The Theresa Corley Story, Part 2 — Murder, She Told: Maine & New England True Crime

This is part 2 of a two part series. For part one, click here.

Gerri Houde: Theresa Corley’s champion

Geraldine Corley Houde drives around with a sticker on her back bumper that says “Justice for Theresa Corley.” The words are centered around a photo of Theresa—her senior portrait—smiling, and looking just past the camera. It’s a daily reminder to herself and others that her sister’s case has not yet been solved and is not yet forgotten.

Over the years, she watched her older sister Linda serve as the intermediary between the family and law enforcement. Linda followed up on loose ends and collected article after article about Theresa’s murder. There was the episode of “New England’s Unsolved” with crime reporter Bob Ward that aired in 1999.

He did another segment on Theresa in 2007. “I’m glad Bob presented it,” Gerri commented to a reporter from the Milford Daily News. “It keeps it in the public’s eye. Maybe it’ll remind the person who did this that it isn’t going away.”

Eight more years passed by with little word on how the case was progressing. Because it was technically still open and active, the authorities shared little about their investigation. Even though the Corley family wasn’t happy with the glacial pace at which they received updates, they were patient, because they had faith that the police were doing all that they could to bring the murderer or murderers to justice.

Here’s TV-reporter and Franklin native, Bob Ward.

Bob Ward: “I truly believe her case should’ve been solved in 1979. The more I learn about it the more I realize that this should have never gone unsolved for this length of time. And it makes me wonder why that is... It makes me wonder why people were so quick to get away from it...”

This was around the time that Gerri became the family’s spokesperson for Theresa’s case. She was working through her sister’s files on the investigation, imposing order on a decades-long collection of newspaper articles, family notes, and communications with law enforcement.

Gerri asked the Bellingham Police what had happened to the evidence taken from the crime scene where Theresa had been found. She was told that the vaginal swabs, which were held at the old Boston mortuary by the state police, were destroyed in a fire. Not only was there fire damage, the water used to extinguish the flames caused water damage, too.

Theresa Corley’s murder: theories and suspects

Gerri found a private investigator, Ken Mains, through some online searching, and reached out for help. He studied the case, and produced a 9,600-word report with his analysis and conclusions.

Ken came to believe that the person the who killed Theresa was a serial killer who was passing through or operating in the area.

He believed that Theresa, after being given rides by the Garelick truck drivers, decided to get some food at Marie’s Diner, which was in the heart of Bellingham, and would likely have been open very early. This would explain the presence of undigested eggs in her stomach later discovered by the medical examiner. He figured that a predator—perhaps eating at the restaurant at the same time—noticed the disheveled young woman and took a nefarious interest. Ken believed that the location of her body on the side of 495 suggested a stranger on their way out of town. After all, he asked, wouldn’t a local know of a more remote place to dispose of her body?

Ken suggested that the brazen disposal of Theresa’s nude body in such a public area revealed the confidence of someone who had killed before and would probably kill again.

While it’s possible that Theresa was victimized twice in one night in two totally unrelated violent acts, it seems more likely that the two events were related and that her sexual assault led to her murder. I think it’s important to examine the men who were present at the apartment and who were implicated in sexually assaulting Theresa, as they would have the greatest motivation to keep her silent.

To revisit Theresa’s final night of life... She was at The Train Stop in Franklin with her boyfriend, Rick. The pair got into an argument and she decided to leave. After trying to get a ride from a friend (and failing), she left on foot.

Gerri: “These people that she hung out with... when you think about it years later... all the people who were like ‘We really loved her’... she was drunk and she walked out and none of you decided to go after her but you really loved her. She was probably drinking... But to get that inebriated, I don’t think so. That wasn’t her. I never remember a time when she came home drunk. It was never an issue, and I do believe, even though the state police won’t let me have the autopsy report, I think she was drugged somewhere along the way. I think someone slipped her something.”

It was during that walk that she was picked up by a group of guys (some accounts suggest 3 men, others suggest 4), and she was taken to the Presidential Arms Apartments. She likely arrived around midnight. She was at the Presidential Arms with perhaps 4 men for 4 hours, leaving on foot around 4:00AM, during which time it is believed that she was sexually assaulted.

If the presence of quaaludes in her system is accurate then she was likely both drunk and under the influence of a powerful drug. When she left the Train Stop, she was likely staggering and somewhat incoherent—very vulnerable. I suspect that when she got to the apartment, she wanted to immediately lay down because she was on the verge of passing out, which is why she ended up in a bedroom. What happened at the apartment has been told many different ways by different people. At this point, we do not know the unit number of the apartment, the number of tenants, the number of bedrooms in the unit, who the leaseholder was, who lived there, and who was present that night. I wish the cops would publicly provide this basic information—information which would probably be very clear from their 1978 interview notes.

When Theresa’s body was recovered, she was missing her shoes. In the missing person notices in the newspaper, she was described as having been last seen wearing brown shoes. One of her shoes was later recovered from the Presidential Arms apartment unit. It was remarkably similar to a man’s shoe that was also there. It is theorized that Theresa, in her haste to leave, grabbed her left shoe and a man’s left shoe. This would have left at the apartment unit her right shoe, and a man’s right shoe, which is what police recovered and still have in evidence. An informant told Gerri that the men’s shoe belonged to Steve, one of the men rumored to be at the Presidential Arms that night. This same person told Gerri that Steve had admitted that Theresa had scratched his face “during sex”.

Steve, though, was only one of the four men rumored to be at the Presidential Arms.

As the men sobered up, perhaps one of them realized what trouble they were in if she reported her assault. Perhaps he wanted to silence her forever.

Which brings us to the man whom is rumored to be at the center of this story: Ronnie.

A dispatcher with the Bellingham Police Department said that Ronnie arrived at the police station “shortly after” they got the anonymous tip from the man who called himself “John Burlington of Connecticut.” Ronnie asked if they found Theresa. He said that Ronnie arrived before there was any chatter on the radio about it, and before the body had been identified. He also said that Ronnie’s voice sounded like the anonymous caller, John Burlington.

Bob Ward: “I mean I’ve never come across anything like that in another case... where the suspect walks right into the police station and says, ‘Oh is that the victim out there on the side of the road?’ He put himself in the middle... in the crosshairs of the police. And nothing happens to him. He was investigated. I know the police went to Florida to try and talk to him. My understanding is that he was in really bad shape... he was coked out or something... and they got nothing out of it. And then he died a short time later.”

Some people have said that Ronnie was part of the group that picked up Theresa as she was stumbling home. They also placed Ronnie at the Presidential Arms and claimed he was one of the men who sexually assaulted Theresa.

According to Bellingham PD detective Kevin Ranieri, Ronnie was arrested for a DUI and brought into the station. He then asked for Kevin by name and said that he had something he wanted to tell him about Theresa’s case. Kevin wasn’t on duty at the time so the chief asked him to come in. After settling into an interview room, Ronnie told Kevin, “I didn’t do it, but I know who did,” in reference to Theresa’s murder. Kevin tried to coax Ronnie into elaborating, but the chief interrupted the discussion and insisted everything be recorded right away, at which point, Ronnie clammed up, saying, “I don’t want to be a rat.”

Despite this revealing incident, Gerri was furious to learn, upon receiving the interview logs as a result of her FOIA request, that the first formal interview of Ronnie did not occur until 1989, nearly 11 years after her sister’s murder.

In his report, Ken recommended that any remaining physical evidence should be tested for DNA. This, he believed, would be the last and only chance for the Corley family to find answers. He even offered to do the testing, pro bono, through his organization, the American Investigative Society of Cold Cases.

It was an offer that Gerri was happy to take him up on. The only trouble was that she didn’t have access to any of the evidence to have it independently tested.

Theresa Corley’s Exhumation

Gerri: “We had wanted to see, because she had scratched somebody... I thought... There was a fighter. She could pull my hair. She could certainly defend herself trying to scratch somebody and fight back. So the thought was, perhaps she had scratched somebody. And because one other case in particular was solved with DNA under the girl’s fingernails, we had hoped if we exhumed her we would be able to get some DNA from under the nails.”

With or without support from law enforcement, Gerri was determined to press on. So, in the fall of 2016, Gerri and her siblings decided that they would independently exhume Theresa’s remains. However, the exhumation would be expensive, perhaps more than $20,000.

The Corley family created a GoFundMe page to raise $15,000. Gerri wrote on the page, “To say we would be thankful to reach our goal is an understatement. The time is now to make things right.”

Even without the support of the DA’s office, Gerri took inspiration from other victims’ families, particularly that of Joyce McLain, a 16-year-old murdered while jogging in East Millinocket, ME, in 1980. We covered the story of Joyce’s murder, and her brief but remarkable life, in 2021. Pam, her mother, successfully had her body exhumed and independently evaluated by medical experts. Gerri thought, if Pam could do it, perhaps she could, too.

Gerri told the Boston Globe that they owed it to their sister to try.

The fundraiser was an overwhelming success. The family decided to host the event at the Bellingham Sportsman’s Club on November 25. At $20 per person, the family was able to raise enough to reach their target with a little extra to spare.

In the spring of 2017, the DA’s office reversed its decision and offered to perform the DNA collection right at the graveside. The family decided to take them up on the offer and dispense with the idea of the second autopsy.

At 9:30AM on May 3, with the weather finally warm enough to break the ground, a team of State Police detectives and forensic experts gathered at St. Mary’s Cemetery. Also on site were Dr. Stein, Kenneth Mains, and a pathologist from Pittsburgh. Tall screens were erected around Theresa’s grave to protect it from public view. A section of road facing the grave was also cordoned off. With the barrier raised, a backhoe approached the grave and dug into the soil over Theresa’s casket.

Bob Ward: “I still think about it. I took pictures of it. To watch that casket come out of the ground after all that time... the same casket I knelt at. I’ve seen and done many many things in my career, but that was one of the toughest things to watch, knowing that she was in there.”

During the exhumation, Gerri and Diane sat in a car about 100 yards from the cemetery. It had not been their intention to be present at all during the exhumation, but ultimately, they decided that they needed to be nearby. Not too close, but present, if only to bear witness for Theresa.

At the grave, as the vault was hoisted up, it became clear that it was saturated with groundwater. The waterlogged remains were carefully examined, and a State Police chemist collected physical material, including nine fingernails and a sample of hair.

After the forensic team had finished their work, Theresa was returned to her casket and lowered back into her grave. The backhoe smoothed the dirt over her resting place and the screens were taken down.

Gerri and Diane were advised that they might not hear about the results of the DNA analysis for 8-9 months. The hard part was seemingly over, but another long stretch of waiting had only just begun.

DNA results

The months rolled past, and Massachusetts braced itself for another cool fall. At the end of November 2017, Gerri and her family got the news:

Gerri: “The end result was that they didn’t get anything... that the casket was too wet... probably washed away whatever DNA might have been there.”

But then a surprising piece of good news came to them on the first of December, 2017. A chemist from Bellingham who had taken an interest in Theresa’s case was now working with the State Crime Lab. She had found in evidence the jeans that were with Theresa’s body by the side of 495.

The Norfolk County DA’s Office told the family that State Police investigators were able to produce a DNA profile from semen found on the jeans.

In October of 2022, the family was told that there was a match to David, one of the men present at the Presidential Arms. According to another man who has admitted to Gerri being there that night, it was David’s room that Theresa was in. Sarah Stein, a criminology professor who was working with the family at the time, reported that in her discussion with him, he said he did not rape Theresa, but others attempted to. If that is the case, how is it that his semen ended up on her jeans?

It was a bombshell. Gerri thought that this could be sufficient evidence to pursue charges.

She was outraged when the DA told her “ejaculation doesn’t mean penetration, doesn’t mean rape.”

Gerri: “But because he admitted to having sex with her, the DA’s office thought they could do nothing with that DNA.”

Also, the jeans are rumored to be men’s jeans. Does that mean that they didn’t belong to Theresa? Did she grab a pair of David’s jeans as she fled the bedroom?

Gerri feared that there would never be any consequences for the men who had assaulted Theresa in the early morning hours of December 6.

We are still confused why there were no charges brought back in 1978 or 1979 for rape. Perhaps their absence is an indication of the confusion that the police had about who was in the bedroom with Theresa and what had happened. If that’s the case, it’s doubtful that the ensuing 44 years have cleared things up. Or perhaps the only charges that they were ever interested in were murder charges.

Where things stand today

In February 2022, Theresa was added to the MA Cold Case Unit’s deck of playing cards. Her high school portrait was placed on the Queen of Hearts. Gerri hoped that her case could be transferred to the Cold Case Unit, but the Norfolk County DA’s Office has retained it. They still consider the case open and active.

Norfolk County still believes that they have a chance of processing more evidence through advanced DNA M-Vac testing. According to DA Michael Morrissey, “Once they get up and running with that system, we’re in line to get it done.” Gerri heard from the DA’s office in March 2023 that there is new forensic testing in the works. Gerri said on the “Justice for Theresa” page that the DA’s office told her that they would have an update on the DNA in October of 2023, but that date has come and gone. On November 15, Gerri posted a picture of a blue double helix on the Facebook page. Under it she wrote, “It is hinging on this, 3 new samples obtained from the jeans, more analysis to be done, no promises made, but when the investigators are excited, you have to go with it. It really will be amazing if this nearly 45-year-old case gets answers. Especially since I can still see the DNA helix Theresa drew for a class and remember how in awe she was with ‘something called DNA’ way back then.”

Gerri: “My biggest fear is when there is a huge time lapse between them contacting me. Because to me, that either they’re trying to wear me down, let’s say, or have me go away (because that’s what happened in the beginning... we went away... my family went away. We didn’t inquire. We didn’t push. But my fear is that if I don’t keep contacting them, they’re just as happy not to contact me. Like I said, it was March 1st when we had our last conversation. They were planning on sending something out or to do some testing, and this is three months later with no contact. And I did call two weeks ago today and left a message for the advocate just asking if there’s been anything... any results... and I’ve not gotten a call back. So part of me is thinking maybe she didn’t get my message... and I’ll call again.”

Gerri is optimistic about the current investigator, who she describes as kind, caring, and enthusiastic to solve the case. If anyone can do it, she says, it will be him. But new investigators come on board all the time, and the process of becoming familiar with the case starts all over again. Blink and you have a new lead detective.

Gerri: “And I think, right from the beginning I’ve asked the DA’s office, ‘When you feel like you’ve hit that last thing you could possibly do, and you’re pretty much done with the case, can you let me know? Can you just be honest and say, ‘There’s nothing more we can do’?’ But they tell me it’s never done because it’s an unsolved murder. I think on some levels I want that closure for myself, but from the state’s point of view it will be forever an unresolved murder.”

This text has been adapted from the Murder, She Told podcast episode, The Theresa Corley Story, Part Two. To hear Theresa Corley’s full story, including Gerri’s interviews, find Murder, She Told on your favorite podcast platform.

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The Corley family in 1988, ten years after Theresa’s death, Gerri in the middle in blue

Presidential Arms apartment building, present day, one of the last known locations Theresa was alive (Google Maps)

Announcement of the unsolved homicide playing card deck for Massachusetts

Sources For This Episode

Newspaper articles

Various articles published by the Boston Globe, MetroWest Daily News, Milford Daily News, South Middlesex News, and The Call. Written by various authors including Bill Shaner, Bob Ward, Christopher Gavin, Etta Walsh, Glenna LaVerdiere, Joseph Fitzgerald, Julia Spitz, Linda Prophet, Mark Arsenault, Matt Tota, Michael D. Holtzman, Nan Gebhard, Norman Miller, Robert Mills, Sandra L. Glynn, Stacy Drumtra, Timothy Dwyer, and Lonnie Isabel. Complete listing here.

Photos

Photos courtesy of Gerri Houde. Scanned and edited by Murder, She Told. Additional photos from the Milford Daily News, Google Maps, and the Bellingham High School Yearbook.

Interviews

Special thanks to Gerri Houde and to Bob Ward for speaking to us about Theresa.

Written records

Private investigation report, Kenneth Mains, 10/12/2016

Letter from Theresa’s mother, 1/1/1981

Death certificate, 12/11/1978

Online written sources

'Justice For Theresa Corley - Facebook Page' (Facebook), 4/15/2015

'Plea for Answers... Theresa Corley's 1978 Murder' (NBC News), 2/21/2016, by Rachael Trost

'Who killed Theresa Corley? 40 years later mystery surrounds woman...' (Mass Live), 4/13/2016, by Scott J. Croteau

'Family Raising Money To Solve Theresa Corley's 1978 Murder' (CBS Boston), 11/24/2016

'Bellingham woman's body exhumed after almost 40 years' (Boston 25 News),5/3/2017