Skip to Main Content
McHenry High School's student-written and -edited newspaper

The McHenry Messenger

McHenry High School's student-written and -edited newspaper

The McHenry Messenger

McHenry High School's student-written and -edited newspaper

The McHenry Messenger

Local gas station near the recent shooting has seen less traction with the investigation

Shooting in Lakemoor concerns citizens

Grace Crockett, News Editor March 14, 2025

James Piezonka caused a shooting on Route 21 in Lakemoor on March 2 that resulted in the death of his son. The shooting along Route 21 earlier this month resulted in the tragic death of Ryan Piezonka...

Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw exits a news conference Thursday, Dec. 8, 2022, after identifying the 4-year-old child referred to as the "Boy in the Box" as Joseph Augustus Zarelli.

Who was the boy in the box?

Paulina Borowski, Contributing Writer February 14, 2023

On Feb. 25, 1957, the body of a boy was found in a box at an illegal dumping ground near Susquehanna Road in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  The boy was estimated around 4-7 years old, 30 pounds (malnourished)...

The story of Sylvia Likens is heartbreaking because it was preventable, and everyone involved in the case should be held responsible for this tragedy.

Crime Scenes: Watching it happen

Alayna Trimingham, Copy Editor March 26, 2021

Sylvia Likens was born to fairly poor carnival workers. Her sister, Jenny, had polio and was left with a limp. Sylvia Likens’s mother was arrested for shoplifting in July of 1965. That left their father...

Victim Cindy James knew that her attacker was her ex-husband, but feared the consequences of telling anyone. Some claim her death was a suicide, the facts tell a different story.

Crime Scenes: Blaming the victim

Alayna Trimingham, Copy Editor March 12, 2021

Agnes goes on a visit to her best friend Cindy James at her house. She knocks on the door. When there’s no answer, she lets herself in. Anges assumes Cindy is just taking a bath and can't hear her, until...

The story of Gypsy Rose is a disturbing reminder of how people use and abuse their power over others for their own selfish reasons.

Crime Scenes: When murder is inevitable

Alayna Trimingham, Copy Editor March 5, 2021

Gypsy Rose was as a young sick girl with big glasses and a shaved head in a wheelchair. Her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard, was seen as a loving mother who gave everything to help her sick child. The twist,...

Load More Stories