On November 12, 1977, 45-year-old Betty Jo Ephlin and her live-in boyfriend, 45-year-old Fred Wyatt, were shot and killed; Ephlin’s body was later found dumped in the Flint River. The initial investigation stalled and remained cold for many years, leaving the families without answers.

In 2003 a reinvestigation using DNA and other leads identified Locust Grove roofer Carl Millard Patton Jr. Investigators concluded the killings had been arranged by Fred Wyatt’s common-law wife, Marie Jackson Wyatt, reportedly motivated by a life insurance policy and Wyatt’s relationship with Ephlin. Patton carried out the murders with the assistance of an associate, Joe Cleveland. Patton’s wife, Norma Patton, testified for the prosecution; in March 2003 Patton pleaded guilty to the murders and was sentenced to two life terms. He also confessed to and was convicted of additional killings.

Did anyone who knew Betty Jo Ephlin, Fred Wyatt, or their circle in 1977 notice tensions or threats that might shed more light on what led to the killings?