Many cold cases that were mysteries years back are being solved today using a modern tool – DNA testing. This involves scanning or testing items that have been in contact with the suspect to find the actual person who committed the crime. One case that DNA testing helped solve was the murder of four women dating from 1980 and 1995. The victims were Kari Lenander, Beverly Cruse, and her sister, Debra Cruse, along with Trina Wilson. The criminal is Billy Ray Richardson, now seventy-five.
Richardson was arrested on July 16th, 2022, after pleading guilty to four counts of murder and related charges. He is now in jail at Tarrant County, Texas. After arresting Richardson, the court attempted to reach the surviving family members of the victims but were unsuccessful.
Kari Lenander’s body was found on July 26th, 1980, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. She was fifteen when she was killed. Officials said she was murdered, and she was the victim of a sexually motivated crime. However, no groundbreaking evidence was found at the scene, so the case went cold. But in 2012, the Los Angeles City Council approved a $50,000 reward is exchange for information on the crime.
At a news conference the same year, Detective Tim Marcia from the Los Angeles Police Department said that he had some “significant leads” about the killing. “But we need a name,” Marcia said. After some investigation, the detective had a fairly promising idea about the crime.
On July 26th, 1980, Lenander was at 15-year-old Toni Garfield’s house, getting ready for a party and drinking tequila. The girls decided to go dancing and hitchhiked on their way back to Garfield’s house. The man who picked them up claimed to be a person called ‘Ken’ that was visiting from Canada. After ‘Ken’ had dropped off Garfield at her house, Lenander claimed she was going to “keep partying” with Ken. The girls were separated at 10 pm, and Lenander’s body was found five hours later.
There was a huge breakthrough in the mid-2000s after a DNA profile confirmed the race of the suspect. It was originally believed that the person who picked the two was white.
However, a test by a private lab determined that the killer was Black. But it is unclear how the role of race played in identifying Richardson, who is Black.
A few months before from Lenander’s case, the bodies of Beverly Cruse, 25, and her sister, Debra Cruse, 22, were found on March 5th, 1980. The bodies were found by their brother in a Los Angeles apartment. He told the police he was visiting the apartment because he had not heard from his sisters for several days. He also said they were shot in the head.
Over 15 years later, Ms. Wilson’s body was found near an Inglewood Park on December 31st, 1995. The situation of the crime was not immediately clear on June 16th. Wilson’s case continues, and Inglewood City has issued a $25,000 reward for information that could lead to the arrest of the suspect.
Richardson was arrested on July 16th, 2022, after pleading guilty to four counts of murder and related charges. He is now in jail at Tarrant County, Texas. After arresting Richardson, the court attempted to reach the surviving family members of the victims but were unsuccessful.
Kari Lenander’s body was found on July 26th, 1980, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. She was fifteen when she was killed. Officials said she was murdered, and she was the victim of a sexually motivated crime. However, no groundbreaking evidence was found at the scene, so the case went cold. But in 2012, the Los Angeles City Council approved a $50,000 reward is exchange for information on the crime.
At a news conference the same year, Detective Tim Marcia from the Los Angeles Police Department said that he had some “significant leads” about the killing. “But we need a name,” Marcia said. After some investigation, the detective had a fairly promising idea about the crime.
On July 26th, 1980, Lenander was at 15-year-old Toni Garfield’s house, getting ready for a party and drinking tequila. The girls decided to go dancing and hitchhiked on their way back to Garfield’s house. The man who picked them up claimed to be a person called ‘Ken’ that was visiting from Canada. After ‘Ken’ had dropped off Garfield at her house, Lenander claimed she was going to “keep partying” with Ken. The girls were separated at 10 pm, and Lenander’s body was found five hours later.
There was a huge breakthrough in the mid-2000s after a DNA profile confirmed the race of the suspect. It was originally believed that the person who picked the two was white.
However, a test by a private lab determined that the killer was Black. But it is unclear how the role of race played in identifying Richardson, who is Black.
A few months before from Lenander’s case, the bodies of Beverly Cruse, 25, and her sister, Debra Cruse, 22, were found on March 5th, 1980. The bodies were found by their brother in a Los Angeles apartment. He told the police he was visiting the apartment because he had not heard from his sisters for several days. He also said they were shot in the head.
Over 15 years later, Ms. Wilson’s body was found near an Inglewood Park on December 31st, 1995. The situation of the crime was not immediately clear on June 16th. Wilson’s case continues, and Inglewood City has issued a $25,000 reward for information that could lead to the arrest of the suspect.
