Almost 38 years after the death of Laurel Mitchell, family and police are still trying to solve her murder. “I was 12 when it happened. It was a typical day,” says Sarah Knisley, speaking of Laurel Mitchell, who disappeared the night of Aug. 6, 1975. “Laurel went to work at the Cokesbury Inn. She got off at 10. She didn’t show up at home at midnight. Then her friends showed up and we knew something was wrong.” Mitchell was supposed to meet her friends at the arcade in Adventureland Amusement Park and then go to the county fair. “We were up all night looking for her,” said Knisley. Her mother reported her as missing to police at 4 a.m. The last person that saw Mitchell that night was a man driving past the entrance to Epworth Forest shortly after 10 p.m. Laurel was found the following morning by fishermen, 15 miles away in the Elkhart River, south of Ligonier in Noble County. She was missing for 12 hours. “I was at a softball game when they told me she was dead,” said Knisley. Mitchell was found in four feet of water with her clothes inside out, which led investigators to believe there was a sexual assault involved. Newspaper reports from the time said Mitchell was a competent swimmer, although her cause of death was ruled a drowning. “There was bruising under her arm and on her side, as if someone pulled or pushed her, and a bruise on the back of her hand in the shape of a tooth as if she swung up to hit someone,” said Knisley. She also said metal shavings were found on her body, which led the family to suspect an Epworth Forest employee who worked in a shop making metal pipes for piers. That person was later jailed in Whitley County on non-related charges and eventually passed away. “She didn’t have a boyfriend, her friends always went out in a group. They didn’t really interact with boys,” Knisley said. While Mitchell didn’t date, she led an active life, working, babysitting for neighbors and dancing ballet. Mitchell was also very active in her church, North Webster United Methodist, and even sang in the choir, God’s Children. “Our mother felt it was the minister of the church who left shortly before it happened,” said Knisley. “He refused to do the service even though he had been our minister for years. His wife ended up having a nervous breakdown. Our mother had to beg him to do the service.” The minister was just one of many persons of interest. But investigators have yet to be able to find solid evidence to connect anyone to the crime. “Between then and now, there were about seven people of interest,” said J.D. Ayres, a detective with the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department who deals with cold cases. “There were two or three suspects back then that they looked at.” Then in 2005, new information came in. “We had some information come in which we followed up on. I still believe it’s good information, but we’re trying to get some sort of concrete information. We can’t prove or disprove the information at this time,” said Ayres. “Some of that is due to the time that has passed, and the distance.” Over the years, investigators looked at seven persons of interest in all. Some live in different places now, and some are deceased. “We know where they are if we need to talk to them. Time is a bad thing in a case like this. But I’m still convinced that in that information somewhere there may be a strong lead,” said Ayres. While evidence suggests it may have been someone Mitchell knew, detectives aren’t ruling out any possibilities. “My feeling is that you can’t rule anything out.’ Ayres explains. “From everything I’ve read and looking at the situation, I think it was someone she knew. Maybe she didn’t run around with him, but I think she knew who it was.” Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department, Noble County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana State Police all investigated the murder over the years. In 2008, KCSD received all files on the case from the ISP. “They had a command post back then at North Webster,” said First Sgt. Chad Hill, KCSD public information officer. “At their time, with their resources, they did as much as they could. They allocated resources between the three agencies. Aircraft was brought in from ISP to check the area to see if there was trace evidence or anything else relative in the swamp area. They did as much as they could for what they had available.” With the time that has passed, both law enforcement and the family hope someone will still come forward. “We’re hoping that somebody might have said something over the years that might be relevant, that might stir up the memories, or even the guilt, and maybe bring something up,” explained Sgt. Hill. Over the years, the parents of Laurel put together a reward of $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of who killed her. “Both of my parents passed away last year not knowing who did this or why it happened,” said Mitchell’s sister, Knisley. That reward fund is still available. Ayres also suggested anyone with information who would wish to remained anonymous can call the Koscisuko County Crime Stoppers. Information can be left by calling either Crime Stoppers at 800-342-STOP or the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department at 574-267-5667.
