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Pennsylvania Cold Cases

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Pennsylvania Murders

If you want to look further into the number of murders in Pennsylvania by year, you can go to the webpages of several local, state, or federal law enforcement agencies, which frequently share comprehensive crime reports with additional details about the sorts of offenses perpetrated within that area over specific periods of time. Furthermore, you can visit the websites of Pennsylvania’s multiple law enforcement agencies as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which both puts together and releases an annual Uniform Crime Report that includes specific information and statistics about various types of crimes and their crime rates for every state in the United States, as well as many counties and cities within each state.

Another awesome resource at the public’s disposal is Project: Cold Case, who partnered with the Murder Accountability Project to compile a comprehensive list of the statistics of every unsolved murder in every state that was committed between 1980 and 2019. According to this chart, there were approximately 36,094 homicides in Pennsylvania during that 40-year period. On closer inspection, approximately 27,685 of these murders have been solved over the same period, leaving law enforcement agencies with roughly 8,409 unsolved murders in Pennsylvania today, according to the latest website update.

In addition to Project: Cold Case’s website with unsolved homicide statistics, the site also houses a database of nearly 25,000 unsolved murder cases from across the United States. Several additional investigative and law enforcement agencies across Pennsylvania provide their own unsolved case lists. One example of a murder in northern Pennsylvania which remains unsolved that you may be able to find within these lists/databases is the 1997 murder of Clara Roberta Kenvin, in addition to the 1981 disappearance of Lonene Rogers. Other cases that are most often included are the many unsolved central Pennsylvania murders, which include the 1987 murder of Paul Michael “Mickey” Buck, the 2002 hit-and-run murder of Shawn Fosnaught and Scott Baur, the 1993 murder of Stephanie Coyle, and the 1993 double murder of Lynne Marie Stansfield and Dale Gene Wolf. In addition to those, another category which may be included in law enforcement websites as well as within Project: Cold Case’s database are the unsolved murders in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, as well as unsolved murders in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, including the 2019 murder of Tyrone Shaw and the 1979 murder of Susan Reinert.


Unsolved Pennsylvania Murders

As stated previously, not only can you obtain homicide data on different law enforcement websites, you may also discover a complete list of unsolved killings by state on Project: Cold Case’s website. According to Project: Cold Case, there are approximately 8,409 Pennsylvania cold cases, a total that has fallen dramatically as law enforcement continues to examine the unresolved crimes. The majority, if not all, of Pennsylvania’s unsolved homicides can generally be found grouped on the websites of various local and county law enforcement organizations as well.

The 1997 murder of Clara Roberta Kenvin can be found included within these websites, giving an example of the few northern Pennsylvania murders which currently remain unsolved, in addition to the 1981 disappearance of Lonene Rogers. Other examples that are often included within law enforcement lists are several unsolved murders Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, which include the 2019 murder of Tyrone Shawand and the 1979 murder of Susan Reinert. In addition, another category which you can find within the lists of cold cases on law enforcement websites include unsolved murders Pennsylvania. A few examples include the 1970 murder of John Leonard, the 1983 murder of Susan Cerritelli, the 2007 murder of Lee Vanluvender, the 1980 murder of Michelle Farr, and the 1981 murder of Iva Tice, among others.

Joseph Smedley
Joseph SmedleySuspicious Death, 2015
Asha Degree
Asha DegreeMissing, 2000

Consider this

More than 200,000 unsolved cases have gone cold since 1980, and murder clearance rates continue to drop. With equity for BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other underserved victims not prioritized in the true crime community—together we can do better.

Famous Pennsylvania Murders

If you’re interested in true crimes, you’re likely to be interested in unsolved as well as solved crimes, some of which could be included within the lists of all murders in Pennsylvania. Not only could you find both solved and unsolved crimes within a list of Pennsylvania murders or a list of murders in Pennsylvania, but you may also come across famous Pennsylvania murders, notorious Pennsylvania criminals, well-known strange Pennsylvania disappearances, or even notorious Pennsylvania serial killers, on occasion.

A few of the most infamous Pennsylvania murders which are almost always included in these lists, which remain unsolved, are the 1970 murder of Terrence Bowers, the 2002 possibly accidental double murder of Shawn Fosnaught and Scott Baur, the 1993 murder of Stephanie Coyle, and the 1997 murder of Charlotte Fimiano, among countless others. Additional examples of Pennsylvania’s many cold cases include some lesser-known missing persons cases, which could include the 1994 disappearance of Karen Denise Wells, the 2001 disappearance and possible murder of Cindy Song, the 1981 disappearance of Lonene Rogers, the 2005 disappearance of Ray Gricar, and the 1986 disappearance of Michele Jolene Lackey.


Homicide Rate in Pennsylvania

The annual Uniform Crime Reports, released by the FBI, share the number of violent and property crimes in addition to their corresponding crime rates, that take place in most cities and counties throughout every state in the United States, making this just one of the many reasons that the Federal Bureau of Investigation tends to make an amazing tool for people researching true crime. According to their 2019 Uniform Crime Report, the violent crime rate in Pennsylvania was roughly 306.4 incidents per 100,000 inhabitants of the state. Furthermore, the Pennsylvania murders rate in 2019 was around 5.2 per 100,000 people, implying that around 5 individuals out of every 100,000 people in the state were killed that year.

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania’s capital city, has a population of far more than 49,000 people. According to different sources, the violent crime rate in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 2018 was 1,080 per 100,000 people, whereas the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, murders rate was sitting at around 30.52 per 100,000 residents of the city. We can search through archived Uniform Crime Reports which have previously been produced by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as several Pennsylvania law enforcement agencies to evaluate current crime trends, regardless of the fact that we cannot yet establish how many murders in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 2021 or how many murders in Pennsylvania 2021.


Dauphin County Murders

Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, has a total population of over 281,000 inhabitants as of the most recent census. With regard to an overall average violent crime and homicide rate, there are seemingly fewer homicides that go unresolved for extended amounts of time than those that are committed in several other states. Though we don’t exactly know how many Dauphin County murders have happened in recent times, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s yearly Uniform Crime Reports can provide some reliable insight into the state’s crime trends. Based on the figures provided, it appears that the frequency of homicides in Dauphin County per year has been remaining stable for an extended period of time.

Occasionally, homicide investigators can acquire an adequate amount of Dauphin County murders evidence to detain and prosecute their suspected killer prior to bringing them to Dauphin County murders trial. Depending on the circumstances of the crime, the far more typical forms of evidence presented in Dauphin County homicide cases are DNA evidence, trace evidence, physiological or biological evidence, and even Dauphin County murders crime scene photos.


Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Murders

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, murders are apparently more common than many towns in Pennsylvania, probably due to its semi-large size and population, excluding several of the state’s largest cities such as Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. As we can see from Pennsylvania’s murder clearance rate, which Project: Cold Case estimates to be around 67%, most of the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, murders that are committed are resolved quickly, thanks in part to law enforcement efforts in addition to improvements in forensic technology. Of course, authorities continue to investigate the remaining unsolved murders which have occurred throughout the state. As in any other state, Harrisburg murders discussion continues tirelessly on many popular social media platforms, presumably until all of the state’s murders and disappearances are solved. Facebook, Websleuths, and Reddit are among a few of the most popular within the true crime community, where millions of users come together every day to speculate, share theories and information, and have conversations about every detail of a case, often with examples such as Harrisburg murders pictures, Harrisburg murders crime scene photos, and occasionally even Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, murders autopsy photos.

Thanks to breakthrough improvements in DNA technology and other forms of forensic technology, the entire United States has seen thousands of cold cases of every age be solved. Some examples of the several cold cases in which Harrisburg murders DNA or DNA from crimes which occurred in other parts of Pennsylvania has been used to solve cold cases include the following: the 1987 murder of Edna Laughman, the 1976 murder of Evelyn Colon and her unborn child, the 1991 murder of Denise Sharon Kulb, and the 1992 murder of Christy Mirack.


Pennsylvania Serial Killers

If you have a fascination or interest in the true crime genre, odds are you’re at least somewhat interested in serial killers as well. If you’ve ever glanced through a serial killer list, you may well have come across several of the numerous Pennsylvania serial killers without recognizing their identities. Shockingly, there are far more Pennsylvania serial killers than you may expect, and you can read more about them by searching for a list of serial killers in Pennsylvania or Pennsylvania serial killer list.

Some of the most notorious Pennsylvania serial killers whom you may find most often within these lists include the following: Edward Surratt, who is believed to have killed 1-18+ people from 1977-1978 and who has confessed to 6 murders in Pennsylvania; Joseph “Joey” Miller, who murdered 5 women from 1986-1990; Charles Edmund Cullen, a nurse who killed between 29 and 45 people from 1984-2003 in Pennsylvania and New Jersey; and Herman Webster Mudgett, better known as “Dr. H. H. Holmes”, who killed at least 27 men, women, and children from 1886-1894 in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, and Canada.


Crimes in Pennsylvania

The Murder Accountability Project, Project: Cold Case, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are all excellent resources for learning more about crime in Pennsylvania, specifically crime statistics in Pennsylvania. The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, for example, can give you insight into the crime rates, number, and locations where different types of crimes are most commonly committed, and Project: Cold Case’s growing database and statistics webpage offers a clear list and look into the progress that each U.S. state has made with their cold cases in a 40-year time period.

Although it may seem as if Pennsylvania may never be able to close all Pennsylvania homicides or true crime stories in Pennsylvania, just think of how far they have come in recent history. To summarize, there were approximately 36,094 murders in Pennsylvania in the 40-year time span of 1980-2019. Since then, roughly 27,685 of those same cases have been solved, leaving approximately 8,490 unsolved murders in Pennsylvania today. The progress that has been made in recent years is thanks to breakthroughs in forensic technology, forensic and law enforcement protocol, as well as to law enforcement’s efforts and determination to close cases, in even some of the most difficult or time-consuming cold cases. In the end, authorities within multiple Pennsylvania law enforcement and investigating agencies across the state will continuously investigate the remaining cold cases, until they are finally able to solve all of Pennsylvania’s true crimes.


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Additional Pennsylvania Cold Cases

Clarke AcheyJoseph AdamoKaren AdamsHamza AliSharon AllisonRobert AllisonFranchesca AlvaradoValentin Alvarez-MarinezJoann AngelJoel ArizaAndrew ArmstrongWayne ArnoldDeborah ArvanitesArnold AustinMichael AuteriMichael AvicolliMary Ann BagenstoseSandra BakerDennis BaloghJeanine BarnwellRobert BaronJamie BarreraEugene BartlebaughJohn BealerJohn BeanTyrese BeattyAdriana BejaranoPerry BellaireCharles BeltzThomas BendigMichelle BenjaminWaseem BennettJohn BennisJoseph BertonePaul BilodeauIra BishopKatherine BitterBelinda BlaniarSap BobbiShane BooneAlice BoronHughles BowenElsie BrackAmy BrackenGenelle BradfordPaula BraimDavid BrantonTrish BrennanOren BreymeierNina BrisboisAllen BriscoeEdward BrooksRandall BrosiusFrank BrownMamie BrownDevin Brown-BousettaNicole BrynerTerrie BuhrmanAlex BuonassisiJay BurnsJarrett BurtonChristopher BushTracy ByrdDaniel CahillIlonka CannAnthony CapassoEmerson CarbaughYahira Cardona-SantiagoCarlos Castillo SagastumeSusan CerritelliSterling ChatmaStacy ChildsJohn Chocha, Jr.Dominique ChrisholmJesse ChristensenMarie ColemanBrenda CondonMary ConradJesse Conway jrFrederick CooleBryanna Lynn Cooper RosendoRoosevelt CopesAlbert CopperElias CorderoNiija CouncilErnestine CovingtonAndrea CoyleHelen CraigChristina CrespoTimothy CrissmanEverett CrowleyDavid CruzCheryl CunhaDavid CunilleraJon DabkowskiCarola DavenportLisa DavisCheryl DeBalsoAmanda DeguioEileen DeHartKatherine DemianczykJustin DemkoGlenn DillingStar DodsonAngel DonahueBarry DouglasChleise DrewDanielle DrozdowskiJeanette DuPriestWendy EatonCorey EdkinErnest EdmondsRobin EllisThomas EsbensenKenisha EzellTravis FanningJesse FarberMichele FawcettNichole FisherBryan FisherGerald Flango JrCharles FletcherNellie FlickingerEdward FonderDorothy ForsteinLarry FowkesInisha FowlerIvon FowlerRashan FrancisDavid FrasierAnthony GarciaRoosevelt GastonNeilsa GerenaMatthew GiangiulioJames GibsonGary GilliamsWilliam GilmerArnold GiovanettiJessica GoldsworthyPamela GravesLonnie GreenTimothy GreenChristine GreenAaron GreenRanee GregorWilliam GregoryRay GricarHolly GrimAda GroomesCassandra GrossKimberley GsellCameron HardmanJames HarigJennings HartJeffry HartDavid HartLisa HatchellThomas HaydenThomas HearnDion HenryJonthan HepnerJose HerranJames HerringWilliam Alfred HigginsJason HigginsGloria High HawkMeng HoJason HoffmanClinton HolderNorris HopkinsonSandra HoplerJohn HornDavid Horn, JrMichael HuberBrianna HughesStephanie HunsbergerEdward HunsbergerShirley HymanCheryl Ann IacovoneDanielle ImboLauren JacksonErik JacksonLonnett JacksonRobert JacobsRevell JeeterMichael JeffreysCynthia JenkinsCharles JohnsonSherline JohnsonByron JonesSheila JonesKatherine JonesTyson JonesSabrina KahlerAlivia KailALY KamelAndrew KarisAlvin KayserHorng-Chang KeRobert KeckGeorge KellyKathleen KellyRyan KempDale KerstetterFrances KieferHee KimTracy KingEulace KingMichael KingAnne KirraneAngella KisloHarry KleinWilliam KolishWalter KolodzieskiPatricia KoptaGloria KorzonJames KosJoseph Krainak, Jr.Marcella KrulceBenjamin KrupinskiRobert KrzywickiEvan KudlajevMichelle LakeyTik LamElizabeth LandeJohn LangoMarilyn LanierJerome LawrenceWalter LawtonKaitlyn LeddyBunnie LeeHeike LeichKristin LeonettiStephen LeporeKevin LewisJames LewisSandra LiebermanMyles LightnerChaloe LongJoel LopezMariela Lopez EscalanteDiana LucasShelley LutyAdam MachinskyAnna MaciejewskaLouis MackerleyCherrie MahanWilliam MajewskiJohn MalchonJoseph MalinoskyMichael MalinowskiMyra ManleyJohn MannJerry MansekEdward MapsAlicia MarkovichCathleen MartinWilliam MatczkAmy MatthewsYvens MayalaKelly McBrideMonique McClellandMichael McCoolDonald McCormickDavid McentireSteven McewenAmy McHaleJames McLaughlinToni McNatt-ChiappettaWilliam McSorleyCarmen MeirinoLeandro Mejia-YatMeylin Mendez ErazoIrene Mendez SalesMartha MertzMary MikulakBarbara MillerAngela MillerMaria MillerDiana MillerStefanie MillsGabriel MinarcinKathleen MohnDelores MooreFrederick MooreTayna MoralesAnastasia MoralesJerome MorrisWilliam MorseBenjamin MosserFawn MountainGreg MoyerAesha MuhammadWilliam MullerFernando MunizMark MurincsakJohn MurleySeth MuskettTracy MyersMichelle NauMarion NazaireJustin NearhoodVirgie NowellKaylene OehlingJoey OffuttAmy OkaneSindrell OliverEdwina OnyangoBrian PerlishMatthew PerryElias Pery Jr.Marc PetersJamie PetersonRichard PetroneTianna PhillipsRaymond PolandTamara PorrinEduardo PortelaJill PrimaveraMaria ProcopioAmy PugnerEric PylesQi QinVernon Quarles IIMaria Quinones-GarciaShelva RafteWilliam RameyRichard RedzichRex ReichertMichele ReidenbachMichael ReinertKaren ReinertTeresa RhodesAnne RigginEstefani RivadeneyraKatelyn Rivera-HeltonLaRessa RobinsonWilliam RobinsonAlicea RodgersBernadette RodkoAnthony RodriguezMelissa RodriguezJuan Victo RodriguezJacob RogersLonene RogersRosemarie RoginskiPatrick RohalMario RossiSerinidy RuckerEarle RussellRandy RutterNayelis SanchezNicole Santa-CruzJacqueline SantanaCarmen SantiagoNicolas SantinEllisya SantosoGeorge SavopolisCarl Schauber IiiEdward SchmeisserMarcus SchoenerTerrance SchramAnita ScottDiane ScottAgnes SeamanPatricia SeelbaughRabihan SeidersDonald ShaferDamien SharpLeatha SharperToni SharplessBeverly SharpmanKathleen SheaJulia ShimkusJessi ShortKenneth Show Jr.Janet ShuglieMarisa ShuglieBarbara ShumacWilfred SimmsJacqueline SimpsonJoseph SireciTerry SlaugenhouptDonald SmatlakTimothy SmithJasmaine SmithBrenwanda SmithMelvin SnyderHerbert SnyderHyun Jong SongJoseph SpernakDoris StalkerKenneth Stebler JrLamar StellfoxCassandra StingerChristopher StoryKortne StoufferEdmond SweeneyTanya TarasDaniel TesfamariamJohn ThistlewoodPhylicia ThomasLaura ThompsonEdna ThorneJamie ThorntonJilly TodaroWilliam ToneyHeriberto TorrensVerna TownsendRebecca TriskaAnthony TumoloAaron TurnerTonee TurnerRichard TurtonKe'Shaun VanderhorstKatherine VandineAntonio VegaAliyah VegaMary Ann VerdecchiaPhuong VoAndriene WalkerTerry WallaceJanet WalshMelvin WashingtonTerry WatfordKaren WellsYiear WestMarjorie WestRonald WestoverMurshin WhaleyBradley WhiteSally WhiteSteven Whitenight JrDasia WhittakerMariamu WilliamJoanne WilliamsDorothy WilliamsKenneth Williams Jr.Sparky WilsonAdrienne WitherspoonDiane WolfRobert WoodsConstance WootenShane WorkmanPaul WrightFeng YeAgnes YoungRashid YoungJames ZamichieliStephen ZieglerMaria Zimmerman