On September 8, 2023, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office announced that -year-old Keith D. Lindblom was the lead suspect in the October 1978 rape and murder of 16-year-old Krisann Baxter in Spokane, Washington. The case has been cleared by exception due to the death of Lindblom.
On October 4, 1978, Baxter’s remains were discovered under the power lines near Wentworth Drive and Division Street by a power company worker. She had been sexually assaulted, battered to death, and was discovered almost nude. Her brassiere was wrapped around her neck. Baxter’s mother had reported her missing to police on September 30, 1978, stating that she had run away from home.
A DNA sample of the suspect was developed in 2006 from evidence taken at Baxter’s autopsy. It was entered into CODIS, but there were no hits.
The FIGG investigation was conducted by Othram in partnership with the Spokane County Sheriffs’ Office, beginning in early 2021. The final confirmation was made through kinship testing with a sibling of Lindblom, as well as his daughter, who is now living in Louisiana.
Lindblom had been convicted in 1975 of the violent rape of a 16-year-old female in Spokane, near the area where Baxter’s remains were found. Lindblom pled guilty to a lesser charge in return for a sentence of up to 20 years, although he continued to maintain his innocence. He was released on August 7, 1978, after serving less than 3 years in custody – and only a few months before killing Baxter. Police stated that he died in a fire on April 11, 1981.
Henry Lee Lucas confessed to the murder of Baxter, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. However, many of Lucas’ confessions were obtained through improper and outdated police interrogation techniques, and most have now been determined to have been wrongfully made.
Sources:
Connor, Tracy. “It Took 45 Years, but Police Have Solved this Teen’s Murder.” Daily Beast, September 9, 2023. Accessed September 11, 2023. https://www.thedailybeast.com/krisann-baxter-cold-case-spokane-police-say-her-killer-was-keith-lindblom.
Teneyck, Alexa. “Major Crimes Detectives Use Genetic Genealogy to Solve 45-Year-Old Cold Case in Spokane County.” KHQ NBC News, September 8, 2023. Accessed September 11, 2023. https://www.khq.com/news/major-crimes-detectives-use-genetic-genealogy-to-solve-45-year-old-cold-case-in-spokane/article_1db0cdbe-4e8f-11ee-9ae4-4355375ac978.html.
Vogen, Michael. “Spokane County Sheriff’s Office Partners with Othram to Identify the 1978 Murderer of Krisann Baxter.” DNASolves.com, September 8, 2023. Accessed September 11, 2023. https://dnasolves.com/articles/krisann-baxter/.