Kelly Johnson,Crystal Lay Obituary, Death; – In a recent collaboration with students from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, the Illinois State Police have successfully identified three victims of a notorious serial killer from the St. Louis area and have also filed charges for a murder that remained unresolved for 14 years.
According to State Police Director Brendan Kelly, the internship program has played a crucial role in helping law enforcement identify Kelly Johnson, Crystal Lay, and Carol Jean Hemphill, all of whom were victims of Maury Travis. Kelly noted that Travis was responsible for the deaths of 17 women during the early 2000s.
Additionally, this spring, the St. Clair County state’s attorney’s office charged a 34-year-old man from East St. Louis in connection with the murder of Truman Lee Smith, who was killed in 2011.
At a press conference held on Tuesday at the state police Metro East Forensic Lab in Belleville, Jeanette Smith, the mother of Truman Smith, expressed her relief, stating, “Before long, I won’t have to be calling every month.”
Kelly, along with academics from SIUE, views this partnership as a means to enhance their limited resources. This initiative not only provides students with practical experience but also allows them to engage in investigative work that has contributed to solving cold cases. Kelly believes this program could serve as a model for similar efforts in other regions of the state.
“Anytime we can devise a new method to amplify our existing resources, creating a force multiplier while also providing opportunities for knowledge acquisition and the development of individuals who may work on these cases in the future, it is undoubtedly a win-win situation,” Kelly remarked.
The three women, previously classified as Jane Does until this year, along with the man charged with Smith’s murder, were identified through genetic testing.
According to state police, road workers discovered the remains of the three women in early 2002 in Madison and St. Clair counties. Johnson was located alongside Interstate 64 near Mascoutah, Lay was found along Interstate 70 near Highland, and Hemphill was discovered in a creek bed adjacent to Illinois Route 3 in Columbia.
Due to the length of time since their deaths, Johnson and Lay’s fingerprint and dental records were insufficient for identification.
