PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I have been following Bart McNeil's case on this Blog for many years, with great concern that an innocent man has been sentenced to a century in prison for killing his 3-year-old daughter. Yes, you read that correctly. 100 years. I am therefore looking forward to watching the new 'Oxygen' documentary on the case to be premiered this Saturday. You will find screening information, a very helpful timetable, and a short summary of the latest development in the case, from a recent post of this Blog - the willingness of a judge to consider possible new forensic evidence that supports Bart McNeil's innocence. Read on:
Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog,
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'Snapped: Behind Bars': Upcoming premier: A gripping 2 1/2 minute promotional video for the episode, called 'Snapped: Behind Bars - featuring Misook Wang and Bart McNeil, can be accessed from Oxygen's Facebook site at:
Mark your calendar: The show dates and times are:
2017: "The media attention from Misook’s conviction brought renewed interest in the murder conviction of her former boyfriend, Barton McNeil, 61. He is serving 100 years for the June 1998 death of his 3-year-old daughter, Christina. Lawyers from the Illinois Innocence Project representing McNeil claim that they have DNA evidence that implicates his ex-girlfriend, Misook. “Although police did investigate Nowlin and discovered she and McNeil ended their relationship the day before Christina was killed, she was never considered a serious suspect,” the Rock River Times reported.February 2021 McLean County’s chief prosecutor says his office is reviewing the McNeil murder case, according to WEEK-TV 25. The petition stated, “The DNA evidence confirming Misook’s presence in Christina's death bed is sufficient to entitle McNeil to a new trial.” It also describes the deaths of Linda Tyda and Christina McNeil as “hauntingly similar."
Misook was born in 1965 in South Korea. Her mother died when she was a toddler, and because her father was unable to care for her, she was sent to live with relatives.
In 1987, Misook met American G.I. Andy Nowlin, who was serving in Korea. A year later, he returned to the U.S. with Misook. They married and had a daughter, Michelle.
The couple divorced in 1998, following disputes about finances and infidelity. “She was just so money hungry,” Nowlin said in a Season 20 episode of “Snapped” that aired June 18, 2017.
2003:
Misook then married Don Wang, the son of Chinese immigrants, whom she met at a call center. Don’s mother, Linda, an Asian immigrant who was divorced from Don’s dad, seemed to embrace Misook into the family.
Linda was a prominent member of the community through her work as an interpreter and advocate for new Asian immigrants. She financed Misook’s sewing and alteration business, according to "Snapped."
2006:
Misook and Don Wang had a son. They raised their family in Bloomington, Illinois.
2011:
In January, Linda married Larry Tyda, whom she’d met in 2010 through Match.com, he said in the Season 20 episode of “Snapped.”
September 5:
Linda left home in Crest Hill for a predawn meeting with a new client she was picking up in Bloomington and driving to a Chinese school in Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Linda never returned and Larry called police at 8 p.m. to report his wife was missing. Linda’s last cell phone ping was from a tower in Bloomington, investigators determined.
September 12:
Detectives learned that an employee at a local Chinese restaurant had been solicited on September 4 to pose as a client and arrange a meeting with Linda in a Bloomington grocery store parking lot, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Restaurant surveillance footage showed Misook was in the restaurant when the worker was paid to pretend to be a client. Security tapes from the grocery store also revealed that Misook and Linda had met and argued before driving away separately, according to “Snapped.”
Police brought Misook in for questioning and told her that they’d found Linda’s clothes and cut up ID cards in a dumpster behind Misook’s sewing shop. Misook told officials that she had appealed to Linda to meet with her to help her mend her failing marriage to Don.
Linda followed Misook to the shop and attacked her in the parking lot, claimed Misook, who said she choked Linda “for five to 10 minutes,” according to the Chicago Tribune. She then told officials that she dragged her mother-in-law’s body inside the shop and hid it.
September 13:
Misook took police to the Des Plaines Fish and Wildlife Area, a nature preserve where she had buried Linda in a shallow grave a week earlier.
Misook was arrested for murder.
December 10, 2012:
Misook’s trial began in McLean County Courthouse. Prosecutors emphasized money as a motive for murder: Linda had a life insurance policy and Misook believed she was entitled to half of it, according to “Snapped.” Misook had written about the policy in jailhouse letters.
December 17:
Misook testified on her own behalf. She claimed Linda died in a fight that went wrong and that she feared losing custody of her son so she hid the body.
December 18
Misook was found guilty of first-degree murder.
March 1, 2013
Misook was sentenced to 55 years in prison: 50 years for murder and five years for concealing the body. She is doing time at the Logan County Correctional Center.
She has since appealed the verdict.
2017:
The media attention from Misook’s conviction brought renewed interest in the murder conviction of her former boyfriend, Barton McNeil, 61. He is serving 100 years for the June 1998 death of his 3-year-old daughter, Christina.
Lawyers from the Illinois Innocence Project representing McNeil claim that they have DNA evidence that implicates his ex-girlfriend, Misook.
“Although police did investigate Nowlin and discovered she and McNeil ended their relationship the day before Christina was killed, she was never considered a serious suspect,” the Rock River Times reported.
February 2021:
McLean County’s chief prosecutor says his office is reviewing the McNeil murder case, according to WEEK-TV 25.
The petition stated, “The DNA evidence confirming Misook’s presence in Christina's death bed is sufficient to entitle McNeil to a new trial.” It also describes the deaths of Linda Tyda and Christina McNeil as “hauntingly similar.”
What To Know About Mother-In-Law Murderer Misook Wang Before The Return Of ‘Snapped: Behind Bars’ | Oxygen Official Site
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LATEST DEVELOPMENT: (Headnote from my post on August 21, 2021):
Bart McNeil: Illinois: Major Development: (Link in text to the entire petition. Great read! HL); 'After lawyers with the Exoneration Project and Illinois Innocence Project unearthed dramatic new forensic evidence, a judge has ruled that McNeil - serving a 100 year sentence on murder charges in the 1998 death of 3-year-old Christina McNeil - can take the next step in his quest for a new trial, WGLT (Reporter Edith Brady-Lunny) reports..."McNeil’s petition seeking a new trial in the 1998 death of his young daughter will move forward in McLean County court, a judge has ruled, in a decision that recognizes potential new evidence that may support McNeil’s innocence. McNeil is serving 100 years on murder charges in the suffocation death of 3-year-old Christina McNeil. McNeil claimed he found the child’s lifeless body in her bed at his Bloomington apartment, maintaining his innocence while encouraging police to investigate his former girlfriend, Misook Nowlin, as a suspect. Nowlin was later convicted in the 2011 strangulation of her mother-in-law, Linda Tyda. In February, lawyers with the Illinois Innocence Project and The Exoneration Project filed a 65-page petition asserting McNeil’s innocence of the murder. Newly developed scientific evidence challenges claims by former pathologist Dr. Violette Hnilica that the child was molested before she was smothered. Authorities relied upon an accusation that McNeil molested his daughter to support their theory of a motive for her death. “The bottom line is that modern science completely repudiates Hnilica’s testimony regarding any alleged motive,” said the defense motion. Forensic tests performed after McNeil’s conviction on hair collected from inside the child’s pillowcase showed the hair was consistent with Nowlin’s DNA, the defense argues. Nowlin also could not be excluded from DNA collected from a bedsheet."
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;
