He was also facing charges of sexually assaulting two children in Riverside County. Manzella said she believes its the only time the technique has been used by U.S. police. "It's difficult with a cold case for people to relate to the victim on a personal level," she noted. sister Georgia, in part, had made sure of that. Newport Beach police last July mounted a Twitter campaign, releasing information about the killing to try to spur new leads in the case, which had stymied investigators for more than four decades. Our lives went in different directions but it seems like just yesterday that we were splashing in our pool and sharing secrets. Linda was a wonderful gift to my life and many others in our women's group. Linda O'Keefe Cindy, who has since retired from her job at a university, seems to live with her family in California. I will always remember great times we had, sharing stories, walking the streets, first boyfriends, etc. He would have been in his mid-20s when the crime occurred and resided in Orange County, California. One, a departure, is deep crimson and black, sharp-angled and seething. James Alan Neal, 73, was an inmate at the maximum-security Theo Lacy jail in Orange for the 1973 sexual assault and strangling death of Linda OKeefe, 11. All our love to Dr. O'Keefe, Kathleen, Kelly, and Joe and their families from Dr. McCloskey and family. Ida would not. We believe Linda is due that, she said. What's Behind Shortages of Adderall, Ozempic and Other Meds? The death of James Neal prior to putting him on trial for Linda's rape and murder robs the O'Keefe family of the justice they so deserve and deprives the law enforcement officers of the satisfaction that they finally got their culprit. Even so, more than a little sympathy is in order. Linda had two sisters and the eldest she was remarkably close to. Catherine, whose artistic ambitions had been nurtured by her older sister, would open a show of her own paintings in New York on Feb. 27; Ida, too, would show in New York that spring. When Cindy Borgesons sister, Linda OKeefe, went missing in July 1973, she wasnt too worried. Linda OKeefe was a Girl Scout who loved the outdoors. "Both from people who knew Linda, her classmates, her friends to people who had never been familiar with her story before.". The 11-year-old was described as a gentle, lovely soul. Sending prayers to Linda's family. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. Im Linda OKeefe (or Linda ANN OKeefe, if Im in trouble with my mom). I know she's in God's hands now, no longer suffering, and we are now filled with the memories of her as she touched our lives. Linda Ann OKeefe was the middle child in a family of five. 2/20. Bless you Linda - you were one of my best friends ~ rest in peace dear friend. One group of paintings both establishes Idas own vision two stark and angular 1938 works, Ozark Lime Kiln and Stargazing in Texas, seem drained of color, haunting and bleak in pale tones of gray and stacks her up against her sisters fame. Investigators submitted the DNA collected from the victim to the Family Tree website and it gave them leads pointing to Neal. The exhibition tries to set the art apart. Linda's story deeply touched the hearts of our community. I went to grade school, Hixson and WGHS with Linda. On the day Linda Ann OKeefe died, it was a cooler-than-normal July morning in Newport Beach, Calif. The tweets were also posted now because DNA apparently found at the murder scene has allowed authorities to create an image of what the killer may have looked like, both at the time of Lindas death and today. All rights reserved. She was last seen walking home from summer school, and her body was found the next day. There was semen collected from Lindas body that was preserved, but at the time, the technology to test for DNA was quite a few years away. The same night, a woman who lived close to where Lindas body was found reporting hearing screams. Police said she was last seen standing near a man in a blue or turquoise van. December 4, 1948 April 27, 2023. He moved to Florida soon after the killing, but after an unspecified criminal incident there, he changed his name from James Albert Layton Jr. to Neal, Spitzer said. We talked about getting together but sadly never managed that. I lost my sister to cancer, and I still think of her every day. Linda Identifying Neal as O'Keefe's alleged killer led investigators to connecting him to the two Riverside County attacks, according to Orange County prosecutors. Linda O'Keefe It shouldnt surprise that she became engulfed by her renown. Cindy, who, after all those years, didnt think the culprit would be found, was surprised when she heard the news of his arrest. "The pursuit of justice is never-ending, and in this case the hunt for a child rapist and murderer lasted more than 46 years and transcended generations of law enforcement officers,'' Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said. Linda had a beautiful singing voice and, with her sister Kathleen, sang backup vocals on numerous demos in San Francisco, California. She was sexually assaulted and strangled to death. OKeeffe sisters: Georgia (1887-1986), Ida Ten Eck (1889-1961), Anita Natalia (1891-1984), Catherine Blanche (1895-1987), and Claudia Ruth (1899-1984). Memorials can be made to the Monthly Meals Program at Webster Groves Presbyterian Church or to a charity of the donor's choice. Lindas parents have passed away, but her two living sisters have been notified of the arrest. In the 21st century, it's not just urns and gravestones anymore. Linda had a beautiful singing voice and, with her sister Kathleen, sang backup vocals on numerous demos in San Francisco, California. There is a new lead in my case: a face. The police department also "live-tweeted" Lindas story from her perspective on Friday and Saturday, narrating the final day of her life in real-time, exactly 45 years later. Im Linda OKeefe (or Linda ANN OKeefe, if Im in trouble with my mom). Linda O'Keefe Cold Case: Family Speaks After Arrest in 45 Over the years, hundreds of people have worked on the case, the police chief said. The ride home is easy, because its almost all downhill. The Independent A new documentary reveals how giving a voice on social media to long-dead Linda OKeefe helped secure crucial evidence in the unsolved killing Independent Staff Friday 15 October 2021 18:14 Linda Ann O'Keefe Cold Case Video2018 marks the 45th anniversary of the abduction of Linda Ann OKeefe, an 11-year-old girl who lived in Corona del Mar. So, lets find out what happened then, shall we. She was a beloved member of our Sunday evening women's group for many years. "We started out at 8 a.m. going to school through to the next morning when her body is found. Linda She expressed surprise when she learned of James arrest, saying, I never really thought that they would actually ever find the individual responsible. Juli Warren. All it takes is one good lead By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. Cindy was about 18-years-old when Linda vanished as an 11-year-old after school. Newport police are continuing to respond to concerns and questions about the case on Twitter. So, if youre curious about how Cindy dealt with Lindas death, heres what we know. Cindys sister was raped, strangled, and dumped in a ditch. Hours: Lindas Story chronicles the tragic turn of events in her life and how the investigators refused to give up on finding her killer even four decades later. But close by, showing Idas little painting Black Lilies, from 1945, feels almost cruel, given how much of big sisters fame is built on the big, bold pictures of flowers of every kind. Lindas worried mother checked in with her friends, hoping for some news, but nobody heard from her. Cindy, who, after all those years, didnt think the culprit would be found, was surprised when she heard the news of his arrest. Manzella decided to tweet in real-time because "we thought people would be able to connect with Linda in a different way from spending time with her.". So, in February 2019, James was arrested at his home and later extradited to California. They have since passed away, but Cindy believed that her parents and sister would have been happy that the killer was caught. He made a photograph of a black crows feather pricked into an apple and showed it to her, slyly: Old Crow was the nickname he had given himself, Little Apple the one he had given her. They caught the SOB who killed my sister Linda O'Keefe, Diana From there, police put the defendant under surveillance and collected his DNA and matched it to the evidence collected from the victim, Spitzer said. Patricia McCloskey Richards (Patsy). Responses to the police departments tweets have largely been positive. Grasso, Linda M. Equal under the Sky: Georgia OKeeffe and Twentieth-Century Feminism, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2017. Linda Ann O'Keefe was just a child when she was abducted and killed on July 6, 1973 on her way home from summer school. So, James was placed under surveillance, and a DNA sample was collected, which turned out to be a match to the profile from the semen sample. The investigators set about trying to figure out Lindas timeline before she went missing. Am I reading big sisters influence the delicate curl of petal, the moody dark tones of purple and green? CBS 48 Hours: Lindas Story chronicles Lindas murder investigation and the decades-long effort it took to catch her killer. Our prayers are with the family at this time. The morning of the day she vanishes, Linda recounts: I walk out my front door and have no idea that it will be my last time. The tweets include information on her summer school, everything known about what she did that day, what she was wearing and where she was found. Linda was my best friend when we were 5 or 6 years old. So, if youre curious about how Cindy dealt with Lindas death, heres what we know! The sister of 11-year-old Linda Linda was a faithful member of Webster Groves Presbyterian Church, where she served as a deacon. Once school ended, Linda didnt want to walk back home, so she used the schools office phone to call her mother. Linda had one of the most generous spirits! Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. It's a terrible loss for her family and all her friends! But she never made it home. That night, a woman who lives in the bluffs above Back Bay heard a female voice scream, "Stop, youre hurting me," police said. "A Gentle, Lovely Soul" Cindy Borgeson According to Linda's sister, Cindy Borgeson, Linda You have funeral questions, we have answers. Georgia OKeeffes forgotten sister, and a glimpse of what might It was just tamped down. In the days since the Twitter stream, the police department has received some tips, she said. Stieglitz was a titan of American Modernism whose New York gallery gave Georgia a solo exhibition almost every year; the implication that Georgia had not succeeded on her own merits stung more than any other. May God bless you and your family in this time of sorrow. Theyre jubilant meticulously ordered, with hard shafts of light streaming from the windows or curling into water and mist in jazzy blues, yellows, and grays. She had a wonderful smile and great sense of humor ~ and that will be missed by all of us. Her body was found in a ditch the next day. ' So Linda did, but she never made it back home. Georgia, in increasing despair, demanded that both stop painting immediately.