The Unsolved Murder of Jane Prichard

Jane Prichard was 28-year-old botany student studying to earn her Master's degree from the University of Maryland. Her studies often brought her to Blackbird State Forest, an area spanning over 6,000 acres with tons of trees including oak, yellow-poplar, maples, gums, and hickories. Prichard was in the process of studying the little-known hog peanut and how their leaves turned toward the sun. 

It was September 20, 1986, when Prichard was carrying out some more experiments in Blackbird State Forest. Her equipment had been set up and she'd been making entries in her research up until 10 a.m. Then, the entries abruptly stopped. Hikers came across Prichard's semi-nude body later that day. 

Authorities quickly ruled Prichard's death as a homicide, and although someone was arrested and charged, those charges were eventually dropped. Now, almost four decades later, her murder remains unsolved and there are few updates on the case. Who murdered Jane Prichard?

Jane Prichard was born to parents Audrey and Walter Prichard, who still live in the same house where she grew up. They had four children total, with Jane being the second-youngest. She'd always loved the outdoors, according to her older brother Keith Prichard: "She was always an outdoor person." As a child, she had a deep love for horses and nature. 

Prichard was conducting some botany experiments in Blackbird State Forest, located in Smyrna, Delaware. Although she lived in Clarksburg, MD, she often made the roughly 2 hour, 15 minute drive to Blackbird State Forest to conduct experiments and research. Specifically, she was studying a summer vine known as hog peanut or ground bean. 

The next morning, around 7 a.m., Prichard left her friend's place and arrived at Blackbird State Forest a little while later. She parked along Blackbird State Forest Road and then set up her research equipment that extended into the surrounding woods by about 30 yards. 

Namely, Prichard was interested in how plant leaves manage to turn toward the sun. Her research was very thorough, compiling minute-by-minute date for several hours. However, the reading and recordings stopped abruptly right before 10 a.m. that morning. She was never seen alive again. 

On the evening of September 20, 1986, a couple from New Jersey had arrived in Blackbird State Forest for a camping vacation. After they set up their tents, they went for a stroll around the nearby area and stumbled upon a grisly scene: a woman's body. They immediately contacted authorities who came out to investigate. 

Authorities came out to investigate the scene and quickly learned that this was most likely a murder scene. Upon investigation, it seemed that Prichard had been shot in the back with a shotgun. This was not an accidental death, or an animal attack based on the evidence that authorities found. Her body was partially clothed, perhaps suggesting a sexual motivation. Prichard's death was soon ruled a homicide, and a murder investigation began. 

One piece of evidence that was disclosed to the public was a recovered piece of hair. In the mid-80s, DNA testing was in its infancy, but the hair was shipped off to a DNA lab in California for analysis. 

Authorities started asking around for anyone who might've seen or witnessed anything that morning. They ended up interviewing almost 300 people during the course of the investigation. Police also submitted the shotgun pellets to DuPont Company technicians, trying to see if they could learn any additional information about the murder weapon. 

A hunter came forward, saying he'd last seen Prichard alive around 10 a.m. on the morning she was murdered. The hunter was able to describe Prichard's clothing, vehicle, and the scientific equipment she was carrying to conduct her experiments, making him a good witness. 

The hunter stated that he'd been hunting squirrels in the area near Prichard, and he'd seen another hunter nearby. This other man was supposedly the last person that was seen near Prichard before she was murdered. 

"I would never make that mistake again. My advice is, "don't get involved,"" the witness told a news outlet regarding the whole situation. He reportedly lost everything due to his arrest, including his job and his apartment at the time. 

After the case against the squirrel hunter was dropped, the case of Jane Prichard's murder went cold. There have been few updates, although authorities have been submitting what DNA evidence they were able to recover at the time to modern DNA laboratories. So far, none of them have yielded any results or pointed toward who might've murdered Prichard. 

In this case, there are really only two plausible theories about who murdered Jane Prichard: either the witness who came forward did or another, unknown hunter did. An accidental shooting has been ruled out by authorities. 

Many have suggested that the witnesses that came forward with information was the one who killed Prichard. Indeed, he was arrested and charged at one point with the crime, but he was eventually released and the charges were dropped due to lack of evidence. Despite this, some still believe that he was somehow involved. 

New Castle County. One of the cases they planned on re-examining was the murder of Jane Prichard. New Castle County Police Chief Elmer Setting said, "It is our hope that the re-examination of the evidence obtained from this case can help identify and arrest the person responsible for her murder."