Local murder case to be featured on 'Forensic Files'

On Wednesday Cape Girardeau area law enforcement will get some international exposure.

A 16-year-old local murder case will be the focus of this week's episode of CourtTV's "Forensic Files," airing at 8 p.m.

The episode, titled "Bump in the Night," will profile the William Lowes murder. Lowes was bludgeoned to death with an ax handle by his former stepson, Bryan Crews, as he slept in his home in October 1990.

Christine Stewart, assistant producer on the show, said the case was selected because of its combination of good police work and reliance on forensic evidence, as well as the strange nature of the relationship between the violator and victim.

Lowes was murdered soon after divorcing Crews' mother.

To make the show a production team visited Cape Girardeau last October, 15 years after the murder, to speak with those who worked on the case. Interviews with Cape Girardeau County Sheriff John Jordan, Cape Girardeau police Lt. Tracy Lemonds, county prosecutor Morley Swingle and Southeast Missouri Crime Lab technician Dave Warren are included in the episode.

Jordan was a lieutenant with the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department at the time of the murder and was assigned to the Major Case Squad to investigate. Through a series of interrogations he was able to extract a confession from Crews, partly by using evidence gathered by Lemonds and others at the crime scene.

During the early days of interviews Crews' story changed many times, said Jordan.

"The forensic evidence was important in this case because it showed his lie," said Jordan. "A verifiable lie was as good as knowing the truth."

The discovery of blood on the murder weapon was matched with blood found on Crews' clothing. Michael Hale, a friend of Crews who was with him on the night of the murder, saw Crews dispose of the murder weapon. That evidence came from interviews.

Investigators also found a shoe print that matched shoes worn by Crews during his first interview with Jordan.

Lemonds said he's a huge fan of "Forensic Files" because it gives the real story behind the police work, unlike fictional shows like "CSI."

He plans to watch his CourtTV debut, as do Jordan and Warren.

For Warren, who didn't actually analyze the case evidence, what he thought would be five to 10 minutes of interviewing turned out being a daylong affair.

"I just hope I look good," Warren said.

Jordan said there's no on-screen career in his future, but he'll enjoy this 15 minutes of fame.

"My notoriety as a movie star would not be very high with my ugly mug, so I'm happy just being sheriff," Jordan said.

msanders@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182