Burns, who was convicted in February of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979, was sentenced to life in prison. The sketch indicated a white man in his late teens or early 20s, weighing between 165 and 175 pounds, and standing about 6 feet tall. Follow the Register onFacebookandTwitterfor updates. Previous to Jerry's current city of Manchester, IA, Jerry Burns lived in Cedar Falls IA. Recalling telling investigators, "I don't know, test it." The arrest of Burns, now charged with first-degree murder for the 1979death of 18-year-old Michelle Martinko in Cedar Rapids,has rippled through this town of about 5,000. 'All of my customers today have been talking about (Burns' arrest) and how shocking it was,' Mormann told The Gazette Thursday. You have permission to edit this article. Burns, 66, was arrested at his Manchester, Iowa, business on Dec. 19, 2018 the 39th anniversary of Martinko's death and charged with first-degree murder in Martinko's slaying. Cedar Rapids police used DNA genetic genealogical research to create a group of suspects in the killing that included Burns, according to court records. Residents interviewed Friday said they can't square the allegations of a gruesome killing and 39 years with nary a hint of suchbehavior with the man they've known, who went to high school in Manchester, about 45 miles north of Cedar Rapids, and spent much of his adult life there. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Sixth Judicial District Judge Fae Hoover speaks at a sentencing hearing for Jerry Lynn Burns at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. WebBrian Farmer Burns, a 55-year-old Manchester, Iowa farmer, went missing from his Delaware County home on Thursday, December 19, 2013. To that point in the investigation, we were confident who our perpetrator was, so we figured out the who. 'The community can be very proud of its law enforcement, and for the tremendous comfort and support area residents have extended to our family over the thirty-nine years since Michelle's death. The profile found a hit with DNA from Brandy Jennings, a distant cousin, in the GEDmatch database, which is public. Several residents lauded his professionalism and business savvy. She was found stabbed to death inside her parents' car in a mall parking lot in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on December 20, 1979. A pathologist said the fatal stab wound was to her heart and that she bled to death. Burns was arrested on Wednesday and charged with first-degree murder on Thursday in the 1979 death of Michelle Martinko. Also, we have no information about his son and daughter. after he was asked if his DNA would match the DNA at the crime scene. Staff writer Erin Jordan contributed to this story. Prosecutors said she was stabbed to death. More:Iowa community tries to reconcile a cold case arrest and its long history with a neighbor. Now,herface and chest had been stabbed at least eight times. She even graduated with his youngest daughter. We remain so grateful to generations of Cedar Rapids law enforcement that acted like a dog with a bone, Stonebraker said. On Thursday, other people in town said they were shocked, stunned or astounded by the news. "This was a brutal, violent, horrendous crime," Linn County Assistant Attorney Mike Harris said at the time. Jerry Burnss Family releases statement following arrest in ", Our first look at Jerry Lynn Burns, 64, of Manchester after he was arrested this morning for first-degree murder in the 1979 homicide case of Michelle Martinko.Burns will appear in Linn County District Court tomorrow morning. Birky said she recalled Martinko was dressed up that night and said she came from a musical banquet, according to the affidavit. (Stephen Mally/The Gazette), A page introduces the section of the 1972 West Delaware High School year book with a picture of every senior, including Jerry Burns, as seen at the Manchester Public Library in Manchester on Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018. But with 39-years later, limited information, that's a long time that's gone by. Wiki, Biography, Age, Spouse, Net Worth, Fast Facts, Who Is David Bolt? 18-year-old Michelle Martinko was killed Dec. 19, 1979, Subscribe to the Public Safety newsletter, Caleb McCullough, Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau. A need Mr. Burns kept hidden all his adult life. Leclere said Burns was never considered a suspect in his cousin's missing-person investigation. Authorities say they were able to match Burns with DNA at the crime scene. "Its scary," Moreno said. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Family and friends of Jerry Burns are seated in the courtroom at a sentencing hearing for Jerry Lynn Burns at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. Burns also claimed that he did in fact ask for a lawyer during the interview but that investigators didn't help him to do so. Burns, who was convicted in February of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979, was sentenced to life in prison. When 18-year-old Cedar Rapids, Iowa resident Michelle Martinko went missing on Dec. 19, 1979, it became a case that soon ran cold. Decades of technological advancements ultimately allowed experts to construct a partial male DNA profile from a blood scraping on the gear shift of the Martinko family car and a blood stain on the back of Martinkos dress. The investigator reported Birky said the lessons were once a week; although she wasn't sure which day of the week they were, she recalled the last lesson was the night Martinko was killed outside the mall. Jerry Burns may be a hitched man, having a spouse and kids. Then for proof. Wright said he never had a negative experience in seven months of knowingBurns. At long last, following 40 years of homicide of Michelle Martinko, Burns went to preliminary and was accused of first-degree murder. "Thats why everybody in town is just like Iam: shocked.. Spies, in his motion, said evidence of a regularly scheduled music lesson gives credence to the possibility that her attacker was familiar with her routine. Investigatorssaid the man who stabbedMartinko cut his hand and left blood behindon her clothes and on the gear shift knob. In a court document made public Friday, he wrote that he makes $30,000 a year. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette), Jerry Lynn Burns and defense attorney Leon Spies (right) listen to Sixth Judicial District Judge Fae Hoover at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. In high school, Burns ran track and was involved in FFA, McElliot said. (Stephen Mally/The Gazette), Jerry Burns is seen in a picture on a graduation spread in a 1972 West Delaware High School year book at the Manchester Public Library in Manchester on Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018. If found guilty of his first-degree murder charges, he'll face life in prison. Burns is presumed innocent, and we look forward to the evidence showing otherwise. Burns, who was convicted in February of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979, was sentenced to life in prison. He announced that the way in which experts drew closer getting DNA from Burns and his family members to show his DNA was found at the wrongdoing area was an encroachment of the fourth and fourteenth alterations. First Assistant Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks said the information wouldn't have changed the verdict. Burns used to co-own a truck stop near town. Notwithstanding the way that Burns conviction and denouncing are clear and he is presently in prison, his legitimate group has continued to insist his blamelessness and upset the choice. In June 2020, his attorney, Leon Spies, motioned for a retrial. "No, I must not have asked properly, we were never instructed in school how to ask..they just seemed to ignore it," said Burns. Jerry Burns, of Manchester, was arrested for the murder on the 39-year anniversary of her death. "When they commit to helping a family, as in this case, looking into the eyes of parents who lost an 18-year-old girl and said, 'Were going to find the answer to what happened to her,' that the public can trust that theyre going to do that, even if it takes generations to do it. The accused turned out to be another Iowan native, Jerry Lynn Burns. Who Is Jerry Lynn Burns? Born in 1953, Jerry Lynn Burns grew up in Manchester, Iowa, and graduated from West Delaware High School in 1972. He would have been around 25-years-old when he killed Michelle Martinko in December of 1979. Copyright 2023 Distractify. Her body was found in the front seat, where she had been injured and cut on numerous occasions. All rights reserved. 2023 www.desmoinesregister.com. She can be contacted at aspoerre@dmreg.com, 515-284-8387or on Twitter at@annaspoerre. WebJerry Burns is 68 years old and was born on 12/23/1953. At this moment, Burns, in any case, stays behind the bars. After turning to GEDmatch, a commercial genetic genealogy site, investigators narrowed their suspects to three brothers, all in Iowa. Exactly 39 years after her death, police took a Manchester man into custody after matching his DNA to blood found at the crime scene. Hiscousin, Brian Burns, vanished Dec. 19, 2013 exactly 34 years after Martinko was killed. Last updated May 14, 2020; details of disappearance updated. Burns, who was convicted in February of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979, was sentenced to life in prison. Laymon said she and Martinko were in a self-defense class together, but added that "no amount of self-defense could have saved her from that.". Hundreds of people were interviewed and countless leads were followed, police said a year after the slaying. Burns, who would have been 25 at the time of Martinko's death, said he could not offer a "plausible explanation" forwhy his DNA was found at the crime scene, authorities said at the time of his arrest. The music books either were dropped somewhere police didn't searched or the killer disposed of them, he said. The teen was stabbed 29 times, according to testimony. "Everybody was so anxious last night to see a picture to make sure it was actually, you know, him," Mormann said. Family of the man charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Michelle Martinko speaks out, says the arrest in cold case brings them joy just before Christmas. Burns was convicted of first-degree murder in February. We have no more Information about his Father; we will try to collect information and update soon. Brian was last seen at his home in the 1300 block of 180th Street in Manchester, Iowa on December 19, 2013. She affirmed her rulings made before and during trial regarding the defense's motion. Jerry Burns, 66, of Manchester, was arrested in Dec. 19 2018, 39 years to the day after Michelle Martinko was found dead in her parents car outside a shopping mall in Martinko always came to her lessons alone but may have had someone waiting for her outside the mall. Four decades ago, 18-year-oldMichelle Marie Martinko was found stabbed to death in the family's car in the parking lot of a Cedar Rapids mall. 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