Tracy Gilpin // 542

Summary

Going West: True Crime – Tracy Gilpin // 542 (Sept 30, 2025)

Hosted by Daphne Woolsoncroft & Heath Merryman
Case: The Murder of Tracy Gilpin, Massachusetts, 1986

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Overview & Main Theme

This episode centers on the unsolved 1986 murder of Tracy "Ashtray" Gilpin, a 15-year-old from Kingston, Massachusetts. The hosts, Daphne and Heath, explore Tracy's mysterious disappearance, the discovery of her body weeks later, subsequent investigation twists (including a suspected serial connection and a bizarre confession decades afterward), and the lasting impact on her family and the community. The narrative highlights the enduring quest for justice, the complexities of cold cases, and the failures of law enforcement in missing teen cases.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Tracy’s Early Life and Family Dynamics

• Tracy was born in 1971, the second of three children.
• Following her parents’ divorce, Tracy and her sister Carrie lived with their mother in Kingston, while their brother stayed with their dad nearby in Manomet.
• "Tracy specifically was very outgoing. She had a great sense of humor. She was silly, sweet, often a little bit mischievous." (Daphne, 06:37)

The Night of Tracy's Disappearance

[10:10]

• On October 1, 1986, after babysitting, Tracy left for a neighborhood party.
• Although only 15, Tracy attended social gatherings that sometimes included older individuals (“I actually read one source that said the person whose party it was was 26 years old….” Daphne, 10:10).
• Tracy was known for staying out late, sometimes forgetting to notify her family or even “running away” for short stints, causing her mom considerable worry—but always returning until that night.

[11:50]

• She left the party at 10:30PM to accompany friends home, then set off alone to buy cigarettes from Cumberland Farms, a local convenience store.
• Tracy earned the nickname “Ashtray” for her smoking habit; notably, even her obituary listed it (“In her, like on her online obituary, it says Tracy ‘Ashtray’ Gilpin…” Daphne, 12:23).

[14:33]

• After buying cigarettes, she declined a ride from a woman at the store, opting to walk back alone at 11:30PM.
• She phoned the party for a lift but was refused.
• This was the last confirmed sighting of Tracy.

Initial Investigation & Community Response

[16:01 – 20:46]

• Tracy’s absence wasn’t immediately alarming given her past behaviors, but as time stretched and she missed school, alarm grew.
• Police were dismissive, attributing her absence to “another runaway episode,” failing to begin a search for days.
• "It feels like laziness, honestly. Like, what else do you guys have to do tonight?" (Daphne, 19:35)

[20:11]

• Tracy’s mother, Kathleen, and family organized their own search and flyers.
• Police finally joined after four days, with crucial early evidence and leads lost.

Discovery of Tracy’s Body & Scene Details

[21:30 – 25:56]

• Three weeks later, on Oct 22, 1986, a woman found Tracy’s decomposed body in Myles Standish State Forest, partially clothed and with fatal head wounds from a 73-pound boulder—a crime likely committed the night she disappeared.
• Investigators determined the killer brought her to this remote spot and murdered her there.
• “The killer would have needed to be able to comfortably pick up that boulder and smash it over her head before she was able to get away.” (Daphne, 24:21)
• Severe decomposition and trauma made it difficult to ascertain full details; while sexual assault was suspected, it couldn’t be confirmed.

Early Theories & Dead-Ends

[26:18 – 29:34]

• Little evidence survived due to rain, and no suspects emerged from Tracy’s inner circle.
• The family believed she might have known her killer or at least wasn’t snatched by a stranger—hitchhiking or willingly getting into a stranger’s car felt unlikely.

The Melissa Benoit Case & Suspected Serial Connection

[31:12 – 38:41]

• In 1990, four years after Tracy’s murder, 13-year-old Melissa Benoit disappeared in a similar manner in Kingston.

• FBI polygraphed neighbors, leading them to Henry Meinholtz, Melissa's 52-year-old Bible school teacher neighbor, who failed the test and confessed to disturbing sexual fantasies and behaviors.

• Melissa’s body was found in Meinholtz’s basement; he was convicted and sentenced to life.

• “I truly regret that option is not open to me in this case [the death penalty].” – Judge at Meinholtz’s sentencing [37:24]

• Public and investigators speculated whether Meinholtz also killed Tracy due to similarities:

  • Both victims: young brunette, last seen walking alone, found partially nude.
  • Meinholtz admitted to picking up hitchhikers for abuse.

• However, evidence did not concretely tie him to Tracy.

Cold Case, New Tips, and the Michael Hand Confession

[45:01–62:27]

• Decades passed with no movement in Tracy's case. In 2017, the family doubled the reward, prompting renewed media attention and a vital tip.
• The tip shared details of a different party on the night Tracy vanished, hosted by Michael Hand, then 29 years old.
• Michael Hand lived locally, hosted parties attended by teens, and knew Tracy. He never told police she’d been at his house that night.

[49:13–55:33]

• In 2018, investigators tracked him to North Carolina. His stories changed multiple times:
  • First, he denied seeing Tracy.
  • Then, he said he saw her in a car with Meinholtz (the later-convicted killer), and he & a friend chased Meinholtz to the state forest where Tracy’s body would be found—claiming to see Meinholtz emerge with a tarp and shovel. (“It almost feels like he’s trying to paint himself as some sort of hero here.” – Heath, 53:22)
  • In yet another version, he helped move a boulder at Meinholtz’s direction, explaining away possible DNA.
• When asked for a DNA sample, Hand became evasive—and called his pastor. In a private confession, he admitted to dropping a rock on Tracy’s head “trying to help her,” but claimed to be scared to ever confess.

Legal Challenges & The Mystery Remains

[58:59–66:40]

• Michael Hand was arrested, tried, and his pastor testified to the confession.
• Defense argued the confession was coerced or made under distress; the judge ultimately ruled most statements and the pastor's testimony inadmissible.
• Modern DNA testing revealed no match to Michael Hand or Henry Meinholtz with samples from the scene.
• Another unnamed man claimed to have been with Tracy that night but refused DNA testing.
• The case has stalled; Hand remains in custody, with trial perpetually delayed due to frequent admissibility rulings and Covid-era court backlogs.
• "It's just kind of weird to me that, like, why would you make up this entire bullshit story if it wasn't... if you didn't have anything to do with it? Why would you insert yourself into that crime?" (Heath, 67:20)

The Family’s Enduring Impact and Hope for Justice

• Tracy’s loss, though devastating, resulted in her parents remarrying and having another child together.
• Sister Carrie became a Massachusetts State Police trooper, ultimately reaching the rank of superintendent, inspired by Tracy.
• “I know it’s solvable. In my heart of hearts, I know that that person is still out there.” —Carrie Gilpin [66:19]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It feels like laziness, honestly. Like, what else do you guys have to do tonight?” – Daphne [19:35], critiquing police inaction.
• “The judge stated, ‘It is said that my predecessors in colonial times had gallows erected on the green…and summarily sent defendants…to be hanged — I truly regret that option is not open to me in this case.’” [37:24]
• “It almost feels like he’s trying to paint himself as some sort of hero here, but as we’re gonna get into this story even changes a few more times.” – Heath [53:22]
• “If you’re innocent, you say, sure, here's a sample, and then you leave and go back on. Carry on with your life.” – Daphne [55:57]
• “Let us know your thoughts…and we will see you guys next week.” – Daphne ([68:52] – closing call to action)

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Key Timeline & Timestamps

• [02:39] – Case Introduction: Tracy’s disappearance in October 1986.
• [10:10] – Details of the party Tracy attended.
• [13:12–15:44] – Cumberland Farms stop; last sighting.
• [16:01–20:46] – Family’s frantic search, police inaction.
• [21:30] – Body of Tracy Gilpin found; crime scene analysis.
• [31:12] – Four years later: Melissa Benoit case, serial suspicion.
• [38:41] – Meinholtz’s arrest and sentence.
• [45:01] – Family re-ignites cold case with reward; key tip received.
• [49:13–55:33] – Michael Hand’s evolving stories; the pastor confession.
• [62:27–65:18] – Legal challenges, DNA revelations, Hand’s custodial status, and family aftermath.
• [66:19] – Carrie’s quote on the case’s solvability.
• [67:20–68:52] – Final host thoughts and unresolved questions.

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Tone & Style

Daphne and Heath balance straightforward true crime analysis with relatable, conversational asides (e.g., Dewey the bulldog’s weight matches the murder weapon, skepticism about '80s small-town social norms). They offer compassion for the victim and family and righteous indignation over law enforcement's failures. The tone is engaged, occasionally irreverent, but always sensitive to the gravity of events.

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Useful Summary for the Uninitiated

• Tracy Gilpin’s 1986 murder remains unsolved; key suspect Michael Hand confessed but later denied involvement, and DNA evidence is inconclusive.
• Law enforcement originally mishandled the case, losing precious time and leads.
• Another Kingston child, Melissa Benoit, was murdered four years later by neighbor Henry Meinholtz, who was suspected in Tracy's murder but never charged.
• The case is hampered by muddled confessions, legal technicalities, unclear DNA evidence, and a series of unreliable witnesses.
• The Gilpin family never stopped seeking justice, with Tracy’s sister Carrie reaching the highest levels of law enforcement in Massachusetts.
• As of 2025, the case is cold but not closed, with the hope that advancements in evidence or new tips will finally bring closure.

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For photos and more, follow the podcast on Instagram @goingwestpodcast.
Stay tuned for future updates on this case as trials (finally) proceed.

Transcript

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[Daphne]

Foreign.

[Heath]

What is going on? True crime fans, I'm your host he.

[Daphne]

And I'm your host Daphne and you're.

[Heath]

Listening to Going West.

[Daphne]

Hello everybody. Thank you so much for tuning in today. Big shout out to Tristan for recommending today's case. Another woman recommended this case. Shouldn't want her name said on Anonymous. Yeah, but thank you so much. You know who you are. This case has so much more than I originally thought when I I was just kind of starting the cursory search into it. Like this story goes to some crazy places, so buckle up. There's actually another case that we're going to talk about in this one that was believed to be connected to Tracy's. It's crazy, so let's just go.

[Heath]

All right guys, well this is episode 542 of Going West. So let's get into it.

[Daphne]

SA In October of 1986, a 15 year old girl attended a friend's house party in the coastal town of Kingston, Massachusetts. After babysitting after dark, she left the party on foot, heading to pick up cigarettes from the store. But the following day she was nowhere to be found. For weeks, her disappearance gripped this tight knit community until her body was discovered in the woods nearby. With another missing girl, a depraved, suspicious local Bible school teacher, and a recent confession, this case would unravel into one of Massachusetts most puzzling mysteries. This is the murder of Tracy Gilp. Foreign Tracy Gilpin was born on January 25, 1971, to parents Kathleen and Rich Gilpin in Kingston, Massachusetts, as the second child to her parents, joining her older sister Carrie, 11 months after Carrie was born. So they were very close in age. And then they were joined. Wait, isn't it Irish twins one year apart?

[Heath]

Is that what it is? I have no effing idea.

[Daphne]

God, I don't know. I take it back. I don't know. But then they were also joined by a little brother after Tracy. Now, Tracy and her siblings were initially raised by both of their parents, of course, but eventually their parents did split while they were all still pretty young, and the kids actually split up at this point as well. We've seen this on the show before, but basically, Tracy's brother went to live with their dad, and then Tracy and her sister Carrie went to go live with their mom, Kathleen. Now, prior to the divorce, the family lived in Manomet, which is a small seaside village in Plymouth, Massachusetts. So basically, they were all living there. And then the dad and brother stayed there while Tracy and Carrie were taken away by Kathleen only one town over and in Kingston, Massachusetts, so that they'd.

[Heath]

Still kind of be able to see each other from now and again.

[Daphne]

Yeah, and actually Kingston is where, like I just said, Tracy was born, but it's also where Tracy's mom, Kathleen's parents lived. So it's like, yeah, they're, they're not going too far, but they're getting a little bit closer to her side of the family. And specifically, they moved right by the water to a neighborhood called Rocky Nook. And this is where today's story takes place. So picture, like, very quaint, shingled salt box houses.

[Heath]

Oh, I know that you love those houses.

[Daphne]

I do. That's my favorite type of house. It's actually just an hour south of Boston, so not too far from a big city. But luckily for the girls, again, this was not a big move. I mean, they would have to go to a different school, and they ended up making a lot of new friends anyway. But it wasn't a totally different new area. You know what I mean? But still, they did make new friends. They did so very easily. Tracy specifically was very outgoing. She had a great sense of humor. She was silly, sweet, often a little bit mischievous. But fast forward a couple years to 1986 when this story takes place. 15 year old Tracy, she moved there when she was about 13, was known to stay out late on occasion, usually rolling up at home around 11pm after hanging out with neighborhood friends.

[Heath]

I mean this is pretty normal, you know, especially for a small ish kind of town. Like there's not much to do. So hanging out with your friends is pretty much what most people do.

[Daphne]

Yeah. And I mean her coming home late was fine. It was just sometimes she would like stay at a friend's house without notifying her mom. And then whenever that would happen, sure, her mom, Kathleen would kind of just be waiting by the phone. But when it became a little bit more routine, she stopped worrying as much, just knowing that Tracy was more than likely out with her local friends. But other times it would be more than just sleeping over at a friend's house without calling because she ran away a few times for a day or two. And not necessarily I'm, I need to get out of this house and I have a bad relationship with my family. Like it was more just like, oh, sorry, I forgot to call.

[Heath]

Yeah. And it's not like, you know, I'm going to travel to a different state. It's like right, you're just at a friend's house probably down the street because you want a little bit of time away from home.

[Daphne]

Yeah. So, but it's kind of problematic because sometimes it would be during school and so her mom obviously just want to make sure she would safe or was safe and, and Tracy wouldn't call. So actually this resulted in Kathleen on a couple occasions calling police to report her daughter missing. And then she would always come back. However, one chilly October weeknight, Tracy didn't come back and she didn't come back the next day either. And this time it felt different.

[Heath]

Now as autumn set in, this charming seaside town of Kingston was averaging in the low 60s, getting chillier by the day. I mean picture this. Beautiful. I mean obviously you know, Daphne, Massachusetts is absolutely gorgeous this time of year with all the foliage, you know, all that stuff, you're getting closer to spooky season. And like many teens, Tracy regularly babysat for some neighborhood families just to make some extra cash. On the Evening of Wednesday, October 1, 1986, 15 year old Tracy was finishing up one of these routine babysitting gigs. Despite her occasional free spirited nature and her habit of staying out sometimes I want to make it known that Tracy was responsible in other ways and she was known to have a good head on her Shoulders. And she absolutely loved kids. I mean, she was a very responsible babysitter. Now, after the parents got home and Tracy was relieved from babysitting again. This is on the evening of October 1st. She headed home to her mom with a chunk of cash in her pockets. And although it was a school night, she didn't stay home long because a neighborhood friend was throwing a little house party a couple blocks down the road. So at about 6pm that night, Tracy arrived home, had a brief conversation with her mother, and then she got ready for this party. She fluffed up her signature 80s style blowout. You know, everybody had that kind of hairstyle back then. And then she walked the two blocks to the party. Remember at this point, she had been in Rocky Nook for a couple of years, so she was very familiar with her neighborhood and with all of the people that would be at this party.

[Daphne]

I actually read one source that said the person whose party it was was 26 years old and that that wasn't weird for her to be going even though she was only 15, because she was so familiar with all the different people that lived here. I don't know if the person was actually 26, but the fact that this is a Wednesday night and it's during the school year, it would be easier for me to believe that they would be having a party that would go late into the evening as we'll get into, if they were in their 20s. But I just want to make that known that it seems like a lot of the people that were going to this party were a little bit older.

[Heath]

Yeah, I mean, that is a little bit weird. I mean, when I was growing up in my teens, like there were definitely a few older people that were, you know, in the circles that would hang out. And they were, they were the ones that would just go get you alcohol, you know, they were those people. But.

[Daphne]

But it's weird thinking about the other side of it. Like, When I was 16, I went to a party with my co worker who was in her late 20s. And if I look back at that now, I'm like, what?

[Heath]

Yeah. Why are you hanging out with teenagers?

[Daphne]

Why did you want me to go to that? Like, that's so weird.

[Heath]

I mean, most of these guys that I was talking about, they were the type of dudes that like, you know, they couldn't let go of high school. Like they still wanted to hang out with the high school kids, which was really weird. And they would hit on the high school girls, like it was just bad news.

[Daphne]

Don't be that person.

[Heath]

Just grow up and move on with your life. Go get a job. All right?

[Daphne]

It's okay. It's. The 20s are great. Enjoy your 20s. Do not go back to the teens. But this is important to remember for something we're going to bring up a little bit later. Just to keep in mind the kind of age group that is at this party.

[Heath]

Well, at this party, Tracy stayed for about four hours until 10:30pm When a couple of Tracy's pals just decided that they were gonna head home themselves. And Tracy agreed to join her friends on their walk home. You know, planning to return to the party afterwards. Because like many American teens of the 1980s, Tracy was a cigarette smoker. So much so that she earned herself the nickname Ashtray around town. I mean, that is such a wild nickname for somebody who just casually smokes cigarettes.

[Daphne]

You know what's even crazier is in her, like on her online obituary, it says Tracy Ashtray Gilpin. Like with Ashtray in quotations. Like. Like a nickname would be.

[Heath]

So she fully embraced the nickname Ashtray.

[Daphne]

I don't know, I thought that was so strange. And obviously no shame to her family if they're the ones who did that, because maybe a lot of people called her that. It's just such a. Feels like such a. A negative connotation.

[Heath]

Yeah, it feels definitely negative in some way. But maybe she just embraced it and was like, yeah, I'm Ashtray.

[Daphne]

I don't know. Ashtray is just such. It's so aggressive, you know, it's not like ashy. I don't know.

[Heath]

But I also imagine.

[Daphne]

So funny.

[Heath]

I also imagine that probably not, maybe not a ton of teens smoked cigarettes. I don't know. I mean, maybe they did. Maybe they did.

[Daphne]

I don't know. I mean, apparently she just loved her cigarettes, right?

[Heath]

So she was low on cigarettes. And this is a big reason why she wanted to walk with her friends so that she could pick up a pack of smokes from the nearest convenience store. Now, this wasn't like super close, you know, she knew it was about a half hour walk to the store called Cumberland Farms. But part of the way she was accompanied by friends until, you know, they reach their destinations. Now, again, Kingston is a small town hosting only about 8,000 people at this time. And this convenience store is right along a highway. But it was pretty normal for them to, you know, stroll the streets at this time of night. It was known to be a pretty safe town as well, where most people just kind of knew everybody. Like everybody knew everyone.

[Daphne]

So these two friends that Tracy was walking with were neighbors. So they reached their homes at the exact same time and said good night to Tracy as she continued to walk alone in the dark to go to Cumberland Farms. Like Heath said, it's along A Highway 3A. There's only one lane on each side. So this is not a major highway. And there are some other businesses sprinkled around it. So it's not like, you know, rural farmland or something there, there. It's like the downtown area.

[Heath]

Yeah. If you're hearing the name Cumberland Farms and you're thinking that it's like, you know, a one off on the side of the road, it's not. There's other businesses that are nearby.

[Daphne]

No. Yeah. I was like, what does this store look like? It's literally a convenience store. It sounds like it would be an adorable little rural shop. It is not. So the clerk remembered her after she arrived, of course, remembered her buying one pack of cigarettes before walking over to the pay phone. And Tracy actually called her friend whose party that she had left, asking if they could come pick her up so she didn't have to make the 30 minute walk back. You know, she probably got all the way there and realized she'd missed a lot of the party and if she walked back, she would miss even more. You know, it was already like 11:30pm but even though it was only a few minutes drive, the friend did not want to leave the party. Like maybe they had been drinking and it wasn't safe to. We're not sure, but either way, they said no. Now, some reports claim that Tracy was not one to shy away from hitchhiking like many did in this era. But apparently when a woman at that convenience store offered Tracy a ride, for whatever reason, she declined it, deciding to just make the 30 or so minute walk back to the party in Rocky Nook at 11:30pm on October 1st.

[Heath]

I mean, maybe it was one of those things where, you know, if she got in the car, she wouldn't be able to smoke and she had just picked up her new pack of smokes. So maybe she's like, hey, fuck it, I'll make this 30 minute walk. I can have a few cigs on the way there. And then, you know, before I know it, I'll be back at the party.

[Daphne]

Yeah, and maybe she didn't want to like burden a stranger. I mean, who the hell knows? Well, Tracy was seen leaving the parking lot of Cumberland Farms and walking into the night. But here's the thing. Tracy did not arrive home that night. Which, remember, wasn't the most worrisome thing, especially with her mom knowing that she was with friends at this party. But she also never made it back to the party. So the night passed, but when morning came, her mom started to worry a bit. She obviously didn't know that Tracy had left the party and that she never made it back. So she's not privy to this information. But she also quickly learned that Tracy did not show up for school. Now, Tracy had recently started at Silver Lake Regional High School as a freshman, and many friends noticed that she hadn't shown up and she was marked as absent. So after finding all this out, hearing from her friends, hearing from the school, that night, her mom, Kathleen drove around Rocky Nook looking for her daughter. And you know, she's probably thinking, is she just with her friends, am I going to call police again and get them involved only to find out she's okay? Like, she probably was really torn and felt like it kind of feels like a, like a boy who cried wolf type situation. Her, her mom probably didn't know how to react.

[Heath]

Yeah. And that's, that's completely fair. I mean, obviously knowing that this is sometimes what Tracy would do. I mean, it's hard to just jump to especially like for your mind to jump into something that nefarious happening in.

[Daphne]

This small little town.

[Heath]

Yeah.

[Daphne]

And especially because we have to remember her mom had worried so much that she went to police before. And then Tracy just showed up. So she's like, am I gonna do that again? Is she fine? She has to be fine. But then it was also like, well, nobody knows where she is, she didn't go to school, none of her friends have seen her. And she's also driving around Kingston and Rocky Nook. She went to the beach that her daughter loved going to, and Tracy wasn't there either. So eventually that night, Kathleen knew she had no other option. So she decided to call the Kingston police and report 15 year old Tracy missing.

[Heath]

Well, obviously to Kathleen, you know, this time really felt different, especially as, like the hours are starting to pass and she had never driven around looking for her daughter and gotten no word from friends. Like no one knew where she was. And remember, Tracy was only 15 years old. But still, because Tracy had gone missing a couple times and they turned out to be false alarms, the police kind of brushed this situation off too, adamant that she would eventually turn up. So there was really nothing else Kathleen could do except continue to look for her on her own, with police literally refusing to help. But still, days passed with no word from, or sign of Tracy. And still no help from police, which feels, you know, totally unacceptable because, you know, we talk about this a lot with people that are over the age of 18. Like you're an adult, you can do whatever you want to do, but this is a teenager. So I'm not sure even if she had, you know, attempted these runaways in the past, which you really can't even call them runaways, but even if she had left in the past, that is still not okay that police are not looking into a teenager going missing.

[Daphne]

It feels like laziness, honestly. Like, what else do you guys have to do tonight? You know, like, yeah, you're just sitting.

[Heath]

There probably because fucking Rocky Nook.

[Daphne]

And like literally Kingston has 9,000 people. So it's like there's probably very little crime there. And I'm sure, you know, maybe you're short staffed, whatever. I don't know their exact situation, but it does absolutely feel like negligence. Like one to brush it off in the first place and then two for Kathleen to continue to probe them for days on end. And they're continuously suggesting that she ran away.

[Heath]

So with this, Kathleen, all on her own, had to gather friends and family to search Kingston and print out and pass out missing flyers, posting them on telephone poles in local stores, really anywhere that they could. It wasn't until four days into Tracy's disappearance on October 6, 1986, that police became involved. And as we know, beginning a search nearly a week in can result in a ton of lost leads.

[Daphne]

Yeah, I mean, people forget things, people leave town so messed up.

[Heath]

Yeah. Which is why even with law enforcement now searching for 15 year old Tracey, the days passed with no sign of her. So naturally some wondered if Tracy had maybe gone off to her dad's, since he was only about 10 miles away in Manomet. But she wasn't there either. And her father, of course, was equally as concerned about her whereabouts. I mean, this is something that her mom checked on pretty early. So absolutely nobody in her life knew where she was, meaning days turned into weeks. But on Wednesday, October 22, 1986, exactly three weeks since she had last been seen, a horrific discovery was made.

[Daphne]

That late October day, a local woman was walking in Miles Standing State Forest in Plymouth, Massachusetts, which is very close to where Tracy's dad lived. Actually, it's only about 10 minutes south of Kingston. And she was picking flowers at the edge of the forest when something strange caught her eye. Like in the corner of her eye she noticed something, something poking up from a shallow grave, covered in leaves. When she inspected it, Closer, she found the body of a girl. So horrified by this gruesome sight, as the girl was clearly deceased and already in the stages of decomposition, she called the police. This girl was only partially clothed. Her underwear had been pulled down, and she was missing her pants and her shoes. Near her head was a large rock, which had blood on it, and the girl's face was unrecognizable. But even so, police felt strongly that Tracy Gilpin might be the victim, just based on the state of decomposition that she was in and there not being any other recent reports of a missing girl in the area. After notifying her mom, Kathleen, they asked her to look at the jewelry found on the body. And when she did, she knew that it was her daughter. So there, in the woodland of a state forest, Tracy was found about 11 miles from where she was last seen leaving the Cumberland Farm store three weeks prior, confirmed by dental records. Her autopsy revealed that she had likely been dead for many weeks. So it is believed that. That she died the night she disappeared. Now, her cause of death, as you can probably assume from what I was saying about that rock, was multiple skull fractures from the very rock that lay next to her head. Now, this rock, or I mean, really, it's a large boulder, was heavy. It was 73 pounds.

[Heath]

Damn, that is pretty heavy. That's about how much Dewey weighs.

[Daphne]

I knew that's exactly what I was thinking when I researched this.

[Heath]

And he's a fat ass.

[Daphne]

Well, I was thinking of this because, you know, this. It's. It's pretty heavy. 73 pounds. And also, by the way, investigators believe that based on the rocky terrain that was nearby, that it came from the very area that her body was found in. So that paints the picture that somebody abducted her, brought her to this location, and killed her right there because they concluded that the boulder was not transported from somewhere else. So this is kind of a unique situation that she was brought to this spot to be killed. And then, like you're saying about Dewey, our English. Our chubby English bulldog, you have to factor in that whoever killed her would have needed to be able to comfortably pick up that boulder and smash it over her head before she was able to get away.

[Heath]

And I will say, like, 73 pounds as an adult, like, you and I both can pick up Dewey.

[Daphne]

Well, that's what I. When you put Dewey in the car today to take him on a drive, I was thinking of this case because you. You did it fairly easily. It's like, I can pick up Dewey and put him on the couch or something. Or into the car. But it's definitely kind of hard for me to do.

[Heath]

And it also depends on how this, this killer was picking up the rock. Did the killer pick it up over their head, extend their arms? Because that's, that's a little bit harder, you know, like to do.

[Daphne]

Right. Well, that's why I think it's, it's difficult to say because if she was incapacitated, it would have been easier. But if he's also like at the same time trying to make sure she's not getting away, then he would more so need to be really lifting the rock and not being able to take his time with it.

[Heath]

So, yeah, you'd have to do it pretty quickly. Unless, like you said, she was already incapacitated, like possibly he had strangled her or something like that, or she had been drugged. That would be a whole different story.

[Daphne]

Right. Which there was no sign of any drugs in her system, like that would have knocked her out. But also because her head was smashed with this 73 pound boulder, it was hard for them to tell any other injuries, like if he had beaten her or punched her because of the damage that this boulder left.

[Heath]

Yeah. And we also know that with decomposition, that does make it a lot harder to determine if things like that did happen.

[Daphne]

Absolutely. So. So regarding that, it's kind of hard to say, but good to still, like, I don't think my sister could pick up that boulder, you know, Charlie picking up Dewey. I don't think she could.

[Heath]

Yeah, probably not.

[Daphne]

So they're automatically thinking, oh, was this a man?

[Heath]

Well, so obviously right off the bat, this was ruled a homicide. And her family, her 16 year old sister, her mother, her father, her brother were all beyond devastated, of course, especially with no answers. I mean, all they know is that she was last seen at this convenience store and then she was killed 10 minutes away in the woods. But again, since the town is small and everybody knows each other, they naturally started to wonder if someone that they knew took her away or if it was someone passing through. Her funeral was held on October 26, 1986. So four days after her remains were discovered, she was buried at St. Joseph's Cemetery. With one side of her gravestone engraved with a unicorn and the other an angel surrounded by flowers. After the funeral, Tracy's father Rich, reunited with her mother Kathleen. And he and Tracy's brother actually ended up moving in with Kathleen and Kerry for a bit as they tried to navigate the impossible situation here. Even with the murder weapon and Tracy's body, it wasn't immediately clear to police who could have done this. She didn't have any enemies, any jealous ex boyfriends. So they looked back at the night that she vanished. Of course, it seemed to make sense that while she was walking, someone snatched her while driving past, maybe seeing an opportunity out of this. We know that she rejected that woman's offer to drive her to her friend's house. So it's kind of hard to imagine she would accept a ride from a man somewhere on that road. And I say man because it's believed that Tracy Gilpin was sexually assaulted, Mostly based on the fact that her underwear had been pulled down and her pants were missing. But due to the decomposition, as we mentioned, police couldn't concretely prove this. So, yeah, her getting into a strange man's car feels unlikely. But who knows? Maybe she was tired. Maybe after walking a bit, she became more desperate, Especially since It was after 11:30pm or maybe the driver was somebody that she knew. Sadly, at the scene of the murder, There was little evidence left behind due to various bouts of rain. So police had no one on their suspect list, and there was no DNA found at the scene. So all they could do was continue to interview those close to Tracy and just see if anything really came up or lined up.

[Daphne]

Well, investigators also considered the location, obviously where Tracy was found at the Miles Standing State Forest. Cause her body was located near the entrance of the woods, Making it seem as if her killer either wanted her to be found or just didn't bother covering his tracks, maybe due to fear or even just negligence. I don't necessarily think they wanted her to be found. I think maybe it was a crazy situation and he wasn't gonna drag her deep into the forest. Maybe there was a struggle. Maybe he felt like he had to do it there, and then he got scared and he drove away, you know?

[Heath]

Yeah, it was probably just a fairly quick situation. He wanted to just do what he did and then get the hell out of there.

[Daphne]

Well, early on, several theories about the night circulated. Some thought that Tracy might have gotten in the car with a stranger during her walk back to the party, like he'd said. But her family actually did not believe that theory to be very plausible. And they suggested that she may have gotten in the car with somebody that she knew, and then something nefarious happened from there. Maybe this was a wolf in sheep's clothing or. I don't even want to say accident, because throwing a boulder on somebody's head is not an accident. So.

[Heath]

Yeah.

[Daphne]

But anyway, honestly, investigators were stumped with the little facts they Had So years passed and there was no movement in her case. But then a few years later, another terrible incident regarding a young girl in the area would rock Kingston once again and spark more curiosity into Tracy's case. Now, after Tracy's disappearance and murder, Rocky Nook obviously was on edge. This was a place where bad things rarely occurred. So the community was naturally spooked, wondering if somebody in their town had committed this horrific murder. Well, just as the four year anniversary of Tracy's murder approached, another Kingston teen was out walking alone when she met a similarly devastating fate. It was September 15, 1990, and 13 year old Melissa Benoit. I just want to say I've heard both Benoit and Benoit, it's, it's spelled.

[Heath]

Like, you know, like the, the wrestler, the wrestler Chris, Chris Benoit.

[Daphne]

Oh, I don't know him.

[Heath]

Well, he's actually, he was a professional wrestler, spent some time in the WWE and he got cte, I think from wrestling and then he ended up killing his family and then himself.

[Daphne]

Oh God.

[Heath]

Yeah. So it's pretty, pretty devastating story. But that's the only reason why I know the last name Benoit.

[Daphne]

No, it probably is Benoit. Honestly, I think Benoit is cry. I'm going to go with Benoit after Chris Benoit. So 13 year old Melissa Benoit left her home Again, this is September 15, 1990, on foot actually, to visit the Evergreen Cemetery right there in Kingston. She was heading to Evergreen Cemetery near her home to pay a visit to her father who was buried there. But when Melissa failed to come home, she was reported missing. So obviously this is a different cemetery from the one that Tracy was buried in. But again, in a town of only about 9,000 people, this was pretty unbelievable. So yet another giant search ensued and over 1000 volunteers participated in the search for Melissa. With everybody naturally wondering if the same person who had killed Tracy had taken another teenager's life.

[Heath]

And this is really interesting because, you know, this is four years later. So if this person, if the person who's responsible for killing Tracy is also responsible for killing Melissa, they had some lag time in their crimes.

[Daphne]

Right. But not. Or maybe they had committed other crimes in different areas. But it's like definitely, I mean, it's, it's just kind of like the elephant in the room, like, are these connected? But get this. So less than two weeks later, the FBI became involved in Melissa's case because, you know, she's still missing. So the FBI is in trying to figure out if she was murdered, if foul play is suspected. So what they wanted to do, because she was last seen leaving her Home, walking to the cemetery, they get this kind of interesting idea to request that various neighbors of Melissa's take polygraph tests while they're interviewing them to see if any of her neighbors could be hiding something. And this is crazy that this actually ended up working the way it did because I don't know if I've ever read about a case where they just randomly are polygraphing neighbors.

[Heath]

Yeah, I mean, I think it's actually a really smart thing.

[Daphne]

No, I completely agree, but this is insane. So one of her neighbors proved to be deceptive in his test. Henry Meinholtz was Melissa's next door neighbor and a 52 year old local Bible school instructor. So when he failed his test, police kind of asked him why, like, did you lie about something? Which obviously many people don't put a ton of weight in polygraph tests. We covered a case last week on Going west, the Lake Placid murder, where the killer passed his polygraph. So you can't really trust him.

[Heath]

Yeah. And especially, you know, they were using this technique before it was kind of known how faulty polygraph tests could be. Which again, you know, 1980s and 90s.

[Daphne]

Right. But this is crazy because he actually failed his for a reason. And so police are asking him why. And usually somebody would just deny, deny, deny and say, well I don't know, I didn't do this, and then walk away. But this guy, Henry Meinholtz, the 52 year old local Bible school instructor, Melissa's next door neighbor, gave them a shockingly horrific answer. He said that the reason he failed the test is because he was nervous to take it because he often fantasized about molesting little girls.

[Heath]

Oh my God. It's just the cliche, really. It is the cliche, horrific cliche.

[Daphne]

But it gets worse because he also admitted to following girls around town in his car while masturbating.

[Heath]

Yeah, this guy, throw him in prison, lock him up, I don't even give a fuck if he didn't do anything, put him in prison because he's going to do something.

[Daphne]

Well, it's kind of weird because I think he admitted to these horrific things in hopes of like deflecting and saying, oh, well, I didn't kill Melissa, but I'm just a freak otherwise. And so that's why I was nervous. So like, don't, don't shoot the, you know, like.

[Heath]

Yeah, it's like kind of throwing out the information that, well, I am like this, but I didn't do that. I'm being, I'm being honest with you. I'm telling you the truth, so that way you won't think that I did this.

[Daphne]

Yeah, like get me on like a lesser charge, I guess. Again, I don't know why the hell he's spilling all this, but obviously it is actually having the opposite result because at that point, the FBI are suddenly incredibly suspicious of him in Melissa's disappearance case and they want to look into him further.

[Heath]

Yep. So they searched his house and guess what they found? Under a pile of coal and dirt in his basement was 13 year old Melissa Benoit's partially nude body. So of course he was arrested for her murder. But from the jump, he tried to paint himself as insanely as he possibly could. He said that he only killed her because voices in his head told him to. And that they even said, you are not a man unless you have her do it. Like what this guy's. Yeah, he is insane. But when his trial occurred, the jury just really was not buying any of this. They just thought that he was a depraved, murderous pedophile. Which he was.

[Daphne]

Yeah, disgusting.

[Heath]

I mean, the judge was so disgusted by what he had done and said that after he was found guilty of Melissa's rape and murder, he was sentenced to life in prison. And the judge stated, it is said that my predecessors in colonial times had gallows erected on the green in front of this courthouse and summarily sent defendants convicted as you have been to be hanged. I truly regret that option is not open to me in this case.

[Daphne]

That is.

[Heath]

Wow.

[Daphne]

That is one of the most badass things I've seen a judge say.

[Heath]

He's like, hang the motherfucker.

[Daphne]

Because he agrees. He's like, this is. You should not be on this earth. Like, you are just foul. All the things that he admitted to. Again, cannot believe that he so openly admitted to his depraved ways.

[Heath]

And what makes it even more sick is that this guy was a Bible school instructor. So he spent a lot of time around children. It's so horrible the fact that he was caught for something like this.

[Daphne]

It's probably why he had the job he had because he wanted to be around kids. I mean, it's sick.

[Heath]

So suddenly being aware that this person with such evil tendencies was living right there in Kingston. Investigators as well as the public wondered if Henry could be involved in Tracy's murder. I mean, on the outside, they were only two years apart. Both brunette, both living in the same area. Both went missing while walking alone. Only a five minute drive away from each other, by the way. Both found partially nude and Actually, during his trial, Henry admitted that he previously would pick up hitchhikers and sexually abuse them in his car.

[Daphne]

Again, the guy doesn't stop talking.

[Heath]

Well, Henry had not yet admitted to killing Tracy, and there was a lack of evidence proving that he had done it until Henry was serving his time at Walpole State Prison and allegedly offered information on Tracy's murder in exchange to be relocated to Bridgewater State Mental Hospital. But it's kind of tough here because, honestly, police felt like maybe Henry would give up false information on Tracy in order to get moved from the state prison to a hospital because they really felt like he was not responsible for her murder. Even her mom, Kathleen, said of Henry, I pray to God he didn't have anything to do with it. And if he did, I don't want to know. The man is just so bizarre.

[Daphne]

Foreign things about Fall is all this seasonal food. You know, we've got our pumpkin stuff, our fun Halloween candy. We get to experiment with all these cozy new recipes. Even yesterday, Heath, you can attest I ordered a bunch of Halloween candy on Instacart, including caramel apple candy corn, by the way.

[Heath]

Oh, yes, you did.

[Daphne]

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[Heath]

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[Daphne]

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[Heath]

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[Daphne]

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[Heath]

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[Daphne]

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[Heath]

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[Heath]

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[Daphne]

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[Daphne]

Foreign Decades passed, and the Gilpin family still had no answers regarding what happened to Tracy the night of October 1, 1986. Now, initially, there was a reward of $10,000 for any information leading to an arrest and the conviction of Tracy's killer. But in 2017, her family more than doubled the reward amount to $25,000. Because at this point, it had been 31 years since her murder and Tracee's case had been cold for decades. So her family, whose determination to find her killer had not faltered, hoped that the new reward would potentially get people talking, which could lead to new information. And actually, with the announcement of a new reward, her case began cycling through the news again. And police received a very important tip. Somebody called in saying that they knew some information about a party that occurred on October 1, 1986, in Kingston, Massachusetts, relating to Tracy.

[Heath]

Now, obviously, we know that she was at a party, but tell us a little bit about this other party.

[Daphne]

Yes, exactly. Because this is the night, of course, that she vanished. So this caller said that there was another party a handful of miles away from where Tracy was last seen purchasing the pack of cigarettes. And then, of course, this is a different party than the one that she had been at that night. So this tipster said that he attended this party in town and that Tracy was there, meaning that maybe she hadn't necessarily vanished while walking back to the party after grabbing the cigarettes, but that she had gone to a different party and vanished from there. When the caller mentioned the name of whose party it was, police realized that it hadn't even been on their radar. Somehow, nobody who had been at this party had reported having seen Tracy. Maybe because her appearance was brief or. I don't know, honestly. But the man hosting this party that night was named Michael Hand. Michael grew up in the Kingston area, and in 1986, he was 29 years old and still living at home with his parents. So the the party was at his folks house and we have to remember this is why I wanted to mention that earlier that she might have been at a 26 year old's party because it wouldn't have been necessarily. I mean, it's weird to us, you know, that she would have been at a 29 year old's party, but to her it wasn't weird. And I feel like that's usually how it is when you're the younger person. You know, we've talked about this before.

[Heath]

You're kind of just excited to go to an older person's party.

[Daphne]

Yeah. And you think, oh well, like I'm mature enough, I'm good enough. Just like a lot of young girls will think that about young men or men and just say, oh well, I can handle it. And it's like, that's not the problem. The problem isn't you, it's the fact that they even want you there at all. So maybe that's why nobody mentioned anything. I don't really know. But anyway, Michael and his parents lived only five miles from Tracy's house in Rocky Nook. And it turned out he knew her. After Tracy's murder rocked the small town in 1986, Michael remained living at home with his parents even after they both died. He actually lived at the house that that party took place place at that October night until 2007. So for 21 more years until he was obviously, you know, at that point, 50. But that year in oh 7, he moved away to North Carolina to a small town called Troutman. And he had no criminal history by the way. He was kind of this otherwise unsuspecting man. But he never came forward to police and explained that Tracy had been at his house that night. So upon hearing this tip In March of 2018, police traveled to Troutman, North Carolina to speak with then 61 year old Michael Hand.

[Heath]

Well, when police arrived at his home, they wanted to talk about the teenage girl that was killed in Kingston in 1986. And it was clear that Michael knew exactly who Tracy was. And while he hadn't heard her name in decades, he seemed content with speaking to police about Tracy and even mentioned that he knew her aunt who he even claimed to have lived with for a short period of time back in the day. Now he said that he only really knew Tracy in passing, but said that she had made advances on him in the past.

[Daphne]

Here we go.

[Heath]

Yeah, there's gonna be a lot of lies by this guy. Well, Michael claimed that these so called advances occurred in his own bedroom, but that he rejected each one of them.

[Daphne]

Which why Is a young teenage girl in your bedroom anyway.

[Heath]

Yeah. You're 29 and she's 15. He also said that weeks before her disappearance, he had a gathering at his home and Tracy was present. That means that if the tipster who said that she was at Michael's party on the night of October 1st was being truthful, it wasn't her first time there.

[Daphne]

Which he's essentially admitted to, or admitting to anyway, saying, oh, yeah, she. She made some advances at me in my own room before she went missing.

[Heath]

Exactly. But Michael denied any involvement in her murder, claiming that she was not at his party the night of October 1st. But investigators were not buying it, and it being 2018, they had better forensic resources, so they asked Michael if he would be willing to provide a DNA sample. And Michael kinda clammed up at this point, and as you could probably guess, his story regarding October 1st changed. And things are going to get even more crazy here because Michael said that he, in fact, did see Tracy that day. He claimed that he had seen Tracy in the passenger seat of a vehicle that afternoon which was driven by none other than Henry Meinholds, who, as we know, was the man who killed Melissa Benoit years later. And the community knew this, too, so he seemed like a pretty easy scapegoat.

[Daphne]

Yeah. Also, if you saw a girl with a man the day she was murdered and then learned years later that he had murdered another girl, you'd tell police.

[Heath]

Yeah. So why did Michael not come forward years earlier and say, hey, I saw this guy?

[Daphne]

Cause it's not true.

[Heath]

Well, Michael also then claimed that later on the night of October 1st, he had actually been at the Cumberland Farms convenience store, which, of course, is where Tracy was last seen at.

[Daphne]

God, this is about to get so dumb.

[Heath]

It's. Oh, my God.

[Daphne]

It's.

[Heath]

It's literally like. Almost like he. We'll talk about in a second. So, anyway, Michael said that in the parking lot, he saw Henry Meinholz's car driving away. Before a friend of his showed up on a motorcycle. He said that he and this friend were determined to chase down Henry for whatever reason, despite the fact that at this point, they didn't know that he was a pedophilic murderer and that they followed him down Route 3A towards Plymouth on this motorcycle. And when they finally caught up, Henry was pulled over on the edge of Miles Standish State Forest, which obviously is where Tracy was found. Michael then told police that while Henry wasn't in the parked vehicle, he eventually appeared out of the woods holding a tarp and a shovel like What? Yeah, and this is what I was gonna say is that like this feels like he's making up the plot to a movie. Like he's like, literally in his mind, like he's this badass on the back of his buddy's motorcycle and they're chasing down Henry because they think something nefarious is going to happen.

[Daphne]

No, literally, but also like where this is coming out of nowhere. Five minutes ago, you're telling police that you didn't see her on the night she went missing and that you had nothing to do with it. And now you're like, okay, here's the craziest story you've ever heard. And obviously they're like, what?

[Heath]

Yeah, they're like, what is this the plot of a, of a, of an action movie? Like what?

[Daphne]

Not even in a way that's like, wow, this has been, you know, behind a locked door the whole time. They're like, get real.

[Heath]

It almost feels like he's trying to paint himself as some sort of hero here. But as we're gonna get into this story even changes a few more times.

[Daphne]

Yeah, no, it's gonna get stupider. So after seeing Henry emerge from the woods with a tarp and a shovel, like you're saying, a perfect movie moment. Michael then went on to say that seeing a local Bible teacher holding a tarp and a shovel spooked them. So his friend sped away on his motorcycle Without Michael, leaving 29 year old Michael alone with Henry, who would have been about 47 at this time. So Michael says that he was scared that Henry would harm him, but that when Henry coaxed him into the woods, he complied. As the two men entered Miles Standish State Forest, Michael says that he saw Tracy lying in the dirt and that Henry forced him to move a large rock for him. So he did.

[Heath]

But okay, why? You could easily just walk away from this entire situation scared. You're also a 29 year old man. You could probably beat the shit out of Henry and save Tracy if you wanted to. So this whole thing is just so fucking dumb.

[Daphne]

It's not a clean story. And so he's saying that he was asked to move the rock. He wasn't asked to like kill Tracy with the rock. Not to like move it on her head, but just to move it over. And so he says that he did again complied, but of course that he cut his hand in the process, causing him to bleed on the rock.

[Heath]

Okay, so now there's an explanation for why potentially there could be his DNA on this rock.

[Daphne]

Yeah, so then he said that he fled from the woods in a panic, realizing that he had tampered with the crime scene. So after he flees the woods, he run toward. Or he runs toward the road, and his friend magically reappeared on the motorcycle, and they dashed away with Henry in his car and Tracy's body in the rear view mirror.

[Heath]

What? Bro, come on. That didn't happen.

[Daphne]

No, it seems like he is trying to cover his tracks for how his DNA would be on the rock if they indeed had that information. Because, you know, the fact that before they asked for DNA, he said, oh, I didn't see her that night. I have no idea what happened to her. And then they're like, okay, do you mind if we grab a DNA sample from you? And he's like, okay, okay, okay. Let me tell you what really happened.

[Heath]

I got to tell you the real story.

[Daphne]

Now, it would be hard for me to believe. I mean, I wasn't in the room. I didn't see how this interrogation unraveled. Exactly. But it would be hard for me to believe that he didn't have anything to do with this if that is the story he tells after they ask him for DNA. If you're innocent, you say, sure, here's a sample, and then you leave and go back on. Carry on with your life.

[Heath]

But he clamored up, like I mentioned, you know.

[Daphne]

Yeah, but I want to discuss the DNA that they had, because it actually has not been released exactly what DNA they have in the case. We mentioned earlier that due to the rain, potential DNA was washed away. But recent reports state that there was DNA found on Tracy's body, though we don't know what it was. Again, we don't know if it was semen or hair or blood or whatever. They have not released that to the public. Now, in recent years, with advancements of DNA technology, they did test Henry Meinholz's DNA against what was at the scene, and apparently it wasn't a match, which is not a huge surprise because we already didn't think that Henry was involved. But then that really brings even more questions to Michael's story. If he's saying that Henry's the one that killed her and that he just helped after chasing Henry there himself.

[Heath]

Yeah, that's just pointing even more so to Michael Hand.

[Daphne]

Right. So this is why they really wanted Michael to consent to give his DNA, to see if the small amount that they have will provide real answers since Michael's story felt like a ton of bullshit.

[Heath]

Well, they spoke with Michael on two separate occasions that same week, because at this point, they really think that they have their guy. And after the second interview, the whole thing was clearly weighing heavy on Michael because guess what? He called up his pastor and his account of October 1st changed yet again. He told the pastor that on October 1st, 1986, Henry Meinholz took Tracy into the woods and that he followed close behind to help her.

[Daphne]

Again, at this point in 1986, Henry is probably seen as a well to do Bible school teacher. So it's still not adding up that he thinks Tracy needs help from Henry.

[Heath]

Yeah, because they don't know yet again that Henry Meinholz had murdered or was going to murder Melissa Benoit or that.

[Daphne]

He had sexually assaulted anybody at that point, which he had.

[Heath]

But Michael said that while there, while trying to help Tracy, he picked up a rock and he dropped it on her head for some reason, and that she was later found dead. When the pastor asked why Michael had held this story in for all those years, he said that he was scared to tell anybody. And I actually didn't know this before, but typically, as is the same with a licensed therapist, what you tell a member of the clergy, that is a pastor is legally protected.

[Daphne]

That's wild.

[Heath]

Yeah, so you're not allowed to really say anything about anything that people discuss or confess to you. But this pastor probably had never heard anything like this before. And he was completely freaked out because he told his son and his son told him that he needed to go to the police. So that's exactly what he did. And with that, two days later, Michael Hand was arrested from his home for Tracy Gilpin's murder.

[Daphne]

But it's so weird because again. So he tells the police that he was suspicious that Henry was with Tracy, so he followed them with his friend into the woods. Which, by the way, where is this friend? Has this friend been questioned? Because we don't know.

[Heath]

But the motor, the motorcycle friend.

[Daphne]

Yes, but then he says that he moved the rock but didn't kill Tracy and then that he left. But now he's telling his pastor that he followed Henry into the woods. So same as he told police, but that he killed her in this version of the story. But neither of them makes sense. Why would you be there in either situation? And why would you put the rock on her head? Like, yeah, you're following her into the woods with Henry to help her, and then you murder her by lifting a very heavy 73 pound boulder onto her head. That's not accidental.

[Heath]

Yeah, it's all complete bullshit. We know this. Well, In March of 2018, Michael was transported from North Carolina to Massachusetts. And on March 14, he was arraigned and ordered to be held until his pre trial hearing the following month. After the arraignment, in reference to the confession Michael made to the pastor, the Plymouth County DA said to reporters, his statement puts him at the scene, puts his hands on a rock, and allegedly bleeding on a rock, which he subsequently states that he dropped on the head of Ms. Gilpin. I'm really glad that the family now knows who the killer is, and we're going to make sure that we do everything we can to get justice for Tracy Gilpin. And on top of this, the pastor even testified regarding the confession at the pretrial hearing. And as the impending trial was upon him, Michael, of course, pled not guilty. He was charged with murder, kidnapping, and assault with intent to rape a child. Since, of course, Tracy was only 15 years old at this time and he was 29. But sadly, the trial was pushed, though he remained in custody during this time. But then of course, Covid hit and the pandemic caused even more delays. Well, Fast forward to 2022. The trial still had not commenced after four years of waiting. But during that time, both sides showed the evidence that they would present at trial. And the court actually determined that the confession was made under emotional distress and desperation and that his earlier statements to police were coerced during the interrogation. So they're like, yeah, you can't even use this confession that you made to your pastor during trial because it's just not relevant.

[Daphne]

And that's why I said that it's hard because we don't know exactly how that confession unraveled to know if he was coerced or he did confess under distress. But it also feels like, ah, like, you know, we. We felt so close, but this wasn't the end. Like, it's not like they released him and said, oh, you don't have enough.

[Heath]

Oh yeah, we are not done with this yet.

[Daphne]

No. He remained in prison. And in 2022, in court, Michael's attorney explained that the DNA on Tracy and the blood on the rock did not match Michael Hand. Again, we don't know exactly what they have from her body and then from the rock. Like do they have blood evidence from somebody else or what are they even comparing the DNA to? Would love to know the biological material that we're working with, but they do seem confident in being able to rule Henry out. And for now, Michael's DNA out due to lack of a DNA match, as crazy as it seems considering what Michael told him. But again, it. It's not over. And during this period, actually another tip came in regarding a different man who claimed to have been with Tracy the night of October 1st, but he refused to give his DNA. And we don't have his name or his information because they can't even consider him a viable person of interest at this point, as far as we know, without more information, without him complying. But he's not complying, which is pretty suspicious on its head. Well, despite the DNA not being a match to Michael Hand, the prosecution was holding out hope for a conviction anyway during trial in October of 2022. But it has continued to be pushed because even now, three years after the trial was supposed to happen, seven years after his arrest, Michael remains in custody awaiting trial. So we will definitely continue to look out for news on that. But. But the reason it continues to be pushed is largely due to the judge continuing to throw out evidence, including his confession to police and the pastor's testimony, like we said. So we don't even know at this point how the case is still going to trial without the only real evidence that we know that they had. But of course, it is possible that there is a lot going on behind the scenes that we don't know about. Well, incredibly, the horrific tragedy of losing Tracy made one positive impact. It brought the Gilpin family back together. When Tracy's father and brother moved back in with Kathleen and Carrie after her death, as Heath said earlier, her parents ended up remarrying. They also went on to have another child named Shane, who was born in February of 1988. So about a year and a half after Tracy was murdered, which is really incredible. I feel like usually such traumatic events can break a family apart instead. And although Shane never got to meet his beautiful and vibrant older sister, Tracey, he reportedly adopted a lot of her mannerisms. Their oldest sister, Carrie, said, quote, some of the faces he makes are just like the ones she made.

[Heath]

Sadly, though, Tracy's father, Rich, passed away in 2018, only a couple of months before the tip came in that re sparked the investigation. He was buried right beside Tracy in St. Joseph's Cemetery, where he will forever be by her side. Tracy's sister Kerry, in particular, has been a pillar in the case from the start. She continues to fight for justice for her sister. And actually, largely due to Tracy's case, she decided to take up a career in law enforcement. So after graduating from high school, Kerry earned a degree in criminal justice and she started working as a state trooper for Massachusetts State Police. She worked in the force for many years and spent Over a decade in crime scene services, driven by helping victims. Just like her sister, Carrie was promoted to superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police. And after decades with the force, she actually recently retired. Carrie has remained hopeful that Tracy's killer will one day be held responsible, saying, I know it's solvable. In my heart of hearts, I know that that person is still out there.

[Daphne]

Thank you so much, everybody, for listening to this episode of Going West.

[Heath]

Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode. If you want want to see photos from this case and all the other cases that we've covered thus far, head on over to our socials. We're on Instagram at Going West Podcast. Podcast. Sorry. We're also on Facebook and we have a TikTok.

[Daphne]

What a crazy story. Again, like I said in the beginning, at first it seems kind of like a simpler case, but there's so many shocking moments. Like, I can't believe so much of this story. And mostly the fact that. Fact that we still don't have justice for Tracy. Like, is Michael truly involved? Is he not? Like, I don't even know what to believe.

[Heath]

I mean, it's just kind of weird to me that, like. Like, why would you make up this entire bullshit story if it wasn't, you know, if. If you didn't have anything to do with it, why would you insert yourself into that crime?

[Daphne]

I agree. But, like, part of me also feels like police can be very coercive. And we seen this in other cases where police will, like, someone will say, I don't know why, but they literally, like, got so in my head. It's like a psychological thing. But I don't know if that applies to this case because I'm a little suspicious of Michael as is.

[Heath]

Yeah. I mean, just the fact that he had that confession to the pastor, what he told police before that, I mean, it's like.

[Daphne]

Okay, good point. Because it's one thing if you're in an interrogation room for X amount of hours and you just want to go home. Like, this makes me think of making a murderer.

[Heath]

Yeah. But going to your pastor, it's like you're just trying to get something off your chest.

[Daphne]

No. 100%. That's a totally different thing. That's like you're questioned by police and now you're scared. So you call your pastor and you confess. Like, I don't know. I'm okay. My mind has changed again.

[Heath]

I think you did it. We will. We will keep you guys updated because there is probably still going to be some resolution here. Michael hand is still in custody, so we'll see what happens with that.

[Daphne]

But of course, would love to see more DNA. Why did his DNA not match what they had at the scene? Is what they had at the scene even a lot like do they. What are we working with, you know? So anyway, let us know your thoughts and we will see you guys next week.

[Heath]

All right, guys, so for everybody out.

[Daphne]

There in the world, don't be a stranger.

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