Buried Bones – "Dead Weight PT 1"

Date: November 5, 2025
Hosts: Kate Winkler Dawson & Paul Holes

Overview

In this gripping episode of Buried Bones, journalist Kate Winkler Dawson and retired cold case investigator Paul Holes delve into one of the most gruesome and mysterious true crime cases from the early 20th century: the infamous “Trunk Murders” of 1931. Using their trademark blend of historical research and modern forensic insight, Kate and Paul reconstruct a story that involves mysterious steamer trunks, decomposing bodies, baffling clues, and the chilling emergence of a suspect known as "The Trunk Murderess." As always, the hosts challenge each other—and their audience—to think critically about evidence, forensics, and the perils of speculation, with Part 1 ending on a tantalizing cliffhanger.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Modern Forensics in the Spotlight: Online Speculation and Media Responsibility

• Kate opens by discussing media coverage of a recent real-life case (the Idaho murders), praising Paul’s discretion as a consultant and warning of the dangers of unfounded online speculation.
  • Paul: “There is so much speculation... I will only comment when there's official information that is put out by law enforcement, the courts, etcetera... you gotta be careful” (05:28)
• Journalistic standards in fact-checking and the importance of consulting experts before reporting technical or forensic claims.
  • Kate: “You need to go back... call the people who you're interviewing and say, Paul, listen, can I go over some of the stuff that you said and make sure that I framed it correctly?” (08:12)

2. Setting the Scene: The 1931 Train Trunk Murders

• The main case opens as a mundane train delivery gone awry:

  • Date: October 19, 1931
  • Location: Golden State Limited train from Phoenix to Los Angeles
  • Two large, black steamer trunks emit a foul odor and ooze a dark substance upon arrival at LA’s Central Station (14:21–15:35)

• Initial assumptions by staff include smuggled contraband meat (specifically, venison).

3. Discovery of the Trunks' Grisly Contents

• A young man (Burton McKinnell, a USC student) and a woman arrive to claim the trunks but fail to provide keys and leave, never to return.
• After hours of waiting and escalating concern over the smell and leaking fluids, the police are called.
• Upon opening the trunks, police discover:
  • Large trunk:
    • A piece of a rug, bloodstained women’s clothing, quilt, and the severely decomposed body of a dark-haired woman in pink pajamas, curled in the fetal position. (22:36)
  • Smaller trunk:
    • Bloody papers, a cotton sheet, and the upper half (head to navel) of another woman’s body, plus bundles containing a foot and a leg—the rest missing.
    • Remarked absence of bloating in the dismembered body leads Paul to explain decomposition science:
      • Paul: “The dismemberment is really the reason they're not seeing the bloating” (27:07)

4. Physical and Forensic Evidence in the Luggage

• Other discoveries include:
  • A serrated bread knife
  • Women’s purses containing spent .25 caliber cartridges, a bullet, and a picture frame with bloody hair stuck to it
  • Additional trunks found in the women's bathroom area: a tan suitcase (with the lower female torso, waist to knees, wrapped in pajamas and blankets) and a hat box (containing a surgeon’s bag, surgical instruments, a .25 caliber Colt pistol, cosmetic items, and ammunition) (33:57–36:40)
  • Paul suggests the inclusion of “evidence boxes” like the hatbox points to a hurried and not particularly organized perpetrator.

5. Autopsy Findings and Dismemberment Analysis

• Victim 1 (Anne Leroy, age 32):

  • Cause of death: single contact gunshot wound to left temple (powder burns, downward and backward trajectory); no other marks.
    • Paul: “This is what we see in executions where the gun... is pressed hard up against the victim’s head and the shot is fired” (48:07)

• Victim 2 (Hedvig "Sammy" Samuelson, age 24):

  • Multiple gunshot wounds: one to left chest (lodged in arm), one through right ring finger (indicative of a defensive posture), and another to left temple, close range (fatal wound).
  • Dismemberment was performed within hours of death; certain body parts (intestines, bladder) missing.
    • Paul: “The fact that they are saying intestines are gone, the bladder is gone... The primary organ [in bisection]...they have a tendency to kind of be messy. This is going in a garbage bag and I’m going to dump it somewhere else” (39:05)

6. Crime Scene at the Phoenix “Murder Cottage”

• Setting: Anne & Sammy’s shared duplex in Phoenix, where both had moved from Alaska and lived peacefully.
  • Evidence found:
    • Blood splatter near Anne’s bed, on floor and baseboards; Sammy’s bed and area are clean.
    • Both mattresses missing, deep drag marks in hallway.
    • A hacked piece of rug (matching one wrapped around victim), bloody thumbprint, ginger ale and whiskey bottles, and burned mop remains found.
  • Landlord sells tours of the crime scene the following day.
  • Paul: “The fact that two mattresses are gone…suggests to me that each victim was killed in their own bed...And then how does the offender get those mattresses out?” (64:13)

7. Building the Suspect List and Psychological Profile

• The narrative builds toward the identification of the suspects who tried to claim the trunks:

  • Burton’s companion is identified as his sister, Winnie Ruth McKinley (“The Trunk Murderess”).

  • The case is left at a cliffhanger, to be resolved in Part 2.

  • Kate: “She will be tracked down and her explanation for all of this is something you’ll find interesting.” (70:19)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Paul Holes on media and forensic speculation:
  “Because they don't understand maybe the underpinnings of the science, they write things in their articles or they say things during the news broadcast, which is factually wrong...You gotta be careful.” (05:28)
• Kate on journalistic rigor:
  “You need to go back...call the people who you’re interviewing and say, Paul, listen, can I go over some of the stuff that you said and make sure that I framed it correctly?” (08:12)
• Paul Holes on state of the bodies:
  “Blood can assume a whole spectrum of colors from the very bright red to black and anything in between...if you get mold growing...you can have different appearances that the blood stain can assume.” (21:23)
• Autopsy detail:
  “The dismemberment is really the reason they're not seeing the bloating...when you bisect a body...the primary organ...is the intestines...they have a tendency to kind of be messy...This may be just a practical reason...” (27:07, 39:05)
• Kate on the immediate aftermath and the media circus:
  “This whole crime scene reporters are milling around...The next day, the landlord begins selling tours of the apartment for 10 cents ahead.” (63:27)
• Paul, on the possible motive for dismemberment:
  "For most offenders that resort to dismemberment, they are in a mode of self-preservation and they're trying to get rid of this body." (40:45)
• Paul, as the case cliffhanger arrives:
  “You have a woman and a college age kid coming to claim the steamer trunks. I mean, there’s a clue.” (58:27)
• Kate, teasing Part 2:
  "She will be tracked down and her explanation for all of this is something I think you’ll find very interesting." (70:19)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Modern forensic science vs. speculation: 03:13–09:09
• The trunks arrive in LA and initial discovery: 14:21–20:08
• Police open the trunks; bodies revealed and discussed: 20:32–27:47
• Inventory of trunk and suitcase evidence: 31:12–36:40
• Hat box examined, links to suspect's skills considered: 36:40–38:45
• Autopsy findings & forensics: 47:13–54:07
• Discussion of dismemberment psychology and suspect profiling: 58:16–60:51
• Investigation at the murder scene (“Murder Cottage”): 60:51–66:38
• Suspect identities unveiled and cliffhanger: 69:33–70:41

Episode Tone & Style

Kate and Paul’s discussion is equal parts clinical, historical, and conversational, with Paul providing straightforward, unvarnished forensic explanations and Kate balancing with narrative storytelling and curiosity. Their rapport generates moments of humor despite the bleak material (“Please don’t be eating while we have this discussion.” – Kate, 26:34), and both are quick to question assumptions and draw modern connections to law enforcement, journalism, and the true crime community.

Summary for Newcomers

For listeners new to the story—or the podcast—this episode is a textbook Buried Bones investigation: a tour through a little-known but shocking historical crime, explored with sensitivity, methodological rigor, fascination for forensics, and just enough grisly detail. The “Trunk Murders” serve both as a captivating whodunit and a vehicle for reflecting on the limits of period police work and the timeless nature of human depravity. The case is left unresolved at the end of this installment; tune in to Part 2 for the dramatic resolution and more insight into the mind(s) behind one of true crime’s most infamous mysteries.