In 2020 the Jefferson County, Colorado Sheriff announced that a suspect had been named in a 57-year-old cold case, the oldest case solved, to date, using investigative genetic genealogy. Margaret Elizabeth “Peggy” Beck was sexually assaulted and strangled at a secluded Girl Scout camp in August, 1963. The Evidence Speaks takes a deeper dive into the crime, and the disappearance, of James Raymond Taylor.

In 1963, investigators had only circumstantial evidence to aid in identifying possible suspects in Peggy’s attack and murder. However, the camp caretaker was immediately under suspicion, despite his age and solid alibi. It’s long been believed that the caretaker was the only male at the camp the night of the murder. For the first time in more than 58 years, a new witness speaks out about what he saw at the camp that night, and discusses how the murder impacted his grandfather.

Our thanks to:

• Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
• Mitch Morrissey, United Data Connect
• Steve Stuart
• Oklahoma Educational Television Authority (OETA) PBS station, oeta.tv

In the early morning hours of August 18, 1963, 16-year-old Margaret Elizabeth “Peggy” Beck was viciously attacked in her tent at the Flying G Ranch, a remote Girl Scout camp in the mountains of Colorado. The initial investigation faced numerous challenges to crime scene investigators and detectives. Yet, a key piece of evidence was recovered that, 57 years later, would speak for Peggy.

Credits:

• Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
• Mitch Morrissey, United Data Connect

A retired database programmer finds herself in the middle of a case involving the unidentified remains of a family member. The experience motivated her to become an investigative genetic genealogist, despite her disinterest in true crime. She was recruited to help solve the Peggy Beck case, and shares more information on what it took to identify suspect James Raymond Taylor who, at the time of the Beck murder, was a married father with a baby on the way.

Credits:

• Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
• Mitch Morrissey, United Data Connect
• Joan the Genealogist, United Data Connect

James Raymond Taylor’s tumultuous relationship with his wife is revealed. The couple lived in Las Vegas in the early 1970s, and it’s there that Taylor was arrested, twice, for crimes against teenage girls. With a pending trial for felony rape, Taylor jumps bond and escapes.

Credits:

• Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
• Mitch Morrissey, United Data Connect
• Mark Aubin, Tampa FL, Top Gun Investigations and Aubin Law Firm, PA
• Las Vegas Metro Police Department – Cold Case Unit

More than 40 women are murdered in the San Diego area in the 1980s, leading to a special unit with the local police agency. A member of the Taylor family is convicted for his role in at least one case, and spends nearly two decades in prison. Why do most of the cases remain unsolved, despite multiple men being sent to prison? This episode analyzes the still cold cases, once labeled NIH – No Human Involved.

Cold case references:

• Cynthia Maine: NamUs case 8606
• Jane Doe (Hesperia Wranglers): NamUs case 61563
• Jane Doe (2 gold rings, 1 silver ring): NamUs case 53746
• Mary Rawlinson: NamUs case 9353

Credits:

• Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
• Mitch Morrissey, United Data Connect
• NBC News archives
• KCPQ 13, Seattle, WA (1988)
• KFMB-TV, San Diego CA (1993)
• National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

James Raymond Taylor might have been identified more than a decade earlier if familial DNA, rather than investigative genetic genealogy, was used in Peggy Beck’s case. However, there’s pushback on the use of familial DNA. Also, learn what you can do to help solve cold cases, and assist in identified Jane and John Does.

Credits:

• Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
• Mitch Morrissey, United Data Connect
• Rockne Harmon, Forensic/Cold Case Consultant, DNARock