He was said to have allowed girls at the school to talk about sex and drugs in his office, and even permitted alcohol and cigarettes during gatherings in his rectory living quarters. The women have since been more vocal about the abuses they suffered at Joseph Maskell's hands, and all the stories are universally awful (via Huffpost). Her unsolved murder served as the basis for the Netflix documentary series The Keepers in 2017. And that often involved stripping them of their clothes, touching them in his "godly manner," or forcing them to pose for nude photos while he and the school's religious director watched with, wellunrestrained pleasure. Catherine Anne Cesnik SSND (born November 17, 1942; disappeared November 7, 1969) was an American Catholic religious sister who taught English and drama at Archbishop Keough High School in Baltimore, Maryland.On November 7, 1969, Cesnik disappeared. Jerry Oppenheimer For Dailymail.com, Pupils take to TikTok as they stage protest at Shenfield High School, Huge urgent police search for missing baby of Constance Marten, King Charles hosts von der Leyen at Windsor Castle, Gabor Mat: No Jewish state without oppressing local population, Putin spy plane before being 'destroyed by pro-Ukraine Belarus group', Amplified jet stream could lead to 'disruptive snow in places', Shocking video shows machete fight playing out in broad daylight, Dashcam captures moment two cars collide on a roundabout, Putin orders intelligence service to find 'scum' who oppose him, Moment supermarket cashier is attacked at work in New York, Police search allotment sheds for Constance Marten's missing baby, Dramatic moment police cars chase driver moments before smash. The seven-episode docuseries explores the 1969 death of Catholic nun and Baltimore schoolteacher Sister Cathy Cesnik and touches on 20-year-old Joyce Malecki's murder mere days later. Soon they were linking that abuse to Sister Cathy's murder, and speculation that she was going to blow the whistle and tell all. What the show doesnt touch on, however, is Koobs supposed relationship with Sister Cathy. They were always invited to come to her apartment, where she checked in on the situation regarding Maskell. Many have speculated on the identity of this mysterious Brother Bob, with most pointing to Ed (Edgar Davidson) as being the most obvious answer, but some are now speculating that Father Robert Flaherty is Brother Bob. Maskell denied involvement in any form of abuse. As documentary-maker Ryan White asserted: 'What we discovered during the filmmaking process is that everything wasn't as it appeared to be. - May 30, 2017 05:42 pm EDT. Peter McKeon and Gerard J. Koob. But I do think that there are individuals who are still living who know exactly what happened, she said. Stirred to action, the Police exhumed the remains of A. Joseph Maskell, the former priest accused of murdering Sister Cathy, and took a DNA sample to test against DNA found at the murder scene. Jerry Oppenheimer For Dailymail.com A 1994 story in the Baltimore Sun, revealed that she had information about Cesnik's murdered condition, such as the maggots on her face, known only to the cops. According to the autopsy, she had been struck on the back of her head by either a hammer or a brick, there was a hole the size of a quarter in her skull , and there were strangulation marks on her neck. When she was reported missing later that night, several dozen cops and half-a-dozen dog teams unsuccessfully searched a wide swath of Baltimore's southwest neighborhood searching for clues to her whereabouts. So the case couldn't go forward. Those who knew her at the time said that she wouldn't allow any conversation about Cesnik's death, saying that was her life before, and that she now had a new life. She had choke marks around her neck, maggots in her throat and a hole in the back of her skull. Autoplay. Often, survivors would choose to remain anonymous, and the crew of The Keepers respected that choice and removed their stories, names, and/or faces from the series. The Huffington Post reported that Maskell told Wehner, "You see what happens when you say bad things about people?"[1]. Photos hit the internet, many of which have been taken down, that where morbid and graphic of the crash site where Kobe's helicopter went down, killing 9 people. And when those kids got older, Maskell would give them rides home or to appointments. Really, the whole thing raises a lot of questions, summarized by Huffpost. The Keepers: Pieces Of Evidence The Show Leaves Out, 16 TV Shows Too Disturbing To Binge-Watch, 10 Exciting New Netflix Originals Still Coming In 2019, Netflixs Tiger King: 15 Best Joe Exotic Quotes, Everything Available At Launch On HBO Max, 10 Creepy Documentaries To Watch If You Loved The Keepers, Wesley Crusher Is Now A Big Star Trek Picard Season 3 Question, Last Of Us Episode 6's Joel Ending Change From Game Defended By Director, How I Met Your Mother Stars Hold Mini-Reunion In New Image. I think this is it, Hoskins said, in a recent interview. I've talked to the hunter that found Cathy, and he said that since the day he found her the police have never talked to him. Joseph Maskell knew that the victims of his abuse would want to talk (and that they were talking to Catherine Cesnik, at least), so he had to shut that down with violent threats. The exhumation of a Catholic priests body by Baltimore County Police could hold the key to solving the 47-year-old cold case of a murdered nun. Today, almost a half-century later, the murder of Sister Cathy who was once compared to Julie Andrews' character in 'The Sound of Music' because of her beauty and bubbly personality is still one of law enforcement's most mysterious cold cases. Her former students believe that Sister Cathy was murdered as part of a cover-up to protect a priest at the school, A. Joseph Maskell, who Cesnik suspected was guilty of sexual abuse of students. September 2, 2018 / nickvdl. Determining whether Maskells DNA matches the evidence remaining from the crime scene is a box that must be checked, said Armacost. Theres no question she told them she would do something about it.. May 11, 2017 at 2:54 pm. But some thirty women soon came forward with accounts of sexual abuse at the school. She joined the School Sisters of Notre Dame when she was 18. As in, a three-year-old who remembers it. In The Keepers another Keough graduate - Jean Hargadon-Wehner - talked on camera about her abuse by two priests, Neil Magnus and Joseph Maskell, and other men at the school. Jean claims that Father Maskell took her to Sister Cathy's body and said to her, "See what happens when you say bad things about people.". When she didnt come home, her roommate reported her missing the next day. In the show, the audience briefly hears about the fact that Ireland has claims on A. Joseph Maskell, as well, that the Catholic Church continues to cover up. Her body was left out in the open on a slight rise. Another article put out by the Baltimore Sun tried to paint a clearer image of the evening. "Our best hope for solving this case at this point lies with the people who are still alive. (Aside from reports that Maskell invited uniformed officers to assault the girls). catherine cesnik autopsy photos. The mysterious Brother Bob is, in many ways, even more chilling a figure than A. Joseph Maskell. She was warm and energetic, always ready to engage with her students, writing musicals for them to perform on stage, or inventing games to encourage them to teach each other new vocabulary. While police were never able to bring charges against the priest, Caine said that 16 people who said Maskell abused them have since received money from the archdiocese as part of financial agreements. 'Father Maskell picked me up, took me to a wooded area where there was a lot of policemen gathered around, he left me in the backseat and two policemen abused me while Maskell stood next to the car. But when he was questioned by the police, he had an ironclad alibi for the night of Sister Cathy's disappearance. The week prior, Sister Cathy Cesnik, a popular young nun who taught English and drama at Keough, had vanished while on a Friday-night shopping trip. . Shortly before her disappearance, he'd called her again, telling her that he was still in love with her. Prior to the funeral, the city of Frederick put purple ribbons [Shan'ann's favorite color] all over the city. Two months later, her body was found in a frozen field in Baltimore County. In fact, people around the world were so distraught at learning about Sister Cathys case that they started flooding the Baltimore County Police with calls. Cold cases", "About the BCoPD Cold Case Unit and the Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik Homicide", "Police: Exhumed Priest's DNA Does Not Match Evidence from Crime Scene Killing of Sister Cathy", "Priest's Body Exhumed from Randallstown Cemetery in Investigation of Baltimore Nun's Decades-Old Killing", "The Dead Nun, the School Sex Scandal, and the Amateur Detectives Fighting for Justice", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murder_of_Catherine_Cesnik&oldid=1117759661, This page was last edited on 23 October 2022, at 12:23. Viewers of The Keepers do not fondly reflect on Sharon May, the prosecutor in charge of the Maryland State Attorneys Office Sex Abuse Unit. As it turned out, he had close ties to the police: his brother was a lieutenant, and Maskell was chaplain for the Baltimore County force, along with the state police and the Maryland National Guard. And this update involves Father Joseph Maskell. Though, of course, they insist theyre doing everything they can to help victims of abuse, on the subject of Maskell, they remain as vague and unhelpful as ever. "The Keepers" premieres on Netflix May 19. v. A. Joseph Maskell et al. James Maskell, A. Joseph Maskells uncle, is a similarly powerful and threatening figure that deserves to be prodded harder. The case remains open and unsolved. Later in 1994, authorities exhumed boxes Maskell had buried in a Baltimore cemetery and found one to contain child pornography. (Handout photo courtesy of . However, the material was never entered into evidence. More: Every Original Series Cancelled By Netflix. Copyright 2023 PopCulture.com. Detective Nick Giangrasso still thought it was someone tied to the church, though, and began to look into Father A. Joseph Maskell. Now, WJZ has learned Baltimore County Police may be closer than ever to solving the murder of 26-year-old Sister Cathy Cesnik. According to CNN, Bode Cellmark Forensics laboratory in Lorton, Virginia was responsible for comparing the DNA to the sample from the murder scene. The weapon that caused it? ', He claimed that the detectives were told to either charge the priest 'or let him go. Wehner alleged that there was frequent sexual abuse at Sister Cathy's school. [12] After obtaining permission from the state's attorney's office, the BCPD exhumed the body of Maskell, who died of a major stroke in 2001, but did not find a DNA match to evidence from the crime scene. Not every story that Ryan White heard gets told in The Keepers. Grace Elizabeth Montanye, 16, met a stranger at a shopping mall on Sept 29, 1971, northwest of Baltimore, according to police. [8], In 1995, Teresa Lancaster and Jean Wehner (ne Hargadon), former students at Keough who say they were sexually abused by Maskell, filed a lawsuit against him, the school, gynecologist Christian Richter, the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the Archdiocese of Baltimore, and William H. Keeler. The scandals were always covered up by reassigning the offending priests to new parishes or just saying they were "on sick leave.". Crime Museumadds that the car itself was newly caked in mud. The call led Hoskins and Keough graduate, Abbie Schaub, to start their own research into Sister Cathy's murder. When Wehner could only nod in reply, Cesnik promised that she would take care of it (though Maskell did continue to abuse students after that, too). Just a few days before she vanished, the priest reportedly called her and, once again expressing his love, had asked her to marry him. In 2017, Netflix released an original documentary called The Keepers which reignited interest in the unsolved murders of Sister Cathy Cesnik and Joyce Malecki in 1969. But now, because of witness testimony, and a multi-part documentary about the Cesnik murder to be aired on Netflix beginning on May 19, there is hope that her killer may be identified and the case finally be put to rest. One of the major theories that The Keepers hypothesizes is that Maskell either killed Sister Cathy or had her killed. Her body was found in Lansdowne, south of Baltimore, on January 3, 1970. By William Cannon On May 17, the Baltimore Sun reported that his DNA did not match a sample that was taken. CNN reported in 2017 that police had the okay to exhume his body for DNA testing, but even then, the DNA wasn't a match with what was found at the crime scene. [2] Her paternal grandparents, John (Jan) and Johanna Tomec esnik, were Slovenians who emigrated from Yugoslavia,[3] while her maternal grandfather, Joseph Omulac, came from Yugoslavia and maternal grandmother, Martha Hudok, came from Austria. Joseph Cesnik in 1930 Census; Census Place: Pittsburgh, Allegheny, Pennsylvania; 1930 United States Federal Census; National Archives and Records Administration. Because the federal government keeps stalling and refusing to release information under the FOIA regarding Joyce Maleckis murder, there are likely countless pieces of possibly helpful evidence related to the homicides of both Joyce Malecki and Sister Cathy. There are a lot of people that are living that should be behind bars, she said. After that, it seemed like she paid a visit to Muhly's Bakery inside the Hecht Company store in Edmondson Village. Two women anonymous at the time but who later came forward as Jean Wehner and Teresa Lancaster came forward with allegations of abuse, saying he (and some of his associates) had assaulted them while they were students at Archbishop Keough (later Seton Keough) High School (via Baltimore Sun). Advocates, filmmakers say they have not given up. Friends which, reportedly, also included uniformed police officers. Feb 28, 2020. May 19, 2017. Ghosts of the past might've followed her, though, punishing her for what she knew and the good she did. . Potential suspects seem like they should shed some light on a case, but that wasn't the case here, as Huffpost documents. In fact, people around the world were so distraught at learning about Sister Cathy's case that they started flooding the Baltimore County Police with calls. The autopsy reportedly found that the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head. Following her disappearance, investigators plotted her movements and determined she had cashed her $255 paycheck at a bank before heading to a small shopping center where she bought some baked goods. While the case remains open, allegations of sexual abuse by Father Maskell, and Sister's Cathy's plan to blow the whistle along with a possible cover up by the Catholic Church with close ties to law enforcement are at the heart of the horrendous case. But the autopsy results, which were not . After Maskell died in 2001, the two women decided to go public, using their real names. The Murder Of Catherine Cesnik, The Nun Who Knew Too Much. Maskell was a police chaplain and he knew people in high places that's how they got away with it. I can still feel her touch my cheek, said Hargadon-Wehner, in a recent interview. After the complaints were made to the archdiocese, Maskell was temporarily removed from his post at the school for psychological evaluation. Moreover, she said that along with the priest, she was abused by police officers. Sharon Mays husband, V. Eric W. May, Sr., was a state cop while Sharon was a prosecutor, providing the two of them even more opportunity to participate in a cover-up. However, the Catholic Church is completely unwilling to share these documents, even though White says he would love for them to be transparent and show the world what they have.. The details go on, and none of them are pretty. Cesnik went missing on the night of Nov. 7, 1969 after stopping by a local shopping center to pick up buns from a bakery, cash a check and buy an engagement present for her sister, the Sun . Phillips never saw her roommate again after she left that evening, and even a store clerk couldn't confirm Cesnik's presence there that night. I'm not going to name names right now but they know stuff. In 2016, the Baltimore County Police Department (BCPD) reassigned the case due to retiring officers, prompting new interviews and further investigation into the alleged sexual abuse at Keough. For all the press and notoriety that this case would get in the long run, it started out exceedingly normal. Not two decades. Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik was last seen alive on November 7, 1969. Hargadon-Wehner's new book "Walking With Aletheia" details her healing process, and what she's learned from - she says - communicating with several different aspects of her personality. They already knew the murderer, but looking further would unearth information he wasn't supposed to know. True crime is only getting more popular, and Netflix never misses an opportunity to contribute to the zeitgeist, giving us The Keepers. An autopsy found Cesnik died from blunt force trauma to the head, according to police. There is no word on whether the Attorney General's investigators will gain access to those records. Hoskins says at a minimum she wants to see records on Father Maskell. Its important to take this confession from Koob with a grain of salt, as he is proven in the show to be less than the most reliable of witnesses, but, as White says, I dont know where the truth lies.. Another dead end, apparently. ', The comments below have not been moderated, By We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Jane Doe (Jean Wehner) is quoted as recalling a man she knew only as Brother Bob, who she can hardly remember from being traumatized so badly by him, whispering to her that he was the one who had killed Sister Cathy. Baltimore Detective Lt. Sam Bowerman always believed Sister Cathy was killed by a man who either lived in, or was familiar with, the area around the Carriage House Apartments, knew the location off Monument Avenue where her body was dumped, and that the murder was unplanned. Does he ever reveal them? Sister Catherine 'Cathy' Cesnik, a pretty and popular 26-year-old nun who taught at an all-girls Catholic school in Baltimore, was last seen by her roommate, another nun, going off to shop on the evening of Friday November 7, 1969. It came with the threat that he would tell her father that she'd been "whoring around," and that those consequences would be far worse. Except for that day, she said. Either way, theyre lying and withholding information that would be helpful to the case. Something was clearly wrong, and so, according to the Baltimore Sun, Helen Russell Phillips called on the help of a few friends revs. By 1994, they and several other students had filed a lawsuit alleging physical and sexual abuse by Maskell through the 1960s and 1970s, according to Armacost. White is unconvinced that the DNA found at the scene on a cigarette butt would match A. Joseph Maskells DNA, but he remains positive that, eventually, someone will catch whoever murdered Sister Cathy and theyll finally figure out why. On January 3, 1970, the body of Catherine Cesnik was found by two hunters. Despite the time, speculation, and later surge of interest in the case, Catherine Cesnik's murder has still gone unsolved. She may have made a purchase at Muhly's Bakery in Edmondson Village, since a box of buns from that bakery was found in the front seat of her car. Locating that stash, investigators found, among other things, nude pictures of underage girls. This is presumed to be the source of the DNA sample found at the murder scene, but Ryan White knows theres even more that Baltimore County Police arent saying. Updated Unless some brave sleuths or particularly inspired detectives go digging, Keough High School is now, for better or worse, closed to a continuing story. 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