On Sunday, Matt Denlinger, an investigator with the Cedar Rapids Police Department (CRPD), shared details at the Marengo Public Library about how Michelle Martinko’s killer, Jerry Burns, was finally caught. (Courtesy CBS2Iowa.com)
On Dec. 19, 2018 — the 39th anniversary of Michelle Martinko‘s brutal murder — Cedar Rapids police announced they’d made an arrest in the Cedar Rapids High School senior’s unsolved homicide.
Police arrested 64-year-old Jerry Lynn Burns of Manchester, Iowa, and charged him with first-degree murder in Martinko’s death. A Scott County jury convicted Burns on Feb. 24, 2020, and he was later sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
On Sunday, Sept. 17, Cedar Rapids police Investigator Matt Denlinger shared details about how he caught Burns during their Martinko case event at the Marengo Public Library.
Cedar Rapids police Investigator Matthew Denlinger (Courtesy Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette)
When Denlinger joined the CRPD in 2015 and picked up where Det. Doug Larison left off, Denlinger used all new investigative tools to track down the popular teen’s killer. From phenotyping with Parabon Labs to genetic genealogy, he worked tirelessly to find the perpetrator.
His efforts paid off when Burns was identified after using the new DNA technology.
Burns was convicted after authorities matched the DNA they got from a straw he used at a restaurant.
Friends of Marengo Public Library made Sunday’s public discussion possible.