The detectives dogged this case. Blashaw did not explain what this sickness was but elaborated that the inmate did not have COVID-19 symptoms. The genealogical hit came in January, officials said. Linda was last seen talking to a stranger in a van, Newport Beach Police Chief Jon Lewis said Wednesday. Helicopters, police Jeeps and search parties scoured the area looking for signs of O'Keefe. Here at this jail, people want to give me a bad time. "He has a connection to Southern California.". She had been strangled and sexually assaulted. That DNA "hit" came in January, Spitzer said. O'Keefe's parents have since died, but police said they keep her two surviving sisters updated on the investigation. But Spitzer admitted that it is a murky legal decision because capital punishment was not an option when the 11-year-old was killed. James Neal, 72, who lived in Southern California and worked in construction in the 1970s, was arrested this week in Colorado, where he had been living, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said at a Wednesday news conference. The key moment arrived with the February 19, 2019 arrest of Neal in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Linda never made it home that afternoon, he said. Then, in 1974, he was sent back to prison in Colorado for a parole violation and released three years later. Linda O'Keefe was killed in 1973 while walking home from school. Although Linda died almost half a century ago, her family, the community and members of law enforcement never stopped thinking of her or hoping her killer would be brought to justice, Spitzer said. Linda Ann O'Keefe's killing in 1973 in Newport Beach, California went unsolved for more than four decades. The 11-year-old was last seen on this street talking to a stranger in a van. It was our intention to see James Alan Neal stand trial and answer for the murder of Linda Ann OKeefe. After his arrest in 1966 for a burglary he committed earlier, his parole officer called him quite immature and psychologically unstable.. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. James Neal, 72, was arrested in Colorado Springs on Tuesday and charged with murder with special circumstances, Spitzer said. I want to make up for all the hurt I have caused myself and my parents, especially my mother, Neal, who was 19 at the time and went by James Albert Layton Jr., told Orange County probation officer David R. McMillan in 1966 while awaiting sentencing for a burglary conviction. For more than 45 years the case went cold -- until DNA was submitted to an ancestry website. ', " As 'Linda' noted in the tweets in July, her case would generate numerous theories and a sketch of a 'person of interest' but ultimately grow cold.". He's now the suspect in the 1973 murder of 11-year-old Linda Ann O'Keefe. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. He later changed his name, officials said. Last year, 45 years after O'Keefe's body was found, police released these sketches of her suspected killer. O'Keefe then called her mother from the school office, and her mother told her she was busy sewing and that she should walk home, police said. As part of an effort to renew interest in the case, the Newport Beach Police Department used their Twitter account to recount the story of Lindas life, mysterious disappearance and death. 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When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. He was being held at the Theo Lacy maximum-security jail in Orange. Then in January, CeCe Moore of San Clemente, who heads Parabons genetic genealogy unit matched DNA evidence gathered in the OKeefe investigation to a sample provided to genealogy website FamilyTreeDNA.com leading authorities to identify Neal, now 72, as a suspect. "My hope is that this [case] brings hope to other families who haven't had closure yet.". James Alan Neal has been arrested in the July 1973 murder of 11-year-old Linda Ann O'Keefe in Newport Beach. Linda O'Keefe. That I'll be found a couple hundred yards from her home. Her death would go unsolved for more than four decades. James Alan Neal, who was 73, was taken to an area hospital on May 25 due to an undisclosed illness, said Jaimee Blashaw of the Orange County Sheriff's Department. "My office will never forget about cold cases," Spitzer said in a statement. As for her sister's suspected killer, Borgeson said, "because of my profound faith, I've been able to forgive the individual. Then, after he was paroled again in August 1963, he was arrested a year later for burglary and sentenced to nine months in the Orange County jail. "He seemed like a good guy," Neal's landlord, Michael Thulson,. Then her mother made that call that every parent dreads and told police her daughter was missing, he said. However, through the genealogical data of his family members, who voluntarily submitted their DNA to genealogy databases, investigators were able to corroborate the DNA from O'Keefe's body and the DNA obtained from the suspect, according to Spitzer. Now a Suspect Has Been Arrested, JonBent Ramsey's Father Is Optimistic DNA Advances Will Catch Daughter's Killer, Slams Boulder Police, DNA Taken from Truck's Door Handle in Washington Leads to Arrest 34 Years After Wisconsin Mom's Killing, Pa. That night, family members, volunteers and police spread out to search for her. A day later, her body was found in a ditch, and she had been sexually assaulted. Neal denied all charges and faced up to 82 years in prison if he was convicted on all charges. Copyright 2020 KKTV. Newport Beach police launched a new PR campaign in 2018 using Tweets written in Lindas voice. Lindas story deeply touched the hearts of our community. NDTV Public Opinion: Will Tipu Sultan Controversy Impact Karnataka Votes? and opened doors for us to have this case pursued with renewed effort.". Powered by WordPress.com VIP. James Neal, 73, was arrested last year in Monument for the 1973 murder of 11-year-old Linda OKeefe in Newport Beach, California. On the day Linda Ann O'Keefe died, it was a cooler-than-normal July morning in Newport . Neal was living in Monument at the time of his arrest and was extradited to Orange County, California, where he has remained since. Newport Beach police released this undated image of Linda O'Keefe in an effort to get assistance from the public to help solve her murder in Southern California in July 1973. Her image hung among the faces of other unsolved cases, reminding each. PRESS RELEASE: Linda OKeefe Homicide https://t.co/sSg9rjwXgH, Starting tomorrow at 7:45 am, #LindasStory will be told here, through our Twitter account. Scott Schwebke is an investigative reporter for the Orange County Register and the Southern California News Group. "It is bittersweet to hear that, yes, this case has been resolved. Neal is being held in the El Paso County Jail in Colorado. Finally, in September 1965, he was arrested for yet another burglary but the charge was reduced to petty theft and ultimately dismissed. 'She listens, but hears nothing more. Both of O'Keefe's parents have since died, but the girl was survived by two sisters, whom police had contacted with updates about Neal's arrest. The burglary that landed Neal behind bars in 1966 occurred a year earlier when he and two accomplices broke into a Santa Ana business, stealing $44.97 in cash and a portable television set valued at $90, Orange County Superior Court records show. Linda O'Keefe Murder: How Did She Die? Who Killed Her? (Newport Beach Police Department) James Alan Neal, 73, who. Neals education was terminated early and his work history was spotty, McMillan reported. It was our intention to see James Alan Neal stand trial and answer for the murder of Linda Ann OKeefe, Newport Beach Police Chief Jon Lewis said. There is no record of Neal ever having been incarcerated in a California prison, according to state officials. James Neal, Linda O'Keefe Suspect: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know Or to keep it anonymous, click here. 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.. "As you can imagine, this was difficult news to receive," Lewis said. Borgeson said she also prayed for Neal's family as his arrest was announced. It was our intention to see James Alan Neal stand trial and answer for the murder of Linda An OKeefe, Newport Beach police Chief Jon Lewis said. "I want to know if there are any other victims.". After a move to California in 1956, James started getting into trouble. Spitzer noted that the DNA lead police had obtained was wholly unrelated to the department's live-tweeting of O'Keefe's last day but said the exercise had served to revive the case in the public's mind. He could be brought to California sometime this week if he waives extradition, Spitzer said. Yet for 45 years the Newport Beach Police Department never gave up. Man Accused Of Killing Newport Beach Girl Nearly 50 Years - CBS News Authorities did not provide details on Neal's illness. Combining the latest in DNA technology with old-fashioned detective work led investigators to Neal, Lewis said. In July 1973, 11-year-old Linda Ann O'Keefe was murdered. 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 [email protected], For more stories like this,check our news page, Get your need-to-know OKeefe, 11, was abducted on July 6, 1973, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Beware of scams, Denver police searching for missing 14-year-old. After the burglary sentencing, James moved to Denver, Colorado, where he was accused of stealing from the gas station he worked at. A woman later told police she saw O'Keefe standing next to a turquoise van and talking to the driver -- a white man in his mid-20s or early 30s. Teen Was Murdered After Coming Home from Grocery Store in 1975, Coffee Cup Leads to Arrest, Calif. First tweet from Newport Beach Police Department. "I had closure when they found her body," Borgeson said about the fateful day 46 years ago. Newport Beach police in July released a sketch of a man, the possible suspect, based on DNA collected at the scene. His next court appearance is set for June 14. James Neal (left) and Linda O'Keefe (right) (credit: CBS) The 72-year-old Neal was extradited to California from Colorado after he was charged with murder in the death of 11-year-old Linda O'Keefe . He said he was glad he had all that stuff behind him but never mentioned what he had done, Malecki recalled. 48 Hours: Lindas Story delves into the work put in to arrest James Neal in relation to Lindas rape and murder. The DNA researcher Moore has been on the forefront of linking cold cases to suspects through genetic material voluntarily offered by Americans doing ancestry research. Through genealogical DNA, though, investigators corroborated the DNA from O'Keefe's body and the DNA obtained from the suspect, according to Spitzer. "After all this time, finding out there is a face and a namejust brings additional closure.". Linda Ann O'Keefe was the middle child in a family of five. Paul Bersebach/The Orange County Register via AP, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Teacher 52 Years Later, Hiding in Plain Sight: DNA Allegedly Links Calif. 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