
Police eye new suspect in 1957 abduction, murder of 7-year-old girl
Man wrongfully convicted in coldest murder case: ‘I want my name back’
Maria Ridulph A Tragic Case
BrainScratch: Maria Ridulph
2017 Illinois History Fair State Superior documentary on the longest cold case in US history. Produced by River Ridge High School Hanover, Illinois.
MILITARY JUSTICE FOR ALL 