Gas stations should come with a warning, like a pack of cigarettes. WARNING parents, a sign should read, alcohol is sold where your teenagers fuel up their cars.
In trying to re-tell the stories of Aurora Police Chief Frank Michels’ investigation into Warren Lincoln, I ran into a lot of unanswered questions.
Warren Lincoln's trial was courtroom drama at its most frenzied. The circumstances -- Lincoln's wild lies, the gruesome murders of his wife and brother-in-law and Lincoln's tenuous connection to the 16th president -- brought out rubberneckers, speculators, onlookers and snoopers.
Ray Demmitt hadn't spent much time in the spotlight. During a lackluster seventh place season in 1914, the University of Illinois grad had patrolled left field for the White Sox. Then, nine games into the next season, he was gone, with hardly a mention in the press. But on Jan. 27, 1924, Demmitt was surrounded by reporters.
Warren Lincoln's confession only changed a little at first.
The break in Aurora's most notorious murder did not come from the discovery of a weapon or a hidden fingerprint. It came from the ribbon of a typewriter.
Being dead had taken a toll on Warren Lincoln. Six weeks
earlier, on April 29, 1923, Lincoln disappeared. The public speculated the Aurora florist -- a distant relative of the 16th president -- had been murdered, possibly by his wife and brother-in-law, who also were missing.
Spring should have been a busy time at the greenhouse on Indian Trail. But the owner, Warren Lincoln, had vanished.
By 1923, Aurora was growing at an outstanding rate, but the boom came with plenty of pains, including a reputation for lawlessness. That year, a murder plot would begin to unfold that would put the still rural town on front pages across the country. Aurora’s already famous police chief – still stinging from unsolved cases – decided he would handle the investigation personally. It began on an ordinary April afternoon.
This year, during the 150th anniversary of the Aurora Police Department, we will pay tribute to one of the department’s most brilliant leaders. During the next seven days, we will present the story of how Chief Frank Michels solved the city’s most notorious murder.