The Vidocq Society - A Private Crime Fighting Organization

Union League Building in Philadelphia - Vidocq Society Meeting Place.

While doing research for Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked, I came across an interesting organization of forensic investigators called the Vidocq Society. This is a non-profit organization of dedicated crime fighting professionals who are known to law enforcement agencies but generally unknown to the public.

The Vidocq Society views themselves as "crime solution catalysts who operate outside the limelight." The group is dedicated to the service of society and shuns publicity. Any case or crime details released to the press are handled by the referring crime enforcement agency and not the society.  They prefer to work in the background. Their credo is "Veritas Veritatum" [The Truth of Truths].

The Vidocq Society is a highly regarded organization with closed membership rolls. The privilege to wear the society's unique red, white, and blue rosette has been bestowed on fewer than one hundred and fifty men and women. When a position opens up, potential new members must be sponsored by existing members. Seasoned investigators with verifiable skills often volunteer their forensic skills before being elected to Vidocq Society membership.

The group was co-founded in 1990 by Richard D. Walter [forensic psychologist], Frank Bender [forensic sculpture], and William Fleisher [FBI/U.S. Customs Special Agent] in Philadelphia at the Olde City Tavern in the Down Town Club. The society currently meets every third Thursday of the month at the Union League of Philadelphia.

At the Society's monthly meetings, they dissect the evidence under review hoping to rekindle or refocus the investigation. Unsolved cases are brought to their attention by some police investigating agency or a family member of the victim of an unsolved death or homicide. The Society serves in the background at the pleasure and direction of law enforcement.

Eugene Francois Vidocq

The Vidocq Society is named after Eugene Francois Vidocq, who in the Eighteenth Century was a crook turned cop. He is considered the father of modern criminal investigation. Vidocq was named the first chief of the Surete, founded in 1812. The Surete was originally the criminal investigative bureau of the Paris Police, but in 1966 it became the National Police Force of France. The Surete was the inspiration for the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States and Scotland Yard in London. It is considered the pioneer of all crime fighting organizations in the world.

First Edition Cover

Eugene Francois Vidocq knew author Victor Hugo. In Hugo's novel Les Miserables, Hugo modeled both of his primary characters, Jean Valjean and Inspector Javert, after Monsieur Vidocq. Edgar Allen Poe based Inspector C. Auguste Dupin in The Murders in the Rue Morgue on Vidocq also. Hermann Melville mentioned him in Moby Dick, as did Charles Dickens in Great Expectations. These authors were all inspired by Vidocq's real life exploits which contributed to his legendary crime solving reputation.

Among other things, Vidocq introduced to the Surete a card-index record system cross-referencing criminals and their crimes. He also pioneered the use of undercover surveillance, disguises, informants, and plainclothesmen. Vidocq was an innovator who applied the new science of criminology to police work. When he retired from the Surete, he opened the first private investigation agency and the first credit reporting bureau. Every private-eye in real life or in fiction owes Monsieur Vidocq a debt of gratitude.

A Crime to Remember--John Norman Collins Episode--"A New Kind of Monster"

In early 2013, I was asked to participate on a new Investigation Discovery Channel series named A Crime to Remember. One of the producer's staffers read a number of my Fornology blog posts on John Norman Collins and the Washtenaw County murders of 1967-1969. At Discovery Channel's expense, I was flown to New York for my first television appearance. What a thrill!

Also included in the program to provide commentary were former Washtenaw County Sheriff Douglas Harvey, forensic psychologist and author Dr. Katherine Ramsland, former Eastern Michigan University campus patrolman Larry Mathewson, and reporter Marti Link. The episode is entitled, "A New Kind of Monster."

After five years of research and interviewing people connected with these cases, my treatment of this subject matter Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins has the benefit of fifty years of hindsight and will be available in July on Amazon and Kindle. In addition to the seven murders and the restored court proceedings (trial records were purged by Washtenaw County officials) my book will include for the first time, John Norman Collins' prison years and his attempts to circumvent his life sentence without parole.

"A New Kind of Monster" was the second most popular episode of the Emmy winning first season of the series. It can be accessed at the link below, or it can be seen On Demand, at YouTube, Amazon Prime, IMDb, or Netflix.

http://www.investigationdiscovery.com/tv-shows/a-crime-to-remember/a-crime-to-remember-videos/1967-the-co-ed-killer-facts/

Terror in Ypsilanti Book Talks

 Presenting at Eldercare. Photo: Ryan M. Place

While in Michigan this April, I gave two presentations regarding my upcoming true crime book Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked--one in Ann Arbor and one in Saline.

On April 22, 2016, I gave a presentation for Elderwise Continuing Education in Ann Arbor at the Red Cross building on Packard Road. About forty people attended the two hour talk which included a PowerPoint slide show of photographs used in the book. This was the first time I spoke publicly about my book. I want to thank John Stewart for inviting me.

The next day, I gave another talk at Brewed Awakenings on Michigan Avenue in Saline. I would like to thank owner Kim Kaster for her support. Her coffee house gives independent authors an outlet for their books and provides a venue for local authors to meet interested readers. My presentation was about ninety minutes long with no PowerPoint. About twenty-five people came to hear about the Washtenaw County murders that happened almost fifty years before.

Claudia Whitsitt. Photo: Ryan M. Place

I was happy to be greeted by one of my former Ypsilanti High School students Jan Asher who came to show her support. Special thanks to Michigan author Claudia Whitsett for introducing me. Claudia recently won an Independent Publishers Book Award in Multicultural Fiction with her novel Between the Lines. Below is a link to Claudia's author page. Check her work out.

And to my great surprise, former Washtenaw County Sheriff Douglas Harvey showed up to hear me speak. Doug was the police officer who brought charges against John Norman Collins. The former sheriff has supported this project from the beginning. At the end of the talk, he gave my researcher Ryan M. Place and me a rousing endorsement for our work. This is the kind of validation I don't get sitting in front of my computer screen. I look forward to more such moments.

Douglas Harvey and I at Brewed Awakenings. Photo: Ryan M. Place

Terror in Ypsilanti comes out in July and will be available on Amazon.com in quality paperback and Kindle ebook editions. Now that I have two speaking engagements behind me, I'm ready to schedule more presentations in Ypsilanti and Detroit in August and again in September or October when I'm in Michigan. This time around I will be armed with books. More details as I arrange them.

Thank you to everyone who came out to hear me speak about this dark period in Ypsilanti's history.

Claudia Whitsitt's author page: http://claudiawhitsitt.com/

Terror in Ypsilanti Book Cover Reveal

Between the summers of 1967 and 1969, a predatory killer stalked the campuses of Eastern Michigan University and the University of Michigan seeking prey, until he made the arrogant mistake of killing his last victim in the basement of his uncle's home. All-American boy John Norman Collins was arrested, tried, and convicted of the strangulation murder of Karen Sue Beineman.

I chose this photograph for my book cover because it sets an evocative mood of foreboding and establishes the setting of the story. Of the many photographs I've seen of the Ypsilanti Water Tower, none compares with this one taken by Ypsilanti Township resident Anthony Cornish. Two short blocks beyond this iconic landmark, John Norman Collins lived and preyed on his victims. Rather than choose a lurid image for the front cover, I wanted something to set a somber tone.

Many former and current EMU students may initially respond to the cover photo with a smirk remembering the Water Tower's legend: If ever a virgin graduates from EMU, the tower will topple. But reading the first few pages of my book will disabuse them of any such sophomoric notions.

My version of the Washtenaw County murders will be fundamentally different from The Michigan Murders. First, my rendition isn't a novelization--it is true crime. I use the real names of the victims and their killer. In addition, Terror in Ypsilanti benefits from almost fifty years of hindsight and includes insights from participants in the investigations and reflections from people who knew the victims and/or their assailant.

I've restored the essential details and dialogue of the contentious court battle from hundreds of newspaper articles obtained from the Michigan Press Clipping Bureau. Thank goodness for the Fourth Estate.

The official transcripts for the most notorious case in Washtenaw County history were purged from county records in the mid-nineteen seventies. If it were not for reporters hanging on every word of the trial, these proceedings would be lost to time. It is from their work that I've reconstituted the trial.

For the first time anywhere, using documents from the Michigan Department of Corrections, I've written a survey of Collins' tenure at Jackson and Marquette prisons. These accounts reveal a side of Collins never before seen by the public.

Included within my book will be an area map showing the body drop sites, twenty-six photographs, a timeline of significant events, a listing of the people's names, a listing of places mentioned, and a comprehensive index. These reader aids should be helpful because of the scope and quirky nature of this tragedy.

Speaking at Brewed Awakenings in Saline, Michigan. Photo: Ryan M. Place.

Five years in the making,Terror in Ypsilanti is in its final production stages and will be available from Amazon.com in July 2016. A Kindle version is being formatted for ebook readers. Books can also be purchased at my book talks which I'm only now beginning to schedule. Stay tuned for more details.

FORNOLOGY Fifth Anniversary--325 Blog Posts Later

Photo: Nick Abadilla Photography

When Zug Island: A Detroit Riot Novel came out in 2011, my publicist Paula Margulies urged me to create a blog to establish a brand and help build an audience. I was reluctant because I felt the time and effort required to launch and maintain a site was out of proportion to any benefit I might reap. Five years and three hundred, twenty-five posts later, I can confidently say I was wrong.

Blogging original content does take time, but what I get in return is valuable. Here are ten benefits which make the effort worth my time.

• structured writing practice
• development of my writing voice
• establishment of my brand
• audience building
• national and international exposure
• improved editing skills
• an information and research gathering tool
• a vehicle for reader input and response
• a platform for my work
• and a legacy log for my grandchildren

From my work station stuck in the corner of my family room, I try to crank out a new post every seven to ten days. If I am out of town or backed up on other projects, I occasionally rerun a post, but I prefer to produce original content.

Regular readers of Fornology know my blog topics are eclectic and range from short historical pieces on Detroit and Michigan to travelogues on the places and people I visit. Some posts are about my books or about writing or blogging in general. Like this one.

Because Fornology is not a commercial site or tied to a professional organization, my hits come exclusively from people who show an interest in me or my work. When I returned from a speaking tour of Ann Arbor and Detroit this week, I discovered my blog reached a personal milestone of over 200,000 hits. Most of my hits are from the United States, but my international audience includes Russia (9,381), Germany (7,531), Ukraine (6,994), France (4,690), Canada (3,510), and countries across the globe.

With the help of my blog and the internet, people nationwide contacted me with information helping me tell the forty-seven year old story of Michigan serial killer John Norman Collins. Without these valuable resource vehicles, the writing of Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked would not have been possible. Now undergoing a final line edit, my nonfiction account of the Washtenaw County killer will be available in July 2016 on Amazon.com and Kindle.

Photo: Nicole Fribourg

Many thanks to everyone who follows my posts. If you would like to receive my Fornology posts automatically, subscribe by writing your email address in the Posts box in the right-hand side bar. Be assured, I do not capture, collect, or distribute your contact information. Every Share I get is appreciated.

A Bit of Ypsilanti History

Ypsilanti, Michigan is a unique place with a rich history that many residents overlook. Prior to World War II, Michigan State Normal School had a quiet, pastoral college campus nestled on the northwest edge of Ypsilanti, surrounded by hundreds of acres of prime farm land and fruit orchards. What was to become Eastern Michigan University was bordered on the north by the Huron River.

Whether as a normal school, a college, or a university,  Eastern Michigan has always drawn most of its student body from around the state of Michigan. Eastern's original mission was as a teachers college, but by the nineteen sixties, it became a full-fledged university broadening its scope by offering masters programs in a wide variety of academic areas such as science, business and technology.

Despite this broadened mission, Eastern is still Michigan's largest teacher preparation institution, providing many of the nation's teachers. EMU is proud of the fact that teachers make all of the other professions possible. Think about it!

During the Civil War, The Spanish-American War, and World War I, the United States drew off  substantial numbers of able-bodied young men from Michigan's farming communities. Many of them assembled and disembarked from the train station in Depot Town on Ypsilanti's east side.

The Great Depression and World War Two saw many of the area's farms fall into disrepair, with some simply abandoned. Big money was to be made in support of the war effort. The bulk of able-bodied men had already joined the service, leaving a manpower vacuum at The B-24 Liberator bomber plant in Willow Run. 

To meet labor needs, the Ford Motor Corporation imported workers from the South and drew additional workers from a previously untapped source, the women of the area. The east side of town soon became a blue collar residential area as it was nearest to the plant.

In the most dramatic demographic shift in the area since the white man drove the red man west, Ypsilanti went from a sunrise-to-sundown farming community to a 24/7 blue collar town.

America changed almost overnight from a rural economy to an urban economy, and soon suburbia would sprawl across the furrowed landscape with the construction of the Federal Interstate Highway System, built during the Eisenhower administration, which changed traffic patterns and hurt the Ypsilanti business community diverting traffic south of town.

Old Ypsilanti runs along Michigan Avenue and comprises the commercial business district. After the Second World War, downtown's fortunes declined. When Ypsilanti had the chance to build a modern shopping center on vacated farm land, the local business community felt it would spell disaster for downtown businesses, and they rejected it. Forward-looking Ann Arbor snapped up the Briarwood development.

During the nineteen sixties, Ypsilanti decided to take some of the War on Poverty money from the Johnson administration's Great Society program and built low-income government housing, known in town as "the projects." 

Rather than incorporating these housing units around the city, the decision was made to build them just north of the expressway and south of downtown. This development created a minority isolated community with a legacy of racial division.

In many ways, Ypsilanti is a microcosm of America history. Its fortunes have waxed and waned with those of the country, yet it still survives with pride in its achievements and optimism for a bright future. 

Recognizing the wealth of historic architecture in their town, The Ypsilanti Heritage Foundation is taking steps to preserve its nineteenth-century homes and restore the area's remaining timber framed barn shells, many of which have been destroyed over the years.

See Ypsi-Ann Trolley post: http://fornology.blogspot.com/2012/01/ypsi-ann-trolley-maybe-whats-old-can-be.html

Ypsilanti Heritage Foundation website: www.yhf.org

Zug Island: A Detroit Riot Novel Gets Facelift

Photo by Nicole Fribourg

While I am waiting to get Terror in Ypsilanti: John Norman Collins Unmasked back from my editor, I decided to revise Zug Island for a second edition in preparation of the 50th anniversary of the Detroit Riots in July of 2017. 

In addition to correcting minor errors and rewriting a couple of ambiguous passages, I supplemented several areas to include more content. For example, in the riot section I added several paragraphs about the Algiers Motel incident made famous by author John Hershey. The Detroit Police were hoping this multiple murder would get lost in the fog of war, but there were too many witnesses for it to be ignored. Now, it is part of Detroit's history.
 
Beyond supplementing and revising Zug Island, the novel will have a new cover. I want to cross-market Zug with Terror when that book comes out in July. Both will be available through Amazon and Kindle. When I get specific release information, I will pass it on through my blog. I'm hoping to set up an advanced sales mechanism, so interested people can preorder Terror. Readers who subscribe to my Fornology blog will be the first notified. Your privacy is assured. I do not collect contact information nor share it on the internet. 

Terror in Ypsilanti is independently published and needs all the exposure I can muster. With your help, we can make this long-awaited and overdue nonfiction treatment of the Washtenaw County murders and John Norman Collins' involvement a success.

Thanks.

Zug Island first edition Goodreads reviews: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11408295-zug-island