Muriel Baldridge, 1949, Prestonsburg, KY

[timewarrior]

I was referring to the last part of the sentence.

Ah. . .Of course that last part was more or less in tune with the more enjoyable aspects of life in general and in no way indicated or advocated the taking of such enjoyment from a member of the same or opposite sex . .in essence. . .it was merely my own way of interjecting my own wry sense of humor into the conversation in order to alleviate and enliven the rather somber and dark mood the conversation had taken. . .In short, I meant no disrespect to any and all living and deceased awarenesses that so happend to take offense. . .

However, I do firmly stand by my main point. . .whether from an effective or inneffective male or a female. . .there would be significant evidence present that would demonstrate the motive behind the attack. you find the motive, you quite possibly find the killer. . .the only way such evidence would not be present, if such was the intent, would be if significant time had passed since the incident. . .but this is usually found in cases where said victim is found in a wooded area years after the initial disappearance. . . .

I believe this is not such a case. . .

[Haroo]

I live less than 30 minutes away from Prestonsburg in a neighboring county.I've heard stories about this case ever since i was a kid growing up in the 70's.I've heard many say that LE had the right guy,but at trial he walked.Doesn't surprise me one bit around this area.The number of unsolved murders and disappearances in these hills in southeastern,Ky over the last 40-50 years is mind blowing..For an area as isolated,and with such a low population compared to other areas in the US,we have had ALOT of unsolved murders and disappearances.

[Maureen_jacobs]

I was referring to the last part of the sentence.

I guess my mind automatically dismissed that part as static

[Regi]

Here's a blogtalkradio segment with Crisp- the author of the book- although I find it overall disappointing because I noted more than a few discrepancies between this info and that from the book.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/dan-zupansky1/2012/08/30/murder-in-the-mountains-michael-crisp

[Michael0116]

Hi Everyone,

This is Michael Crisp, author of 'Murder in the Mountains: The Muriel Baldridge Story'. I happened to see your forum online today while doing

some research on another project, and I wanted to thank you for your interest in Muriel's story. If you have any questions about the book, feel

free to email me at theveryworstthing@gmail.com.

A quick note about purchasing the book - it's available on Amazon for $19.95 (paperback) and $4.95 (e-book/Kindle). Regarding the prices

that you are seeing across the web for used copies of the book (sometimes between $100 - $200), it is because I personally sign each copy

of the paperback book that is purchased new on Amazon, and coupled with the fact that only a limited amount of paperback books were

printed, these sellers feel that these books are collector's items. I don't consider myself a celebrity or that my signature adds a significant

financial value to these books, but that's their prerogative.

Also, if you haven't already, be sure to visit our book's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/TheMurielBaldridgeStory. We often post

pictures and information on that page that isn't included in the book.

In any case, I've enjoyed reading your forum and I'm excited that Muriel's story has inspired you to discuss her case in this forum. Thank

you again.

Michael Crisp

[+ouija ouija]

Hi Michael and welcome to UM. The problem of obtaining the book is twofold for me: I'm in the U.K.(shipping is very expensive), and I don't own a Kindle

I wonder why the sellers don't say 'signed by author'? It would still be beyond my budget but at least I would understand the high price.

[Michael0116]

I'm not sure why they leave that information out, considering that they're asking such a high price for their books.

Sorry to hear about the predicament with the shipping on the book - I think that you can order the book on the Amazon Kindle store and it will play on your

smart phone (a couple of friends of mine in the U.S. ordered it last month and they were able to read it on their smart phones because they don't have

Kindle). Give that a try if you can (the U.S. price is just $4.95 so the U.K. price is probably similar). If that doesn't work let me know.

Thanks!

Michael

[+ouija ouija]

Haha! I don't have a mobile phone either! The only vaguely modern piece of equipment I have is my laptop! This is why I was going to borrow Regi's copy.

[Michael0116]

Ah, ok Well, there's a good chance that you can download/read it on your laptop if you purchase the Kindle version on Amazon, but I can't guarantee it. Regardless,

I hope that you're able to read the book soon, and thanks again for your interest in it.

[+ouija ouija]

thanks again for your interest in it.

Thank you for writing it!

[skliss]

Very nice of him to stop by!

[Michael0116]

Thanks everyone! And if you like fiction, my first novel is now available in hardbound and Kindle too. It's called Blue Shirts, and you can order

it at http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Shirts-Michael-Crisp-ebook/dp/B012649DD2.

Take care, and again feel free to message me if you have any questions or comments. Thanks again!

Edited September 16, 2015 by Michael0116

[lw-intuit]

Thanks everyone! And if you like fiction, my first novel is now available in hardbound and Kindle too. It's called Blue Shirts, and you can order

it at http://www.amazon.co.../dp/B012649DD2.

Take care, and again feel free to message me if you have any questions or comments. Thanks again!

I have read your book and have some questions.

You state that Muriel's sister had recently divorced and moved home with three children. Has any research been done re: reason for divorce, as in was it an abusive situation or alcohol abuse related, how close Muriel was to her sister 'Med', (as in would she try to stop an irate 'ex' from stalking her sister, carrying a pipe to attack a possible new suiter of ex-wife), where the ex lived at the time, was he ever questioned, did he have an alibi for that evening? In your final pages of the book, you state it is believed it was someone she knew and was familiar with which brought me right back to opening pages of your book and sister's situation. Could Muriel inadvertently have been caught up in the middle of a sought after revenge situation that night?

Since the sister has since passed away in Ohio, and possibly one sister surviving, there are also the three children whom I assume might still be living, possibly someone who could shed some light on the circumstances surrounding that relationship at the time of Muriel's death.

[Michael0116]

Those are excellent questions, and I think that they might be best answered by Muriel's daughter-in-law through marriage, Lynn Preston. Lynn wrote the foreword

to the book and has better insight to the family dynamic at the time between Muriel, her sisters, and her in-laws. Lynn is married to John Preston, who is a biological

nephew of Muriel and was living with Muriel and her family at the time of her death. Lynn can be reached via email at johnlynn@foothills.net. If you have trouble

reaching her, please let me know and I'll try to facilitate the process. Thanks!

Michael

[lw-intuit]

Those are excellent questions, and I think that they might be best answered by Muriel's daughter-in-law through marriage, Lynn Preston. Lynn wrote the foreword

to the book and has better insight to the family dynamic at the time between Muriel, her sisters, and her in-laws. Lynn is married to John Preston, who is a biological

nephew of Muriel and was living with Muriel and her family at the time of her death. Lynn can be reached via email at johnlynn@foothills.net. If you have trouble

reaching her, please let me know and I'll try to facilitate the process. Thanks!

Michael

Thanks! I'll let you know if I have any problems contacting her.

Edited September 18, 2015 by lw-intuit

[Maureen_jacobs]

Haha! I don't have a mobile phone either! The only vaguely modern piece of equipment I have is my laptop! This is why I was going to borrow Regi's copy.

You can download the kindle app to any device, laptop, desktop.

[+ouija ouija]

You can download the kindle app to any device, laptop, desktop.

I just downloaded the FREE Kindle app through Amazon and the book cost just £3.49p. Thank you SO much for telling me about that.

[Michael0116]

Glad to hear!

[Maureen_jacobs]

I just downloaded the FREE Kindle app through Amazon and the book cost just £3.49p. Thank you SO much for telling me about that.

I am so glad. I do hope you are enjoying it. I did. When you are done with that one, I just ordered a book about Jack the Ripper. Only about 41 pages in to it. We shall see. This book came after the Eddowes "shawl" book. Very recent.

Edited September 26, 2015 by Maureen_jacobs

[Maureen_jacobs]

Not to wander too far from the OP, but I wonder if any psychics, or seers, or some form of visions have been seen with regards to Muriel.

[+ouija ouija]

That's an interesting idea. I would be surprised if someone in the community hadn't had some sort of premonition, dream etc. about her death.

[+ouija ouija]

Regi I'm sorry I haven't got back to you sooner than this, it's just that I really couldn't think of anything to say about the book. It's interesting, of course, but so frustrating! No one stood out as an obvious suspect. The only thing I did think of was, I think it's likely that Muriel was sexually assaulted/raped but it was publically denied to prevent her family suffering even more than they were already. Maybe also denied so that when/if someone who was highly respected in the community was charged with her death they could claim it was an accident rather than intent to sexually assault.

[timewarrior]

Regi I'm sorry I haven't got back to you sooner than this, it's just that I really couldn't think of anything to say about the book. It's interesting, of course, but so frustrating! No one stood out as an obvious suspect. The only thing I did think of was, I think it's likely that Muriel was sexually assaulted/raped but it was publically denied to prevent her family suffering even more than they were already. Maybe also denied so that when/if someone who was highly respected in the community was charged with her death they could claim it was an accident rather than intent to sexually assault.

They might have kept this silent back then because that was how things were done back then, however now a days, not disclosing in even some vague terms what occurred is really detrimental to the investigation because the public does not have the full motive. . .What if someone knew of a friend who had been sexually obsessed with Muriel, or made the occasional lewd comment about her. . .what if said person heard about the murder, but because the media portrayed it more like an accident or possible robbery-motivated killing, doesn't even consider his or her friend because he or she knows that the friend's only motivation towards her was stricly romantic or sexual. Granted the public does not need to know every single graphic detail about what happened to her, but imparting a general inkling of the motivation would at the very least ensure that potential suspects don't go unnoticed. . .

[Michael0116]

The premonition idea is definitely an interesting one. I hadn't heard of anyone experiencing one regarding this case, but 9 years later - in the same community (Prestonsburg, KY), there was a tragic school bus wreck that claimed the lives of 27 children. The morning of the wreck, a young girl in town named Jackie Branham had a premonition about the wreck, which haunted her for years. I also direct documentary films, one of which is a film about the school bus tragedy called 'The Very Worst Thing'. I interview Jackie in the film, but we don't discuss her premonition - we only talk about her memories of her classmates that perished that day.

There was a great deal of mystery surrounding the cause of the wreck, and to this day no one knows for sure what caused it.

'The Very Worst Thing' is available on DVD at http://www.amazon.com/Very-Worst-Thing-Michael-Crisp/dp/B005ZEEVS8

Michael Crisp

[Regi]

No one stood out as an obvious suspect.

I'd say that Collins stood out to me because not only did he outright pin the murder on a specific person but I think his story of having crossed the bridge, turned around, and then returned to the bridge where they'd parked on the left side includes too much unnecessary info. I mean, it sounds to me that he was aware of case facts and fit them to his story but I'm not sure how he came by such facts.

Edited November 20, 2015 by regi