In 1963, Daisy Zick was stabbed twenty-seven times at her home in Battle Creek, Michigan—and locals are still talking about the unsolved case today. On a bitterly cold morning in January 1963, Daisy Zick was brutally murdered in her Battle Creek, Michigan, home. No fewer than three witnesses caught a glimpse of the killer, yet today, it remains one of the state’s most sensational unsolved crimes. The act of pure savagery rocked the community, as well as the Kellogg Company where Zick worked. Here, Blaine Pardoe offers a detailed chronicle of this shocking and mysterious crime. With long-sealed police files and interviews with the surviving investigators, the true story of the investigation can finally be told. Who were the key suspects? What evidence do the police still have on this cold case more than fifty years later? Just how close did this murder come to being solved? Is the killer still alive? These questions and more are masterfully brought to the forefront for true crime fans and armchair detectives.

One brutal murder. Two possible suspects. And a “fascinating . . . puzzling case” that divided a Michigan community (Lansing State Journal). In the summer of 1982, the body of twenty-year-old Maggie Hume was found under a pile of blankets in the closet of her apartment. A Catholic school girl and daughter of a local football coach, Maggie had been raped and strangled. It was the only active murder investigation in Battle Creek, Michigan, suggesting the case would be an easy victory for authorities. Plus, they already had two persons of interest on watch. Maggie’s neighbor, Michael Ronning, confessed to the crime. Yet it was Maggie’s boyfriend, Jay Carter, who failed the polygraph, and whose account of his whereabouts on the night of the murder kept changing. Unfortunately, the Calhoun County Prosecutor’s Office and Battle Creek Police Department couldn’t agree on whom to charge. And the city soon took sides. Cracking open three decades of never-before-seen evidence, this real-life whodunit exposes the dark secrets and tragic infighting that turned the murder of Maggie Hume into an unwinnable contest of wills, egos, politics, and the law—a contest that, to this day, isn’t over.

"In this book, you'll learn about the rise of the Kelloggs, from their days as religious fanatics to their breakfast food empire, and all of the death and darkness in between. You'll also learn about their enduring legacy in Battle Creek, from the ghosts they left behind to the curse that appears to haunt those who work and learn in Kellogg-built institutions"--Page 10.

“A fascinating psychological study of an unrepentant murderer” from a New York Times–bestselling author (Library Journal). Battle Creek, Michigan, is famous as the birthplace of breakfast cereal, and the nearby suburb of Marshall is as wholesome as shredded wheat. Well-known for its colorful Victorian mansions, this stately slice of nineteenth-century Americana became infamous on a frigid night in February of 1991. Newscaster Diane Newton King was stepping out of her car, her children strapped into the backseat, when a sniper’s bullet cut her down. The police assumed that the killer was her stalker—a crazed fan who had been terrorizing King for weeks. But as their investigation ground to a standstill, the police turned to another suspect—one much closer to home. In this gripping retelling of the crime and its aftermath, journalist Lowell Cauffiel re-creates the atmosphere of terror that marked King’s last days, giving us a story of celebrity, obsession, and what it means to kill.

Adam "Pump" Arnold was both feared and regaled in Victorian- era Battle Creek. He was a bootlegger and a pimp, a robber and a con artist, an arsonist and a loan shark and even an assassin. Arnold faced off with the city over illegal liquor sales and flaunted his victory with a life-size statue of the mayor dressed as a hobo. Called the "greatest criminal in the history of Battle Creek," Arnold was convicted in a captivating public trial for the murder of his own son. Join authors Blaine Pardoe and Victoria Hester as they explore the life and misdeeds of the unabashed criminal mastermind who rocked Battle Creek to its core.

Every small town has a moment when the real world abruptly intrudes, shattering the town's notions of itself and its people. For citizens of Marshall, Michigan, that moment came August 18, 1967. Nola Puyear was working downtown at the Tasty Cafe that morning when she received a package. She opened it and was instantly killed in a fiery explosion. In the months that followed, law enforcement and prosecutors wrestled with a crime that to all appearances was senseless. Evidence recovered from the blown-up restaurant, including a bottle of pills that had been tainted with lye, suggested a concerted plot to murder Mrs. Puyear. But why had someone wanted to kill the well-liked woman, by all accounts a pillar of her close-knit community? For that matter, was Marshall really the quaint paradise it seemed to be? Secret Witness brings to light startling new evidence and freshly uncovered facts to address these and other questions that, to this day, surround one of Michigan's most brutal murders. Based on extensive interviews with surviving prosecutors, police, and witnesses, Blaine Pardoe re-creates the investigation that pried into Marshall's dark underbelly and uncovered the seamy private lives led by some of the town's citizenry but led to only tenuous theories about the bombing. The book also examines the pivotal role played by the Secret Witness program, an initiative by the Detroit News that offered rewards for anonymous tips related to violent crimes. What's ultimately revealed is the true depth of evil that occurred in Marshall that day. Every small town has dirty little secrets. This time, they were deadly.

Perhaps no other television show captures our innate fascination with crime and criminals better than the original Forensic Files. Including murders, insurance fraud, hit-and-runs, and kidnappings, all cases featured on the show are solved in large part with the help of forensic science like DNA evidence. In Forensic Files Now: Inside 40 Unforgettable Cases, author Rebecca Reisner shares her own gripping retellings — adapted from her popular blog, ForensicFilesNow.com — of 40 favorite cases profiled on the show along with fascinating updates and personal interviews with those directly involved. Featuring classic cases like the Tennessee brothers who terrorized locals for years until the feds rode into town, the Texas lovebirds who robbed a grave in an insurance fraud plot that made international headlines, the Ivy League-educated physician who attempted a fresh start by burying his wife in the basement, and some cases so captivating that they have sparked spinoff miniseries or documentaries of their own, this book will enthrall readers with its vivid recaps and detailed updates. Also featuring an in-depth interview with Forensic Files creator Paul Dowling and a profile on the show’s beloved narrator, Peter Thomas, Forensic Files Now is a must-read for diehard Forensic Files fans and a welcome find for true crime readers looking for more riveting and well-told stories.