Southfield police say new DNA testing and fingerprint analysis solved the 1997 killing of Deborah Renee Kennedy, leading to the arrest of her former neighbor, Robert Joseph Covington, nearly 30 years after the case went cold.
Kennedy, 40, was found stabbed to death in her home in the 24000 block of Lee Baker on Feb. 19, 1997, after she failed to appear at work and a co-worker asked police to check on her. Officers said there were no signs of forced entry, but evidence suggested Kennedy had fought with her attacker before she died.
Southfield Police Chief Elvin Barren said investigators collected evidence at the scene in 1997, including a fingerprint found on a credit card and DNA from fingernail clippings, but the science available then was not enough to identify a suspect. Detective Brian Weeks reopened the case in June 2024, and the evidence was sent for advanced testing, according to Fox2 Detroit.
Police said the newer forensic work linked the fingerprint and DNA to Covington, who had lived across the street from Kennedy at the time of the murder. Barren said Covington is believed to have acted alone, and investigators said they still do not know the motive.
Barren also said Covington left Michigan after the killing, first moving to Arizona and later settling in Royal Lakes, Illinois. Southfield detectives traveled there on Mar. 29 and worked with the Macoupin County Sheriff's Office and the Illinois State Police to locate him, the Macoupin County Sheriff reported.
Authorities said Covington was arrested during a traffic stop and taken into custody after officers coordinated the surveillance operation. He was extradited to Michigan on Apr. 8 and arraigned the next day.
Covington, 58, is charged with felony murder and open murder and is being held without bond in the Oakland County Jail. His next court appearance is set for April 23.
The arrest ended one of Southfield's longest-running unsolved homicide cases and brought a new answer to Kennedy's family after decades of waiting. Police credited the renewed investigation to advances in forensic science that allowed old evidence to be tested again with better results, as per CBS News.
Originally published on Lawyer Herald
