Pennsylvania Police Identify James Richard Clark Sr. in 2 1970s Killings via DNA
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Nov 10
Pennsylvania Police Identify James Richard Clark Sr. in 2 1970s Killings via DNA
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Nov 10
Summary
Pennsylvania State Police said DNA evidence identified James Richard Clark Sr., who died in 2023 at 66, as the man who sexually assaulted and strangled Susan Rush, 21, in 1976 and Brenda Ritter, 18, in 1977.
May 2025 testing linked the same unknown male DNA to both crime scenes after Ritter evidence had been sent to the state lab and entered into CODIS, where weekly searches had produced no match.
Investigators said advances at multiple labs, including Cybergenetics and Identifinders International, helped narrow the suspect before later testing confirmed Clark, who was 19 and 20 at the times of the killings.
Police now suspect Clark may have more victims, and a former FBI behavioral analysis consultant said serial killers often remain tied to fewer cases than they actually committed and can go dormant for years.