Cold Cases in Vermont
ColdCaseIndex documents 4 cases in Vermont, dated 1946 to 2012. 2 are recorded as unsolved. The earliest is Paula Jean Welden (1946) and the most recent is Melissa Jenkins (2012).
- Unsolved 2 (50%)
- Solved or convicted 1 (25%)
- Closed without conviction 1 (25%)
Homicide clearance in Vermont, 1965 to 2024
A homicide is "cleared" when police make an arrest or close it by exceptional means, so an uncleared case is not always an unsolved one. Source: Murder Accountability Project analysis of FBI Uniform Crime Report data, as published by Project: Cold Case. These are statewide totals and are separate from the ColdCaseIndex entries listed below.
By type
All Vermont cases
Melissa Jenkins
Melissa Jenkins, a 33-year-old St. Johnsbury Academy teacher, disappeared on March 25, 2012, after being lured out by a call about a broken-down vehicle; her SUV was found idling with her young son unharmed inside.
Brianna Maitland
Brianna Maitland, 17, disappeared after leaving her shift at the Black Lantern Inn in Montgomery, Vermont, late on March 19, 2004.
Matthew Isaac Doe (Northfield Baby Boy Doe)
On April 1, 1982, schoolchildren waiting for a bus in Northfield, Vermont, found a deceased newborn boy inside a plastic garbage bag after a dog dragged it along the road.
Paula Jean Welden
Bennington College sophomore Paula Welden went for a hike on the Long Trail near Bennington, Vermont and was never seen again. Her disappearance was the most prominent in a series called the 'Bennington Triangle' disappearances…