Iowa, to Florida. Both were last seen alive in Biloxi, Mississippi. Their disappearances occurred while Schaefer remained free prior to beginning his sentence for the abductions of Trotter and Wells. He is known to have made a long-distance phone call from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to his Florida residence shortly before Goodenough and Wilcox's disappearance, and may have encountered the two while returning to Florida. Their scattered skeletal remains were discovered close to a large tree and an orange crate in January 1977. Both victims had been bound together with baling wire, and impressions upon the tree branches—coupled with the actual positioning of the orange crate—indicate one or both victims had been suspended from the tree as their murderer sat or stood upon the orange crate. Initial imprisonment In December 1972, Schaefer appeared in court in relation to the Trotter and Wells abductions. Due to a plea bargain his attorney strongly recommended he accept, Schaefer was able to plead guilty to just one charge of aggravated assault, for which he received a sentence of one year in jail with the possibility of parole after six months, to be followed by three years' probation. Upon passing sentence on December 22, Judge D. C. Smith lambasted Schaefer, informing him: "It is beyond the court's imagination to conceive how you were such a foolish and astronomic jackass as you were in this case." He allowed Schaefer's formal sentencing to be postponed until "after the holidays", and he began serving his sentence in Martin County jail on January 15, 1973. Upon leaving court on December 22, Schaefer informed several reporters: "I made a stupid mistake. There was no sex involved... no one was hurt." Developments In March 1973, Lucille Place discovered a letter penned by "Jerry Shepherd" in her daughter's bedroom; she drove to the return address upon the letter—333 Martin Avenue in Stuart, Florida—only to learn from the building manager that "Jerry Shepherd" had registered at the property under his real name, Gerard Schaefer, and that he was recently sent to jail for the abduction and attempted hanging of two girls. As Lucille and her husband, Ira, drove around the county, she realized investigators had likely incorrectly noted Schaefer's license plate number as being registered in Pinellas County as opposed to Martin County, given the fact most license plates she observed in Martin County began with "42" and not the "4" of Pinellas County,