Sandra Brown was found murdered in Kewanee, Illinois on Thursday afternoon, August 10, 1978. She was 36.
Brown was married with two children at home. She had gone missing late Monday night (8/7) early Tuesday morning (8/8) the week she was found.
She was found with her throat slashed about 1/4 mile north of Kewanee. That site was a couple miles north of her home. Initial reports stated she was found “partially clothed.”
In the 8/12/1978 edition of the Kewanee Star-Courier it was reported Mrs. Brown left her home between 1:00-3:00 a.m to walk the family dog, and she was known to walk the dog in the early morning hours. Her husband reported her missing at 4:30 a.m.
The local newspaper, on October 17, 1978 reported: “Mrs. Brown reportedly left their home (address) to take a walk with the family dog around 11 p.m. Aug 7. According to (her husband) two of their boys went out looking for his wife and returned without finding her around 12:30 a.m. At this time (husband) was asleep and since this type of thing had happened more than once he didn’t immediately suspect anything unusual.”
Local authorities traveled to Texas in 1984 to interview Henry Lee Lucas. A report in 1991 stated authorities might look into Donald Leroy Evans.
One of the officers on the case from the beginning, James Kursock, was quoted in a retirement article in 1994: “I think we know who did it - we just can’t prove it. We still have evidence today that only the police and the person who murdered her know about.”
Despite heavy local media coverage in the days following the murder, there was limited attention given to the case in the ensuing years.
Brown was married with two children at home. She had gone missing late Monday night (8/7) early Tuesday morning (8/8) the week she was found.
She was found with her throat slashed about 1/4 mile north of Kewanee. That site was a couple miles north of her home. Initial reports stated she was found “partially clothed.”
In the 8/12/1978 edition of the Kewanee Star-Courier it was reported Mrs. Brown left her home between 1:00-3:00 a.m to walk the family dog, and she was known to walk the dog in the early morning hours. Her husband reported her missing at 4:30 a.m.
The local newspaper, on October 17, 1978 reported: “Mrs. Brown reportedly left their home (address) to take a walk with the family dog around 11 p.m. Aug 7. According to (her husband) two of their boys went out looking for his wife and returned without finding her around 12:30 a.m. At this time (husband) was asleep and since this type of thing had happened more than once he didn’t immediately suspect anything unusual.”
Local authorities traveled to Texas in 1984 to interview Henry Lee Lucas. A report in 1991 stated authorities might look into Donald Leroy Evans.
One of the officers on the case from the beginning, James Kursock, was quoted in a retirement article in 1994: “I think we know who did it - we just can’t prove it. We still have evidence today that only the police and the person who murdered her know about.”
Despite heavy local media coverage in the days following the murder, there was limited attention given to the case in the ensuing years.
