Casefile
Cold cases. Primary sources. No speculation.
Every post is a case file. FOIA requests, archived court transcripts, witness statements cross-referenced against public records — dissected at 2 AM so you don't have to.
Every post starts with a
public records request.
Autopsy report — partially redacted
Original front-page coverage, pre-trial
Full trial — witness cross-examinations
14 pages withheld — pending appeal
Body Found Near Thornfield Station;
████████████ Questioned
Authorities confirmed the discovery of an unidentified body near the Thornfield rail junction late Friday evening. Detective ██████ of the city's homicide unit stated that no suspects are in custody, though several individuals have been brought in for questioning...
↳ Witness statement contradicts this timeline — see Exhibit F
The Method
No secondhand reporting. No Wikipedia. Every case begins with a FOIA request and ends only when the primary sources tell a complete story — or reveal why they can't.
File the Request
FOIA requests filed to local PD, county DA, and state archives. Average response time: 47 days.
Cross-Reference
Every document checked against court transcripts, newspaper archives, and public records from the same date range.
Find the Crack
Somewhere in 300 pages of testimony, one witness's timeline doesn't match. That's the post.
847
primary source documents analyzed across 34 case breakdowns. Zero speculation. Every claim has a document number.
The thread. Every event,
every source, every gap.
Last confirmed sighting — Thornfield Diner
Source: Witness statement, J. Okafor (FOIA Doc. 12)
Corroborated by receipt — timestamp 23:47
Noise complaint filed at adjacent address
Source: Police dispatch log (FOIA Doc. 7, p.4)
↳ Never followed up. No officer assigned.
Body discovered — Thornfield rail junction
Source: First responder report (FOIA Doc. 3)
Detective M. ████████ assigned to case
Source: Case assignment log (FOIA Doc. 1)
Chicago Tribune front-page coverage
Source: Tribune Archive, Vol. 142
First public mention of suspect name — later retracted
Trial begins — State v. ████████
Source: Court transcript CR-1991-0047-B
↳ Key witness changes testimony on day 3
Acquittal — jury deliberates 4 hours
Source: Court record (public)
FOIA request fulfilled — 47 new pages released
Source: DOJ-2024-8841
↳ 14 pages still withheld. Case reopened.
The String Board
Timeline threads are built chronologically from primary sources only. Red flags mark moments where documents contradict each other — that contradiction is the story.
Source Legend
2 flagged discrepancies
In the Thornfield case, the noise complaint (2:14 AM) was never assigned to an officer. The responding detective's own report makes no mention of it. The log exists. The follow-up doesn't.
1987
The annotation layer.
Where the document speaks.
@casefile.archive
Thornfield Case — Thread 4/3
Exhibit C — Notebook recovered from scene
Source: FOIA Doc. 22, p.14
The Markup
Every annotation is keyed to a specific document page and line. The red marks aren't dramatic — they're citations. The circle means "look here." The arrow means "this contradicts that."
Annotation Key
@casefile.archive
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Three cases. Read half before
you realize you want the rest.
The archive PDF contains our most comprehensive case breakdown — 47 pages, 112 documents, one unresolved noise complaint. Enter your email below. That's all we need.
1987
The Thornfield Station Disappearance
A noise complaint filed at 2:14 AM. No officer assigned. The case log shows the detective on duty was miles away.
1994
The Reedville Pharmacy Arson
The insurance claim was filed 11 days before the fire. The adjuster's signature doesn't match any employee on record.
2001
The Millhaven Witness Retraction
Three witnesses recanted within 72 hours of each other. No contact between them on record. One moved out of state the following week.
Open the Case Archive
47 pages. 112 documents. The Thornfield case, annotated start to finish. No paywall. One email field. You've already read half of it.