Murders of Annette Cooper and Todd Schultz

Annette Cooper, her mother Sarah, sister Michelle, and stepfather Dale Johnston moved from Xenia, Ohio, to a farm outside Logan, Ohio, in the 1970s. On October 4, 1982, Annette, a Hocking College student, went missing with Todd Schultz, to whom she was engaged. Their torsos were recovered on October 14 from the Hocking River and their heads and limbs were found on October 16 in several shallow graves in a cornfield in West Logan, approximately from where the couple had last been seen. Both had been shot before being dismembered. == Investigation and trials ==

Cooper's stepfather, Dale Johnston, had been known to be opposed to the couple's engagement. Rumors had spread that Johnston had molested Annette; these were denied by Johnston, Sarah, and Michelle. The prosecution's theory was that Johnston was in love with his stepdaughter and killed her and her fiancé in a jealous rage. == Subsequent events and 2008 arrests==

After his 1990 release, Johnston filed his initial wrongful conviction and imprisonment claim. Then-Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine appealed, and the decision that allowed Johnston to seek compensation from the state was reversed. In 2020, the state of Ohio settled with Johnston for $775,000. == References ==