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Dona Mae Bayerl was past seen successful Muskego, Wisconsin connected May 6th, 1979. Her hubby John Bayerl said that she "stormed out" of their location and near successful the household car aft an argument.
He stated that helium woke up to the dependable of the doorway slamming astir 11 p.m. and assumed that she had returned.
John said that helium heard a car crook astir successful the gravel batch crossed the thoroughfare and past thrust away. He came downstairs to look for her and recovered the car successful the garage, the store doorway was unfastened and the drift pin that usually held the doorway unopen was missing. The drift pin has ne'er been found. All of There was nary motion of Dona and each of her apparel appeared to beryllium successful the home.
Dona is simply a achromatic female, 5’6”, and 130-150 pounds. She has brownish hairsbreadth and brownish eyes. She was past wearing bluish slacks and a achromatic blouse. She wears glasses with acheronian brownish frames.
Three days later, John reported his woman missing. He told constabulary that determination were problems successful their matrimony and that helium wasn’t acrophobic astir her absence. However, Dona Mae's household insisted that she would person ne'er near down her 2 children, who were ages 7 and 4 astatine the clip and the youngest kid was suffering from the chickenhearted pox.
Police searched the location 10 days later, erstwhile Dona’s sister, who was watching the children, called to accidental that she had recovered humor connected immoderate clothespins successful the garage. They besides recovered humor connected a child’s spot that was attached to a bicycle and connected the rear work doorway of the garage. Dona’s sister told constabulary that John did laundry the time aft Dona disappeared, including rugs and a quilt, which is thing helium would ne'er do. The quilt and 1 of the rugs inactive had stains connected them aft they were washed. After the bloodstains were discovered, constabulary started to fishy foul play. There was not DNA investigating successful the 1970's. Authorities were capable to trial the humor that was recovered and determined that the humor was Dona Mae's and not John's.
John appeared to beryllium unconcerned astir Dona being missing and went bowling close aft her disappearance. He didn't archer his coworkers that his woman was missing and helium wouldn’t archer anyone what helium and Dona had been arguing astir the nighttime that Dona disappeared.
Dona had a vocation and was a precise autarkic pistillate earlier marrying John. That each changed aft she joined John. She stopped working, becoming precise babelike connected him and and John didn't let her to person precise overmuch money.
Investigators learned that Dona was acrophobic of John and that she had been physically abused by him. John admitted that helium had struck Dona connected aggregate occasions, and that helium had been having an matter for 2 years anterior to Dona's disappearance. Dona was John's 2nd wife. According to constabulary reports, some his archetypal and 3rd wives told constabulary that helium was physically abusive to them. John filed for divorcement 3 months aft Dona disappeared.
It's reported that little than a twelvemonth earlier Dona disappeared, she told her champion person that she feared for her beingness and that her hubby had thrown her down the basement stairs. She told her person that John had asked her to motion a papers saying that if thing happened to her, that the location would revert to lone him. She refused to motion it.
Dona Mae was officially declared dormant successful 1986 adjacent though her assemblage had ne'er been found.
The constabulary continued to analyse this lawsuit and to travel up connected each leads and tips implicit the years. John continued to beryllium a idiosyncratic of involvement successful this case.
Over the people of the investigation, the lawsuit was reclassified from a missing persons lawsuit to a homicide.
In October 2017, the Muskego constabulary with the assistance of the the FBI laboratory astatine Quantico released an property progressed photograph of Dona Mae. Forensic artists utilized photos of Dona Mae, her parents, her sister and girl to find what she mightiness look similar astatine the property of 77. They had hoped that this photograph would assistance bring information, hoping idiosyncratic would retrieve thing from astir that clip successful 1979.
In February 2019, forty years aft Dona Mae Bayerl disappeared; constabulary arrested Dona's husband, John Bayerl. He was charged with first-degree murder.
This was a circumstantial lawsuit with the prosecution focusing connected the past of abuse. DNA investigating wasn't disposable forty years ago. New exertion contiguous allowed for a vessel with imaginable humor that was recovered from the Bayerl location to beryllium re-tested successful 2018, and it matched Dona Bayerl's DNA profile. One of the cardinal pieces of grounds successful in this lawsuit was a recorded telephone speech that John had with his and Dona Mae's youngest girl successful 2009. John stated: "Something happened and I, it, I, I’m definite that her heart’s not beating. Because if it was, she would person recovered her mode back, whatever. You cognize what I mean? I don’t deliberation she’s alive."
John did not attest during his trial. The defence argued that the prosecution had not proved its lawsuit beyond a tenable doubt.
It lone took the assemblage astir 5 hours to find him blameworthy of first-degree murder.
On August 30, 2019, John Bayerl was sentenced to beingness successful situation for the 1979 execution of his wife, Dona Mae Bayerl. John maintains his innocence, refusing to accidental wherever Dona's assemblage is.
Detective Stephen Westphal said that the hunt for Dona would proceed and that they would proceed to question answers arsenic to what happened connected May 6, 1979.
Dona was 38 years aged erstwhile she went missing. She would beryllium 82 years aged today.
Any leads oregon accusation should beryllium directed to:
Muskego Police Department
Stephen Westphal, Chief of Police
(262) 679-4130
You tin find much connected NamUs:
Additional Sources:
Clearinghouse for Missing & Exploited Children & Adults
Facebook page- Dona Mae Bayerl -Missing since May 1979
You tin perceive to much of the communicative here:
The Vanished Episode 124: Dona Mae Bayerl Part 1: Lost successful the Night
The Vanished occurrence 125: Cycles of Abuse
The Vanished occurrence 126: Dona Mae Bayerl Part 3 the Aftermath
The Vanished: Update: Dona Mae Bayerl Part 4 - Justice
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