"Smiley Face Killer" - Individuals do Make a Difference

This is one of those serious posts I do, now and then.

When my home state gets in the news, I prefer it to be for something happier than the "Smiley Face" killings.

When Chris Jenkins' body "was found floating on his back with his arms crossed on his chest - an unusual pose for a drowned person." Since he'd last been seen at a bar, or for some other reason, his death was ruled 'accidental.'

I'm not blaming local police. Minneapolis law enforcement may have had perfectly good reasons for assuming that someone whose body turned floating in the Mississippi, face up, laid out like a corpse for a funeral, had died accidentally. And, Chris Jenkins' official cause of death has been changed from 'undetermined' or 'drowning' to 'homicide.'

And all 40 cases that a couple of retired New York detectives linked probably didn't seem more than accidental drownings. Besides, I get the impression that law enforcement agencies don't share data to any great extent.

I also get the impression that the investigative practices of law enforcement focus on where a body is found, not where it was dumped in the water.

The "Smiley Face" linked to these 'alleged' killings

I found a few news articles on the subject:

• "DETECTIVES: Chris Jenkins murder connects dozens around country
  KSTP (04/23/2008 - Updated 04/29/2008)
• "Minneapolis Police Won't Link Chris Jenkins Death to Smiley Face Murders Theory"
  myFOX Twin Cities (April 29, 2008)
• "Ex-NYPD cops say smiley face is link in 40 deaths by serial killer syndicate"
  New York Daily News (April 29 2008)

Individuals count: These 'alleged' killings might never have been noticed, if two men from New York hadn't made it their business to dig up facts.

Now, for a blatant plug: BlogCatalog is urging individual bloggers to "Unite for Human Rights" on May 15. I posted about this before, in "Bloggers Unite for Human Rights" (April 17, 2008).