The Reporter-Times from Martinsville, Indiana • 1

Indian Creek Jk Free Hearing Test Champs Artesian girls' golf team takes first step toward another title HEARING football Braves roll over Brown County, 31-6, as team prepares for Saturday's Dome appearance Bl SERVICE 990 S. Marion Martinsville 765-342-1669 Bl Tim Land HIS I MARTINSVILLE, IND MORGAN COUNTY'S DAILY NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 I Reporter-Times MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2007 VOL.119, ISSUE 217 SINGLE COPY 50t Death in a cornfield Retired IU professor James Allison figures he was in his office preparing a lecture for a psychology of motivation class around the time Ann Harmeier was abducted in Morgan County on a Monday morning 30 years ago. "She may have died before I dismissed the class, the Bloomington man wrote in the introduction of a manuscript about the case that never was published. It's a book about a crime that was never solved. Allison 's daughter was an IU freshman at the time and was in a Physics for Poets class with Harmeier.

"Somewhere along the way, I promised myself a time when I would try to make sense of that inconclusive end, Allison wrote. When he retired in 1993, he started researching the Harmeier case. This story was compiled from interviews, police accounts, old newspaper stories and documented information from Allison 's manuscript, called "Murder in Morgan County. By Laura Lane llaneheraldt.com If she had had a more dependable car. If she had left for Indiana University Sunday night, instead of staying home in Cambridge City with her mom and departing the next morning.

If she had let the mechanic in Waverly fix the Pontiac LeMans' thermostat. Gas Tracker Regular gas prices posted this morning were: Marathon, Indiana Mooresville, $2.71.9 Citgo, Centerton, Ind. 67, $2.69.9 BP, Ind. 39 bypass, Martinsville, $2.79.9 Road closing Voyles Road in Washington Township will be closed 12-mile east of Lenvoil Road for construction during the next 30 days, beginning today, according to the Morgan County Highway Department. Coming Events Painted Hills blood drive The Painted Hills Association will host a blood drive from 4 to 7 p.m.

Sept. 24 at the Jackson Township Firehouse No. 2, located at 4205 Ind. 252, just east of Hoosier Harvest Church. This is the first blood drive held at the new firehouse and residents of Painted Hills, Morgan Trails, Arnwood and Dynasty Estates and others in the area, are encouraged to attend and donate.

Schoolhouse Quilters to meet at St. Mary's Episcopal The Morgan County Schoolhouse Quilter's Guild will meet Tuesday, at St. Mary's Episcopal Church on Morgan Street at 6:30 p.m. for Stitch and Chat and at 7 p.m. for the meeting.

This month the members will be planning for the Retreat to be held Thursday and Friday at Bradford Woods. Deaths Erie Collins, 65 Florence Defur, 85 Don Finchum, 90 Lydia Harbrow, 86 Kenneth Hanner, 77 Geneva Kern, 80 Justin Miller, 16 Steven Roller, 38 Forrest Smith, 73 Steve Stinson, 55 Ivan Tackett, 84 Index Classifieds B3-B4 Comics B5 Lifestyles A5 Obituaries A2 Opinion A4 Sports B1-B2, B6 If she had been less conscientious and considered skipping her 10:30 class that day. If someone else had stopped to help her. If she had been able to run away. If things had been different, Ann Harmeier might be alive today, a 50-year-old woman, possibly a counselor or actress or minister or mother.

Instead, 30 years ago, someone abducted her from her disabled car, parked along Ind. 37 three miles north of Martinsville. They drove the 20-year-old IU junior a few miles down a rural road and forced her into Lawrence Stafford's tall stand of corn. She most likely was raped, then strangled by a garrote made from a shoestring from her Adidas tennis shoe and the hairbrush from her purse. Her killer left her there, her jeans pulled down around her ankles and her red IU T-shirt bunched around her neck.

For 37 days, family, friends and police searched. Volunteers flying over the field in a helicopter could not see her through the stalks. Harmeier's body wasn't discovered until autumn set in. "You know, they theorized when she disappeared that when the farmers would start harvesting, she would probably be found. And then she was," said John Si-gler, a childhood friend who came to IU the same year as Harmeier.

He had known her since kindergarten. He was a pallbearer at her Brown County resident Cindy Steele has kept some things through the years relating to her friend Ann Louise Harmeier, who was killed in Morgan County 30 years ago in a murder that remains unsolved. She still has Harmeier's school photos from junior high and high school, and also found a happy-birthday book Harmeier gave her back then. Steele also recently found among her mother's belongings these yellowed newspaper clippings from the time Harmeier disappeared and was found dead. Photo illustration: David Snodgress Herald Times he saw red and blue fabric, then bones and dried flesh.

The farmer hurried home to call police. Ann Harmeier had been found. Always on stage She was born Aug. 27, 1957, the only child of Robert Lewis and Marjorie Ruth Harmeier. Her dad, a lawyer with two degrees from IU, died of a brain tumor when he See CORNFIELD on page A3 funeral.

The afternoon of Oct. 18, 1977, Stafford was slowly driving his tractor in a straight line, collecting corn. He stopped suddenly when New radio system better than old, still has problems Town celebrates Vawter Lydia Stout, owner of Ady's Fabric and Notions, demonstrates quilting during the 21st annual Colonel Vawter Day in Morgantown Saturday. The day was originally known as Our Proud Heritage Festival. Sharon Zimmerman, vice president of the Morgantown Merchant's Association said "But our heritage was Mr.

Vawter. so it evolved into Col Vawter Day." See page A6 for more photos Photo by Mary Jo Spiegel. pletely finished, the new radio system will provide better communications during a disaster. The old radio system was limited in the number of frequencies available in its operating range. The new system had thousands of channels available and a much larger operating area.

Mooresville Police Chief Tim Viles said he can be in Carmel and talk to his dispatch center in Mooresville on his new radio, something he could not do with the old system because of range limitations. Neal said in time, the federal government, through the Department of Homeland Security. Neal Viles By Keith Rhoades krhoades a reportert.com Morgan County For people who normally listen to the radio traffic on the police radio channels, the silence is deafening. The Morgan County Sheriff's Department, along with the Martinsville and Mooresville police departments, have been switching from the old VHF system to the new 800 mhz radio system. Morgan County Emergency Management Director Jeff Neal said the attack on 9-11 showed the need for better radio communication for all agencies involved in law enforcement, fire fighting and emergency medical services.

He said Hurricane Ka-trina reemphasized the need for better communications. Neal said the government had discussed the 800 system before both events. The discussion turned to implementing the new system after the 2001 terrorist attack and 2005 hurricane that struck the Gulf Coast. Neal said when it's com See RADIO on page A3 acreagI from to 4.2 AC. SAND CREEK KNOLL JB MARTINSVILLE SC IVWbW a THINKING OF BUILDING? m-y-j- LOCATED OFF OF SR 252 ACROSS FROM MORGAN TRAIl Vfj IJtl ILvI pall MBfhrilp Chandler 7-d1 t3 I a I homesniichellechandler.coni 1.