Though, of course, they insist theyre doing everything they can to help victims of abuse, on the subject of Maskell, they remain as vague and unhelpful as ever. After a week of teaching, Sister Cathy, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame, and the daughter of a Pennsylvania postal worker, decided on Friday night that she was going to go shopping. And they just paid settlements to the survivors its not that they deny it happened. An autopsy soon revealed the victim was Sister Cathy Cesnik, a beloved 26-year-old nun who taught English and drama at Archbishop Keough High School and had vanished two months earlier during a Friday night shopping trip. She had a very soft spot in her heart for the School Sisters of Notre Dame, Radakovic says, but I think she felt she was called to do something other than live in the convent.. Something has happened to your sister. . However, with each day that passes, internet sleuths and hard-boiled detectives alike unveil a new connection or a potential piece of evidence that had been overlooked before in the case. ', '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. She didn't come forward or join the lawsuit against Maskell in 1994. Much like the government, the Catholic Church has their own internal system for keeping track of the people who make up their organization. The exact number of his victims remains unclear. 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. The grisly case has inspired the Netflix docu-series The Keepers, The beloved nun who was an English and drama teacher at Archbishop Keough High School is believed to have been killed by someone in the church in an attempt to keep her quiet, Like a scene out of a horror movie, the high school junior was driven to a garbage dump by the school's 30-year-old spiritual counselor, Father Joseph Maskell - who died in 2001 - and reportedly told the 16-year-old student: 'You see what happens when you say bad things about people?'. Father Maskell was a counselor and chaplain at Archbishop Keough from 1967 to 1975. He then left to work as pastor of a church in Baltimore, but later returned to his duties after an archdiocese investigation failed to support the abuse allegations. However, White did still get to talk to them he even got to talk to the anonymous student he mentions in the series. Kathy HobeckIn addition to Wehner and Lancaster, Kathy Hobeck is one of six abuse victims who appears in "The Keepers." Every bit of it, vividly. There are a lot of people that are living that should be behind bars, she said. 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. Here's our quick guide to all the people in "The Keepers" you need to know. 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In one scene, Jean told her friends, we are the keepers of the secrets, and I knew that had to be the title. Netflix's documentary series "The Keepers" dives into the case and uncovers a web of abuse that may . The investigation into her disappearance and death revealed rampant abuse at her place of employment, Keough High School, a prominent Catholic school in Baltimore, Maryland. They talked about Radakovics impending college graduation and that she might move to Baltimore and stay in Cesniks apartment. Authorities said results will take up to six more weeks. Koob says that he and McKeon went to the movie "Easy Rider" the night of Sister Cathy's disappearance. As time would tell, she had good reason to keep quiet. 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. Catherine (Cathy) Cesnik was a Catholic sister and taught English and drama at Archbishop Keough (later renamed Seton Keough), an all-girls Catholic high school in Baltimore. . Savvy internet sleuths have found evidence that James Maskell, a former patrolman, got a woman named Sarah Nell sentenced to a year in prison for biting him while he attempted to assault her. Some suspect the same person killed both women, but authorities have never been able to find a link in their cases. Copyright 2023 PopCulture.com. When she realized Sister Cathy was missing, she called Koob, and together with him and McKeon, the three later called the police. Frightened and feeling threatened by the strapping, dominating clergyman who was popular with churchgoers for his Sunday masses the girl decided to keep secret her gruesome discovery. ", All the people you need to know to follow Netflixs sprawling documentary series The Keepers. She was described as a tall, thin girl -- standing about 5 feet, 7 inches and weighing 112 pounds. However, this is a small step towards justice. Cesniks body was found on Jan. 3, 1970. She still spends at least part of every day trying to find those people. Bob ErlandsonBob Erlandson was a journalist working for the Baltimore Sun in 1993. In 2013, Facebook page was started by an alum of the school, and more women told of their abuse at the hands of Maskell and others. When she first went in [to the convent], they had visitation days and my parents and I always went down for the visitation days, we never missed them, Radakovic says. I have deep gratitude for the detectiveswho sat down with me and had complete transparency in opening their crime scene photos and investigation. An image of Sister Cathy Cesnik's car found near her apartment the night she went missing Nov. 7, 1969 in Baltimore County. The comments below have not been moderated. That was the first time I had learned of any of this.. [8], In 1995, Teresa Lancaster and Jean Wehner (ne Hargadon), former students at Keough who say they were sexually abused by Maskell, filed a lawsuit against him, the school, gynecologist Christian Richter, the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the Archdiocese of Baltimore, and William H. Keeler. The call led Hoskins and Keough graduate, Abbie Schaub, to start their own research into Sister Cathy's murder. She was part of the Keough class of 1972. On May 17, the Baltimore Sun reported that his DNA did not match a sample that was taken. And we hope that someone will be able to come forward with conclusive information about the murder. And after almost 50 years, Sister Cathy's murder has remained unsolved. And everything ends with, I want you to do your job. . On occasion, they will attempt to combine all three, as there really isnt too much to life overall than fear, love, and laughter. Sharon May states firmly and rudely in her interview that she had absolutely no involvement in any sort of cover-up. On November 7, 1969, Cesnik disappeared. Stuff being crimes, and they're walking around.. "The Christmas after Sister Cesnik disappeared, Ed gave me this necklace as part of a Christmas gift. However, the Catholic Church is completely unwilling to share these documents, even though White says he would love for them to be transparent and show the world what they have.. Baltimore nun Cathy Cesnik, 26, vanished while out on a shopping trip in November 7, 1969. In the process of cleaning out her belongings, Radakovic discovered her mom had collected years of articles about the death of her eldest daughter, Radakovics sister, 26-year-old nun Sister Catherine Cathy Cesnik. A few years ago my auntconnected me to Jean, her friend. Their work is featured prominently, in "The Keepers.. Wehner alleged that there was frequent sexual abuse at Sister Cathy's school. I hope this documentary can be a tool of healing, but its about to be very triggering for the survivors, saidWhite. The church has denied the charges, but it has settled dozens of sexual abuse cases in the matter of Father Maskell. [6], Immediately after Cesnik's disappearance, police searched the area for her body without success. Among the other errands she ran that night, Cesnik was also looking to buy a present for her sister. What do you think happened to Sister Cathy? RELATED:Netflixs Tiger King: 15 Best Joe Exotic Quotes. I told her, everyone is going to recognize you and youregoing to be the worst PIin the world! Look, my mom and my aunt are women in Baltimore, so Gemma in a way is my mom and my aunt shes so much like them, and I hope The Keepers doesnt get relegated to another crime story in Baltimore. Both had . In 2004, a retired Baltimore homicide detective told the Baltimore City Paper that the church lawyers had 'stepped in and they talked to the higher-ups at the police department. The church first learned of the allegations in 1992 and removed Maskell as a priest in 1994, as soon as it had corroborating accounts of his abuse, according to Sean Caine, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Baltimore. She was a member of the Keough class of 1971. Months later, Radakovic became engaged (to the man who is still her husband) and she called Cesnik to ask her to be her maid of honor and discuss details of the wedding. And every time she came back home oh my gosh, it was like Christmas, Radakovic says. The spot was not easily accessible to a casual passerby. 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She said Maskell knew people in high places and would allegedly 'allow girls at the school to talk about sex and drugs in his office'. Sister Cathy was a teacher at Archbishop Keough High School and went missing in Baltimore in 1969. Also Read: 'The Keepers': What's Behind the Name of the Netflix Documentary Series? Today, almost a half-century later, the murder of Sister Cathy who was once compared to Julie Andrews' character in 'The Sound of Music' because of her beauty and bubbly personality is still one of law enforcement's most mysterious cold cases. Netflix's documentary series "The Keepers" dives into the case and uncovers a web of abuse. Following her disappearance, investigators plotted her movements and determined she had cashed her $255 paycheck at a bank before heading to a small shopping center where she bought some baked goods. I never grew up knowing her teacher had been murdered. It allowed for Cesnik's . I think this is it, Hoskins said, in a recent interview. The Keepers/Netflix On its website, the department offers a timeline of Cesnik's death and the case involving allegations against Maskell, who died in 2001. He first reported on Sister Cathy's story because of Wehner's accusation that Maskell was involved in her murder. Father Neil MagnusAnother of the administrators at Keough, Magnus was accused of participating in sexually abusing students along with Maskell. I can still feel her touch my cheek, said Hargadon-Wehner, in a recent interview. "For now, we've pretty well reached the end of the road when it comes to forensic evidence," Elise Armacost, a spokesperson for the Baltimore County Police Department said. Except for that day, she said. This family evidence of anger problems, assaults on others, using a position of power over others to avoid punishment, and the assault on a young woman much like Sister Cathy all point towards a potential pre-existing rage in A. Joseph Maskell that nobody has ever explored. As I stared at my hands in shock, Father Maskell leaned over and whispered in my ear, you see what happens when you say bad things about people.. Obviously, it has other meanings one other meaning was the idea of gatekeepers. More than 40 years after her death, the case of Sister Cathy Cesnik's murder is still unsolved. Were not going to let this go, Hoskins said. He was never charged with Sister Cathys murder. [1] Our focus was definitely on the survivors of Keough, but many Maskell victims cameafter Keough, and its horrifying. ", court of Appeals of Maryland, No. When you say survivors, how many are there? 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. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. But its not about popularity, its about the impact My hope is that we can have a fraction of that popularitythat leads to justice. She always wanted to become a Personal Investigator. All rights reserved. Unfortunately, Russell is . However, she didnt want to go on the record. 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. In 2016, the Baltimore County Police Department (BCPD) reassigned the case due to retiring officers, prompting new interviews and further investigation into the alleged sexual abuse at Keough. And now the streaming, seven-part Netflix documentary, The Keepers, has investigated the case and will feature interviews with victims of the school abuse, and new revelations. Unless some brave sleuths or particularly inspired detectives go digging, Keough High School is now, for better or worse, closed to a continuing story. Joyce Maleckis murder is explored as much as it can be as being potentially connected to the murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik, but theres still so much that Abbie, Gemma, and audiences dont know. He would eventually commit suicide. Still wondering what happened to Baltimore's Sister Cathy? Beginning tonight, Netflix viewers will be able to view all seven episodes of a series entitled, The Keepers., The documentary was produced by Ryan White. The case remains open and unsolved. He spearheaded the project because of his personal connection to Sister Catherine Cesnik, a nun who was found murdered in January of 1970 and who serves as the centerpiece of the true crime series. 'There were a lot of layers that if you peeled them back went a lot deeper. Friday, Nov. 7, 1969 - Sister Cesnik, 26, left her Baltimore apartment for Edmondson Village Shopping Center in the early evening, according to her roommate, Sister Helen Russell Phillips. But he never found the killer of Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik; he died of complications from diabetes on June 10, at age 79. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. She was very, very, very important to me.. Joyce MaleckiThe 20-year-old Baltimore woman went missing on Nov. 11, 1969. After the series premiered, messages started to arrive from around the world with new information. She was the eldest child of Joseph and Anna Omulac Cesnik. The pair lived in the Carriage House Apartments building instead of at the convent, in an attempt to get closer to the secular world to better serve their students. Information in The Keepers suggests Sister Cathy might have been killed because she found out that priests at Keough were sexually abusing students. 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 was not part of the 1994 lawsuit but came forward later. 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. Tom Nugent, author of the acclaimed Death at Buffalo Creek, and an investigative journalist, has been writing about Sister Cathys case since 1994, and recently in his online publication, Inside Baltimore.. True crime is only getting more popular, and Netflix never misses an opportunity to contribute to the zeitgeist, giving us The Keepers. She also talked about what happened after Sister Cathy found out about it. However, they say theres nothing, even though Jean Wehner found many victims willing to come forward simply by sending out letters in the mail. Updated by Nicole Mello on June 14, 2020: Justice still has not been found for Sister Cathy. 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.. It. He said that when he told his mother of the abuse, she told the Baltimore Archdiocese in 1967 -- two years before Sister Cathy's murder. One of the major theories that The Keepers hypothesizes is that Maskell either killed Sister Cathy or had her killed. Moreover, she said that along with the priest, she was abused by police officers. Everything Ive done, Ive really tried since that time which is just a little over a year ago for me Ive tried to give them all the information that Ive learned, she says of working with authorities. Jean claims that Father Maskell took her to Sister Cathy's body and said to her, "See what happens when you say bad things about people.". [13], Netflix produced a seven-part documentary series about the case called The Keepers, which debuted on May 19, 2017. White can only say this about it: Her story is chilling.. Both women have said that she was the only member of the school's staff who helped them and other girls abused by Maskell, et al., and have said that she was murdered prior to discussing the matter with the archdiocese of Baltimore. Sister Cathy's body was undressed to the waist. She moved into an apartment with another nun and was weighing her options. How did the women keep their faith and how were they able to move on and have kids after what they went through? Spitz did the official autopsy back in 1970. Who killed the nun still remains a mystery today, but . There are countless untold stories backing up the accusations made against A. Joseph Maskell and the Catholic Church that the docuseries doesnt even begin to explore. 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 it turned out, he had close ties to the police: his brother was a lieutenant, and Maskell was chaplain for the Baltimore County force, along with the state police and the Maryland National Guard. The plaintiffs appealed. 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. This is presumed to be the source of the DNA sample found at the murder scene, but Ryan White knows theres even more that Baltimore County Police arent saying. Or does White know more than hes telling his audience? She wanted to be more. Detectives revealed on Wednesday that after weeks of testing, Maskell's DNA did not match evidence found from the murder scene nearly 50 years ago. Amateur sleuths have continued tracking the famous cold case in a new podcast series. I agree with TheWrap's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and provide my consent to receive marketing communications from them. The Baltimore Sun reported in late 2016 that since 2011 the archdiocese has paid out settlements to Maskell's alleged victims. Not every story that Ryan White heard gets told in The Keepers. I mean, my mother loved eating chocolate, and I remember distinctly my mother said, Im gonna give up chocolate until Cathy comes home and then Im gonna eat chocolate until I get sick. . Magnus died in 1988 and was never charged with any crimes. In 1994, Fr. But in interviews conducted before his death, he found these. 2021 Updates on The 50-Year-Old Unsolved Murder Case of Sister Cathy Cesnik | by Rameen Zeeshan | Lessons from History | Medium 500 Apologies, but something went wrong on our end. He worked on the story for the next year and a half, but said in "The Keepers" the archdiocese in Baltimore stonewalled him at every turn. Butpeople from the outside that intercept withher realize the power of the survivor story in her. Billy SchmidtSister Cathy's neighbor in the Carriage Hill Apartments building. Sister Cesnik had been reported as a missing person on November 7, 1969, from her residence at the Carriage House Apartments in Baltimore City, 21229. RELATED:16 TV Shows Too Disturbing To Binge-Watch, Most dont believe Gerry Koob when he talks, but a member of the police force, Detective Roemer, claimed that Koob confessed to having a sexual relationship with Sister Cathy before her disappearance. Gemma HoskinsA former Keough student who had Sister Cathy as a teacher before her death, Hoskins teamed with Abbie Schaub nearly 45 years later, in 2013, to try to solve the nuns murder. She was a member of the Keough class of 1970. No one, not even fellow Keough graduates, knew that Jean Hargadon-Wehner was the so-called "Jane Doe" who came forward in the early 1990's and accused the Archdiocese of Baltimore of allowing the abuse to continue. Wehner says she remembers trying repeatedly to brush off the maggots crawling on Cesnik's face while frantically repeating the words, "Help me, help me." Her body was found a few months later, discarded unceremoniously in a garbage dump. Throughout the series,the devastation experienced bysurvivors is laid bare,as is theirstrength in confronting unthinkable childhood horrors. And they used to it was horrible, it was just horrible, because I hated to leave, hated to leave. Peter McKeonMcKeon was also a priest, and accompanied Koob to Sister Cathy's apartment when Sister Russell called to say she was missing. Several days later, on November 13, 1969, the body of Joyce Malecki, a 20-year-old woman who looked like Wehner, was discovered by two hunters in the same wooded location where Maskell had driven Wehner. I don't understand what happens on the other side, she said. Her body was found in Lansdowne, south of Baltimore,. "The Keepers" explores the murder of Sister Catherine Cesnik, who disappeared in November 1969 and whose body was discovered in January of 1970. 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. Marilyn Cesnik Radakovics journey to find out what happened to her older sister, who died nearly 50 years ago, began last year when she read a news article with the headline Buried in Baltimore.. I do believe in so many other things than I ever did before. The amount of people that have seen The Keepers now is mind-blowing around the world, White said. Since her mothers death last year, Radakovic has been her familys point of contact with Baltimore investigators, who tell PEOPLE the homicide case is quite active.. Much like everyone else who . Lil Hughes KnippAnother of the women who were abused at Keough, Lil Hughes Knipp did not come forward until years after the 1994 lawsuit. Another woman, Teresa Lancaster, also came forward. 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. The Huffington Post reported that Maskell told Wehner, "You see what happens when you say bad things about people?"[1]. However, theres even more to the story to be considered: Sharon Mays husband used to be a state cop. It is still in the process of dealing with the legal fallout, and atoning for the deeds of those who preyed on the most vulnerable. There is even more to this than meets the eye; White said there are about thirty-five other survivors just like her, and more reaching out all the time. The Keepers: Pieces Of Evidence The Show Leaves Out, 16 TV Shows Too Disturbing To Binge-Watch, 10 Exciting New Netflix Originals Still Coming In 2019, Netflixs Tiger King: 15 Best Joe Exotic Quotes, Everything Available At Launch On HBO Max, 10 Creepy Documentaries To Watch If You Loved The Keepers. Cesnik was found on a freezing January day in 1970 in Baltimore County, nearly two months after she vanished near her apartment. The Irish Tenors have been singing together for 25 years and have just embarked on a U.S. tour to mark this standout number. [13][14] Police spokeswoman Elise Armacost announced that this discovery does not exclude Maskell from being a suspect in the case. She was a member of the School Sisters of Notre Dame and had been an English teacher at the Catholic, all-girls, Archbishop Keough High School in Landsdowne. At this point, Im so disenchanted with my church its really disappointing. The show is responsible for initiating a deeper look into the case of A. Joseph Maskell and Sister Cathy Cesnik, as Baltimore County Police start investigating again due to a public outcry.
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