Watch: Jerry Burns sentenced to life without parole in Michelle Martinko murder

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Aug. 7, 2020 1:00 pm, Updated: Aug. 7, 2020 5:36 pm

On Friday, Jerry Burns of Manchester was sentenced to life without parole in the death of Michelle Martinko. The video on this page is a replay of the sentencing hearing.

Martinko, a Kennedy High School senior, was stabbed to death Dec. 19, 1979. Police found her body in her family's Buick in a mall parking lot in Cedar Rapids.

The case went unsolved for nearly 39 years until Burns was charged, due in large part to DNA evidence and genetic genealogy. He was arrested Dec. 19, 2018 — on the anniversary of her death.

» WHAT WE KNOW: Key moments in the Michelle Martinko cold case murder investigation

» ALL COVERAGE: Visit our Michelle Martinko page for all of The Gazette's coverage since Burns' arrest

Jerry Burns reacts as he is sentenced at a hearing at the Linn County Courthouse in Cedar Rapids on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. Burns, who was convicted in February of killing Michelle Martinko in 1979, was sentenced to life in prison. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette)

Jerry Burns listens as defense attorney Leon Spies delivers his closing arguments in his trial at the Scott County Courthouse in Davenport on Feb. 24. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette)