Killer's Discarded Napkin Helps Cops Solve 32-Year-Old Murder Case of Little Girl
Three decades after 12-year-old Michella Welch was murdered in Tacoma, Washington, police have finally cracked the cold case.
What started as an innocent day in the park in 1986 soon turned into a nightmare for the Welch family. Michella had been playing with her sisters in a park when she decided to ride her bike back home to make some sandwiches for her siblings.
Sadly, when her sisters got to the picnic table where they’d planned to enjoy their meal, all they found was her bike and the sandwiches. Michella had vanished entirely.
Police later found her body in a gully not far away, and it was evident that someone had sexually assaulted her before murdering her. But they never identified the perpetrator — until now.
How did the Tacoma Police Department unearth the killer over three decades later? It was a combination of old-fashioned investigative work and DNA-based technology.
Authorities managed to craft a DNA profile of the perpetrator in 1986, a rough genetic sketch that allowed them to winnow the suspects down to two brothers who had lived in the area during the time of the murder. An investigator tailed one of them — 66-year-old Gary Hartman — to a diner where he was eating lunch.
He watched as Hartman wiped his mouth with a napkin multiple times and then secured the napkin once the suspect had left the diner. That DNA sample matched material found at the crime scene.
Hartman was promptly arrested the next day and held on a $5 million bail. He has entered a not-guilty plea.
Bryan Hershman, Hartman’s attorney, has reminded The Washington Post that “he is claiming, and he is entitled to the presumption of innocence.” True enough, but Tacoma Police Chief Donald Ramsdell also shared a message with perpetrators who believe they’ve gotten away with their crimes.
“If you think you can run, you’re wrong,” he said. “If you think you can hide, you’re wrong.
“If you think that the Tacoma Police Department is going to give up, you’re wrong. The Tacoma Police Department will never give up.”
Michella’s sister saw Hartman’s arrest both as a sign of justice and a prompt for personal improvement.
“Since Michella didn’t get to live her life out, I want to live my life out for good. (Hartman’s) choices will hopefully put him behind bars and where I think he should live the rest of his life,” she said.
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