On August 23, 1972, 19-year-old Jody Loomis left her Bothell, Washington home on her white 10-speed bike to ride her horse, Saudi. She borrowed waffle-stomper boots from her 12-year-old sister Jana. A couple found her gravely injured in woods: shot in head with .22-caliber gun, sexually assaulted, no ID, glasses askew, one boot untied. She died en route to hospital. Theory: Forced at gunpoint, raped, shot while dressing.
Investigation Stalls
Suspects included local ranch owner (prior inappropriate behavior) and wood-chopping tenant, but no witnesses or evidence. Case went cold.
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Breakthrough via DNA
- 2005: Detective Jim Scharf reopens; trace DNA on Jody’s boot yields profile—no CODIS match.
- 2018: Genetic…