Clayton Bernard Foreman was arrested on April 29, 2021 for the January 13, 1995 murder of Mary Catherine Edwards in Beaumont, Texas. Edwards, a popular elementary school teacher, had been handcuffed, sexually assaulted, and drowned in her bathtub. She was found by her parents the next day, when they went to her home to check on her because she was not answering her phone.
A DNA profile of the suspect was developed from semen found on Edwards’ body. There is currently no information on who conducted the FGG investigation. Investigators state that they obtained voluntary DNA samples from 30 relatives in targeted kinship testing to draw out the family tree. Investigators narrowed down the suspect pool to Foreman and his brother. As Foreman had a previous conviction for a similar sexual assault in 1981, investigators focused on him. The initial confirmation was made to the crime scene DNA through the surreptitious sampling of items from Foreman’s garbage.
Both of Foreman’s known victims were high school acquaintances who were sexually assaulted in their homes. During the 1981 sexual assault, Foreman claimed to be a police officer.
Foreman was detained in Franklin County, Ohio, and was extradited to Jefferson County, where he is facing a charge of capital murder in Jefferson County Criminal District Court. It was reported that he refused to leave his cell for the extradition hearing or to attend court.
Foreman was previously convicted of a rape on 1981 in which he pretended to be a police officer and kidnapped a woman who was stranded and seeking assistance. He tied her up and raped her at knifepoint. He was sentenced to three years of probation.
Sources:
Ellsworth, Meagan. “Beaumont Capital Murder Cold Case Set for Review.” Beaumont Enterprise, June 29, 2022. Accessed January 27, 2023. https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/news/article/Beaumont-capital-murder-cold-case-set-for-review-17268557.php.
Eslinger, Scott, and Daniel Brown. “Trash and DNA Evidence Lead to Arrest in 1995 Murder of Beaumont Teacher.” 12 News Now, May 4, 2021. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://www.12newsnow.com/article/news/crime/dna-evidence-leads-to-arrest-1995-murder-of-beaumont-teacher/502-0d52678d-90c7-4588-9c0d-a6870d118155.
James, Jordan, and Scott Eslinger. “Genetic Genealogy is ‘Game Changer’ in Case of Beaumont Teacher Killed in 1995.” MSN News, May 5, 2021. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/genetic-genealogy-is-game-changer-in-case-of-beaumont-teacher-killed-in-1995/ar-BB1gmPUq.
KFDM 6 News. “New Details About Arrest in 1995 Beaumont Teacher Rape and Murder.” KJAS News, May 4, 2021. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://www.kjas.com/news/local_news/article_bb7d3112-ad02-11eb-9dab-539a9a215d55.html.
Luperon, Alberto, and Colin Kalmbacher. “Man Allegedly Refused to Leave Jail Cell for Extradition Hearing in ‘Terrible’ 1995 Cold Case Murder of Teacher.” Law & Crime, May 9, 2021. Accessed May 27, 2023. https://lawandcrime.com/crime/man-allegedly-refused-to-leave-jail-cell-for-extradition-hearing-in-terrible-1995-cold-case-murder-of-teacher/