Page 417 - Comic Book News Today

Frequently would you go to the store? >> at least once a week. >> the day of the murder he stopped by comics world before work, but renauds critical story with the jury had to do with the phone call he made later in the day to the shop. he had a collectors question about a spider-man comic he owned. >> he called because he was excited that some book had jumped from $8 to $40. >> did you contact anyone to discuss the reasons for it going up in value? >> yeah, i called mike. >> he knew the voice. ...

Outside detroit. bins for the fantasy big guys, spidey, hulk, x-men. but in the storage space in back was an ugly reality. one of the shop owners, the woman was on the floor with the life draining out of her. customers had found her. >> most of the time we were there on friday nights. >> did was yul of 1990, a friday the 13th, when tom and lenora ward stopped by the comic book shop before going out to dinner. they liked buying from the woman there, barb. >> she knew our names. immediately when w...

That it had to be a bullet hole there. >> imagine that, barbara george, the nice lady behind the counter, shot to death. >> we were shocked. shot in the head? it didnt seem like it could happen to such a good person. >> back at the comic book shop, friends and family continued to arrive for what was supposed to be a surprise birthday party that night for michael george, barbs husband. what a pleasant night it should have been, with toasts, the singing of happy birthday, and all the superheroes f...

Their hole in the wall shop, comics world, had been barb and michael georges just go for it passion. hed collected thousands of comics over the years and he liked superheroes adventures way more than he liked selling

And you say, your honor, the state has not proved its case. we ask that you dismiss it right now and that it not go to the jury. it happens all of the time. >> right. >> and almost always youre rebuffed. >> thats right. and almost always youre rebuffed within about 10 to 15 seconds. intently for 20 minutes as michael georges defense lawyere argued that there was no way the prosecution had proved beyond ar reasonable doubt that the defendant was in the comic defendant was in the comic book shop w...

Dad. >> the clues, that lovers triangle, cash, and a bearded lady. >> they said it looked like a woman in a fake beard, a really thin guy. >> its a mystery with so many head-snapping turns it took two trials. >> you wait 18 years for justice only to have the carpet pulled out from under you. >> to uncover the truth. >> we have a verdict. >> but was it the truth? >> an adulterer is a person whos done evil things. but that does not make him a murderer. i looked at him, i said hey, lets go down t...

Interview at the police station six days later. but there would be no follow-ups. according to detective steckman, michael george said he would hire an attorney. lawyer up. >> hed stop talking. >> exactly. >> so this is a big unsolved case? >> yes. yes. >> how much frustration is building with the family? >> what can you do? you cant take -- you can take the law into your own hands, but whats going to happen with that? >> did you ever talk about it? >> i felt it. there was times i felt, you know...

Police, michael george told investigators the two white boxes of expensive comics were missing and that poor barbara must have stumbled into a robbery gone bad. >> a theory police and prosecutors subsequently rejected. >> this is why it was not a robbery. the diamond ring was on her hand and we know it was worth at least $2500. there was $700 in the register. expensive comics behind the glass were untouched. the safe, untouched. >> the safe was in the back storage room where michael claimed the ...

He had nothing going on. it was all an act. >> the police, meanwhile, were chasing down bank records, insurance policies, looking for leads on the speeding car, the man in the greek fishermans cap, the so-called bearded lady and whether this could have been a botched robbery after all. they were also getting a crash course on the value of vintage comics. unhappily for them, the case detectives hadnt found the gun and hoped for forensics like a bloody print just werent there, but the investigator...

Full of very expensive comic books missing. >> so hes saying i had some expensive stuff -- >> two boxes of comic books. >> and theyre gone. >> and theyre gone. >> michael george made a list of stolen comics and estimated their value at $12,600. hed later file insurance claims for missing spider-man, green lantern and ironman. to name just a few. >> hes talking about his robbery. >> at the comic book shop michael george told the detective he had no idea what happened to his wife. he said hed last...