Barton McNeil believe others close to Misook involved in daughter’s murder
A Question and Answer panel discussion concerning the Snapped: Behind Bars show took place at the Normal Theatre in the Bloomington / Town of Normal cities where the show was shown on the big screen with the panel consisting of Snapped: Behind Bars show contributors reporters Edith Brady-Lunny and Scott Reeder, and Private Investigators Kevin McClain and Paul Ciolino. The hour and a half Q&A was interesting, engaging and informative and can be viewed in its entirety at FreeBart Facebook by clicking this LINK.
The following is the Flyer used to promote the event that was a big success: CLICK HERE
During the show, for the first time in Bart’s 23-year wrongful imprisonment, Bart was able to tell those attending and that were watching the Facebook Live feed his firm belief Misook did not act alone in murdering his daughter. He has held this belief for two decades as various police interviews of Misook and her closest friends Bart had come to know over the several years he and she dated showed suspicious behavior and conflicting accounts that fateful night. Each of Misook’s friends with her that night were not forthright about Misook’s personality and instead provided cover for Misook in their interviews with investigating detectives, turning the tables instead on Bart who was very likeable and stable minded for all who knew him. Despite Misook being known to each as having a violent temper and being overly jealous.
Andy Nowlin, the former husband of Misook with whom from his perspective Bart stole his wife Misook when they were married, and therefore had an axe to grind, describes to detectives that Bart was “as cold as a snake” rather than inform detectives like he has to Scott Reeder in his 2018 Suspect Convictions podcast and interviewers of various Oxygen Network Snapped episodes the true nature of Misook’s evil, jealous and greedy character. Had their been a small amount of investigating outside Misook’s closest friends, their research would have shown Bart as being well thought of and liked by all of his fellow coworkers at Red Lobster, other friends and neighbors. Everyone who knew Bart also thought him to be a good and attentive parent too. Andy never once mentions to detectives that he had been having sexual relations with Misook behind Bart’s back for the time Bart and Misook were live in boyfriend and girlfriend and that he was doing so in order to “get even” and had incentive too to cause harm to Bart as he admitted on Scott Reeder’s Suspect Convictions podcast.
Click HERE Andy Nowlin on Episode 5 of Scott Reeder’s Suspect Convictions Podcast in order to hear his 16-year late-in-coming admission that while Bart and Misook were living together as boyfriend and girlfriend, that he was maintaining sexual relations with Misook and in the process from his vantage was “getting even” as Bart had stolen his then-married wife Misook.
As other red flags known to Bart, there were conflicting statements made to detectives by Misook, Korean born friend Susi Kaiser and fellow co-worker Don Wang, regarding what transpired the night of June 15th. Don Wang, soon after Bart is arrested, becomes Misook’s boyfriend and later husband with whom Misook murders his mother in 2011. Within 90 days of the murder, Don Wang is introducing his new girlfriend Misook and her daughter Michelle to his mother Linda Wenlan Tyda, and her then-husband, as shown in investigative documents obtained from Misook’s subsequent child felony assault incident that Misook perpetrated against her own daughter Michelle known as “the smothering incident”.
Don Wang also provides cover for Misook during this same interview telling detectives that she could absolutely never “harm her or anyone else”. Words that will forever haunt him. See below conflicts in his statement to police that show an inconsistency as to who drove who to the ISU billiards hall in the evening that ultimately led to Christina’s murder.
Besides all of the aforementioned covering statements in support of Misook, Bart furthermore knew that the very last words he heard his daughter say before she was murdered was the name “Mee Shell” before entering her bedroom one final time to get her to go to sleep after midnight that is exactly how she pronounced Misook’s daughter’s name Michelle, who was 8-years old at the time of the murder. To Bart it was as though his daughter must have seen Michelle through the bedroom window before she was killed.
Which begged the question… “was Michelle present at his apartment the night of the murder?” This question was never addressed by Detectives in any of the police interview summaries despite it should have been given the victim’s last utterances that Bart informed detectives about. Michelle was inarguably mentally and physically abused as a child so can recollect no memory of this particular night. The attached testimony by Michelle’s school principal revolving around a child abuse incident between Michelle and her mother Misook that took place within 90 days of Christina’s murder. Click HERE to read the testimony.
Barton firmly believes she was present and has reasonable belief to believe so. After all, Misook’s last telephone call to her former husband that night, Andy Nowlin, was at precisely 10:52 p.m. as evidenced by Misook’s own phone records shown below that was subpoenaed by the Grand Jury on July 1st. Note furthermore that right on the heels of her break up with Bart, that she tries to call Andy 3 times in back-to-back call efforts beginning at 7:05 pm to Andy, then to his sister’s home (Jane Frink) at 7:06 pm, and then his father’s home (Robert Nowlin) at 7:07 pm, all calls lasting less than a minute, she obviously determined to contact Andy. Misook tries Andy’s home again at 8:22 pm. So Misook tries to reach Andy a total of 5 times before finally reaching him for a 9 minute phone call the night of the murder. Its short duration indicating the content straight to the point.
During court testimony given during the March 4th Offer to Show Proof hearing, Andy Nowlin admitted that the purpose of the call was that Misook called him late that night (after making five repeated calls to reach him) requesting he purchase illegal drugs in order to plant in Bart’s car in order to get him in trouble. When would Misook desire to get Barton in trouble by if there were to be such a date we should wonder? Right away! Why? As Barton was to provide his victim impact statement for a scheduled hearing on Misook’s unlawful restraint charge in just two days time, on Wednesday, June 17th at the McLean County Courthouse. If illegal drugs were to be planted in Bart’s car so that Bart get into trouble, resulting in Barton’s likely arrest, then it had better be soon! As in…. Tonight!
The ominous nature of this phone call corroborated on this same day by Misook’s own testimony during the Offer to Show Proof hearing shown below. Misook reluctantly admits that she did indeed discuss planting illegal drugs on Bart, but states that it wasn’t until the morning the murder was discovered versus the night before as this would beget a more incriminating timeline of events. And Misook knew that.
So what motive did Misook have to get Bart in trouble one might ask? As mentioned very briefly previously, it was on account Bart had told Misook earlier at Avanti’s restaurant that he had every intention to attend Misook’s June 17th hearing and to provide his victim impact testimony regarding Misook’s prior August 1997 Unlawful Restraint charge that Misook perpetrated against both Bart and his then 2-year old daughter that was cradled in his arms as he tried to exit the apartment after Misook threw his Personal Computer monitor (back in the day when they were big and cube-like) to the floor. Which beget their first floor neighbors summoning Bloomington police to respond to the domestic disturbance who soon after their arrival, arrested Misook for unlawful restraint after she became argumentative with them and refused to leave the apartment following their order to do so in order for Misook to cool down. As Bart had custody of Christina that night, the responding police felt it most appropriate that Barton stay in the apartment with Misook the one to leave.
As to the prior 1997 unlawful restraint incident, Barton stated that Misook was angry that night as Bart, without consulting her, had agreed with his former wife Tita McNeil earlier in the day to take care of Christina on account that Tita had to work an extra shift that night. Per Bart, Misook was incensed that Bart would agree to take care of his 2-year old daughter without first consulting her as they shared the apartment together.
So as Bart told Misook during his final argument with her at Avanti’s restaurant on Monday, June 15th, with both the waitress and cashier at Avanti’s being interviewed by police, when Bart called it permanently quits with his relationship with her, he told her during their final restaurant meal that he was still planning on giving his victim impact witness testimony against her. So Misook had the motive to find a way to get Bart in trouble by planting illegal drugs in his car or apartment.
Continuing on to Andy’s whereabouts that fateful night, Dawn Shannon, Andy’s girlfriend and fiancé at the time of the murder, had become a friend and confident of Bart and vice versa as Dawn did not care for Misook just as Misook did not care for Tita McNeil, Bart’s former wife. So a few weeks after Barton was in the County Jail, Dawn Shannon (now Dawn Shannon Nowlin) called Bart at the prison with the phone call recorded as all calls to and from suspects are always recorded. In the latter Tyda case Misook did not know this took place through standard department of corrections protocol and sent letters to family and friends in Korean only to find out later that each telephone call was recorded and every letter written in Korean translated that contributed to the cumulative evidence that led to her undoing.
Bart, having a copy of Misook’s subpoenaed phone records for the night of the murder, asks Dawn about the phone call that took place between Misook and Andy at 10:52 p.m. the night of the murder. Dawn tells Bart how Andy took the call in the room they were both in and then went into another room so that the call be private and the conversation between the two unknown to her. Bart then asked “and then what?”. To which she tells Bart matter-of-factly that Andy then left his Heyworth farm, taking 8-year old Michelle Nowlin in tow, “to go get pizza”, that astonished him as this would have been at 11:00 pm on a Monday night. He asks her during the course of the call, “when did he return with Michelle?” to which she said she didn’t see him or Michelle as when they returned she had gone to bed and was asleep. He asked whether she then saw him in the morning? To his astonishment she said “no” she hadn’t seen him then either as “Andy had gotten up early to go to work”. So Bart then asked when the next time she saw Andy to which she replied “Tuesday afternoon, after he returned home from work.” So based upon this phone call, Andy’s whereabouts are unknown to even his own fiancé Dawn from the time he left to get pizza, until the following afternoon, with Michelle in tow all the while.
Many persons have commented that buying pizza at a post-11 pm time frame on a June Monday night whether in a city like Heyworth, Bloomington or the Town of Normal is pretty difficult even 23-years later to this day. McDonalds perhaps. But a pizza joint?
Wish to learn more? Click HERE to see Misook’s detailed phone records for the evening showing her call to Andy at 10:52 p.m. on the night the murder took place. Below is an image showing just specifically the 10:52 pm call made from Misook to Andy that followed immediately after calling Bart (Unk cell) at 10:47 pm and asking whether Christina was with Bart and asking nonchalantly where specifically where Christina was sleeping that night. With Bart ending the call with “don’t call me again”. After all, they had just had a huge argument at Avanti’s restaurant earlier that evening with Bart calling it quits once and for all on their 3-year tumultuous relationship.
Bart last heard his daughter utter the words “Mee Shell” at approximately 12:30 p.m., as though she had seen Michelle somehow, which would have been roughly 90 minutes after this telephone exchange between Misook and Andy with Andy leaving with Michelle according to his girlfriend and fiancé Dawn, in order to set Bart up for a “drug arrest”.
OK so we’ve established thus far that Bart and Misook have broken up, she then calls Andy 5 times, the nature of the call to put illegal drugs in Bart’s car so that he get in trouble and miss Misook’s scheduled June 17th hearing to provide victim impact testimony, and that Andy’s whereabouts with Michelle that evening are now unknown to anyone but himself.
Next we have accountings of the following morning contained in police summaries and in testimony provided by Andy and Misook in Bart’s March 4, 1999 Pre-Trial Offer to Show Proof hearing. This hearing took place approximately four months before Bart’s lightning fast Bench Trial where he was pronounced guilty and was unable to utter Misook’s name in his defense as being the alternative suspect as this was what the Offer to Show Proof hearing was all about with the State’s Motion in Limine that was filed December 28th 1998 at the center of the Offer to Show Proof hearing itself.
Beginning with the below excerpt from Andy Nowlin’s interview with police on June 19th where he states he went to Misook’s apartment on the morning Christina is discovered murdered in order to “get clothes for their daughter Michele”.
So the first official sighting of Andy is not back at his Heyworth farm, but at Misook’s apartment no less. And concerning their daughter Michelle whose late evening whereabouts are also unknown to any but Andy himself!
Andy Nowlin going to Misook’s early in the morning, the morning Christina was discovered dead, also represented suspicious behavior to Bart as never was there an occasion in the 3 years that Barton and Misook lived together that Andy would need to come over to either deliver or retrieve clothing belonging to their daughter Michelle. And why on this particular morning of all mornings!?
OK, time for some more conflicting statements! Kevin McClain, an investigator that has worked on Bart’s case, said that when one tells the truth it always stays the same. When telling or re-telling of lies, then it changes up frequently and nobody can get the story straight, especially when involving multiple parties.
Andy tells police in his interview that Misook was asleep when he came by. Misook under oath during her March 4th offer to show proof hearing says that she was awake and talked to Andy that morning about planting illegal drugs on Bart and that was going to testify against her on her Wednesday, June 17th at her scheduled hearing for her unlawful restraint charge. That she had been told if happened by her attorney Keith Davis would likely to result in Misook having to serve some jail time as she was previously on probation for a prior theft charge.
See below excerpt of Misook’s testimony during the March 4, 1999 Pre-Trial Offer to Show Proof hearing where she testifies after Andy has testified earlier in the day making a conflicting statement with Andy’s regarding when they discussed planting illegal drugs on Bart. Andy says it took place during the 10:52 p.m. phone call.
As per Misook’s above testimony, she however says it happened the following morning.
Andy testifies that he didn’t speak to Misook the morning he dropped off her clothes. Misook testifies that she did see him that morning and spoke about planting illegal drugs on Bart.
And alas for Bart, more missed opportunities, as his court appointed defense attorney Tracy Smith does not address any of the many conflicting statements made between the two.
Wishing to dig deeper into the conflicts the evening of the murder between Misook, and her alibi “friends” future boyfriend Don Wang and Susi Kaiswer, and now bringing into the fold Misook’s stated best friend Yuman Aldridge who also spent time in person with Misook on Monday, June 15hth, see below to see Don Wang’s conflicting account of his actions that night.
As shown previously, Don actually said on his interview with Detective Larry Shepherd that he met Misook and her friend Susi Kaiser at the Illinois State University billiards hall after visiting Misook and Susi at Misook’s apartment, and after they declined his invitation, that he had driven himself to the hall separately. With Misook and Susi then arriving later by separate car. But this was then in direct conflict with Misook and Susi’s statements that they all rode together. Below is taken from his Police narrative on September 5th, 1998:
Only in Don’s testimony during the Offer to Show Proof hearing 7 months later does he state he picked Misook and Susi up and that they all went together to the ISU billiards hall. Don Wang’s testimony is messed up on a variety levels too much to explain here so recommend you read his testimony for yourself. Click HERE to view Don Wang’s March 4th pre-trial hearing testimony. Amazing how large Don Wang figures into Bart’s 1998 case and then 13-years later, has his own serious problem with Misook having manually strangled his mother.
Next, see below to see Susi Kaiser’s further accounting of her and Misook’s actions that night including Misook telling Susi that she wanted to go to Bart’s apartment the night of June 15th! Since Susi said that she told Misook no, if we are to believe this, then what is the likelihood Misook might then hope Andy would go! And to plant illegal drugs on Bart no less!
Susi further states she left Misook’s around 11 pm leaving Misook all alone for the balance of the night and adds deceitfully to Detective Larry Shepherd that for the time she was with Misook “there was no visitors or phone calls”. Of particular note is her blatant lie regarding “no phone calls” knowing Misook was constantly on the phone for the time they were together that evening with all of the conversations regarding Bart. Misook’s own phone records show numerous phone calls that were initiated by Misook that night including one to Bart himself and her ex-husband Andy Nowlin.
See below to see Yuman Aldridge’s accounting of her actions that day and the following morning for when Misook had already been inside Bart’s apartment and called Yuman and the Red Lobster to tell her about unfolding events. And how Yuman states that Misook did not tell her Christina had died despite her having by then full knowledge that Christina had died. Her statements are in direct conflict with what Barton’s supervisor and manager of the Red Lobster said he saw and hear that morning as both he and Yuman were at the restaurant the morning that Bart awoke to find Christina dead.
So Yuman says that she didn’t learn that Christina had died until her boss Tim Wilson gathered employees to tell them, and that furthermore Misook did not officially inform her until later that night. Yet Misook is outside Bart’s apartment and has already been inside learning of Christina’s death and was told by Barton to leave, especially in light of Christina’s mother, Tita McNeill, being present in the apartment at that time. So are we to believe Misook’s best friend, Korean born Yuman Aldridge’s accounting of events transpiring that morning, or Bart’s own supervisor Tim Wilson?
When reading the above, it begs the question why would Yuman be kneeling down to pray if her call with Misook concerned only that there was “yellow tape” at Bart’s on the morning the murder was discovered and that Misook in fact did not know what was going on? However this does not jibe with the fact Misook placed the call to Yuman AFTER she had entered Barton’s apartment residence as evidenced by the Crime Scene log book the Bloomington Police were keeping to show the comings and goings of anyone that came into Barton’s apartment that morning. Barton furthermore called Tim Wilson at the Red Lobster after Misook had left further confirming that Misook at the time she made the call knew explicitly that Christina had died. Why is Yuman clearly trying to disassociate herself with having any knowledge about the events unfolding the morning that the crime scene is unfolding? Without a doubt, Misook and all of her friends just can’t keep their stories straight!
Of particular special note on the day after the murder took place, Tuesday, June 16th, Misook, along with Barton, had been summoned to go to the Bloomington Police station to be interviewed at noon since she was the focus of all of Bart’s incriminatory statements. This is slightly later than when Bart was being interviewed this same morning by police beginning at 10 a.m starting with Detective Marvin Arnold, the only interview of Bart that was recorded. During the morning hours prior to Misook being interviewed, according to neighbors of Bart, Yuman Aldridge, wearing a Red Lobster work shirt since she had to work that day, showed up in his neighborhood asking them what they knew about what took place at Bart’s apartment the previous morning. None of the neighbors knew anything at that time and told police of their sighting of Misook’s friend to police who arrived later in the day to canvas the neighborhood.
At this time no autopsy results had been made known, and Barton had not yet been arraigned by police for the murder of his daughter. We can expect that none other than Misook Nowlin herself tasked her best friend Yuman on her behalf to go find out what she could in Bart’s neighborhood and to relay to her this information that might become vital to know in the course of her pending interview with police. Below is an excerpt from Misook’s 2011 confession transcript and when asked who one of her best friends is responds “Yuman Aldridge” the supports confirming both their close relationship that began when they were teenagers in South Korea and were consorting with American serviceman. With Yuman meeting her future husband Les Aldridge, and Misook meeting her future husband Andy Nowlin, with both girlfriends then being able to emigrate to the United States and in particular, the Bloomington, Illinois area.
Following the break up at Avanti’s restaurant witnessed by the waitress and cashier, as interviewed by Detective Michael Burns, where Bart informs Misook their relationship is permanently over, the following events occur:
(1) Misook calls Barton at 10:47 p.m. and in the course of the conversation that perplexed Bart as he had just broken up with her, she asks if Christina is present to which Bart replies yes and asks if she is sleeping in her bedroom which Bart replied “of course she is” as was custom as to where she always slept. Click HERE for all of Misook’s income and outgoing calls on June 15th.
(2) Misook calls Barton the following morning at the same exact time he is trying to call 9-1-1 at 7:40 a.m.; (3) despite Bart finally answering the phone and telling Misook not to come over;
(3) Misook, unwelcome by Bart, comes over and before entering Bart’s apartment, Misook asks a nearby neighbor of Bart’s inquiring what they know of what is transpiring next door with the police and paramedics next door. See below detective interview of neighbor Mona M. Rains
(4) she next makes her way into Bart’s apartment despite her not being welcome to by Bart, such are the antics of this “all knowing, all seeing” now ex-girlfriend;
(5) As if not enough, Misook then calls Yuman while parked out front of Bart’s apartment, and according to Misook’s best friend Yuman, despite Misook knowing by now that Christina has died, tells Yuman (as according to Yuman’s police narrative) that she doesn’t know what is going on (!), adding also that there is the foreshadowing presence of “yellow tape everywhere”. And Misook says this, even though Bart’s apartment is yet to be declared a crime scene! So based on this timeline, Misook knows that a crime has been committed even before the police and Barton knew of it as Barton has yet to see the holes in the screen or to summon police. At this point in time no autopsy been performed which was not going to become available until the following day.
(6) the following day dispatches Yuman to go to Bart’s neighborhood and to ask neighbors if they know what is going on.
All of this getting even more peculiar and odd as according to Bart, Misook was depressed that Andy was in the process of marrying his new wife Dawn Shannon, and as a result had become suicidal telling closest friends such as Yuman and Susi that she wanted to kill herself. And with Barton having officially broken up with Misook that night would have been doubly depressed as she now no longer has a boyfriend. And worse, her June 17th hearing was approaching and she had been told by her attorney Keith Davis that as she had broken probation when she unlawfully restrained Barton McNeil, was likely to be facing some jail time. Bart has said that on most all nights Bart did not spend the night with Misook that she always required at least one, if not both, or her Korean girlfriends to spend the night with her. Per Bart, this night it would have been particularly unusual for this not to have happened therefore raising his suspicions ever more.
Finally, on the afternoon of June 17th while Bart was being interviewed, he requested to have a cigarette with Detective Wikoff allowing Bart to be in a porch area. As Bart lit his cigarette he saw Misook drive out of the Bloomington Police parking lot with her four door sedan. Located along the driver side and rear passenger side door area was fresh mud and sod. Bart immediately realized that this could have only taken place had Misook been in Barton’s neighborhood the night before. As Barton’s apartment was in an older part of Bloomington, the curbs were very high. Such that whenever one parked and opened their car door, the bottom of the car door would scrape the grass and dirt by the curb. Misook’s apartment and work place however were in modern areas with no curbs like this. Leading Bart to know instantly that not only was Misook in Barton’s neighborhood the night before as it had rained, but so too had Misook had to arrived with passengers laden in the back of her car who also got out. Barton furthermore knew that Misook always kept her car immaculate. Bart immediately brought this to Detective Wikoff’s attention blurting out that they need to go chase down Misook right now and to analyze the dirt located all along the left hand side of her vehicle. To which Detective Wikoff told Bart to cool it and that it wasn’t important. Bart again flummoxed by the inactions of the Bloomington Police.
For those that are avid watchers of crime drama shows, it is common for those that commit crimes to want to be in the inside scoop of an ongoing investigation. To insert themselves and then be in a position to take investigators off the trail. Consider the following passage:
Cliff G., Studied Sociology (Criminology / Social Psychology) at the University of Washington as an undergrad. Worked as a criminal prosecutor Answered in Quora: Why do criminals return to the scene of the crime?
A: Motivations vary, and contrary to the media, it’s not always a reliable adage to follow. It depends on the criminal and the crime that they have committed. Some criminals believe that they are smarter than the police and want to watch them try to figure out what happened. Others revel in the chaos and hardship that they cause. Others may be uncertain about what’s going on and want to see what evidence is being gathered so that they can assess their likelihood of getting caught. And for some specific criminals, it’s a demonstration to the witnesses and the onlookers of their power – that they can stand there and watch while the police investigate the crime, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.
Several of the above was classic Misook, particularly that she was uncertain about what’s going on and want to see what evidence is being gathers so they can assess their likelihood of getting caught. Or in Misook’s case, what to say and how to avoid getting caught. She exhibited classic signs that to trained detectives Misook was by far the more likely persons of interest based upon the foregoing information shared.
Only the Bloomington Police department can answer as to why they missed all these obvious signs. Perhaps it was because they had only investigated on average one murder every two-years. Or that they had involved too many police detectives with none of them communicating with one another. Detectives involved in this poorly executed investigation are ultimately responsible for an outcome that lead to the unnecessary death and murder of Linda Tyda. Detectives involved in Bart’s case were lead detective Larry Shepherd, detectives Marvin Arnold, Randall Wikoff, Michael Burns, Clayton Wheeler, Thomas Sanders, and Randall McKinley. Seven detectives total all with little real practical experience in the investigation of a murder crime.
With Barton having access to all of the shown Discovery documents and knowing all those considered close friends of Misook, he knew without a doubt that Misook did not act alone on that fateful night.
Seasoned murder detectives live by one mantra and one mantra alone and that is “there is no such thing as coincidences”. Here there are too many coincidences that should never have been ignored by the Bloomington Police department.
Click HERE to listen to Barton’s audio address at the Normal Theatre audience on October 5th where Bart for the first time is able to state his belief that others were involved in the murder of his daughter Christina.
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