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The Murder of Patricia Stichler: Case Closed, But Few Answers
A brutal 1985 killing in Ohio has been cracked by DNA, but the suspect has taken why it happened to his grave.
Authorities in the community of Sylvania in Ohio say they have finally solved a 37-year-old murder case that horrified both family members and police officers alike.
However, news that the only suspect died just four years later — after being under their noses the entire time — is sure to be a bitter pill to swallow.
The evening of New Year’s Day in 1985 was a normal one for 30-year-old Patricia ‘Patty’ Stichler. The single mother had put her three young daughters to bed and was no doubt planning to have a relaxing night to herself after throwing a New Year’s Eve party just a day earlier.
Her middle daughter Kirsten, just nine at the time, recently told 13ABC the only unusual thing about the night was several phone calls being made to the house after they had gone to bed.
“I remember my mom, I can still hear her voice go, ‘Hello? Hello?’ And they were hanging up on us, which had happened quite a bit that night,” she recalled.
Then, sometime around midnight, the unthinkable happened. Someone broke into the house, apparently through a…
