The Boy in the Box

by Joyce

Since tomorrow is the anniversary of when the Boy in the Box was found, I thought it was appropriate to re-post this. It is still an active homicide investigation.




On February 25, 1957, the body of a young boy approximately 4 to 5 years old, was found in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia by Philadelphia Police officer Elmer Palmer (Note: Elmer Palmer just passed away in January 2011). Police had received a call that there was something inside a J.C. Penney bassinet box that someone had thrown away.

 The subsequent autopsy showed that the blond haired boy was undernourished and had been abused. The cause of death was head injuries.

For the past 50 years, investigators have been searching for this boy’s identity. They thought the case would be solved quickly, but the boy was never even reported missing. Investigators have followed thousands of leads over the years. It is still an open case, now handled by Homicide Detective Tom Augustine, who first became interested in the case as a child when he saw the posters of the boy that were displayed all over Philadelphia.

The boy’s murder has been featured on America’s Most Wanted and 48 Hours, but most of the leads generated by these shows have failed to produce anything. One tip from an Ohio woman in 2002 seemed the most promising. The woman appears credible but investigators have so far been unable to corroborate her story. The boy’s remains were even exhumed in 1998 and an independent lab was able to obtain mitochondrial DNA from a tooth, but as long as he remains unknown, there is no one to match it to.

The sad death of this boy has generated interest all over the world. There is a website dedicated to solving the case and finding his identity--America's Unknown Child. This site has the entire case history, photographs, information on witnesses, etc. It is run by volunteers whose sole purpose is for this boy to rest in peace.

It is also being investigated by the Vidocq Society, which is an organization comprised of retired detectives and others, including a forensic sculptor who has made a bust of what the boy’s father probably looked like.

I think what intrigues me most about this case is the dedication of the investigators involved. Some of the retired detectives working on this case were the original officers assigned to the investigation. Many of them have worked on their own time studying evidence, looking through hospital records and interviewing witnesses. These seasoned cops remember this boy as if he belonged to them--and in a way he does. Fifty years later, they still attend memorial services at the gravesite.

How would you have this story end? Will there ever be justice for The Boy in the Box?

A 52 Year Old Cold Case

by Joyce

I originally posted this two years ago in March 2007. It's now been 52 years since the Boy in the Box was found. It is still an active homicide investigation.


The Boy in the Box

On February 25, 1957, the body of a young boy approximately 4 to 5 years old, was found in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia by Philadelphia Police officer Elmer Palmer. Police had received a call that there was something inside a J.C. Penney bassinet box that someone had thrown away. The subsequent autopsy showed that the blond haired boy was undernourished and had been abused. The cause of death was head injuries.

For the past 50 years, investigators have been searching for this boy’s identity. They thought the case would be solved quickly, but the boy was never even reported missing. Investigators have followed thousands of leads over the years. It is still an open case, now handled by Homicide Detective Tom Augustine, who first became interested in the case as a child when he saw the posters of the boy that were displayed all over Philadelphia.

The boy’s murder has been featured on America’s Most Wanted and 48 Hours, but most of the leads generated by these shows have failed to produce anything. One tip from an Ohio woman in 2002 seemed the most promising. The woman appears credible but investigators have so far been unable to corroborate her story. The boy’s remains were even exhumed in 1998 and an independent lab was able to obtain mitochondrial DNA from a tooth, but as long as he remains unknown, there is no one to match it to.

The sad death of this boy has generated interest all over the world. There is a website dedicated to solving the case and finding his identity--America's Unknown Child. This site has the entire case history, photographs, information on witnesses, etc. It is run by volunteers whose sole purpose is for this boy to rest in peace.

It is also being investigated by the Vidocq Society, which is an organization comprised of retired detectives and others, including a forensic sculptor who has made a bust of what the boy’s father probably looked like.

I think what intrigues me most about this case is the dedication of the investigators involved. Some of the retired detectives working on this case were the original officers assigned to the investigation. Many of them have worked on their own time studying evidence, looking through hospital records and interviewing witnesses. These seasoned cops remember this boy as if he belonged to them--and in a way he does. Fifty years later, they still attend memorial services at the gravesite.

How would you have this story end? Will there ever be justice for The Boy in the Box?

Baby Grace

by Joyce Tremel

I’m always drawn to unsolved murder cases, especially those involving children. Last March, I wrote about the Boy in the Box. Now there’s another one.

On Monday, October 29th, a fisherman found the remains of a little girl on an island in West Galveston Bay, Texas. She was wrapped in plastic and stuffed into a plastic storage container. She was wearing a pink outfit from Target, and white and purple tennis shoes from Walmart.

“Baby Grace,” as she has been named by the investigators, is estimated to be between 2 and 3 years of age. She was a little less than 3 feet tall, weighed approximately 25 pounds and had long blond hair. An FBI forensic artist drew these sketches of her:





According to the Galveston County Medical Examiner’s Office, Baby Grace had been dead for at least two weeks. She had a skull fracture, but no sexual trauma. No cause of death has been released, but investigators are treating the death as a homicide.

Investigators are focusing first on obtaining the girl’s identity. Because Galveston is a tourist destination, that might be difficult. Police personnel and the FBI are going through missing person reports from across the country. After the sketches were released, hundreds of calls began pouring in. Each one must be investigated. Several callers think the child’s body might be that of Madeleine McCann who disappeared in Portugal in May. Because of the circumstances, however, investigators do not believe it’s her.

Investigators are having a tough time dealing with this case. According to Sgt. Mike Barry, “It’s been an emotional roller coaster for us.” One report stated that the two deputies who waited with the body until investigators arrived on October 29th, still could not talk about the case. Maj. Ray Tutoilmondo, the spokesman for the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office stated, “The name Grace means given. She’s given us, in her death, emotions we don’t get to experience very often.”

Someone, somewhere, is missing a little girl. And someone, somewhere, killed this poor baby. Someone, somewhere, needs to pay for what they’ve done. My sincere hope is that this case is resolved sometime soon. I would hate to see Baby Grace wait as long as the Boy in the Box.

The Boy in the Box

by Joyce Tremel




A fascinating article caught my eye earlier this week and I haven’t been able to let it go.

On February 25, 1957, the body of a young boy approximately 4 to 5 years old, was found in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia by Philadelphia Police officer Elmer Palmer. Police had received a call that there was something inside a J.C. Penney bassinet box that someone had thrown away. The subsequent autopsy showed that the blond haired boy was undernourished and had been abused. The cause of death was head injuries.

For the past 50 years, investigators have been searching for this boy’s identity. They thought the case would be solved quickly, but the boy was never even reported missing. Investigators have followed thousands of leads over the years. It is still an open case, now handled by Homicide Detective Tom Augustine, who first became interested in the case as a child when he saw the posters of the boy that were displayed all over Philadelphia.

The boy’s murder has been featured on America’s Most Wanted and 48 Hours, but most of the leads generated by these shows have failed to produce anything. One tip from an Ohio woman in 2002 seemed the most promising. The woman appears credible but investigators have so far been unable to corroborate her story. The boy’s remains were even exhumed in 1998 and an independent lab was able to obtain mitochondrial DNA from a tooth, but as long as he remains unknown, there is no one to match it to.

The sad death of this boy has generated interest all over the world. There is a website dedicated to solving the case and finding his identity--America's Unknown Child. This site has the entire case history, photographs, information on witnesses, etc. It is run by volunteers whose sole purpose is for this boy to rest in peace.

It is also being investigated by the Vidocq Society, which is an organization comprised of retired detectives and others, including a forensic sculptor who has made a bust of what the boy’s father probably looked like.

I think what intrigues me most about this case is the dedication of the investigators involved. Some of the retired detectives working on this case were the original officers assigned to the investigation. Many of them have worked on their own time studying evidence, looking through hospital records and interviewing witnesses. These seasoned cops remember this boy as if he belonged to them--and in a way he does. Fifty years later, they still attend memorial services at the gravesite.

As writers, these elements are all the things we should be putting in our own work. A victim that tears at your heart, numerous suspects, and detectives that won't give up. Unfortunately, this story is all too true. Maybe someday it will have if not a happy ending, at least a satisfying one.

How would you have this story end? Will there ever be justice for The Boy in the Box?