Jeanette Ralston’s killer eluded justice for 47 years — until forensic science caught up.
- A fingerprint on a cigarette pack led to the arrest of Willie Eugene Sims for the 1977 murder of Jeanette Ralston in San Jose
- Ralston, 24, was found strangled and sexually assaulted in her car after leaving a local bar
- Sims was extradited from Ohio and is being held without bail
Nearly 50 years after 24-year-old Jeanette Ralston was found strangled in the back seat of her Volkswagen Beetle, an Ohio man has been charged with her 1977 murder — thanks to a fingerprint left on a pack of Eve cigarettes.
Willie Eugene Sims, 69, was taken into custody in Ohio and charged with Ralston’s killing after a breakthrough in the case linked him to evidence long stored but never matched — until now, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
“Last year, we threw a Hail Mary by running all of the prints from the crime scene through the FBI database one last time,” said Rob Baker, Deputy District Attorney…