Professor, Cold Case Team Find Answers in Unsolved Murder
Police have filed charges in a Charlotte murder case that had been cold for nearly three decades, thanks in part to a UNC Charlotte professor and a team of investigators.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police last week served warrants on a suspect in the murder of Tommy Corum, a Charlotte taxi driver who was robbed and shot in January of 1988.
Dr. Vivian Lord, a UNC Charlotte forensic psychologist and interim chair of the School of Social Work, is a member of the cold case team at CMPD.
The team reviews and condenses case files, pointing police toward leads and physical evidence that might hold answers.
Corum was shot and killed in his cab on a snowy night 27 years ago. Though police collected DNA evidence at the time, they were not able to determine a suspect.
That changed last week as police charged 49-year-old Jackie Saunders with robbery and murder in the case based on that same evidence. Saunders is already serving prison time as a habitual felon.
Dr. Lord, the UNC Charlotte professor, said this provides a good example of the justification for investigating cold cases in the first place.
“Some prosecutors may ask why we are investigating cold cases when we have other, newer, crimes to investigate. These things aren’t isolated. The individuals involved are often out there committing other crimes.”
Lord is the only academic on the team. She said she was brought on board because she brings a different perspective to cold case review. She often scans the psychological profile of the victim for clues on potential suspects. The six person CMPD cold case team also includes four retired FBI agents and a former NYPD Captain. Since its organization in 2003, the unit has reviewed 143 cases, leading to 42 case closures and 27 arrests, according to CMPD.
Lord said law enforcement is faced with a dilemma when opening cold cases.
“Departments open their files to criticism and have to be comfortable in what they’ve done and want to get fresh eyes on the case,” she said. “However, cold case teams understand that resources were limited in the early 90s when homicide rates were high.”
She said it is satisfying when a case is resolved.
“The team takes this very personally. These were real people with families. It was very exciting for me to know the family has some closure.”
Dr. Lord has previously been awarded the U.S. Department of Justice Citizen Volunteer Service Award for her work with cold case investigations.
by: Wills Citty
“Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department” by James Willamore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0