Footsteps in the Snow (2014) Online

I'd never heard of this particular case, which isn't surprising because it occurred more than 50 years ago. In fact, that's what made this case unique. It's the coldest cold case in America ever to be solved.

7-year-old Maria Ridulph was abducted and murdered by a then unknown young man going by the name of Johnny. Maria's best friend was the only witness to the abduction, and it could so easily have been her that was taken away. Why she wasn't shown a photograph of this guy-- the guy who would eventually be found guilty--is a real head- scratcher. If the cops had done that in the beginning, not only was it possible that Johnny/Jack would've been put in prison for the murder, but the various counts of molestation he would go on to commit, may not have happened. This included raping his own 14-year- old sister!

'Footsteps in the Snow' is one of those shows that's been padded out and has way too much repetition of main points, and had it been made into a 60 minute special, it would've been a more emotional viewing experience. It highlights this child-molesting scumbag's crimes, which was bad enough. But his response to a question posed to Johnny/Jack by the interviewer, was extremely sickening, as he still maintains his innocents: "What do you think Maria would say to you if you meet her in heaven?"

"She would say she was sorry for what I was being put through."

That gives you a measure of this narcissistic piece of dog excrement.

48 Hours already did this case.

Go to the CBS website and watch that. This was so repetitive for two hours (at least I think it was two hours, it seemed longer).

It's the story of a girl that was abducted and murdered in a tiny town. Maria is her name. She was 8 and was out playing with her 'best friend'. Her best friend was impossibly stupid and annoying. And her voice and inflections were so annoying. BFF tried to make the show all about HERSELF. It was bad on the 48Hours, but this was excruciating.

The scenario is this: Maria and BFF were out playing and some guy named Johnny asked if they wanted a piggy back ride. OK, I know they were only 8, but that's THIRD GRADE!!! No one is this impossibly stupid. I grew up in a small town too, but even at that age I could tell that was creepy. Anyway BFF runs into her house to get her mittens (uggh her voice was grating, but I think I already said that). She comes back out, and Maria and Johnny were gone like the wind. A massive search for Maria occurs and her body was found dead twenty miles away. And BFF has been traumatized by this her whole life (it's all about her and not Maria).

But here's the problem. This became an unsolved cold case for over 50 years. WHY??? The BFF told these Keystone Cops that some guy named Johnny was giving them piggy back rides and she left Maria with him. I grew up in a tiny town like this and frankly by age 8 I knew about everyone in the town. Anyway, Johnny turns out to live eight or nine houses down the street from BFF and who goes by the name, you guessed it: Johnny. WHAT???? And she couldn't identify him? I'm telling you BFF is moronic. It's implausible. Well not so apparently. I knew everyone on my street by the time I was four or five and riding my bike up and down the sidewalk. And the cops were just as stupid.

Anyway, the case is finally solved. It's interesting to watch this because life really must have been impossibly naive and so stupid back in the 50s. So they caught him after all these years, even though he's had a record throughout his life of pedophilia and sex abuse. Seriously, I appreciate the effort but I wasn't in the mood for such idiocy.