Episode 177: The Murder of Lindsay Ann Burke
Lindsay was described as being very much “the girl next door,” growing up in a small suburban neighborhood alongside all of the other kids in her area. She attended North Kingstown, Rhode Island schools and graduated from St. Mary Academy-Bay View. She loved playing soccer and took advantage of different programs offered by the town rec center like gymnastics, basketball and field trips over the summers. Lindsay was a natural born New Englander on skis and ice skates, loved going to the beach in the summer as often as she could and going on family trips. When she turned 16, she got a part-time job at Shaw’s Supermarket and worked through high school and college with many of her coworkers becoming good friends. Lindsay pursued a degree in elementary and special education and was perfect for a future role in teaching and working with children. She was incredibly kind, caring, empathetic, and outspoken about advocating for herself and others. Her parents wished to emphasize that you might expect a passive person to become a victim of abuse and violence, but that this wasn’t Lindsay at all.
Lindsay was at a wedding when she met a man named Gerardo Martinez. He was very complimentary towards her and came across as incredibly charming, and when the controlling behaviors started, it was slow and strategic. Gerardo would tell her lies about his difficult childhood, something that was an effective lie against Lindsay, who was empathetic and also had a degree in elementary and special education, so these stories especially tugged at her heartstrings. Lindsay also had no reason to believe that she was being lied to or that the person she loved had any kind of ill intentions. She was never taught about abusive relationships or signs of abuse in school or from other trusted adults in her life as no one she knew to her knowledge experienced an abusive relationship.
Her parents noticed that he would call at all hours, keep her up at night and started to isolate her from her family. Lindsay’s parents reported that the relationship she was in exhibited every single warning sign of an abusive relationship, including extreme jealousy, controlling behavior and isolation from family, friends and loved ones, blaming others for their behavior instead of taking accountability, rigid roles and force during sex, breaking objects, “Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde” with severe mood swings and almost seeming like two different people, and abuse that escalated to physical. They also believe that every form of abuse (verbal, emotional, sexual, physical, and financial) was used on Lindsay by Gerardo.
On September 14th, 2005, at 4:14 p.m., Officer John McHale of the Warwick Police Department met Lindsay’s parents, Christopher and Ann Burke, at Gerardo’s home in Warwick, Rhode Island after Lindsay’s parents said they hadn’t heard from her and that they learned she hadn’t shown up to work. Christopher and Ann told police that Lindsay had been dating Gerardo for two years and that their relationship was tumultuous, and that Lindsay had moved in with her brother and his wife in North Kingstown less than a month ago on August 28th in an attempt to leave the relationship due to the abuse she was enduring. The wellness check ended shortly as no one came to the door, and Officer McHale told Lindsay’s parents to file a missing person report with the North Kingstown Police.
At approximately 5:40 p.m. that evening, the New Hampshire State Police contacted the Warwick Police Department and reported that Gerardo Martinez was involved in a car accident. They reported that he was driving a car not registered to him, but registered to Lindsay. When New Hampshire State Police Trooper Rollston arrived on the scene of the accident, a volunteer firefighter was treating Gerardo for injuries and noticed that the injuries were self-inflicted lacerations to his forearms. There was also a significant amount of blood in the car, much more than the amount of blood that could be explained from the lacerations to Gerardo’s forearms. There was also what looked like a suicide note. While Gerardo was responsive and conscious, he was intentionally unresponsive to any questions that police were asking him.
Sergeant Mark Canning and Officers McHale and Raymond Cox of the Warwick Police then went to Gerardo’s home where his parents were approaching as they were concerned they hadn’t heard from him. Gerardo’s mom had a key to the home and gave this to police, who then entered the home. When performing a wellness check and looking around the property, officers saw signs of an altercation and a struggle in the living room and then went into the first-floor bathroom where they discovered the body of 23-year-old Lindsay Ann Burke in the bathtub. There was an extensive amount of blood as well as a knife covered in blood and a picture of the man Lindsay had started a relationship in the sink. Her body had also been covered with a blanket and a stuffed animal was placed on top of her.
Police obtained a search warrant and then found a video camera that was on top of a bureau facing the bed in a second-floor bedroom. A tape found in the video camera appeared to be a suicide video that Gerardo recorded before taking off in Lindsay’s car, crashing it and slicing his wrists and arms. In the video, Gerardo confessed to Lindsay’s murder.
The medical examiner determined that the cause of Lindsay’s death, which had occurred the day before she was found on September 13th, was a massive hemorrhage due to sharp force wounds of the left carotid artery and left jugular vein. It was determined that she had been beaten extensively and fought back as hard as she could during the attack. She had also been alive for several minutes after the fatal attack. Her death was ruled a homicide.
On January 30th, 2007, 29-year-old Gerardo Martinez was found guilty of first-degree murder of 23-year-old Lindsay Ann Burke as well as one count of driving a motor vehicle without the consent of the owner. The jury also determined that the murder was committed in a manner involving aggravated battery and torture.
Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch stated “This domestic violence murder of a lovely, accomplished young woman was preceded by one of the most brutal attacks imaginable. We said right from the outset that we were going for life without parole, and the jury's verdict empowers us to do just that. My heart goes out to the Burke family for the incomprehensible loss they have suffered.”
Gerardo was sentenced to life in prison in March of 2007 and has attempted to appeal multiple times, most recently in 2018, claiming that his attorney didn’t represent him appropriately. His appeals have been unsuccessful.
Lindsay’s parents have been tireless advocates for their daughter and moved to get legislation passed. One of Lindsay’s teachers had approached them after her murder and said that he wished abuse and domestic violence were talked about and taught in schools, and this really stuck with Lindsay’s parents. A new law passed in 2007 called the Lindsay Ann Burke Act now requires all public middle and high school health classes in Rhode Island to teach students about abusive relationships and domestic violence, and in addition to health classes, all schools in Rhode Island will incorporate this information into the curriculum for students in the 7th through 12th grades. This act has also inspired legislation across the country into multiple other states as it is crucial information that will save lives.
Lindsay’s parents have established the Lindsay Ann Burke Memorial Fund to “support the prevention of relationship violence primarily through the education of teens, parents, educators, and the public,” and the website for the memorial fund also offers extensive resources and information on domestic violence and abuse in relationships. Her parents wrote “To honor Lindsay’s life, we have chosen to speak out and help others become educated. By remaining silent, abusers are empowered. Education gives us power, the power to recognize an abusive relationship and help ourselves and others. If you are a victim, seek help from your state Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Be sure to have an emergency plan, and do not underestimate your abuser. Remember Lindsay, and save yourself. If you are a friend or family member of a victim, educate yourself, and have the knowledge, patience, and determination to help them. If you are not a victim, and don’t know anyone who is, be thankful, but not complacent. Educate yourself and others, for you never know when that information might come in handy. Above all, we must understand that abuse CAN happen to ANYONE, just like it did to our Lindsay.”
You can check out the plethora of resources available on abuse and domestic violence, as well as donate if able, at http://www.labmf.org
Image sources:
labmf.org - “Lindsay Ann Burke Memorial Fund”