Cold and Missing: Jimmy Blakeley

1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:13,780 The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts. 2 00:00:13,780 --> 00:00:18,400 All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 3 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:22,160 Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages. 4 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:24,560 Listener discretion is advised. 5 00:00:24,560 --> 00:00:27,280 I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin-Sulkowski. 6 00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:29,680 And I'm your co-host, Eli Sulkowski. 7 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:34,600 And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases. 8 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:37,480 Hello everyone and welcome back to Cold and Missing. 9 00:00:37,480 --> 00:00:38,960 I'm your host, Ali. 10 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:41,000 And I'm your co-host, Eli. 11 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:43,640 Welcome to episode 65. 12 00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:44,640 Is it 65? 13 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:45,640 It is. 14 00:00:45,640 --> 00:00:46,640 Wow. 15 00:00:46,640 --> 00:00:52,920 I've heard a little bit about, well I've heard you react to what you've been learning about 16 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:55,480 this cold case. 17 00:00:55,480 --> 00:01:01,640 So I'm looking forward to everyone getting to hear about it, including me. 18 00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:04,480 So should we just go ahead and dive into it? 19 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:05,480 Let's do it. 20 00:01:05,480 --> 00:01:08,680 So today I have for y'all a cold case. 21 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,520 And just as a bit of a content warning, there are some brief mentions of sexual assault 22 00:01:12,520 --> 00:01:13,920 in this case. 23 00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:17,640 Today we are talking about the cold case of Jimmy Blakeley. 24 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:21,960 And this takes place in Hartford County, Maryland in April of 1990. 25 00:01:21,960 --> 00:01:24,400 But first, a little bit about Jimmy. 26 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:27,360 Jimmy is 17 years old in 1990. 27 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:33,320 He was born May 18, 1972, and he would be 51 years old today. 28 00:01:33,320 --> 00:01:37,480 He's described as a quiet and shy young man, but once you took the time to get to know 29 00:01:37,480 --> 00:01:40,640 him, he opened up and was really funny. 30 00:01:40,640 --> 00:01:45,360 He collected model cars and had ambitions to become a chef and possibly own his own 31 00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:46,360 restaurant. 32 00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:52,320 His father, James Blakeley, says quote, from a tycoon up, he loved to cook, end quote. 33 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:55,840 Jimmy had dropped out of high school about a year and a half before. 34 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:58,280 He didn't start school until he was eight years old. 35 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:01,480 So he was much older and bigger than the kids in his grade. 36 00:02:01,480 --> 00:02:05,160 He planned to get his GED and then attend a cooking college. 37 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:10,040 Jimmy had only attended Christian schools and he was a very devout churchgoer. 38 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:14,960 He lived with his grandparents in Level, Maryland, a rural community located in Hartford 39 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:15,960 County. 40 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:19,680 Jimmy also appeared to be part of the LGBT community. 41 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:24,080 He had recently started to hang out and make friends with other gay men in the area. 42 00:02:24,080 --> 00:02:28,280 Since he came from a very religious family, it does not appear that he was out to anyone 43 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:30,280 in his life. 44 00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:33,340 And now a timeline of events. 45 00:02:33,340 --> 00:02:40,080 On Sunday, April 1st, 1990, Jimmy's working at a Shell gas station and Deli in Conowingo, 46 00:02:40,080 --> 00:02:41,080 Maryland. 47 00:02:41,080 --> 00:02:47,040 He drives there in his brand new 1985 blue Chevrolet Cavalier, which he had just bought 48 00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:48,960 three days before. 49 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,760 It's unclear what time Jimmy gets to work, but we know that he's working the closing 50 00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:54,120 shift that evening. 51 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:59,060 And around 10 p.m., he calls his parents to say that he's on his way to their house. 52 00:02:59,060 --> 00:03:04,480 The Shell station closes at 10 p.m. so Jimmy hops in his blue Cavalier and drives off. 53 00:03:04,480 --> 00:03:09,200 Instead of going straight to his parents' house, he makes a stop at U.S. Books, an adult 54 00:03:09,200 --> 00:03:12,200 bookstore frequented by the gay community. 55 00:03:12,200 --> 00:03:14,560 He's seen there around 11 p.m. 56 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:17,320 Jimmy eventually leaves the bookstore with a man. 57 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:22,560 The next day, Monday, April 2nd, the body of Jimmy is found by a fisherman at around 58 00:03:22,560 --> 00:03:24,360 10 20 a.m. 59 00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:29,720 He's found on a secluded dirt road about 150 yards from Emerton Road near Otter Point 60 00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:30,760 Creek. 61 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:34,620 Jimmy was still wearing his Shell uniform, but his shirt had been unbuttoned and his 62 00:03:34,620 --> 00:03:36,800 pants were partially pulled down. 63 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:39,360 Jimmy had been stabbed once in the heart. 64 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:42,980 There were no other marks on his body besides the stab wound. 65 00:03:42,980 --> 00:03:44,920 Police begin to investigate the scene. 66 00:03:44,920 --> 00:03:48,880 They are unable to find a weapon, but police do believe that Jimmy was killed where he 67 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:49,880 was found. 68 00:03:49,880 --> 00:03:55,480 Later that day, police find Jimmy's 1985 blue Chevy Cavalier about two miles away at 69 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:58,180 the adult bookstore where Jimmy was last seen. 70 00:03:58,180 --> 00:04:02,560 Once the car is recovered, police believe that Jimmy was killed while standing in front 71 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:07,680 of his car since blood splatter is found on the hood of the car, but no other blood evidence 72 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:11,140 is found anywhere else in or on the car. 73 00:04:11,140 --> 00:04:16,900 Police find no clues inside the car that would give them a lead on who the suspect is. 74 00:04:16,900 --> 00:04:19,480 Police get to work trying to find a motive for the murder. 75 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:24,600 The next day, Tuesday, April 3rd, police have no suspects in the case, but officially call 76 00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:29,620 the time frame from the murder from between 10 p.m. on April 1st when Jimmy left the Shell 77 00:04:29,620 --> 00:04:34,180 station and 10 30 a.m. Monday morning when his body was found. 78 00:04:34,180 --> 00:04:38,920 Police at this point do not know if Jimmy was abducted or went willingly with his murderer. 79 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:42,880 The news of the murder comes as a shock to his family and friends. 80 00:04:42,880 --> 00:04:47,800 Jimmy's classmates from the school he attended, Bethel Christian Academy, are deeply saddened 81 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:49,160 by the news. 82 00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:53,700 One of his teachers, Millie Flosser, says, quote, unless he made some drastic changes 83 00:04:53,700 --> 00:04:59,720 since he left, he is a very easygoing, well-mannered boy who comes from a close-knit, very religious 84 00:04:59,720 --> 00:05:00,720 family. 85 00:05:00,720 --> 00:05:06,000 He was a little shy and you had to approach him first, but he was very friendly, end quote. 86 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:10,820 On Wednesday, April 4th, this is just two days since Jimmy's body was found, police 87 00:05:10,820 --> 00:05:15,080 asked the public for help in the investigation and if they know anything about Jimmy's 88 00:05:15,080 --> 00:05:19,480 whereabouts between Sunday night and Monday morning to call the police as investigators 89 00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:22,380 are trying to retrace Jimmy's steps. 90 00:05:22,380 --> 00:05:25,040 Police have ruled out robbery as a motive. 91 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:30,840 Jimmy was found still wearing his gold necklace and a ring and other jewelry were found undisturbed. 92 00:05:30,840 --> 00:05:33,720 There were no drugs or alcohol found at the scene. 93 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:38,400 The family is at a loss as to why he was in that area, which was the opposite direction 94 00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:39,640 from his home. 95 00:05:39,640 --> 00:05:44,060 I personally chalk this up to the fact that he was probably not telling his very religious 96 00:05:44,060 --> 00:05:49,740 family that he was going to an adult bookstore, let alone a queer bookstore. 97 00:05:49,740 --> 00:05:55,560 On Friday, April 6th, 1990, just four days after his body was found, Jimmy is laid to 98 00:05:55,560 --> 00:05:58,480 rest at Hartford Memorial Gardens. 99 00:05:58,480 --> 00:06:03,600 Bethel Academy cancels classes for the day so students can't attend the funeral service. 100 00:06:03,600 --> 00:06:07,640 Police continue to investigate and talk to family and friends of Jimmy to see if they 101 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:10,040 can find any additional leads. 102 00:06:10,040 --> 00:06:15,560 Media reports initially said that sexual assault was suspected, but police now walk that statement 103 00:06:15,560 --> 00:06:16,760 back. 104 00:06:16,760 --> 00:06:22,120 On Tuesday, April 10th, it's been eight days since Jimmy's body was found and police 105 00:06:22,120 --> 00:06:28,320 say that they received lab results back that show that Jimmy was not sexually assaulted. 106 00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:33,440 Police believe that him being partially undressed could have been done to throw the police off. 107 00:06:33,440 --> 00:06:38,000 Police continue to interview family and friends, but are also chasing down leads that have 108 00:06:38,000 --> 00:06:39,840 been called in by the public. 109 00:06:39,840 --> 00:06:44,920 However, nothing leads to a suspect and all the tips end up being dead ends. 110 00:06:44,920 --> 00:06:50,760 The next update comes Tuesday, September 25th, 1990, so it's been over five months since 111 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:54,660 Jimmy was found stabbed, and police release a statement. 112 00:06:54,660 --> 00:06:59,360 Police confirm that on April 1st, Jimmy was at the adult bookstore, US Books. 113 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:04,200 One of the statement reads, and just as a side note, they refer to Jimmy as James throughout 114 00:07:04,200 --> 00:07:08,000 the statement, but he went by Jimmy so that's why I'm calling him Jimmy throughout the 115 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:09,000 podcast. 116 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:15,040 Quote, the adult bookstore had a large number of patrons, one of which included James's 117 00:07:15,040 --> 00:07:16,200 killer. 118 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:19,840 Someone had to see this individual and probably approached by him. 119 00:07:19,840 --> 00:07:24,880 It is hoped that anyone who came into contact in any manner with someone late Sunday night, 120 00:07:24,880 --> 00:07:30,400 April 1st, or early Monday morning, April 2nd, 1990, would please come forward. 121 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:34,320 The killer has most likely been in the bookstore on previous occasions. 122 00:07:34,320 --> 00:07:38,720 James and his eventual killer left the adult bookstore in James's vehicle. 123 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:43,160 James was then murdered at the Otter Creek location and his vehicle driven back to the 124 00:07:43,160 --> 00:07:46,840 side of the bookstore building parking lot by the killer. 125 00:07:46,840 --> 00:07:50,640 Police believe that the killer is a local resident and is familiar with the area of 126 00:07:50,640 --> 00:07:51,800 the crime. 127 00:07:51,800 --> 00:07:56,080 Maryland State Police are requesting the help of the public on this case. 128 00:07:56,080 --> 00:07:58,460 This cold-blooded murder must be solved. 129 00:07:58,460 --> 00:08:01,400 This was an act of a coward, without question. 130 00:08:01,400 --> 00:08:06,480 Information developed through the investigation indicates that James Blakeley had become acquainted 131 00:08:06,480 --> 00:08:11,280 with members of the gay community that frequented the adult bookstore. 132 00:08:11,280 --> 00:08:15,580 Investigators believe that until identified and apprehended, this killer poses a danger 133 00:08:15,580 --> 00:08:18,560 to the patrons of the adult bookstores in the area. 134 00:08:18,560 --> 00:08:19,920 End quote. 135 00:08:19,920 --> 00:08:23,980 Police hang a flyer with this statement at all of the adult bookstores in the area hoping 136 00:08:23,980 --> 00:08:25,880 that it will drum up new leads. 137 00:08:25,880 --> 00:08:31,040 But by mid-October, police say they have not received any new tips on Jimmy's murder. 138 00:08:31,040 --> 00:08:36,680 On March 23rd, 1991, approaching one year of Jimmy's murder, police are desperate 139 00:08:36,680 --> 00:08:37,800 for a lead. 140 00:08:37,800 --> 00:08:40,520 They conduct a raid at U.S. Books. 141 00:08:40,520 --> 00:08:43,520 Police say they had been going undercover for three months. 142 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:47,920 There are still laws on the books in Maryland that essentially made being gay illegal, and 143 00:08:47,920 --> 00:08:51,440 horrifyingly, police arrest nine people during their raid. 144 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:55,080 The nine people arrested are named and shamed in the newspaper. 145 00:08:55,080 --> 00:09:01,360 One person is simply arrested for removing the label from his AZT medication, a medication 146 00:09:01,360 --> 00:09:04,800 used in the 90s to combat HIV and AIDS. 147 00:09:04,800 --> 00:09:08,560 No leads in Jimmy's murder resulted from this raid. 148 00:09:08,560 --> 00:09:13,560 And just as a side note, police raids on gay bookstores is actually still a practice in 149 00:09:13,560 --> 00:09:17,920 Maryland, specifically Hartford County where this case takes place. 150 00:09:17,920 --> 00:09:22,960 The last raid happened May 20th, 2021 in Hartford County. 151 00:09:22,960 --> 00:09:27,280 The next update in the case comes May 1st, 1992. 152 00:09:27,280 --> 00:09:31,180 So it's been over two years since Jimmy's murder, and a week before what should have 153 00:09:31,180 --> 00:09:33,200 been his 20th birthday. 154 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:36,480 Jimmy's parents sit down for an interview with the local paper. 155 00:09:36,480 --> 00:09:40,440 They're heartbroken over the murder of their son and think about him often. 156 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:44,960 Jimmy's father, James, says, quote, we are not out for revenge. 157 00:09:44,960 --> 00:09:46,920 We want to look at it in the reverse. 158 00:09:46,920 --> 00:09:49,480 I think that justice will take care of itself. 159 00:09:49,480 --> 00:09:51,480 We're really not out for revenge. 160 00:09:51,480 --> 00:09:52,920 We're not up in arms. 161 00:09:52,920 --> 00:09:57,400 We just want to know what happened to our son so we can put it to rest, end quote. 162 00:09:57,400 --> 00:10:02,280 The police say the case is still active, but at this point, most of the leads come from 163 00:10:02,280 --> 00:10:03,640 Jimmy's father. 164 00:10:03,640 --> 00:10:08,840 James and Trooper Raymond D'Amico, who is the investigator on the case, talk weekly. 165 00:10:08,840 --> 00:10:14,000 James tells him things he overhears, things he comes across in Jimmy's belongings, or 166 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:16,120 just thoughts he has on the case. 167 00:10:16,120 --> 00:10:20,800 James says, quote, I'm trying to tell him everything I can so he can find the person, 168 00:10:20,800 --> 00:10:21,800 end quote. 169 00:10:21,800 --> 00:10:26,680 Trooper D'Amico does acknowledge that the passing of time has made the case more difficult. 170 00:10:26,680 --> 00:10:30,560 He says, quote, as time passes, it does get worse to solve. 171 00:10:30,560 --> 00:10:35,720 We're just hoping for a lucky lead to come through so we can solve this one, end quote. 172 00:10:35,720 --> 00:10:40,680 And that is the last update that I could find on Jimmy Blakeley's murder. 173 00:10:40,680 --> 00:10:46,920 So if you know anything about the murder of Jimmy Blakeley in April of 1990, please call 174 00:10:46,920 --> 00:10:55,320 the Maryland State Police Criminal Enforcement Division at 410-694-4700. 175 00:10:55,320 --> 00:11:00,320 And the sources for the timeline today come from Carroll County Times, The News Journal, 176 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:05,120 The Evening Sun, The Baltimore Sun, and The Aegis. 177 00:11:05,120 --> 00:11:08,280 So that is the case of Jimmy Blakeley. 178 00:11:08,280 --> 00:11:14,560 Thank you for bringing his name to our podcast. 179 00:11:14,560 --> 00:11:20,240 My initial reaction was just like, what a shame, because he was a kid. 180 00:11:20,240 --> 00:11:22,160 He was 17, right? 181 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:23,160 Mm-hmm. 182 00:11:23,160 --> 00:11:26,080 Yeah, every part of me is like, that's not right, you know? 183 00:11:26,080 --> 00:11:27,800 No one's supposed to go that way. 184 00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:32,320 So at that age and the circumstance, it's just all devastating. 185 00:11:32,320 --> 00:11:40,040 Yeah, and I think that's actually something that was not talked about, but in 2023, I'm 186 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:44,120 like, this is a 17-year-old that was probably killed by an adult. 187 00:11:44,120 --> 00:11:49,820 Yeah, even listening to the case, I had to remind myself, this is a child. 188 00:11:49,820 --> 00:11:50,820 This is a child. 189 00:11:50,820 --> 00:11:52,400 He was a child. 190 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:54,920 I mostly just have reactions at this point. 191 00:11:54,920 --> 00:12:01,360 I'm feeling some feelings of anger and frustration. 192 00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:07,760 To me, it seems like this was a queer person, gay person whose life was just ignored. 193 00:12:07,760 --> 00:12:15,680 It does seem that once police kind of get this news that maybe Jimmy was gay or queer 194 00:12:15,680 --> 00:12:22,240 or just questioning his own sexuality and exploring that, it does seem like the case 195 00:12:22,240 --> 00:12:26,600 veered off and became more about raiding these queer bookstores. 196 00:12:26,600 --> 00:12:31,240 I read a lot of stories about raids happening, not only at the bookstore that Jimmy was 197 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:37,160 last seen at, but also other bookstores in the area and legislation trying to get passed 198 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:43,400 to shut these down permanently to the point where I was finding raids in 2021 still happening. 199 00:12:43,400 --> 00:12:48,960 I don't know what's happening in Maryland, but I was like, that's fucked up, quite frankly. 200 00:12:48,960 --> 00:12:49,960 Yeah. 201 00:12:49,960 --> 00:12:51,840 Who are you protecting and serving? 202 00:12:51,840 --> 00:12:57,640 No, you're just on a punishment raid. 203 00:12:57,640 --> 00:12:58,640 Protect and serve? 204 00:12:58,640 --> 00:12:59,640 Who? 205 00:12:59,640 --> 00:13:00,640 Who? 206 00:13:00,640 --> 00:13:04,000 No, that's not what they were doing. 207 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:10,320 It was homophobia and everything you said. 208 00:13:10,320 --> 00:13:13,440 I'm just really grateful that you brought this story to us. 209 00:13:13,440 --> 00:13:16,920 Do you have more comments you'd like to share with us? 210 00:13:16,920 --> 00:13:25,720 Well, for me, I just can't help but think that maybe whoever left with him that night 211 00:13:25,720 --> 00:13:28,880 was somebody who had something to lose. 212 00:13:28,880 --> 00:13:35,080 So maybe this is somebody who had a family at home, like a wife and children. 213 00:13:35,080 --> 00:13:37,980 Maybe this was somebody in power. 214 00:13:37,980 --> 00:13:40,600 This is all speculation, obviously, I don't know. 215 00:13:40,600 --> 00:13:48,280 But the fact that Jimmy was stabbed in the heart just seems so cruel and so personal 216 00:13:48,280 --> 00:13:54,360 that I can't help but think that something went horribly wrong and somebody had something 217 00:13:54,360 --> 00:13:58,280 to lose and they needed to make sure that Jimmy never talked. 218 00:13:58,280 --> 00:14:01,680 That's kind of what I think about this case. 219 00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:04,600 But again, it's just like wild speculation. 220 00:14:04,600 --> 00:14:06,880 So I'll rein it in. 221 00:14:06,880 --> 00:14:11,840 But I have a lot of questions about this case too. 222 00:14:11,840 --> 00:14:18,840 I can't help but wonder if we were to go back and look at what evidence, if any evidence 223 00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:24,920 was really collected in this case, what we might be able to get with DNA today. 224 00:14:24,920 --> 00:14:30,080 A murder weapon was never found, at least that we know of, but if police still have 225 00:14:30,080 --> 00:14:35,820 his car, which had the blood spatter on it, I can't help but think, were their fingerprints 226 00:14:35,820 --> 00:14:37,840 able to be lifted from the steering wheel? 227 00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:40,720 Because we know the killer drove back. 228 00:14:40,720 --> 00:14:46,000 Touch DNA is something that we can collect to this day. 229 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:50,320 Sometimes it's degraded, but we have seen cases where that has happened. 230 00:14:50,320 --> 00:14:56,500 So I just can't help but wonder, even his clothing, the buttons on his shirt, were those 231 00:14:56,500 --> 00:14:58,280 ever swabbed for DNA? 232 00:14:58,280 --> 00:15:04,120 Yeah, I would want to know what evidence the police have and if there's anything that can 233 00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:10,680 be retested with the advancement of science to possibly get a DNA hit or get a match or 234 00:15:10,680 --> 00:15:14,520 get a fingerprint or something to point us in the direction because the suspect has never 235 00:15:14,520 --> 00:15:16,600 been named in this case. 236 00:15:16,600 --> 00:15:23,360 Yeah, my mind is just kind of, I think, swimming, you know, it's trying to fill in the blanks, 237 00:15:23,360 --> 00:15:31,880 which is, I think, a natural inclination when looking at cases like these because this case 238 00:15:31,880 --> 00:15:35,000 is so in the dark, you know. 239 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:40,640 Learning about Jimmy is newer to me, so I think I'm, you know, my mind is catching up 240 00:15:40,640 --> 00:15:41,640 alongside you. 241 00:15:41,640 --> 00:15:49,240 But yeah, the questions you brought up, I'm like, yes, yes, like, I can't imagine the 242 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:59,680 desire that this family had to have answers because I really, really want them. 243 00:15:59,680 --> 00:16:05,600 Yeah, it's a kind of pain that I hope to just never understand, you know. 244 00:16:05,600 --> 00:16:09,680 Yeah, thank you again for bringing this here. 245 00:16:09,680 --> 00:16:16,600 And fucked up, fucked up what's going on in Maryland, that that's still happening, right? 246 00:16:16,600 --> 00:16:17,760 Yeah. 247 00:16:17,760 --> 00:16:22,440 And if you're new here, Eli and I, we're not just like talking out of our ass. 248 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:25,360 We are part of the LGBT community and are. 249 00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:30,760 Yes, I am a proud queer trans man. 250 00:16:30,760 --> 00:16:34,040 And I am a proud queer woman. 251 00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:42,040 So this does hit home to us in a different way where this Jimmy feels like part of our 252 00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:44,280 family, part of our community. 253 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:45,280 And I. 254 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:51,640 Sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off, but we've seen interactions like these now, not with 255 00:16:51,640 --> 00:16:59,760 like resulting in death, but the us, our friends, the way we have been treated by, unfortunately, 256 00:16:59,760 --> 00:17:01,760 a lot of people in law enforcement. 257 00:17:01,760 --> 00:17:03,760 Like the track record is not great. 258 00:17:03,760 --> 00:17:05,800 Yeah, of course I'm amped up. 259 00:17:05,800 --> 00:17:06,800 It's a life loss. 260 00:17:06,800 --> 00:17:08,840 It's someone who should be alive right now. 261 00:17:08,840 --> 00:17:16,680 Yeah, I can't help but feel like so protective over him, you know, because he was, you know, 262 00:17:16,680 --> 00:17:20,720 he was a few weeks away from his 18th birthday, but he was still just a kid, like starting 263 00:17:20,720 --> 00:17:25,520 his life and like possibly discovering who he was and his community. 264 00:17:25,520 --> 00:17:31,920 And someone took advantage of how the queer community had to operate in the dark and in 265 00:17:31,920 --> 00:17:35,400 the shadows because people couldn't be out and proud like they are today. 266 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:40,720 Like it's like if he had just been given a chance to be himself. 267 00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:45,680 I mentioned this earlier, but I really hope that this case is reopened by a cold case 268 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:52,080 unit that the evidence that was collected, if it was collected, is really thoroughly 269 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:57,320 searched and that Jimmy can get justice for what happened to him. 270 00:17:57,320 --> 00:17:59,840 I want it for every case we talk about. 271 00:17:59,840 --> 00:18:04,440 I want every missing person to be found and I want every murdered person to have justice 272 00:18:04,440 --> 00:18:07,480 and for their loved ones to have answers. 273 00:18:07,480 --> 00:18:13,120 But it always hits a little extra hard when it's a kid that never got to really fulfill 274 00:18:13,120 --> 00:18:14,120 their life. 275 00:18:14,120 --> 00:18:18,400 And what have we missed out on because Jimmy never got to really fulfill his potential 276 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:22,440 in this life and contribute to whatever he wanted to do. 277 00:18:22,440 --> 00:18:23,920 He wanted to be a chef. 278 00:18:23,920 --> 00:18:27,000 Like what have we missed out on as a society? 279 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:33,200 The gift of his soul and spirit and energy and yeah. 280 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:39,520 Like what if he was the next famous chef or restaurateur and what have we missed out? 281 00:18:39,520 --> 00:18:43,240 We've missed out on his delicious meals, his creative minds. 282 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:49,480 It's a loss for everybody and I really, really hope this case gets attention in the future 283 00:18:49,480 --> 00:18:50,480 from investigators. 284 00:18:50,480 --> 00:18:56,120 But again, if you know anything about the murder of Jimmy Blakeley in April of 1990, 285 00:18:56,120 --> 00:19:04,200 please call the Maryland State Police Criminal Enforcement Division at 410-694-4700. 286 00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:07,680 And we will be posting pictures of Jimmy on our Instagram. 287 00:19:07,680 --> 00:19:11,160 So again, if you're not following us, check us out at Cold and Missing. 288 00:19:11,160 --> 00:19:13,280 We should pop right up. 289 00:19:13,280 --> 00:19:19,700 And you can also look at our website www.coldandmissing.com where there will also be transcripts and links 290 00:19:19,700 --> 00:19:21,180 to our YouTube videos. 291 00:19:21,180 --> 00:19:24,880 If you're a YouTube person, you can subscribe and follow us there as well. 292 00:19:24,880 --> 00:19:29,540 There's lots of great conversation happening in the comments over there. 293 00:19:29,540 --> 00:19:35,000 And if you are passionate about the missing and murdered cases that we cover here and 294 00:19:35,000 --> 00:19:40,120 want to advocate for them, one really easy free way to do that is to leave us a review 295 00:19:40,120 --> 00:19:43,200 in whatever podcast platform you are in right now. 296 00:19:43,200 --> 00:19:48,420 But especially if you're an Apple podcast, leaving us a written review really helps people 297 00:19:48,420 --> 00:19:51,260 find us and for people to join in and listen. 298 00:19:51,260 --> 00:19:55,420 So if you could take a minute and do that, it not only helps us, but it helps elevate 299 00:19:55,420 --> 00:19:58,840 these cases to people who have never heard of them. 300 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:02,560 And we can get Jimmy's name out there to even more people. 301 00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:05,240 So if you've already done that, thank you so much. 302 00:20:05,240 --> 00:20:09,920 If you haven't yet, I hope you find some time coming up soon to do that. 303 00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:11,660 But that's all I have. 304 00:20:11,660 --> 00:20:13,760 Have a good week and stay safe, y'all. 305 00:20:13,760 --> 00:20:21,440 Stay safe, y'all.