"I had closure when they found her body," Borgeson said about the fateful day 46 years ago. An man arrested for a series of cold case sex crimes against children died while in police custody, officials said. The genealogical hit came in January, officials said. James lived in the area around the time and worked in construction. In spite of rehabilitative attempts through California Youth Authority and Orange County Jail sentences (it) seems to negate any desire or ability (by Neal) to follow through.. "They probably are so shocked," she said. But when night fell and her whereabouts were still unknown, her parents called police and desperately combed the neighborhood, to no avail. She had been strangled and was still wearing a blue-and-white floral print dress that her mother had sewn for her. (Courtesy of Newport Beach Police Department) That night, family members, volunteers and police spread out to search for her. Neal then moved back to California, where he lived until 2014 at six addresses in Riverside, Hemet and Winchester, public records show. OKeefe, 11, was abducted on July 6, 1973, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. However, James was never brought to justice because he died of an unspecified illness on July 22, 2020. March 29, 2019 / 6:44 PM "He seemed like a good guy," Neal's landlord, Michael Thulson,. Detectives from Newport Beach arrested Neal at 6:29 a.m. in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Newport Beach Police Chief Jon Lewis said at the press conference. Then, in 1974, he was sent back to prison in Colorado for a parole violation and released three years later. Linda O'Keefe was last seen alive in Corona Del Mar, California, in July 1973. Neal told McMillan he was the second of three children, never got along with his siblings, rebelled against his parents and was an emotionally disturbed child. All my life up to this day has been going in circles, Neal said. Newport Beach Police Neal is being held in the. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted. US Man James Neal Arrested After Police Tweet Re-Creation Of Girl The defendants conscience began to bother him, so he walked off a job he had obtained in Inglewood, returned to Santa Ana and contacted an officer of the Santa Ana Police Department, McMillan wrote in the report. However, the case remained unsolved for about 46 years before the investigators found the killer. O'Keefe's suspected killer, James Neal, who lived in Southern California in the 1970s, was arrested this week in Colorado where he had been living, said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer, who was 12 himself at the time of the murder, at a Wednesday news conference. Neals education was terminated early and his work history was spotty, McMillan reported. "Linda's face and her memory has been with us since the day this happened," he said. Join our Fan Club to listen to this episode and more! Police hoped that retelling the girl's story through the modern-day medium would help people from a different generation form an emotional attachment to the case. Detectives from the Newport Beach Police Department kept investigating. Cold Case Suspect In Newport Beach Child Death Dies Before Trial James Allen Neal. Suspect in 1973 California rape and murder dies before trial | 9news.com Copyright 2020 KKTV. DNA recovered from O'Keefe shortly after her death was put into the Combined DNA Index System -- the law enforcement database known as CODIS -- but there was no hit, Spitzer said. James Neal of Monument, Colorado also pleaded not guilty in an Orange County courtroom Friday to lewd and lascivious acts on two girls under the age of 14. He was being held at the Theo Lacy maximum-security jail in Orange. Investigators said he used to live in Southern California in the 1970s and was known as James Albert Layton Jr at the time, although he later moved to Florida and changed his name. "Our hearts go out to the victim and the victim's family in this case, having to endure decades without answers. James Neal was arrested in February 2019 and charged with raping and killing Linda Ann OKeefe. Feb. 20, 2019. Through genealogical DNA, though, investigators corroborated the DNA from O'Keefe's body and the DNA obtained from the suspect, according to Spitzer. Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer announced the arrest of James Alan Neal in the 1973 murder of 11-year-old Linda Ann O'Keefe during a press conderence on Wednesday, February 20, 2019. James Alan Neal, 72, was picked up in Colorado Springs on Tuesday and charged with the murder of 11-year-old Linda O'Keefe, Newport Beach police and Orange County prosecutors said. He then moved to Florida, and then, a criminal incident prompted him to change his name to James Alan Neal. Having spent two years living in England including Liverpool, he is an avid Beatles fan and memorabilia collector. So, if youre curious to know more about James and what happened to him after his arrest, weve got you covered. You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. The detectives dogged this case. He was the second of three children but had a difficult upbringing. Armed with DNA and a family tree, police arrested a Colorado man in connection to the 1973 slaying of a Southern California girl, authorities said Wednesday. Linda O'Keefe was killed in 1973 while walking home from school. O'Keefe's parents have since died, Spitzer said, but her sisters have been notified about the arrest. It is unclear whether he has retained a lawyer who can speak on his behalf. Photo Source. The lead bringing officials to Neal came after these sketches were released, authorities said Wednesday. After a move to California in 1956, James started getting into trouble. Colorado man charged in 1973 Orange County cold case dies awaiting trial The database was Family Tree DNA. The sister of a little girl who was strangled to death in 1973 didn't expect to see a conclusion to the mysterious cold case, she told ABC News hours after a man's arrest was announced on Wednesday. Only one person, a woman who did not know anything about a missing girl, was close enough to hear her, and by then it was too late. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Neal said that despite his recidivism, he was confident he could become successful. ABC News' Jenna Harrison contributed to this report. Their mother "carried that guilt the rest of her life," Borgeson said. OKeefe, 11, was abducted on July 6, 1973, as she walked home from summer school, the Newport Beach, California, Police Department said. He left California after the alleged killing and went to Florida where he changed his name, officials said. We never gave up.". The key moment arrived with the February 19, 2019 arrest of Neal in Colorado Springs, Colorado. If he pursues these goals conscientiously and stays away from downtown Santa Ana where associates congregate, he feels he will never again become involved in difficulty, the probation officer wrote. All Rights Reserved. But again, it's a reminder of what happened. . Linda never made it home that afternoon., For 45 years, the Newport Beach Police Department continued to search for Lindas killer," Lewis said. In August 1969, he was convicted of fraud in Denver and sentenced to three to 10 year at Colorados Territorial Correctional Facility. Finally, in September 1965, he was arrested for yet another burglary but the charge was reduced to petty theft and ultimately dismissed. She was raped and then strangled to death. James Alan Neal was born James Albert Layton Jr. in Chicago, Illinois, in July 1946. He is awaiting extradition from Colorado Springs to Orange County. Her killer, James Alan Neel, was caught 45 years later, in February 2019, after. NDTV Public Opinion: Will Tipu Sultan Controversy Impact Karnataka Votes? He feels he has always been picked on and never given a chance to better himself or be equal to others, Neal wrote in the report. James Alan Neal, 72, of Monument, Colorado, who was arrested for allegedly murdering Linda O'Keefe in Newport Beach, California, in 1973. At the time, Linda attended summer school at Lincoln Intermediate School in Corona Del Mar, California. Linda Ann O'Keefe cold case: Before James Neal's arrest, he had a James Neal, 73, was arrested last year in Monument for the 1973 murder of 11-year-old Linda OKeefe in Newport Beach, California. Through the tireless efforts of generations of our investigators, we hope we have been able to bring a measure of closure to Lindas family, friends, and loved ones., Orange County District AttorneyTodd Spitzerput Neals death in more bitter terms, saying the new development robbed the OKeefe family of the justice they so deserve and deprives the law enforcement officers of the satisfaction that they finally got their culprit.. On one hand, we were grateful that we could have that conversation and provide some closure.". Linda Ann O'Keefe was the middle child in a family of five. Neal worked in construction at the time of the crime, officials said. Seven years before James Alan Neal allegedly kidnapped, sexually assaulted and strangled 11-year-old Linda Ann OKeefe in Newport Beach, he sat in an Orange County jail cell lamenting his miserable life and long rap sheet. pic.twitter.com/47pA4FhBmG, Newport Beach Police (@NewportBeachPD) July 5, 2018, Im wearing a dress today Its white, with light blue flowers on it, and dark blue trim. Records show that from 1963 to 1966, Neal was employed as cook, furniture mover, iron worker, factory worker, and a floral deliveryman but didnt hold a job longer than five months. The novel investigative technique of genetic genealogy takes an unknown killer's DNA from a crime scene and identifies the suspect through his or her family members, who voluntarily submit their DNA to genealogy databases. First tweet from Newport Beach Police Department. It was not clear from records if he was convicted for those offenses. While their parents did not live to see an arrest, Borgeson said, "I'm sure she [O'Keefe] and my parents are rejoicing.". All rights reserved. It was a difficult conversation . Neal was pronounced dead at. James Alan Neal, 72, of Monument, Colorado, who was arrested for allegedly murdering Linda OKeefe in Newport Beach, California, in 1973. "It is bittersweet to hear that, yes, this case has been resolved. Through the tireless efforts of generations of our investigators, we hope we have been able to bring a measure of closure to Lindas family, friends and loved ones., However, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said Neals death robvs the OKeefe family of the justice they so deserve and deprives the law enforcement officers of the satisfaction that they finally got their culprit., Get in touch with our news team by emailing us atwebnews@metro.co.uk, For more stories like this,check our news page, Get your need-to-know
james neal linda o'keefe
