Judge Curtis Chillingsworth
In 1955 West Palm Beach Florida was not what it is today. Census records show that in 1955 there were only about 150,000 people in the entire county. In 2004 that number was 1.2 million. There were only two judges on the bench in the county. There was Judge Joseph Peel Jr. who handled more of the civil cases and did things such as signed warrants, and his boss, Judge Curtis Chillingsworth who handled all of the criminal cases in the county. By 1955 Peel and Chillingsworth did not get along very well and while Chillingsworth had recently informed the mayor of his plan to retire soon after nearly three decades on the bench, Peel was apparently on his last career leg. Then, on June 15, 1955 both Judge Chillingsworth and his wife, Marjorie disappeared. They had last been seen the night before at a dinner party. The guests said the Chillingsworth's left the home around 10 pm to head to their home in nearby Manalapan Florida. The following mo...