Trial Continues in Murder Case Unsolved for 39 Years

DAVENPORT, Iowa - The trial of the man accused of killing an 18 year old Cedar Rapids teenager in December of 1979 continues Monday.

66-year-old Jerry Burns is facing a first degree murder charge in the death of Michele Martinko.

According to police, Burns fatally stabbed Michelle in her parents' car outside Westdale Mall in Cedar Rapids.

The case went unsolved for 39 years until DNA from a straw Burns left in a restaurant provided a link to bloodstains at the murder scene.

The judge says the trial is expected to last two to three weeks.


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