The Lowcountry Murder of Gwendolyn Elaine Fogle: A Cold Case Solved

by Arcadia Publishing

Overview

Gwendolyn Elaine Fogle's murder remained a cold case for 37 years, until the dogged work of two detectives. Evidence of the shocking, small-town 1978 murder of Gwendolyn Elaine Fogle lay in the evidence room at the Walterboro Police Department. Investigators periodically revisited the case over the years, but it remained the department's top cold case for thirty-seven years. Special Agent, Lt. Rita Shuler worked on the case shortly after she joined the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and she just couldn't let it go, not even after her retirement in 2001. In May 2015, Lt. Shuler teamed up with new investigator Corporal Gean Johnson, and together they uncovered key evidence that had been overlooked. With new advancements in DNA and fingerprint technology, they brought the case to its end in just four months. Join Shuler as she details the gruesome history of this finally-solved case.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467147002
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	02/01/2021
Series:	True Crime
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	1,129,980
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Lieutenant Rita Y. Shuler was supervisory special agent of the Forensic Photography Department of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) for twenty-four and a half years. She interfaced with the Attorney General's Office, solicitors and investigators, providing photographic evidence assistance in the prosecution of thousands of criminal cases. Her interest in photography started as a hobby at the age of nine with a Kodak "Brownie" camera. Before her career as a forensic photographer, she worked in the medical field as a radiologic technologist for twelve years. Her interest in forensic science evolved when she X-rayed homicide victims to assist with criminal investigations. Shuler received her specialized law enforcement photography training at the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy in Columbia, South Carolina, and the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. She holds a special love for the South Carolina Lowcountry and enjoys walking, beaching, crabbing, fishing and shark tooth hunting. She resides in Johns Island, South Carolina.

Table of Contents

Preface 11

Acknowledgements 13

1 The Attack: May 27, 1978 15

2 The Aftermath 23

3 The Autopsy 27

4 Investigation 30

5 South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) 32

6 A Suspect 37

7 Investigation Continues 39

8 Case Closed: Seven Years after the Murder, July 1985 44

9 Advanced Forensic Technology: Eleven Years after the Murder, August 1989 45

10 A Bizarre Event: Thirteen Years after the Murder, November 1991 48

11 A Dream of Writing: Twenty-Three Years after the Murder, October 2001 50

12 Walterboro Police Department and SLED Reopen Case: Twenty-Four Years after the Murder, July 2002 53

13 South Carolina True Crime Publications; Twenty-Eight Years after the Murder, 2006 60

14 Meeting Elaine Fogle's Family: Twenty-Nine Years after the Murder June 2007 63

15 Sled Opens Cold Case Unit: Thirty-One Years after the Murder, 2009 71

16 New Eyes, New Investigators: Thirty-Seven Years after the Murder, May 27, 2015 76

17 A Bombshell: Three Months into the New Investigation, August 2015 91

18 Bond Hearing: December 2015 106

19 Preliminary Hearing: March 2016 111

20 Competency Hearing: May 2017 116

Ending Note 119

Bibliography 123

About the Author 125