Shortly after twelve-thirty a.m. on the morning of Friday, June 15th, 2001, twenty-seven-year-old Jody Burns was making his way down the High Street in Runcorn, Cheshire, England, possibly heading toward a taxi stand.
A massive fight broke out at about one-fifteen a.m. among as many as sixty of the drunken revellers waiting for taxis, and during the fracas, Jody received severe head injuries. He was transported to Whiston Hospital, but died several hours later.
It was believed that the brawl had begun forty-five minutes before the murder at the Bank Chambers pub. CCTV footage appeared to show Jody attempting to break up a fight between an unknown number of individuals. The altercation then reportedly continued as the agitated group made its way to the taxi stand.
From all available evidence, it appeared that Jody himself had never been aggressive or violent and was likely targeted for trying to defuse the situation.
More than two hundred people had witnessed the melee, but none could point out exactly who was responsible for the injuries that killed Jody Burns. Five men were later charged in connection with the fight, but not with perpetrating the fatal blows.
In June of 2021, the twentieth anniversary of the slaying, a renewed appeal for information in the crime was made, but as of this writing in April of 2025, the murder of Jody Burns is still an open investigation.
Crime Immemorial 