How the Suspect in Mollie Tibbetts' Death Built a Life in an Iowa Farm Town
Photo by Jim Slosiarek, courtesy of The New York Times
For three days, I criss-crossed rural Brooklyn, Iowa, and the surrounding countryside, talking with people for this piece about the murder of college student Mollie Tibbetts. Making the case potentially more controversial: Her accused killer was an undocumented immigrant who worked for a local dairy farm. But most surprised me with their responses about an immigrant population they needed and shared life with.