An expert witness, plus a jail informant, testified today in the Jack McCullough murder trial. McCullough, 72, is accused of killing of Maria Ridulph in 1957. The trial is being heard by a DeKalb County judge.
Highlights from Day 3 included a forensic anthropologist from the University of Indianapolis. Krista Latham observed the exhumation earlier this year of Ridulph's body, and the subsequent autopsy. Dr. Latham and her team took Ridulph's remains to Indianapolis for further analysis. In their lab, they found evidence of deep cut wounds in the chest area that were not noted in the original 1958 autopsy. The marks appeared on the inside of the sternum and backbone. The defense had several questions about the nature of the cuts Latham referenced during her testimony.
Also today, the state called Christopher Diaz, a jail inmate who says he overheard McCullough tell another inmate that he strangled Maria Ridulph. Diaz told the court that McCullough's alleged confession was made earlier this month. The Defense then challenged Diaz over his criminal charges and immigration status. Ridulph was 7 years old when she disappeared while playing near her Sycamore home. Her body was found several months later in Jo Daviess County.
