An 18-year-old mother was brutally stabbed more than 120 times in 1966 while her child slept nearby, now her suspected killer has been arrested. new dna evidence,
Karen Snyder was found by her husband about 23 miles outside in the town of Calumet chicagoOn 12 November 1966, the case soon went cold.
Now, 79-year-old James Barbier being accused of murder after new dna test It was matched to blood stains on his pants and Ms. Snyder’s dress.
arrest warrant was issued The suspect was taken into custody in Missouri a few days later, on April 26.
“It was probably one of the best phone calls of my life,” Snyder’s daughter Paula Larson said of the news that police were reopening the case.
She has waited 57 years for answers after her mother died when she was only a few months old.
“She was a beautiful woman. Absolutely amazing,” Ms. Larson told reporters about her mother.
Her father, Paul Snyder, was working on the railroad and came home that fateful night to find a trail of blood in his house.
He later told Ms. Larson what had happened to his mother when he was about 11 years old.
Suspicious worked with mr snyder and even helped carry the coffin of his alleged victim.
“At the funeral the police noticed he had wounds, so he was on their radar then,” Ms Larsen said.
Police questioned Mr. Barbier at the time, but never charged him.
Now, new DNA evidence obtained following a search warrant in December may be the key to a conviction.
On Thursday, Mr. Barbier appeared in court, where the judge allowed him to return to Missouri pending the trial due to his medical condition.
Ms. Snyder’s family said they hoped she would eventually get justice.
Independent The Calumet City Police Department and the Cook County State’s Attorney have been contacted for further comment.