50-year-old double murders: serial killer identified

Police have announced that the murders of two young women in Washington County, Pennsylvania, in 1976-77 were committed by a serial killer, nearly 50 years after the crimes.

In 1976, 21-year-old Susan Rush went missing after leaving to meet her family on the night before Thanksgiving; the next morning her brother found her body in the rear compartment of her car. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled, police said.

Six months later, in May 1977, 18-year-old Brenda Ritter was murdered after leaving her boyfriend's house during a storm. Her body was found the next day in a hilly area. She too had been killed in the same manner.

Investigators who examined evidence preserved from both crime scenes with modern DNA technology confirmed that both murders were committed by the same person. Pennsylvania State Police identified the killer as James Richard Clark, who has already died.

In 2025, DNA evidence from both cases was sent to several technology companies, and their analysis linked the two incidents. Clark died naturally in 2023 at the age of 66. He was living in the area at the time of the murders, when he was 19 or 20.

"Once a serial killer, always a serial killer; there could be more victims," said investigating officer James Petrosky. The victims' families have been informed and have asked for privacy. The investigation continues.