Edmonson County KyArchives News.....Buzzard Cave Mystery Revived September 5 1929
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Charles Finn http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00003.html#0000539 February 6, 2005, 10:51 pm

The Edmonson County News
Two Men Held in Detroit in Connection With Death of Decker Girl 13 Years Ago

      Mystery surrounds the reported arrest by Detroit, Michigan detectives 
Tuesday of Balius and Ovia Duvall former Edmonson county residents, who 
according to a telegram from James E. McCarty, chief of detectives of the 
Detroit police department, are charged with murdering Louanna Decker and 
throwing her body into the cave where it was found badly decomposed three 
weeks later.

      Local officers were greatly surprised and also mystified by the 
reported arrests since no complaint has ever been made against the Duvalls 
here and they cannot understand why and how the case has been revived in 
Detroit.  The tragedy occurred about thirteen years ago and at the time the 
girl's body was found, it was generally believed that she met her death when 
she accidentally stepped into the crevice leading from the top of the ground 
to the cave.  Only perfunctory investigation being made at the time, it is 
said.

      It will be recalled by most Edmonson county citizens, that Louanna 
Decker disappeared from the county jail, where she was being held in 
connection with alleged misconduct of herself and some young men of the Bee 
Springs neighborhood.  Mr. Wood Lindsey, who was jailer at that time, did 
not lock the girl in a cell but allowed her the liberty of the family's 
living quarters, and it was three weeks after her disappearance from the 
jail that Rex Logan, Elbert Carrier and Sam Sanders found her body hanging 
in the Buzzard Cave crevice.  Her neck was broken, it was said, and her body 
so badly decomposed that identification was made by the hair, portions of 
the clothing and the shoes the girl was wearing when she disappeared.  The 
shoes were near the top of the crevice, indicating that she had removed them 
from her feet before she either fell for was thrown into the cave.

      Upon being notified of the action of the Detroit detectives, County 
Attorney, Charles E. Whittle has made extensive inquiry locally, and while 
he has discovered some circumstantial evidence that tends to show the girl 
might have been murdered, this evidence would not be sufficient to base a 
warrant, and he is awaiting further information from Detroit before taking 
further action.

      A letter was expected from Detroit Thursday morning was not received 
and this was expected to shed some light on the case from that city. 
Attempts of the county attorney to get the information by telegraph or 
telephone have been unsatisfactory, and the Detroit officers said they would 
write the local officers.

            Of the two theories held locally regarding the arrests made in 
Detroit, the first is that a relative of the Deckers residing in that city, 
had found evidence that moved them to procure the warrants.  The other is 
that the Duvalls who are described as being a bit "wild" had been arrested 
on some charge and under the grilling of detectives had confessed to being 
implicated in the tragedy here.  That the Detroit detectives are familiar 
with the details of the case is evidenced by the accuracy of such portions 
of their messages that could be deciphered after the transfers of the 
telegram by telephone


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