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Haunting Clue Examined in Murder Case

By Ann O'Neill
,
CNN
posted: 10 HOURS 46 MINUTES AGO
comments: 55
Text SizeAAA
(July 2) - Police wonder whether a photograph found in a prison cell a decade ago might lead to the bodies of two children who disappeared and are believed to have been murdered.
Karen and Michael Reinert, who lived with their divorced mother in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, were 11 and 10 when their mother was murdered and they vanished in June 1979.
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A former high school English teacher was convicted in the murders of Susan Reinert and her children. But the children have never been found.
The photo turned up in the prison cell of William S. Bradfield Jr., who died of heart failure in 1998 while serving three life sentences for the Reinert murders, according to investigators.
The photograph, which police say was developed in 1986, depicts a stone marker that resembles a hooded figure. The stone is surrounded by fallen leaves, with woods in the background.
Although dozens of tips came in when the photo was released a decade ago, investigators have been unable to locate the marker, said Trooper Brian Krause of the Pennsylvania State Police. He made the photo available again in response to media inquiries on the 30th anniversary of the Reinert murders.
Krause, who works out of the state police barracks in Harrisburg, is the lone investigator on a case that once occupied a task force of more than a dozen state police detectives and FBI agents. He described the investigation as open but "inactive."
Krause said he still receives occasional tips and follows up on them.
Susan Reinert's body was found early June 25, 1979, in the hatchback of her car. The vehicle was parked in the lot of a hotel in Harrisburg, miles from Reinert's home in Philadelphia's Main Line suburbs.
Reinert and Bradfield were English teachers at Upper Merion High School in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.
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The school's former principal, Jay C. Smith, also was convicted in the case in 1986, but the conviction was overturned on appeal in 1992. The appeals court cited improper hearsay testimony and said prosecutors withheld evidence from Smith's defense. Smith remained free until his death in May.
Prosecutors have long said that Bradfield and Smith plotted the murders together, with the motive of money. Reinert had named Bradfield as beneficiary of her estate and life insurance policies worth $730,000. She thought she was going to marry him.
At the time of the slaying, Smith was in trouble with the law. He was sentenced in Harrisburg on theft and weapons convictions on the same day Reinert's body was found there.
Until they died, Smith and Bradfield both denied that they had killed Susan Reinert and their children. At their trials, each man pointed the finger at the other.
The photograph was found among dozens of boxes of Bradfield's belongings. They also include some writings that appear to be in code.
Krause said that at least one person who was never charged in the case may have intimate knowledge of the Reinert slayings. That person may know what happened to the children, he said.
"I would certainly say that there is a possibility of a third person out there -- a probability," Krause said.
Krause asks anyone with information about what happened to Karen and Michael Reinert to call 717-671-7537.
© 2009 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
2009-07-04 08:13:11
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Dooshna

08:28 PMJul 05 2009

A movie for television was made about this case. When her body was first found no one knew the kids had been w/her. Her ex- husband asked where the kids were when told about her death and that was the first the cops knew the kids were missing too. It was a shock to all. She and the kids were seen leaving her house w/her boyfriend,that is how the cops got onto Him.

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Ajmalacarne

08:11 PMJul 05 2009

Michael and Karen deserve a lot better than to have people make bad jokes about them. Anyone who wants to know more about this case should rent a DVD of "Echoes in the Darkness" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092945/usercomments

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PinkThenRed

08:09 PMJul 05 2009

Vesta111 06:46 PMJul 04 2009 I see no fence but that blue thing in the right hand corner interestes me, also the red almost ribbon thing against the lower left side is odd.______I agree the blue object is of interest and I was wondering if they ever traced it to this family?

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PinkThenRed

08:04 PMJul 05 2009

The photo turned up in the prison cell of William S. Bradfield Jr., who died of heart failure in 1998 while serving three life sentences for the Reinert murders, according to investigators.The photograph, which police say was developed in 1986, depicts a stone marker that resembles a hooded figure. The stone is surrounded by fallen leaves, with woods in the background.______I don't like it, it's scary and possibly represents an evil act. How come he was allowed to have this photograph in his cell? Was it hidden or just on the wall for anyone to see? What a disturbed person if this is infact a grave marker for those dead children.

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Senilemomma

07:58 PMJul 04 2009

Seems strange that a mother would cut the kids out of her will and leave everything to Bradfield. Makes me wonder if she was involved in their deaths and then perhaps she was silenced? Schools are a hotbed for gossip and it's odd that she wouldn't know that Bradfield was dating a student and 2 others (that we're aware of) and still leave all of her life insurance to him and him alone. She wouldn't be the first woman to get rid of her kids to try and win over a man and then have things go totally wrong.... sad case; I feel for the missing kids and hope they are found.

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Bastet1970

07:56 PMJul 04 2009

TedDBare98..interesting point. In different light it may look completely different. No one would even pay much attention to it. Again I wished they had posted the full photo..you can see many more features in the surroundings. The statue or marker in not on flat ground...it looks like it is nestled on a mound.

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TedDBare98

07:49 PMJul 04 2009

The proportions of the stone to the background matches many old mile markers and old grave markers in PA- could the "face" in the stone actually be a chip that with lighting appears to be a face??? Oh and this case took place long before photoshopping....Someone should follow up on the comment about Rt 29......that is one of the areas in this part of the state with these kind of stones...

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LettyB

07:46 PMJul 04 2009

weird photo, however, it looks as if soneome wearing a hood put their head on the stone and had that photo taken, the stone looks more like a road side marker,___________and then the dates, do not even match_

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Bastet1970

07:41 PMJul 04 2009

Another interesting note...it has been rumored that 2 bodies found in California in 1979 could have been the missing children . If this photo is indeed a picture of these children's graves, then I doubt that they were the bodies found in California. The leaves around the statue looks like typical East Coast fall foliage, possibly from a red oak...I don't know my trees that well...maybe someone reading this can identify the leaves?

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RASV10

07:37 PMJul 04 2009

maybe St. Fiacre he carried a spade

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