More than four decades after she waited at her West Toledo home for her little sister's arrival after school, Mary Ann Brimmer testified in Lucas County Common Pleas Court Thursday that for the first time, Eileen Adams "didn't come" to the front door.

"I just kept standing at the door, waiting for her," Mrs. Brimmer said Thursday, recalling the cold and rainy day in December, 1967. "…It got to be 6 or 6:30. She'd never done anything like that. Ever."

Mrs. Brimmer, who still lives in the area, was the first witness to testify in the murder trial of Robert Bowman, 75. Charged with murder in the first degree, Bowman is accused of killing the 14-year-old Sylvania Township teenager and dumping her bound body in a frozen Monroe County field.

Mrs. Brimmer shared a slight smile Thursday as she viewed black-and-white photographs of a teenage girl and identified her younger sister. She then recounted how her family had called police shortly after her sister failed to arrive at her home and of the weeks of searching that followed before Miss Adams' body was found on Jan. 31, 1968.

Assistant County Prosecutor J. Christopher Anderson told jurors during opening statements that the case was about a young teenager who was one of eight children and a freshman at Central Catholic High School.

He said Miss Adams was seen on the city bus heading from school toward her sister's home on Dec. 18, 1967. She never made it to her destination.

Weeks later, the teenager's body was discovered about 11 miles away in a Monroe County field, Mr. Anderson said. Her hands were tied, a cord was wrapped around her neck and attached down her back to her ankles, and she was bound in a brown, circular rug, he said.

A 3-inch nail had been pounded into the back of the girl's skull, Mr. Anderson added.

Investigators from Toledo and Monroe County worked together on the case and followed up on dozens of tips.

"But all leads went dry and eventually the case went cold," Mr. Anderson said. "No one was ever arrested for the death of Eileen Adams."

That is until December, 1981, when Bowman's estranged wife, Margaret, went to police "out of the blue" and offered information, Mr. Anderson said. Police pursued the lead to Florida where Bowman was living.

There, they found Bowman and with him, several dolls, Mr. Anderson said. Among those was a Spiderman doll hanging by its ankles from the ceiling with a thread tied around its neck and connected to its feet. Another doll -- the head of a Ken doll -- had a nail protruding from the back of its head.

But with insufficient evidence, the case cooled again, Mr. Anderson told jurors.

In 2006, cold-case detectives once again looked at the file. And, using a reverse paternity test from DNA found in the form of a semen stain on the victim's thermal underwear, an arrest warrant was issued for Bowman.

"Two years later, police find Robert Bowman in Riverside, Calif.," Mr. Anderson said. His DNA was tested and the results indicated that there was a 1 in 4.15 million chance that the semen stain belonged to someone other than Bowman, he added.

Bowman's attorney, Pete Rost, acknowledged in opening statements that there was no dispute that Miss Adams was murdered. But he said the case was not "quite as clear" as presented by the state.

He noted that after the teenager's initial disappearance, her photo and description was highly publicized in the media. And after her body was found, he added, descriptions of her injuries and the bindings used to tie her were also widely publicized.

Dozens, if not hundreds, of tips followed, he told jurors, leading police to interview and investigate many suspects. Robert Bowman, he added, was not among them.

It was not until Bowman started living a more simple life and became involved in an "off-beat religion" and stopped supporting his wife that new information came forward, Mr. Rost said. And when police did eventually question Bowman, "they arrest nobody," he said.

Mr. Rost also asked jurors to be wary of what he characterized as a seemingly large number associated with the DNA results. Instead, he said he believed the jury would eventually conclude that the "number is not that big."

"If you are specific and precise in your deliberations, you'll find that the evidence does not show where Eileen Adams was killed, when she was killed, how she was killed, and who did it," he said.

Also testifying was retired Toledo police Detective Merritt Higbie, who was one of the officers involved in the 1968 homicide investigation. The detective testified that he followed dozens of leads and tips but no viable suspects developed.

He acknowledged when questioned by Mr. Rost that significant details about the condition of the victim's body were disseminated in the media.

He even reviewed past newspaper articles in court to answer questions about the type of information available to the general public, including extent of injuries sustained and the type of materials used to bind the body.

Mr. Rost also questioned the detective about an anonymous letter addressed to the victim and sent to Mrs. Brimmer's West Toledo house after the teenager went missing. The letter, which Detective Higbie read in court, was signed by "your partner" and told Miss Adams to meet at a certain corner at a certain time and to bring "the photos" with her.

The detective testified that he did not recall seeing the letter at the time he worked on the case.

The jury of nine women and three men will continue to hear testimony from witnesses Friday. Judge Gene Zmuda is presiding over the case.

Contact Erica Blake at: eblake@theblade.com or 419-213-2134.

First Published August 12, 2011, 5:12 a.m.