I want to find out more info about my classmates murder. How do I find news archives from 1997?

Question

a classmate at my high school was murdered our senior year in 1997. I never fully understood what occured, but I can't seem to find any articles on it.

Could it be because it was before everything was online? It was out of state, so I can't search the local library.

Answer 1

You're going to need to set up an account and submit a credit card number to LexisNexis as you go through this process, so if you're not comfortable with that, you should disregard this post.

1.) Go to http://www.lexis.com
2.) Under "Additional Products", select "LexisNexis by Credit Card"
3.) Hit the "Continue" button under "PAY AS YOU GO"
4.) Under "News & Company Information", select "News"
5.) Under "News", select "General News"
6.) Enter the individual's name in quotes in the "Subject" field; "Source" should be "News - All years"; "Dates" should be "All Available Dates"; Hit the "Search" button
7.) On the next screen hit the "Register" button in the "Register Now" box
8.) Hit the "Accept" button
9.) Enter your personal information
10.) On the next screen, you will need to enter your credit card info - but you will not be charged unless you choose to purchase an article following the search
11.) Continue per instructions

This is probably your best shot at finding anything online (though I just checked out the Google News Archive mentioned by tonybgoode and that looks quite promising). A local library is certainly a much better option, but you may have some luck with LexisNexis. It is a credible, reputable source and if you have any experience with legal or possibly corporate research your're already well aware of it. What you may not have been aware of is that they do have a pay-as-you-go option that any person can sign on to, and that you can view a headline and a few lines of text for retrieved articles for free.

Highly recommended.

Answer 2

Try searching the newspaper that was published at the time. This can be done on line.

Write a letter to the police department that handled the investigation. It's a long shot, but they may off suggestions for retrieving the information.

Write/email the library and ask how you can access the article on this subject.

Answer 3

have you tried googling the clasemates name? Something like
"john doe" + murder ....... or maybe the city name and add + murder......

Maybe contact the local paper and ask how you can get a copy of the article /s associated with his death?

Short of that , do you have any friends in the same city that could get a copy of the article from the library for you?

Answer 4

You may want to see if your state newspaper has archives online. If so, you should be able to find the information you are seeking.

One of my classmates was murdered my senior year in 2002. I recognize your desire to investigate.

Answer 5

If you know the name of the local newspaper from 1997 you could telephone them and ask for Archives Dept, or ask about how to look up archives at their online site....?

Answer 6

Request a copy of the police report, police records are public information. The sunshine law makes that possible, but if the case is pending/still open or there were minor involved, certain parts of the report will be blacked.
(I use to be a police dispatcher and records clerk)
You can alos request copies of the court documents from your clerk of courts.

Answer 7

Google just added a News Archive Search, give that a shot:
http://news.google.com/archivesearch

Answer 8

Go to your library and ask to see the old newspapers headlines; They will have these on microfilm.

Answer 9

See if your library has Lexis Nexis.