Dawn Marie Huwe was an 18-year-old Illinois State University student from East Peoria who disappeared from campus over the Memorial Day weekend on May 28, 1973. Her body was recovered on August 5, 1973, buried in a shallow grave in a field about four miles west of Danvers, Illinois. Identification was made by dental records and clothing. The McLean County Coroner attributed her death to a blow to the front of the head and lacerations around the neck.

Investigators identified 36-year-old Jesse Donald Sumner of Stanford, Illinois, as a suspect. Sumner, who had a prior manslaughter conviction and had been paroled in January 1972, was arrested on a July 1973 battery charge; during a polygraph he provided information that led authorities to Huwe’s burial site. Testimony at the time included Sumner’s wife saying she had seen Huwe’s driver’s license and a club card in their garage, and Sumner’s mother, Beatrice Sumner, was later charged with obstructing justice for allegedly admitting to burning those items.

In September 1974 Sumner pleaded guilty to Huwe’s murder, admitting he killed her with a tire iron after sexual activity in Tazewell County. He also pleaded guilty to the murders of Rae Ann Schneider and Corene Marie Burchie and faced multiple long sentences.