On the morning of March 13, 1982, Mary Jane Avery Paulson, 40, was found shot to death in the family farmhouse in Allendale, Michigan. Her husband Robert W. Paulson, 42, and their three daughters — Cynthia, 18; Carla Sue, 13; and Casey Kay, 8 — were also found dead, execution-style. The house had been set on fire after the shootings.

Authorities identified a former colleague of Mary Jane’s, Maris Karklins, as the prime suspect. After an unrelated arrest for shooting his own mother, Karklins confessed to killing the Paulson family, saying he believed he was on a divine mission and that the family were demons; he also admitted setting the fire. He was arraigned on five counts of first-degree murder, waived a jury trial, and a judge later convicted him on those counts.

The case closed with convictions, but many readers may remember the family and the small community shaken by such a violent crime; anyone with memories or information about the Paulsons or that day is asked to come forward.