CLEVELAND, Ohio — With more than a month and a half still left in the year, the number of Cleveland homicides in 2009 is already close to the count for all of last year.
    
The total for this year includes the 11 people whose remains have been found at the home of a suspected serial killer. It's possible some of those found dead at Anthony Sowell's house may have been killed in earlier years, but the coroner's office will count them as 2009 deaths, because this was the year it pronounced them dead.
     
The 11 are among at least 99 homicides in Cleveland so far in 2009. Police reported 102 homicides for 2008.     

This year's killings remain far below the numbers seen in previous decades. Cleveland saw 333 homicides in 1972.

Authorities have identified nine of 11 victims whose remains were found at the Cleveland home of Sowell, who has been charged with five counts of aggravated murder.
     
Tonia Carmichael, 52, of Warrensville Heights, was the first victim identified. Family members say they feared the worst when the first bodies were discovered in the home and backyard. Carmichael was last seen nearly a year ago after telling a friend she was going out for some fun. Her family says she was a crack cocaine addict and claim police didn't pursue her disappearance because of her drug history. 
     
Telacia Fortson, 31, of East Cleveland, disappeared in June. She had three children, but lost custody because of drug use. She still spent time with them and when she didn't show up to braid their hair, family members became alarmed. Fortson also liked arranging flowers and attending church. She was reported missing Oct. 31 after news of the bodies at Sowell's house first emerged.
     
Tishana Culver, 31, of Cleveland, lived a few houses away from Sowell on Imperial Avenue. The mother of four was last seen by her family in June 2008 and was never reported missing. She had several drug convictions and worked as a beautician.
     
Nancy Cobbs, 43, of Cleveland, disappeared in April around the time of her birthday. She was reported missing to Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority police on June 11 and to Cleveland police Nov. 2. She had four children and was living with a daughter about three blocks from Sowell's house. She was a familiar face in the area and had a history of drug abuse.
     
Amelda Hunter, 47, of Cleveland, was a mother of two sons and a daughter. Family members say she vanished last April, and they reported her missing on Nov. 3. Hunter's brother says he had dropped her off in Sowell's neighborhood several times and knows that she drank beer with him in his house. Known to friends as Amy, family members say she loved to read, watch television and work crossword puzzles.
     
Crystal Dozier, 38, of Cleveland, was last seen two years ago in October 2007 and was not reported missing. She lived a few miles away from Sowell's house on the city's east side, but a few years earlier had lived on the same street as the suspect.
     
Michelle Mason, 45, of Cleveland, lived near Sowell's neighborhood and rarely went longer than two days without talking to her family. They went to police Oct. 12, 2008, after not hearing from her for a few days. Her sister says police didn't take it seriously because of her arrest record, even though she had stopped cashing her Social Security checks. Police say they conducted dozens of searches, including near her home and at hospitals.
     
Janice Webb, 48, of Cleveland, often hung out in Sowell's neighborhood. She was last seen on June 3 and her family reported her missing Aug. 2. Cleveland police say they searched for her unsuccessfully by checking with friends and relatives and at area hospitals and shelters. Her sister says she was a loving person who struggled with drug and alcohol addiction. Webb was a mother of one and grandmother of three.
     
Kim Yvette Smith, 44, of Cleveland, was last seen Jan. 1 and was reported missing to police on Nov. 2.

PREVIOUS STORIES:

November 9, 2009: More Bodies Identifed, Search Continues

November 8, 2009: Alleged Serial Killer Rare, Even Among Mass Killers

November 7, 2009: More Bodies Identified From Sowell House

November 5, 2009: First Body Identified
November 4, 2009: Rapist With 10 Bodies At His Ohio Home Denied Bond
November 3, 2009: More Bodies Pulled From Cleveland Home
November 3, 2009: Coroner Working To ID Bodies
November 2, 2009: Probe Focusing on 8 or 9 Women
November 1, 2009: Coroner: 6 Bodies Found At Home
October 31, 2009: Sowell In Custody After 6 Bodies Found At Home
October 31, 2009: Bodies Found In Home

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