# DNA links deceased trucker to two Pennsylvania murders from 1976 and 1977

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/long-haul-trucker-brutally-murdered-two-women-50-years-ago-in-cold-case-solved-through-dna-technology/
- Published: 2026-11-05T07:02:43+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-05T07:12:28+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16267353/Trucker-murdered-two-women-cold-case-DNA.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: World

## Key points

- DNA linked James Richard Clark to two Pennsylvania murders.
- The victims were killed in 1976 and 1977.
- Clark died in 2023 before police could question him.

## Summary

DNA evidence has linked long-haul trucker James Richard Clark to the murders of Susan Rush and Brenda Ritter in Washington County, Pennsylvania, in 1976 and 1977. The identification, announced by state police on 4 November, resolves two cases that remained unsolved for nearly 50 years, though Clark died before he could be questioned or prosecuted.

Rush, 21, was found in the boot of her car after failing to arrive at a Thanksgiving dinner; Ritter, 18, was found dead after leaving her boyfriend’s home. Investigators submitted DNA from Ritter’s case to the national database CODIS in 2008, but it produced no match for years. Funding in 2021 and 2022 supported further testing, which ultimately linked Clark, who died of natural causes in 2023, to evidence from both cases; police say they have identified no other victims and continue to review evidence.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.