It deals with, among other subjects, the unsolved brutal murder on November 7, 1969, of a popular nun, Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik, known to many as simply Sister Cathy.. I have deep gratitude for the detectiveswho sat down with me and had complete transparency in opening their crime scene photos and investigation. Sister Catherine CesnikA nun and teacher at Archbishop Keough High School in 1968, Sister Cathy was murdered in Nov. 1969, although her body wasnt discovered until Jan. 3, 1970. Father A. Joseph MaskellAn administrator, psychologist and counselor at Keough when Sister Cathy was a teacher there, Maskell has been accused by dozens of students and other children of sexual abuse. Sharon A.H. MayThe Baltimore State's attorney working on the Maskell case in 1994. We know this speculation about the circumstances is not false, because Jean Hargadon Wehner tells us in the show that she has evidence proving otherwise. They say they were trying to find enough evidence for viewers to conclude that the nun's murder, and the sexual abuse must be related. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. 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. What the show doesnt touch on, however, is Koobs supposed relationship with Sister Cathy. But officials have declined to identify that person. He was never charged. The trial court dismissed the action as time-barred by the statute of limitations. Source: Justice for Catherine Cesnik and Joyce Malecki Facebook Group, Mysterious 'Lady in the Fridge' Murder Victim Identified After 27 Years, Woman Adopted as Infant Learns that Biological Mom Was Allegedly Murdered by Serial Killers, Ohio Mom Facing Eviction Kills Husband, Son, and Her Father Before Turning Gun on Herself, MMA Fighter Allegedly Stabbed Ex-Girlfriend 17 Times, Stuffed Body in Storage Bin, Hid Her in Closet, Inside the Mysterious Death of a Pregnant Fla. With new evidence cropping up recently, this article has been updated to reflect evenmorefacts and clues that the docuseries overlooked. In 1994, Fr. Sister Helen Russell PhillipsSister Cathy's roommate in 1969 when she disappeared. Jean Hargadon Wehner (Jane Doe)The first former student to accuse Father Maskell of sex abuse, she appeared in the 1994 lawsuit as Jane Doe. Wehner said she waited to come forward because she had repressed her memories of the abuse and only recalled them later. Ryan White's aunt attended Archbishop Keough High School, and had stayed in touch with Jean Hargadon-Wehner. And I no longer need to have validation from others about what I witnessed during the crimes that were committed against me and others., The victim added that the archdiocese of Baltimore has been hiding behind the statute of limitations.. Nearly 20 years ago, Nugent had been calling many former students from the now-closed Archbishop Keough High School, for a story on Sister Cesnik, who was murdered in 1969. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Ryan White says hes seen a lot of people doubt whether the story is true at all, and insists that Koob is absolutely certain this happened, while the police are absolutely certain it did not. ', He theorized that because there had been no signs of a struggle, 'it looked too clean. A retired, unnamed police homicide detective revealed to Nugent that the church authorities had allegedly used influence to impede the police investigation into Sister Cathys murder. And this update involves Father Joseph Maskell. We had no idea that people would still be talking about it five years later, and that people would still be watching it five years later.. There are a lot of people that are living that should be behind bars, she said. And I can hear Cathy saying 'I told you I'd take care of this' and I said, I didn't think you meant 20 years later. For the next 47 years, the case went unsolved until now. Father Joseph Maskell, who died in 2001, was widely accused of sexually abusing girls at the school where Sister Cathy worked and is believed to be involved in her murder. A writ of certiorari was granted by the Maryland Court of Appeals, which upheld the lower court decision, ruling in part, "that the mental process of repression of memories of past sexual abuse does not activate the discovery rule. I can still feel her touch my cheek, said Hargadon-Wehner, in a recent interview. The plaintiffs appealed. According to CNN, Bode Cellmark Forensics laboratory in Lorton, Virginia was responsible for comparing the DNA to the sample from the murder scene. And why should they? I think the really special part of The Keepers is that people arespeaking up for a lot of people who didnt survive it. And after almost 50 years, Sister Cathy's murder has remained unsolved. Something has happened to your sister. . What the show doesnt get into is that the FBI has pushed back the date even further now. However, White did still get to talk to them he even got to talk to the anonymous student he mentions in the series. Shes so driven to find out what happened to her teacher. She still spends at least part of every day trying to find those people. And we hope that someone will be able to come forward with conclusive information about the murder. White can only say this about it: Her story is chilling.. New look at the murder of Sister Cathy - Irish Echo Newspaper In the show, the audience briefly hears about the fact that Ireland has claims on A. Joseph Maskell, as well, that the Catholic Church continues to cover up. 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. ', One former student, Teresa Lancaster, told WJZ-TV in Baltimore, that Sister Cathy had 'confronted' Maskell 'and she lost her life for it. One of those calls went to a retired Baltimore County teacher, Gemma Hoskins. More than 40 years after her death, the case of Sister Cathy Cesnik's murder is still unsolved. It seems that either the Archdiocese is lying about having investigated the accusations, or the Archdiocese is lying about having internal records on A. Joseph Maskell. And although the seven-episode seriesexplores through its lead investigators Gemma Hoskins and Abbie Schaub three main suspects, including Father Maskell, who diedin 2001, White does havehis own theory on who abducted and murdered the nun. I thought they would have been more participatory. I'm determined that if there is something I can do in my lifetime to change things, I think the keepers has already changed society quite a bit, Hoskins said. Radakovic, now in her 60s, remains determined. The theory that people in position of authority and power are ableto decide what we as the populous know or dont know or whether survivors of abuse are validated or not I also liked the institutional meaning of The Keepers.. Cesnik attended St. Mary's School on 57th Street and St. Augustine High School, both in Lawrenceville. Eluding police questioning, Maskell eventually ran off to Ireland in 1994 to work as a priest. Season 2 of the podcast " Out of the Shadows ". ', 'Before I knew it, there was a big man on top of me and then I thought that would be it and another policeman came in and I could hear Maskell in the distance talking and laughing. Beverly WallaceThe attorney for "Jane Doe" and "Jane Roe" in the 1994 lawsuit against Maskell and the archdiocese. On November 7, 1969, Cesnik disappeared. Oddly, her Ford Maverick, which she had recently purchased, was found just a block from her apartment parked illegally in a no parking area and unlocked. On the evening she disappeared, Sister Cathy was reportedly counseling one of the abused girls when Maskell unexpectedly showed up. She didnt know Jeanhad gone through that abuse. Throughout the series,the devastation experienced bysurvivors is laid bare,as is theirstrength in confronting unthinkable childhood horrors. There, on the ground, still clad, her face covered with maggots, was the body of Sister Cathy. [4] Cesnik had three siblings. Netflix's documentary series "The Keepers" dives into the case and uncovers a web of abuse that may . A lot of power. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Her body was found a few months later, discarded unceremoniously in a garbage dump. Catherine Anne Cesnik was born on November 17, 1942, in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 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. On January 3, 1970, nearly two months after her vanishment, the brutally beaten and mutilated body of Sister Cesnik was located in a field in Lansdowne, Maryland, by a man and his son who were. Audiences reacted poorly to how cold, smarmy, and arrogant Sharon May appeared to be, and with good reason: they have every reason to believe she was very much involved in a cover-up for the Archdiocese of Baltimore, evident enough from her complete inaction throughout the case. One of them, Jean Wehner, was the student who claimed Maskell had taken her to view Cesnik's body in the dump. The only evidence that she had been out, were the buns she had bought at the bakery. Its important to take this confession from Koob with a grain of salt, as he is proven in the show to be less than the most reliable of witnesses, but, as White says, I dont know where the truth lies.. There was only the two of us for a long time, so we were really close, Radakovic says. In the ensuing years, the sisters stayed in touch via letters and phone calls. They made the right decision in participating it wasntalways easy to persuade someone to take part. In addition to the six abuse victims featured in the documentary, director Ryan White told TheWrap there are at least 40 victims in total, some from after Maskell's stint at Keough. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? 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? Father Neil MagnusAnother of the administrators at Keough, Magnus was accused of participating in sexually abusing students along with Maskell. [7], In 2017, CBS Baltimore reported allegations from three women that during Cesnik's tenure at Archbishop Keough High School, two of the priests, Joseph Maskell and E. Neil Magnus, were sexually abusing the girls at the school in addition to trafficking them to others. The documentary was produced by Ryan White. The grisly case has. They scared the living hell out of us.'. 'The Keepers': Sister Cathy's Medical Examiner Also Worked on - TheWrap But her love is evident, too, for the woman she was so proud to have as her sister. ', While the murder of Sister Cathy is in the forefront of the series, White noted that there were other crimes 'happening before and after, and still filter down to today and may be linked to her murder.'. She joined the School Sisters of Notre Dame when she was 18. Abbie SchaubAnother former student of Sister Cathys, Schaub and Hoskins combined forces to try to uncover what happened to Sister Cathy in 1969. ', The cop, who died in 2009, said it was a shame because he was certain the priest 'knew more than he was telling. Radakovic still tears up when she talks about Cesnik, who died more than 46 years ago. Moreover, she said that along with the priest, she was abused by police officers. . But some thirty women soon came forward with accounts of sexual abuse at the school. Netflix's The Keepers: the murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik and the abuse However, this is a small step towards justice. Father Joseph Maskell's body was exhumed from a Baltimore cemetery earlier this year as part of the investigation into the unsolved slaying. . Five Years After "The Keepers" the Murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik - WMAR Because the federal government keeps stalling and refusing to release information under the FOIA regarding Joyce Maleckis murder, there are likely countless pieces of possibly helpful evidence related to the homicides of both Joyce Malecki and Sister Cathy. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. "Our best hope for solving this case at this point lies with the people who are still alive. As for filmmakers Ryan White and Jessica Hargrave, after The Keepers they produced a documentary with Dr. Ruth, and then another one about the two women who assassinated North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's brother. Regardless of why the school is closing, the walls will never be able to talk now. They filed a $40 million civil lawsuit against him, the Baltimore Archdiocese, the sisters who ran the school, and a local gynecologist. Possibly Missing: 1)An engagement gift 2) $255 cash (minus the rolls and gift?) One of the students who was abused told Nugent that Sister Cathy was a very brave women who tried her best to help those who were abused and she paid for it with her life., The victim continued: I honor her spirit and I still feel very close to her, even today. Their interactions have sometimes been fraught, and she tells PEOPLE, Theres a lot that we still would like to see them do.. Brother BobA third abuser who "Jane Doe" remembers from her days at Keough, but whose face she cannot recall. As The Keepers details, Radakovics engagement may have been one of the last things on Cesniks mind before she vanished while shopping on Nov. 7, 1969. "The Christmas after Sister Cesnik disappeared, Ed gave me this necklace as part of a Christmas gift. Netflix's latest true-crime documentary The Keepers is a hit and everyone who has watched the series has only one question: who killed Sister Cathy Cesnik? Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik - Baltimore County An autopsy revealed Cathy Cesnik had been struck on the back of her head, there was a hole the size of a quarter in her skull, and there were strangulation marks on her neck. Soon they were linking that abuse to Sister Cathy's murder, and speculation that she was going to blow the whistle and tell all. As time would tell, she had good reason to keep quiet. Hargadon-Wehner's new book "Walking With Aletheia" details her healing process, and what she's learned from - she says - communicating with several different aspects of her personality. 'Father Maskell picked me up, took me to a wooded area where there was a lot of policemen gathered around, he left me in the backseat and two policemen abused me while Maskell stood next to the car. Spitz did the official autopsy back in 1970. Who killed the nun still remains a mystery today, but . I don't understand what happens on the other side, she said. One of the major theories that The Keepers hypothesizes is that Maskell either killed Sister Cathy or had her killed. Director Ryan White tells PEOPLE Radakovic was little more than an urban legend for his team as they worked on the documentary, as no one had been able to confirm Cesnik had any siblings. The letters contents and its link to the case, if any, have never been confirmed by police, though the family turned it over as evidence soon after Radakovic got it. I always felt like there was some reason for me to be here and I didn't know what it was. Among the other errands she ran that night, Cesnik was also looking to buy a present for her sister. I was so drawn to Gemma right when I met her, she had such a unique way. While the case remains open, allegations of sexual abuse by Father Maskell, and Sister's Cathy's plan to blow the whistle along with a possible cover up by the Catholic Church with close ties to law enforcement are at the heart of the horrendous case. On November 7, 1969, Cesnik disappeared. 102, September Term 1995, "Baltimore Archdiocese Pays Settlements to a Dozen People Alleging Abuse by Late Priest", "Netflix's 'The Keepers' generates interest in other Md. I ran over, bent down and began wiping maggots off her face. There was another twist to come: After Radakovic buried her mother, she dug deeper into her sisters case and found that a documentary team was already doing the same thing, and had been for more than a year. Those who knew her at the time said that she wouldn't allow any conversation about Cesnik's death, saying that was her life before, and that she now had a new life. I never grew up knowing her teacher had been murdered. True crime is only getting more popular, and Netflix never misses an opportunity to contribute to the zeitgeist, giving us The Keepers. Jane Doe (Jean Wehner) is quoted as recalling a man she knew only as Brother Bob, who she can hardly remember from being traumatized so badly by him, whispering to her that he was the one who had killed Sister Cathy. Together, she and Hoskins started the Justice for Catherine Cesnik and Joyce Malecki Facebook page in 2013 to try to solve the case, which has become a network of Keough alumni and abuse survivors. White: My access point was personal connection: My aunt went to Archbishop Keough High School and was Sister Cathys student, so she always had a personal connection. He would eventually commit suicide. The Keough priest who allegedly masterminded the sex abuse, Father A. Joseph Maskell, died in 2001 and denied the abuse accusations before his death. 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. After the series premiered, messages started to arrive from around the world with new information. Search from Sister Cathy Cesnik stock photos, pictures and royalty-free images from iStock. She had brown hair and brown eyes. As one of the Baltimore detectives who initially worked on the case, Nick Giangrasso, told a reporter for Huffington Post: 'The Catholic Church had a lot of input into the police department. However, theres even more to the story to be considered: Sharon Mays husband used to be a state cop. Despite the fact that Father Maskell's DNA does not match the DNA found at the crime scene, Armacost notes that the results don't necessarily clear him as a suspect. Also Read: 'The Keepers': What's Behind the Name of the Netflix Documentary Series? The mysterious Brother Bob is, in many ways, even more chilling a figure than A. Joseph Maskell. When you say survivors, how many are there? When her daughter was born five years after that, Radakovic named her Catherine. Gemma Hoskins has helped dozens of victims get in touch with their investigators. Wehner alleged that there was frequent sexual abuse at Sister Cathy's school. She was a member of the Keough class of 1971. The Maryland Attorney Generals office has been investigating sexual abuse in the catholic church for nearly four years. Who killed Sister Cathy Cesnik? The real story behind Netflix's new Both had . The fall before she died, Cesnik transferred from Keough to a local public school in Baltimore and had asked for a leave of absence from her order. The next time the young nun was seen, it was by a female student from Cesnik's school, Archbishop Keough High School. Find out what it is in TheWraps Q&A with White below. In 1969, at 26 years old, Cesnik faced an impasse in her life and career, Radakovic says. The Keepers centres on the death of 26-year-old nun, Sister Cathy Cesnik, who went missing from Baltimore, Maryland on November 7th, 1969. Father Maskell was also, for a time, an assistant pastor at St. Clements Church in Landsdowne. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. Stuff being crimes, and they're walking around.. Unless some brave sleuths or particularly inspired detectives go digging, Keough High School is now, for better or worse, closed to a continuing story. This seven-episode docuseries explores the still-unsolved murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik, a teacher at Archbishop Keough High School in Baltimore, Maryland. Michigan honor roll student, 17, shot dead by 14 and 13-year-olds in attempted carjacking after he offered them a ride during subzero temperatures - juveniles will be tried as adults, Britney Spears warned by animal control after Doberman named 'Porsha' trained to protect her from 'any motherf****r with bad intentions' escaped $7.4 million California home and bit elderly man, Man, 80, is killed and three others are injured in 'horrific' San Antonio pit bull dog attack: Firefighters are forced to use pickaxes and metal poles to fight off the savage animals, Headless body of missing model, 28, is found dismembered in fridge in house of horrors in Hong Kong that had been converted into 'butchers shop' as police arrest her ex-husband and father-in-law, What COULD aliens look like? 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. Theyd ring a bell and [the girls] were required to get up and just walk away., But Radakovic couldnt let go. The Keepers, a 7-part documentary, is currently available to stream on Netflix. Cesniks body was found on Jan. 3, 1970. Published on May 18, 2017 10:03 AM. "The Keepers" premieres on Netflix May 19. Well, for all the fans with remaining questions, there has been an update in the murder case. RELATED:Netflixs Tiger King: 15 Best Joe Exotic Quotes. Its possible Flaherty and Maskell had some deeper connection at the time that has simply been completely overlooked. When she was reported missing later that night, several dozen cops and half-a-dozen dog teams unsuccessfully searched a wide swath of Baltimore's southwest neighborhood searching for clues to her whereabouts.