FBI Identifies Suspect in 1996 Murders of Couple at National Park
After nearly three decades, the FBI has identified a serial rapist as the perpetrator of the 1996 sexual assaults and murders of a young couple at a US national park. Julianne Williams, 24, and her partner Laura Winans, 26, were found brutally murdered on June 1, 1996, at their campsite in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park.
The couple was discovered bound, gagged, and with their throats slashed. The FBI has now confirmed through DNA testing that the culprit was Walter Leo Jackson, a convicted rapist who passed away in an Ohio prison in 2018 at the age of 70.
Investigators have found no evidence to suggest that Williams and Winans were targeted because of their sexual orientation. The couple’s families had reported them missing when they failed to return from their hiking trip. Williams and Winans, both seasoned hikers, were last seen nine days before their bodies were found, accompanied by their golden retriever near Skyline Resort.
In 2021, the FBI reopened the case and reexamined DNA evidence from the crime scene, leading to a match with Jackson. Jackson, a house painter from Cleveland, Ohio, was known to be an avid hiker who frequented Shenandoah National Park. He had a criminal history involving charges of kidnapping, multiple rapes, and assaults.
Stanley Meador, the FBI Richmond special agent in charge, stated, “The DNA results confirmed we had the right man. We can finally inform the victims’ families about who committed this horrendous crime.”
The brutal nature of the murders had initially led to speculation that they were anti-LGBT hate crimes, causing widespread fear and shock in the community. However, US Attorney Christopher Kavanaugh clarified, “While the crime was undoubtedly brutal and hateful, we lack evidence to classify it as a hate crime.”
Previously, Darrell David Rice, a computer programmer from Maryland, was accused and indicted for the murders in 2001. Rice, who had earlier pleaded guilty to an attempted kidnapping of a female bicyclist in the same park, was believed to have targeted the couple due to his animosity towards women and gay individuals. However, forensic evidence ultimately excluded him as a suspect in the murders of Williams and Winans.
The resolution of this case, albeit late, brings a semblance of closure to the families of the victims and underscores the importance of perseverance in investigative work.
