A diving bell was lifted from water and debris inside the boathouse at Duluth's Glensheen Mansion on Thursday, July 11, 2019. He was found guilty and given two life sentences. Pietila agreed since she missed Elisabeth, despite her husband’s objections to her working that night. "Even though she's been acquitted, I think there's lots of questions about that.". Making note of the small abrasion on her nose. See more ideas about glensheen mansion, glensheen, duluth. Finding her body on the bed and seeing no sign of life, there was nothing more he could do. In 2005, the museum reversed course. The crime scene detectives processed the staircase and Congdon’s room before they finished in the nurse's room. Pietila’s name and phone number were on the key chain luckily. Jul 7, 2016 - Explore Deanna's board "Glensheen Mansion", followed by 314 people on Pinterest. Before the body of Velma Pietila was removed, next to her body police found what appeared to be hair next to her hand. Velma Pietila had been a nurse since 1933 and had spent the last seven years working at Glensheen. During the time of her autopsy, police learned the small puncture wounds on Pietila’s face, forearm and finger most likely was caused by nails. Donate today. Inspector Grams, who was the officer-in-charge, met Waller near the staircase. Just after midnight on Wednesday, July 6, Detective Waller arrived at the hospital. She encountered the cook, Prudence Rennquist, getting Elisabeth’s tray ready. Kucera then went to the mansion’s front door where he was met by Conger and Garvue. All 12 jurors found Roger Caldwell guilty, and sentenced him to two consecutive life sentences. Elisabeth had spent the weekend at her summer home on the Brule River in Wisconsin, just like she did every weekend. Why don't Glensheen tours focus on the murders? To her horror, she saw the lifeless body of Velma Pietila laying on the bench seat beneath the landing window. The fight had been over treatment of Elisabeth Congdon. Garvue, terrified, ran down the stairs to the first floor where Conger was waiting to bring the tray. With the death of Elisabeth, the Glensheen estate, which includes the 39-room mansion, carriage house, boathouse, and gardener’s cottage, was left to the University of Minnesota and has remained largely intact, down to the unopened house-canned jars of pickles in the basement. Blood money: The grisly murders at Duluth's Glensheen mansion Friday, December 7, 2018 by Hannah Jones in News. See more ideas about glensheen mansion, glensheen, duluth. But for veteran crime writer and crusading editor J. Patrick O’Connor, the facts—or a lack of them—didn’t add up. He had received a call from someone at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport saying the car keys were found by a maintenance worker in a garbage can. Conger however, found the front door already unlocked. Fearing the killer could still be in the house, the two women, side by side, walked toward the phone. Individual donations are behind the clarity in coverage from our reporters across the state, stories that connect us, and conversations that provide perspectives. Gail Feichtinger first researched the Glensheen murders as a crime reporter for the Duluth News-Tribune and Duluth Herald. ", "Because the family didn't want to go back to a murder scene," he explained. And I whispered to the guide, 'You know she was brutally murdered, right?'". That's because the operators say there's more to the Congdons and Glensheen than this one grisly crime. The nurse working that day was Mildred Klosowsky. Less than five years later, he committed suicide on May 17, 1988 by slitting his wrists with a steak knife in his apartment. There were also empty jewelry boxes scattered on the floor. A Retelling of Minnesota’s Infamous Glensheen Murders. A few feet away stood a bloodied brass candlestick. Roger’s trial began on May, 9, 1978. Glensheen at the time was owned by the Congdon family. He never saw her again. Concerned for Congdon, Nurse Garvue was worried, but continued upstairs to Elisabeth’s bedroom. He noticed the pooled blood under her head. Making note of the small drops of blood on the carpet and wall, Waller figured it looked like the nurse had put up a fight. Blood money: The grisly murders at Duluth's Glensheen mansion Friday, December 7, 2018 by Hannah Jones in News. This was now two years after the murders and, as Kimball recalled, two new developments hurt the prosecution. While making rounds, she was to unlock the front door so the arriving day nurse could enter and not have to ring the doorbell and disturb Elisabeth. Rather than risk an acquittal or a hung jury, officials struck a deal with Caldwell, allowing him to plead guilty to two  counts of second degree murder. An expert disputed a fingerprint that linked Roger to the crime. Thinking Pietila must have forgotten, Conger continued on. A gift of $17 makes a difference. The police had circumstantial evidence against the Caldwell’s, however they lacked hard evidence. Glensheen director Dan Hartman estimated it at 8 … Loren told Grams he “pleaded with her not to go,” but her mind was made up and she left at 10:45 p.m. There was a large pool of blood beneath Pietila’s head, but Garvue checked for signs of life anyway. There was also blood on her uniform and a large pool of blood on the polished floor. Jun 12, 2015 - by Cal Schoonover. Fearing the worst, he had to wait until Inspector Grams broke the news to him. Another police dog that was on-scene picked up a scent trail from the back porch with the broken window and followed it down to the lake. Apr 29, 2020 - Photos and videos of the Glensheen mansion in the past. The Minnesota Supreme Court ordered a new trial for August 7, 1982. Task of photographing the bodies, they were the same bag that found... 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