Law Advice

www.kspr.com Unsolved: Silence Keeps 14-Year-Olds Homicide a Mystery Silence in the small city of Seligman, Mo., has kept a 14-year-old’s murder unsolved for nearly a decade. On October 9, 1999, 14-year-old Justin Hocutt was killed. Investigators say Hocutts body was dumped before it was hit by a southbound train. Hocutt’s family says it’s time for people in the town to break the silence and put the killer or killers behind bars. “I think Seligman is a scary place,” says Hocutts Aunt Paula Roney. “The body was thrown 231 feet,” Barry County Sheriffs Department Chief Deputy Leonard Collins says. Collins says follow-up investigators realized the scene didn’t add up to a train accident. “Normally when you are hit by a train or a car, there is a lot of blood spatter, Collins says. In this case, the blood spatter was minimal.” Witnesses told police Hocutt was assaulted the night of his death. “It was either a revenge- type deal or a fight that got out of control,” Collins says. Hocutt was last seen at his girlfriend’s home. Family members say all the 14-year-old ever did was like the girl next door. Hocutt’s family members say they know who killed him. The family says most of the town agrees with their conclusion. “People would come and tell us stories and we’d beg them to go to police,” Hocutt’s Aunt Patty Snoderly says. The family says everyone in Seligman is still too scared to talk, even nearly 10 years after the crime. “They are afraid if they do talk, they’d go after …