A mother of two is found murdered 6 months after being forced into a vehicle
Last updated September 8, 2024Do you know what happened to Amber Wilde?
Last updated October 24, 2023
Who killed this young woman while she was asleep in her bed?
Last updated October 18, 2023Several law enforcement websites provide interesting data and statistics on the number of murders that occur Wisconsin each year. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, for example, creates and publishes a comprehensive standard crime report every year that includes detailed information on the various types of crimes, crime rates, and crime locations in most counties and cities from across country. Project: Cold Case is another good example, since it not only preserves a public database of about 25,000 unsolved cases, but also provides statistics and other information on the number of unsolved homicides in each state, including the murder clearance rate in each state. Between 1980 and 2019, there were 8,347 murders in Wisconsin, according to data supplied by The Murder Accountability Project in cooperation with Project: Cold Case, which may be seen on their Cold Case Homicide Statistics webpage. Furthermore, roughly 1,714 of those killings in Wisconsin remain unsolved today, regardless of the fact that around 6,933 of the original total were solved throughout that time frame.
The 1985 murder of Yvonne Menke, the 2000 double-murder of Wanda Evans and Paul Coates, the 2014 murder of Rosemary Ann Krawza Wermter, and the 1990 murder of Susan “Suzy” Poupart are among the numerous unsolved murders in northern Wisconsin. The murder of William Clapp in 1993, the murder of Kenneth Juedes in 2006, the murder of Angelina Wall in 2001, and the 1974 murder of Mary Kathleen Schlais are among the unsolved central Wisconsin murders, as are Laurie Depies’ disappearance in 1992, Amber Wilde’s disappearance in 1998, Kayla Berg’s disappearance in 2009, and Ricky Jean Bryant‘s disappearance in 1949. The 1990 murder of Chad Maurer, the 1968 murder of Christine Rothschild, the 1980 murder of Susan LeMahieu, the 1986 murder of Andrew Nehmer, and the 1973 murder of Mark Justl are among the unsolved murders in Madison, Wisconsin. Furthermore, the 1976 murder of Debra Bennett, the 1978 murder of Julie Ann Hall, the 1971 murder of Dr. Thomas Speer, the 1980 murder of Shirley Steward, and the 1979 murder of Julie Speerschneider, also including the 2004 disappearance of Amos Mortier, are all unsolved murders in Dane County, Wisconsin.
As previously mentioned, you can get murder data on the websites of various police departments, and on the Project: Cold Case website, you can also find a complete breakdown of the number of unsolved killings in each state, as well as each state’s homicide clearance rate. To summarize, according to Project: Cold Case, Wisconsin presently has about 1,714 unsolved homicides, a number that is steadily decreasing as law enforcement agencies continue to investigate unsolved killings. The bulk, if not all, of Wisconsin’s unsolved homicides may be found on the websites of various local and general law enforcement organizations.
The 1985 murder of Yvonne Menke, the 2000 double-murder of Wanda Evans and Paul Coates, the 2014 murder of Rosemary Ann Krawza Wermter, and the 1990 murder of Susan “Suzy” Poupart are just a handful of the numerous northern Wisconsin unsolved murders that are documented on different law enforcement websites. Unsolved homicides in Madison, Wisconsin, include the 1990 slaying of Chad Maurer, the 1968 slaying of Christine Rothschild, the 1980 slaying of Susan LeMahieu, the 1986 slaying of Andrew Nehmer, and the 1973 slaying of Mark Justl.Other unsolved murders Wisconsin that are featured in the lists of cold cases include the numerous east Wisconsin unsolved murders. Carl Galbraith was murdered in 1977, William Callahan and Wendy McDade were murdered in 1981, Eric Hansen was murdered in 1983, Jodi Lynn Davis was murdered in 1983, Diane Olkwitz was murdered in 1966, and Michelle Angeli was murdered in 2003, to name a few.
More than 200,000 unsolved cases have gone cold since 1980, and murder clearance rates continue to drop. With equity for BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other underserved victims not prioritized in the true crime community—together we can do better.
When it comes to famous Wisconsin murders, there aren’t many names that may immediately spring to mind. Most of the names on the list of Wisconsin murders that can be found on the various law enforcement organization webpages are unfamiliar, but there are a few names on the list of all Wisconsin murders, as well as notorious Wisconsin criminals that are quite well-known. Among the most infamous Wisconsin murders include Roberta Elam’s murder in 1977, Irene Wilson’s murder in 1963, Vicki Durian and Nancy Santomero’s double murder in 1980, and Eddrick Clark, Megan Poston, Michael Dillon, and Ward’s “Prom Night Homicides” in 2005.
Other well-known unsolved disappearances in Wisconsin include several well-known unsolved disappearances. Annita Price’s 1974 disappearance, the Sodder children’s 1945 abduction and alleged kidnapping, Melanie Metheny’s 2006 disappearance, and Mazie Mae Sigmon-1979 Palmer’s disappearance are just a few examples.
The violent crime rate in Wisconsin in 2019 was about 293.2 per 100,000 people, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Report (UCR). In other words, about 293 people per 100,000 people in Wisconsin were directly affected by violent crime in 2019. According to the same study, homicide rate in Wisconsin in 2019 was 3.0 per 100,000 population, indicating that roughly 3 persons per 100,000 people were murdered in the state.
Madison, Wisconsin’s capital, now boasts a population of approximately 263,000 people. In 2018, the violent crime rate in Madison, Wisconsin was around 403.5 per 100,000 inhabitants, while the Madison, Wisconsin murders rate was 1.93 per 100,000 residents. Although there is no way to tell how many murders in Wisconsin 2021 or how many murders in Madison, Wisconsin 2021, we do know that based on archival records, the homicide rate in both appears to be growing year after year.
Dane County, Wisconsin currently has a population of approximately 229,000 people. Although we don’t know how many Dane County murders have happened in previous years, we do know that there were 5 murders in 2015, 0 murders in 2016, 1 murder in 2017, 1 murder in 2018, and 0 murders in 2019. Based on these statistics, it appears that the number of homicides in Dane County every year is dropping, but that it has been reasonably steady over time.
In certain murder cases, investigators are able to gather sufficient Dane County murders evidence to prosecute someone and bring them to Dane County murders trial. The evidence that is frequently presented in Dane County homicide cases is entirely reliant on the crime itself. For example, evidence might include blood, saliva, sperm, skin cells, or other DNA evidence, cell phone pings, gunpowder residue, and, most commonly, Dane County murders crime scene photos, which depict to the judge and the jury the atmosphere around the crime as well as the possible viciousness of the crime.
Madison, Wisconsin homicides appear to be less prevalent than in most other large cities in Wisconsin, owing to its size and population. Many of Madison, Wisconsin’s recent and decades-old killings have been solved, and authorities continue to look into the unsolved homicides. Madison murders discussion will continue on social networking sites such as Facebook, Reddit, as well as Websleuths until the cases are solved, where people speculate and distribute details about Madison murders pictures, Madison murders crime scene photos, and Madison, Wisconsin murders autopsy photos, which are very seldom made available even when a case is closed.
In recent years, significant advances in forensic and DNA technology have resulted in the resolution of hundreds, if not thousands, of decades-old cold cases, and Wisconsin is no exception. The 1984 murder of Traci Hammerberg, the 1976 double-murder of David Schuldes and Ellen Matheys, the 1986 murder of Lisa Holstead, the 1958 murder of Edna Mauch, and the 2008 murder of Brittany Zimmermann are just a few of the many instances where Madison murders DNA as well as dna from crimes in other portions of Wisconsin had been used to solve or introduce new details to cold cases.
If you love true crime, serial killers should spark your interest. You’ve certainly come across one of Wisconsin’s serial killers without even recognizing it if you’ve ever looked through a serial killer list. While there aren’t as many Wisconsin killers as one would think, they do appear regularly on lists of serial killers in Wisconsin or Wisconsin serial killer lists. These lists cover a number of the most infamous Wisconsin serial killers, including Jeffrey Dahmer, also known as “The Milwaukee Cannibal”, who murdered 17 young men from 1978-1991 in Ohio and Wisconsin, Edward “Ed” Theodore Gein, also known as “The Plainfield Ghoul”, who killed at least two people, and Walter Ellis, also known as “The Milwaukee North Side Strangler, who killed 7 women from 1986-2007 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
If you’re interested in learning about the statistics surrounding crimes in Wisconsin, multiple law enforcement agencies release annual reports, which can be found on their website, that shows the crimes in that area. Also, the Federal Bureau of Investigation releases a Uniform Crime Report every year which shows, in detail, the crimes, crime rates, and locations of crimes in every state, county, and city, including a report for crime in Wisconsin.
Sadly, it seems there may never be an end to the amount of Wisconsin homicide and true crime stories in Wisconsin. According to Project: Cold Case, from 1980-2019 there were around 8,647 murders in Wisconsin. Over the years, around 6,933 of those murders were solved, leaving around 1,714 unsolved murders in Wisconsin alone. Despite this, the many different law enforcement agencies in Wisconsin will never stop trying to solve all of Wisconsin’s true crimes.
