Following the report done by Pat Solar which Clay Campbell had barred from court on July 31, 2012.
Original document, and MOTION IN LIMINE TO BAR EVIDENCE AS TO PAT SOLAR’S THEORY THAT AN UNKNOWN INDIVIDUAL MURDERED MARIA RIDULPH: Pat Solar Report
For those interested, the PDF is readable, but there is not a single period in the entire report. For those interest in where Mr. Solar came up with his theories, a lot of his research is found in the Discovery File.
Following is Mr. Solar’s report:
October 28, 1997
Sycamore Police Department
Report on the Closure off the Maria Ridulph Kidnap/Murder
On December 3rd of 1957 8 year old Maria Ridulph was abducted from the corner of Archie Place and Center Cross in Sycamore. She was playing at that location with another child of the same age. Both families lived just up the street on Archie place. As night time approached the two girls were confronted by an unknown subject who apparently walked up to them from south of their location on Center Cross street. The subject introduced himself as Johnny and told the girls he was not married. He offered to give the girls piggy back rides. Maria’s friend declined but Maria accepted. This subject gave Maria a piggy back ride up the driveway at that location and returned. He asked the girls if they had any dollies and Maria ran home to get one leaving the subject with Maria’s friend. Maria’s friend asked the subject what time it was and then Maria returned. The subject commented on the doll and then gave Maria another piggy back ride up the driveway. Maria’s friend said she was cold and excused herself to run home to get her mittens. When she returned, Maria and the subject were gone the doll was later found behind a garage near the area
An extensive search effort and Investigation resulted once it was clear that Maria had been abducted Local police questioned Maria’s friend and called in the FBI. Months went by as Federal authorities conducted a thorough investigation of known offenders and any other subjects who were potential suspects. In April of 1958 Maria’s body was found in a remote wooded area just off of Rt. 20 east of Galena, IL. This crime scene did not provide any worthwhile clues to the crime Federal authorities ended their involvement in the case since they no longer had jurisdiction. The Illinois State Police then took over the case Investigators ran down leads and interviewed hundreds of individuals in connection with this case over the years but were never able to bring charges against anyone for the crime.
This case first came to my attention in 1982 when an individual presented a name of a possible suspect. At that time I attempted to locate departmental reports concerning the status of the investigation but found little official documentation a former officer, Don Ehrier provided substantial information. The FBI was very helpful providing reports that needed to be reproduced from micro film. They provided over 1000 pages of documentation and lists of names of individuals who were investigated. I then entered the basic facts of the case into the FBI’s violent offender data base. This program is intended to link solved and unsolved crimes throughout the country by the fact patterns known to authorities, however, no linkages could be established at the time
The individual who was originally named by an investigative source as possibly involved in the crime was investigated by me but was unable to link him to the crime.
As the years went by other individuals would call the department and suggest the name of others who may have been involved for one reason or another. In some cases individuals were alleged child molesters, abusive individuals, convicts, alleged organized crime members, petty criminals, or just estranged ex-husbands in whom individuals were seeking retribution. It was useful to have a list of those individuals who were previously investigated so that these names could be discarded or previously accomplished investigative work could be avoided. Much additional information concerning the case has also been uncovered as community members recalled the incident and phoned the department with pieces of information that could be linked to the volumes of unrelated facts already at our disposal.
In the spring of last year I received a call from the FBI Academy at Quantico Virginia. An agent informed me that the Ridulph case had been linked to a Pennsylvania Murder case that occurred in 1951 The facts of the Ridulph case closely matched those of a 1951 murder investigated by a Trooper Malcum Murphy of the Pennsylvania State Police Apparently Murphy had been assigned to the cold case squad in the late 1980’s and came across the strangulation murder involving an 8 year old girl, Jane Mane Althoff who had been abducted from a carnival in Eastern Pennsylvania An unknown subject tempted the victim away from a carnival ride and strangled and sexually assaulted her She was found a short time later. Many of the carnival workers were questioned but released soon after because of a lack of evidence to hold them The case remained unsolved until Murphy discovered It as part of his case load Murphy came across the list of these individuals and ran a routine inquiry on them He discovered that one of the carnival workers, Redmond, had an extensive criminal history involving sexual abuse and assault He was able to track this Individual throughout the country because of a former law which required convicted felons b register with local authorities and provide them with finger prints. A finger print from the truck in which the victim was found was a match to William Henry Redmond, DOB 1/22/22 a transient laborer who was employed as a Ferris wheel operator at the time of the murder
Redmond was first incarcerated in 1935 at the boys industrial school in Lancaster Ohio for burglary, theft, and assault on a girl In 1938 he was again arrested and incarcerated in the Ohio state Reformatory for assault with intent to rape. Both of these cases involved an assault on a pre-teenage girl. His method was to charm the girl into trusting him and then lead her away to a secluded area. He would then strike them and choke them into unconsciousness before trying to rape them. In the case that first sent him to prison, he concealed the body in a culvert, thinking that he killed the girl, however, she survived and subsequently identified him. This fact pattern matches the conclusions of the 1958 authorities concerning what happened to Maria.
Murphy was able to secure an indictment against him for the Pennsylvania murder in 1988 and arrested him at this home in Grand Island Nebraska where he had lived since leaving California in early 1957. Redmond reportedly confessed to the murder but the confession was challenged by his defense attorney and Trooper Murphy was held in contempt of court during pre-trial motions for refusing to reveal the name an informant. During his time in jail he reportedly made comments about being involved in one other child abduction case the authorities were unaware of, this could have been the Ridulph case but ultimately Redmond was not tried for the 1951 Murder and was allowed to return to Grand Island where he died in January of 1992.
Through his investigative efforts and contact with Redmond, Trooper Murphy got to know the man quite well. As the facts of the Ridulph case were relayed to Murphy he became convinced that Redmond was responsible for this abduction. Specifically he matches the physical description he used the alias, Billy, which could easily have been mistaken for Johnny by Maria’s 8 year old playmate, he always wore a hat of the type described by Maria’s playmate and he was fond of longshoreman type sweaters. He had the motive, sexual gratification. He had the opportunity, being a truck driver working in the area He had the desire, in evidence from his previous known behavior It should also be noted that US 20, where Maria’s body was found, would have been a common route from our area to the area of Grand Island Nebraska at that time, Rt. 20 heads west through Nebraska to just north of Grand Island
Redmond is, far and away, the best suspect as yet named in this case These and other facts create a level of certainty that he is responsible for the abduction which is greater than mere suspicion Unfortunately, however, Redmond died in 1992 and refused to declare his responsibility for the 1951 case for which he was arrested even though he knew he was dying.
December 3rd, 1997 marks the 40th anniversary of this case which has had a great impact on our community We will never know for certain if Redmond was responsible for the crime but, then again, the law only requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt that anyone is responsible for a particular crime they may be convicted of We should keep in mind that no community Is immune to this kind of tragedy These kinds of predators exist, even though our ability to identify them and prevent this type of crime has greatly Improved The family of Maria has suffered greatly and we can only hope that a reminder of what can happen to our children will somehow help to prevent a similar occurrence The police department is committed to maintaining a high level of uniformed visibility in the hope that this will deter these and other criminal predators
Patrick J Solar
Lieutenant
Jack McCullough 
This is very interesting, I think it could very well be Redmond who killed Maria, his other child abduction and murder victim of this 8 year old girl seems very similar to Maria’s case. Thanks for gathering this information.
How interested are you in this case? My father is the Pennsylvania trooper referred to in this article (although his first name was spelled incorrectly as was Jane Marie Althoff’s). Jane Marie was a big part of my life while my father investigated this. Redmond did in fact confess to my father for Jane’s death on the train ride from Nebraska to Pennsylvania after his arrest and extradition. There were also thought to be connections to other little girls around the country who were killed similarly. Redmond worked carnivals and did temp jobs all over, he traveled by hopping freight trains which was popular in that day. My father talked to Detectives from other state agencies where similarities existed. More info on request….
I am John William Tuohy, a writer, I would like very much to speak with you …how cam I contact you?
casey1167@gmail.com
Pat Solar is now convinced that Jack Daniel McCullough is responsible for Maria’s murder. But, Casey doesn’t want you to know that.
Janet Tessier, leave my innocent husband alone. You know nothing about what happened, you were a child. The court already ruled him innocent of the rape of your older sister. She’s the most unlucky person alive. Who gets gang raped twice in their life? She had regression therapy and that’s how she claimed she was raped by Jack, his friends and the other gang raped her.
I’m Just Depressed Tumblr
… – Depression is provoked by the presence of at least initially. If you are an older form of treatment, see a counsellor/psychotherapist and feel fine, again. Years ago, that would… The Pat Solar Report – Barred from Court. | Jack McCullough …
Here is my question. How can you say the two cases are so similar? The cause of death differed in each case. One was strangulation and Maria was stabbed. And to go even further, to say how he lured the girls is unique, is kind of stretching it. I am pretty sure that most pedophiles use the same technique to lure their victims.