FRANKLIN, Ind. — Seventeen years ago this week, someone killed 10-year-old Blake Dickus and his stepmother, Chynna, in their home in Franklin.
The family of Blake and Chynna said they'd talk about this case every day on the news if they could to make sure the public doesn't forget and to one day find out who's responsible for taking Blake and Chynna away from them.
"We always like for people to remember Blake and remember Chynna and remember they were people, and they were loved by many," family friend John Wales said.
In recent years, it's Wales who goes in front of the cameras to talk about the unsolved case.
Each time, he has the same plea.
"Please, if you know anything, if you know anybody who's heard anything, have them call the tip line," Wales said Tuesday.
Seventeen years later, there are still no answers about who killed Blake and Chynna in their Franklin home, stabbing them to death in the middle of the afternoon.
"Seventeen years have gone by, and it hasn't dulled the pain at all," Wales said.
According to investigators, hundreds of tips have come in over the years about the murders.
At the time this happened, several homes were burglarized within a half-mile of the Dickus home in the Branigan Woods subdivision, including one the same day, right around the corner from the murder scene.
Investigators have said they believe that's an important detail.
In 2018, Franklin police hoped retesting evidence with new advanced technology would finally tell them who was responsible for the murders.
Still, though, no suspects have been found.
Despite that and the time that's gone by, Franklin police do not consider this a cold case and said they continue to work on solving it.
Wales said the family believes that day will come.
"We do know that when an arrest is finally made, it's going to make it even harder initially because you have to relive everything through the court systems and all that kind of thing, but at least at that point, you know that there's an end that's coming," Wales said. "Right now, we don't know when that end is coming, and that's what makes it hard."
Just as hard is not knowing what could have been for two bright lights beloved by those who knew them.
One, a wife, stepmom and daughter. The other, a son and little boy who was supposed to have his whole life ahead of him.
"He might be a father himself if he'd lived this long," Wales said. "For us, he'll forever be 10 years old."
The family established the Blake Dickus Memorial Tip Line Reward Fund, which has reached $25,000. The money in the fund is not just for this case but can be used by the Franklin Police Department for rewards in other cases.
The family and Franklin police ask if you have any information about this case to call their anonymous tip line at 317-346-1100.