True Crime On This Day March 27th

March 27th

On March 27th in true crime, cold case murder, gruesome finds, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, massacre, vanished without a trace.

1978

In New York, 28-year-old Beth Ann Brown Patterson was found strangled to death. Her partially clothed body was discovered by two children who were looking for lost puppies.

She was found near a pile of old fence posts in a swampy area behind a chicken coop in Brocton. Her face had been bludgeoned and she had suffered a violent sexual assault.

The murder has never been solved and is currently an active cold case investigation.

1979

In Denver, Colorado, the body of petite 27-year-old flower child Bonita Morgan was discovered behind the Dewitt Hotel.

She had been strangled to death by an unknown assailant and thrown out of the window of one of the hotel rooms. The suspect had then dragged her into an alley behind the hotel and set her on fire.

A suspect was arrested at the time but freed due to lack of evidence. As of 2022, the murder remains unsolved and is an active cold case.

1980

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) is the criminal investigative arm of the state government of Tennessee. The independent agency was founded on this day in 1980.

The TBI now manages the state’s three crime labs, assists local law enforcement in investigating major crimes, and conducts special investigations related to illegal drugs, fugitives, public corruption, organised crime, and domestic terrorism, among others.

The agency now employs over 450 people. Their motto is; ‘That Guilt Shall Not Escape Nor Innocence Suffer.’

1981

In Omashaka, near the Angolan border in South West Africa, an 18-year-old black soldier with the 101 Battalion opened fire in the village, killing eight people with an assault rifle.

He began shooting at shoppers in a trading store before randomly shooting villagers as they sat outside their homes. He was soon wrestled to the ground and arrested.

Along with the eight deaths, 12 people were injured, two of them seriously. The motive behind the attack has long remained unclear.

1982

In Lexington, Kentucky, 25-year-old James Thomas Kinskey disappeared after he was released from Fayette County Jail.

He was last seen hitchhiking on a nearby highway, as he had no vehicle to get home when he was released. His family reported him missing when he failed to return home

Investigators have long suspected foul play but there is no evidence to support it. Despite many John Doe’s being linked to him over the years, no trace of Kinskey has ever been found, dead or alive. His case remains unsolved.

1983

In San Bernardino, California, five-year-old Kelly Austin was found non-responsive in her father’s bed. Despite being rushed to hospital, attempts to revive her were unsuccessful.

At the time, no one was charged with her death, and it was deemed an accidental death, having passed away in her sleep.

In 2003, at the request of Kelly’s mother, the case was re-examined by homicide detectives. Additional interviews were done, however the case stalled when Kelly’s father, Charles Austin could not be located.

During the investigation, medical examiners concluded that Kelly had died of suffocation by smothering. In 2010, a $2million warrant for Charles Austin’s arrest was issued and he was found in Ohio shortly after.

After entering a plea agreement for involuntary manslaughter, and due to minimal evidence available, he was sentenced to just four years in prison.

It was believed he had returned home drunk and tried to quiet Kelly with a pillow.

Check out the Mega List of True Crime Podcasts