Jean and other former students of Sister Cathy believe that the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the authorities covered up Sister Cathy's murder after she suspected Father Maskell was sexually abusing several young girls at the school. Still a mystery. ', One former student, Teresa Lancaster, told WJZ-TV in Baltimore, that Sister Cathy had 'confronted' Maskell 'and she lost her life for it.'. In 2017, Netflix released an original documentary called The Keepers which reignited interest in the unsolved murders of Sister Cathy Cesnik and Joyce Malecki in 1969. Father A. Joseph Maskell was a person of interest for a reason, it seemed. Around 7:30pm on . Catherine (Cathy) Cesnik was a Catholic sister and taught English and drama at Archbishop Keough (later renamed Seton Keough), an all-girls Catholic high school in Baltimore. It was a name he kept hearing in interviews with other priests, and the man had worked with Cesnik while she taught at Keough. In 2016, the Baltimore County Police Department (BCPD) reassigned the case due to retiring officers, prompting new interviews and further investigation into the alleged sexual abuse at Keough. May 19, 2017. Detectives investigating her death believe she may have encountered her murderer outside her apartment since her car was found parked in the complex the day after her disappearance. May 19, 2017. Either way, theyre lying and withholding information that would be helpful to the case. According to the autopsy, she had been struck on the back of her head by either a hammer or a brick, there was a hole the size of a quarter in her skull , and there were strangulation marks on her neck. A lot of power. Gemma Hoskins has helped dozens of victims get in touch with their investigators. On Nov. 13, 1969, six days after Sister Cathy Cesnik vanished, not to be found murdered for two long months, a second young woman20-year-old Joyce Maleckiwas found strangled and stabbed to death in a small creek located on the U.S. Army's Fort Meade military base in Anne Arundel County, only a few miles from where Cesnik's body would . Her body was discovered on January 3, 1970, near a garbage dump in the Baltimore suburb of Lansdowne.Her unsolved murder served as the basis for . A search of the park turned up nothing, and there was no lead on her whereabouts for almost two months. For this week, I sailed through a second viewing of the entire seven-part series about the link between Sister Cathy Cesnik's 1969 murder and sexual abuse at a girls parochial school in Baltimore. Its possible Flaherty and Maskell had some deeper connection at the time that has simply been completely overlooked. (Aside from reports that Maskell invited uniformed officers to assault the girls). According to CNN, Bode Cellmark Forensics laboratory in Lorton, Virginia was responsible for comparing the DNA to the sample from the murder scene. The Baltimore Sun reported in late 2016 that since 2011 the archdiocese has paid out settlements to Maskell's alleged victims. Two months later, her body was found in a frozen field in Baltimore County. Given that Catherine Cesnik actively fought against Joseph Maskell's abuse by standing up for the girls, as well as Maskell's propensity toward really terrible threats, it's easiest to assume that the motive for her murder laid somewhere in that area. Ghosts of the past might've followed her, though, punishing her for what she knew and the good she did. The case remains open and unsolved. The women have since been more vocal about the abuses they suffered at Joseph Maskell's hands, and all the stories are universally awful (via Huffpost). Advocates, filmmakers say they have not given up. Both women have said that she was the only member of the school's staff who helped them and other girls abused by Maskell, et al., and have said that she was murdered prior to discussing the matter with the archdiocese of Baltimore. However, theres even more to the story to be considered: Sharon Mays husband used to be a state cop. There are countless untold stories backing up the accusations made against A. Joseph Maskell and the Catholic Church that the docuseries doesnt even begin to explore. On the show, we see how long its been taking to get the FBI to honor the requests for documentation under the Freedom of Information Act. Joanne Suder, an attorney for many of Maskells sexual abuse victims, said, If law enforcement, in general, had done their job back in 1970, theyd have brought Maskell in then and this wouldnt have all been necessary in 2017., Theres no question that my clients told Sister Cathy (Cesnik) what was going on, Suder said. Crime Museumadds that the car itself was newly caked in mud. I think that the impact of The Keepers has far exceeded our expectations, Hargrave said. Not every story that Ryan White heard gets told in The Keepers. Her case has remained open ever since, Armacost said. Not two decades. The unsolved slaying of Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik in Baltimore in 1969 hit another dead end Wednesday when police learned that DNA from a long-deceased priest did not match crime scene evidence . They scared the living hell out of us.'. 'After that we had to break away from him. (just outside Baltimore), covered in snow and partially hidden by a nearby embankment. Students, parents and the local media buzzed about the 26-year-old's disappearance. Her life had been threatened and she had allegedly been abused by the priest. According to Armacost, in 1994 one of the students who claimed abuse by Maskell when she was in high school said that he took her to a remote dumping area and showed her Cesniks decaying body as a warning of what would happen if she told anyone about him. On February 28, police opened the grave of Rev. Her body was found January 3, 1970. Soon they were linking that abuse to Sister Cathy's murder, and speculation that she was going to blow the whistle and tell all. (Handout photo courtesy of . Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Fans of The Keepers may be surprised to hear that Keough High School, where Sister Cathy and A. Joseph Maskell both taught, closed in July of 2017, following confirmation from the Archdiocese of Baltimore that they paid settlements out to students who had been sexually abused by Maskell. White is unconvinced that the DNA found at the scene on a cigarette butt would match A. Joseph Maskells DNA, but he remains positive that, eventually, someone will catch whoever murdered Sister Cathy and theyll finally figure out why. One of the initial persons of interest was a Jesuit priest who had been romantically involved with the pretty nun, and had once asked her to marry him, before she took her vows. Born in Pittsburgh, Penn., in 1942, reports the Baltimore Sun, Cesnik was described by her younger sister as devoted and rather ambitious. The girl left but the next day, she later claimed, Maskell waved a gun at her, warning he'd kill her and her family if she revealed the abuse. But investigators found only a few inconsistencies in some statements, and detectives were unable to find any damning evidence against the priest. Teresa Lancaster also mentioned times when he would take them to a gynecologist Dr. Christian Richter for check-ups, during which he would occasionally assault them on the table (Richter would later deny being a part of the abuse). There, on the ground, still clad, her face covered with maggots, was the body of Sister Cathy. More than 40 years after her death, the case of Sister Cathy Cesnik's murder is still unsolved. Catherine Anne Cesnik SSND (born November 17, 1942; disappeared November 7, 1969) was an American Catholic religious sister who taught English and drama at Archbishop Keough High School in Baltimore, Maryland. Former students of the Catholic school have maintained that the priest was somehow involved in Sister Cathy's murder. An autopsy attributed her death to a skull fracture caused by a blow to her left temple with a blunt instrument. Another dead end, apparently. Eluding police questioning, Maskell eventually ran off to Ireland in 1994 to work as a priest. The Baltimore Sun is republishing archived coverage of the unsolved 1969 murder of Sister Catherine Cesnik, which is the subject of a Netflix documentary series set to debut May 19. RELATED:Everything Available At Launch On HBO Max. It came with the threat that he would tell her father that she'd been "whoring around," and that those consequences would be far worse. Their work is featured prominently, in "The Keepers.. According to Armacost, Baltimore County police in 1994 took the alleged victims statement seriously and interviewed Maskell, himself once the chaplain for the Baltimore County Police and other area law enforcement agencies. Many of the parents in the area would regularly attend his masses and let him baptize their children. The theory that she was killed because she knew something about abuse that was going on by priests within the church continues to be a theory, but is not the only theory. The exhumation of a Catholic priests body by Baltimore County Police could hold the key to solving the 47-year-old cold case of a murdered nun. "Our best hope for solving this case at this point lies with the people who are still alive. [2] Her paternal grandparents, John (Jan) and Johanna Tomec esnik, were Slovenians who emigrated from Yugoslavia,[3] while her maternal grandfather, Joseph Omulac, came from Yugoslavia and maternal grandmother, Martha Hudok, came from Austria. No matter how wrong it seems, it's happened too many times, and the case of Sister Catherine Cesnik is one of those examples. On January 3, 1970, the body of Catherine Cesnik was found by two hunters. In the 1990s, sexual assault and abuse allegations began to surface against Maskell, who had served as a chaplain at Archbishop Keough High School in Baltimore. And it was the students who really benefited from that, as Huffpost describes. He died in 2001, police said. One of the major theories that The Keepers hypothesizes is that Maskell either killed Sister Cathy or had her killed. Investigating detectives found no leads on Cesnik's death, and the investigation was later abandoned. All Rights Reserved. 1. See more ideas about catherine, documentaries, unsolved murders. Cesnik was 26 and on a sabbatical from the Roman Catholic Church. And the oldest was in her 20's.. Just a few days before she vanished, the priest reportedly called her and, once again expressing his love, had asked her to marry him. ", Up Next: Netflix Hidden Gems For Sci-Fi And Fantasy Lovers. Western's principal noted that she was an especially "fine teacher," while others pointed out that she was known for her compassion. She may have made a purchase at Muhly's Bakery in Edmondson Village, since a box of buns from that bakery was found in the front seat of her car. Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik was 26 when she disappeared in 1969; her body was found weeks later, Baltimore County Police exhumed the body of a priest for DNA testing in the case. Reunion on 'Blue Bloods', 'Sister Wives' Star Meri Brown Clarifies Her Sexuality After Split From Kody. By William Cannon But that's where things get hazy. Sharon Mays husband, V. Eric W. May, Sr., was a state cop while Sharon was a prosecutor, providing the two of them even more opportunity to participate in a cover-up. Police dropped him as a target before he died. Both . He'd mostly target students who were struggling, either academically or at home, calling them in for "therapy," where he used his charms to manipulate them into believing he knew what was best for them. While police were never able to bring charges against the priest, Caine said that 16 people who said Maskell abused them have since received money from the archdiocese as part of financial agreements. Many people first met Gemma Hoskins through her appearance on "The Keepers," a 2017 Emmy-nominated Netflix docuseries, that focused on the death of Sister Cathy Cesnik and cases of sexual abuse at . More than a month later, her partly clad body was found near a garbage dump in a Baltimore suburb. This begs the question, though, that if White says he included everything he knew, and we know he had to remove names for legal reasons where in the documentary does he reveal these hidden suspects? September 2, 2018 / nickvdl. This family evidence of anger problems, assaults on others, using a position of power over others to avoid punishment, and the assault on a young woman much like Sister Cathy all point towards a potential pre-existing rage in A. Joseph Maskell that nobody has ever explored. James Maskell, A. Joseph Maskells uncle, is a similarly powerful and threatening figure that deserves to be prodded harder. Another woman, Teresa Lancaster, also came forward. . Her former students believe that Sister Cathy was murdered as part of a cover-up to protect a priest at the school, A. Joseph Maskell, who Cesnik suspected was guilty of sexual abuse of students. With new evidence cropping up recently, this article has been updated to reflect evenmorefacts and clues that the docuseries overlooked. An autopsy revealed a skull fracture caused by a blow to Sister Catherine's left temple by a blunt instrument. The scandals were always covered up by reassigning the offending priests to new parishes or just saying they were "on sick leave.". But, on top of that, she had a natural gift for teaching. Beyond just being a generically good teacher, she even let her students drop by her apartment on weekends for a chat or a bit of music. . LA Sheriff's Deputies are investigating who in the department may have leaked graphic Kobe Bryant helicopter crash photos, some reportedly showing remains of the victims. An autopsy soon revealed the victim was Sister Cathy Cesnik, a beloved 26-year-old nun who taught English and drama at Archbishop Keough High School and had vanished two months earlier during a Friday night shopping trip. And now the streaming, seven-part Netflix documentary, The Keepers, has investigated the case and will feature interviews with victims of the school abuse, and new revelations. All rights reserved. The most terrifying though? There might have been more going on here than just bad luck. She still spends at least part of every day trying to find those people. In another scenario, James Maskell arrested a man named Phillip Shane after the two of them got into an altercation and Maskell lied about how they came to blows. Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik was last seen alive on November 7, 1969. The details go on, and none of them are pretty. After the series premiered, messages started to arrive from around the world with new information. Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. An undated photo of Sister Cathy Cesnik, whose body was found at a dumping area Jan . The car was parked illegally but only a block away from the apartment, and there were no signs of struggle. Detective Nick Giangrasso still thought it was someone tied to the church, though, and began to look into Father A. Joseph Maskell. Father Joseph Maskell's body was exhumed from a Baltimore cemetery earlier this year as part of the investigation into the unsolved slaying. At the time of her disappearance, Sister Cesnik was on a sabbatical from the Roman Catholic Church and was teaching at Western High School in Baltimore City. I can still feel her touch my cheek, said Hargadon-Wehner, in a recent interview. The Baltimore police has since reopened its investigation. Maskell's DNA did not match the forensic profile from 1970, although investigators noted that this . The Murder. Read on to learn about the victim. In The Keepers another Keough graduate - Jean Hargadon-Wehner - talked on camera about her abuse by two priests, Neil Magnus and Joseph Maskell, and other men at the school. Updated But I do think that there are individuals who are still living who know exactly what happened, she said. Jerry Oppenheimer For Dailymail.com, Pupils take to TikTok as they stage protest at Shenfield High School, Huge urgent police search for missing baby of Constance Marten, King Charles hosts von der Leyen at Windsor Castle, Gabor Mat: No Jewish state without oppressing local population, Putin spy plane before being 'destroyed by pro-Ukraine Belarus group', Amplified jet stream could lead to 'disruptive snow in places', Shocking video shows machete fight playing out in broad daylight, Dashcam captures moment two cars collide on a roundabout, Putin orders intelligence service to find 'scum' who oppose him, Moment supermarket cashier is attacked at work in New York, Police search allotment sheds for Constance Marten's missing baby, Dramatic moment police cars chase driver moments before smash. Two women anonymous at the time but who later came forward as Jean Wehner and Teresa Lancaster came forward with allegations of abuse, saying he (and some of his associates) had assaulted them while they were students at Archbishop Keough (later Seton Keough) High School (via Baltimore Sun). There are a lot of different stories about how Maskell threatened the girls into silence, and Huffpost has the details. . Many have speculated on the identity of this mysterious Brother Bob, with most pointing to Ed (Edgar Davidson) as being the most obvious answer, but some are now speculating that Father Robert Flaherty is Brother Bob. Netflix's documentary series "The Keepers" dives into the case and uncovers a web of abuse that may . It just means that there's no link between Maskell and the crime scene. He later became a Methodist minister, but before that (and before Cesnik had taken her final vows as a nun), he'd asked her to marry him. Today, almost a half-century later, the murder of Sister Cathy who was once compared to Julie Andrews' character in 'The Sound of Music' because of her beauty and bubbly personality is still one of law enforcement's most mysterious cold cases. As the next morning rolled around, Catherine Cesnik still hadn't returned to the apartment, and her roommate became very concerned. I don't understand what happens on the other side, she said. Stuff being crimes, and they're walking around.. A. Joseph Maskell. Exposs on the Catholic Church have been steadily being released, with more and more people coming forward over time, but the Church refuses to make a clear statement in the case of A. Joseph Maskell. Stories shared by Capital Gazette showed that Cesnik was thought of fondly by all the people she'd worked with, despite being a teacher at Western High School for only a couple months. To find those people no lead on her whereabouts for almost two.... 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