Ottis Toole, always a suspect, has officially been named as the murderer of Adam Walsh. Walsh was killed and decapitated in 1981, and Toole signed a confession in 1983 that he later recanted. Toole, a convicted serial killer, died in prison in 1996. The case is now finally closed after all these years.

If you're much younger than I am—say under 30—you may not know much about his disappearance and murder, but you still live in a world profoundly touched by the Adam's kidnapping and murder, in ways big and small.

Adam's death spurred his parents to help create the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

In addition, President Bush signed the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act in 2006 to help track sex offenders.

John Walsh has helped put over a thousand fugitive behind bars as the host of America's Most Wanted. Copycat programs by local news media and law enforcement agencies have netted thousands of fugitives more.

Walmart named the nearly ubiquitous "Code Adam" missing child alert they created after him. If you've ever had a child wander away in a store, it is this procedure that locks the store down and hopefully keeps predators from being able to escape with them. Pictures of missing kids on milk cartons. Dedicated missing persons units in large police departments. Increased security in schools, malls, and elsewhere. All have their roots in the agony of the Walsh family, and their tireless advocacy to try to make sure that other families don't have to experience what they did.

I'm certain there is never real closure with the death of a child, but perhaps knowing that Adam's case is finally closed can bring some peace to a family that has done so much to keep others from feeling a similar loss.

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Wake County NC authorities have identified the body recovered behind an unoccupied dwelling as 18-year-old Matthew Josiah Silliman, who had been the subject of a Silver Alert for missing adults with certain mental impairments in late November.

Four area high school students that were Sillimans' "friends" on Facebook are now facing murder charges in Silliman's death:

As Silliman's identity was being confirmed, four Wake County high school students who are connected to him through the social networking site Facebook were denied bond when they appeared in court for the first time to face murder charges in his death.

Allegra Rose Dahlquist, 17, of 601 Walcott Way, Cary; Ryan Patrick Hare, 18; of 100 Walnut Hill Court, Apex; Aadil Shahid Khan, 17, of 901 Bristol Blue St., Apex; and Drew Logan Shaw, 16, of 107 Woolard Way, Apex, had been arrested Wednesday.

All four were in the Wake County jail Thursday evening. Their next court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 22.

Authorities have not released either a cause of death for Silliman, nor have they provided a motive for his murder. The WRAL reporter, however, hints at a possible angle:

Family members declined to comment after the brief court hearing, but Billy Shenk, a friend of Shaw's, said he and the 16-year-old were part of a "juggalo" crew, which Shenk described as a group of outcasts.

"It's not a gang, not violence," he said. "It's just a group of people who are tired of being picked on and everything, so we just form together and grew strong."

Shenk added that he does not think Shaw is a violent person.

"He's a really good kid after you guys get to know him. All these people are saying Gothic kids are the reason for all this. No, it's not," he said.

On his MySpace page, Shaw, a sophomore at Panther Creek High School in Cary, referred to himself as a "juggalo," which also denotes a fan of the hip-hop group Insane Clown Posse.

A friend of Shaw's, in a posting on his MySpace page Thursday, described it as "a state of mind," and belief in the Dark Carnival, a fictional theme in the group's albums. Numerous other Web sites explain the term in other details.

I said the reporter provided a hint; I didn't say it was necessarily a good one.

Various musical genres have been blamed for playing a role in homicides and suicides for as long as I can remember, and if these suspects shared musical interests it can indicate that they are acculturated similarly, but it does not mean that the music is a trigger for the murder. If it was we'd have emos and goths and juggalos offing people (or more likely, themselves) at an astounding rate, or at least that greater than say, Britney Spears fans.

That said, it is possible that law enforcement beleives the Dark Carnival mythology played a role in Silliman's death. If that is the contention of authorities or this reporter, however, they haven't yet decided to share why they think that was a contributing factor.

It will be interesting to see what, if any role Facebook postings by the deceased or the accused play in this case, and if they are used in the trials by either the prosecution or defense.

Facebook and MySpace pages and similar social media sites will continue to playa greater role in both criminal investigations and the background investigations by journalists of both crime suspects, and victims. As we become more immersed in the technology, the technology is going to strip away our anonymity and provide possible insights into our motivations. Profilers and criminal psychologists are going to have a field day once they start grasping and data-mining the technology. Let's just hope they draw the right decisions from what they discover.

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