After three decades of uncertainty and dead ends, a cold case involving a fatal hit-and-run in Charlotte has finally seen a dramatic breakthrough, courtesy of DNA technology. The 34-year-old case, centered around the tragic incident that occurred on December 29, 1989, claimed the life of Mrs. Ruth Buchanan, aged 52 at the time of her untimely death. She was hit by a vehicle that notoriously sped away without offering aid, leaving her with serious injuries that led to her passing the following day. This information emerged from the archives of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD), which has been instrumental in the recent development.
The years that followed the incident were marked by witness accounts that provided authorities with a description and license plate of the dark-colored vehicle involved. Found on South Tryon St., the blue 1990 Mitsubishi Galant, reported stolen from a local dealership, was discovered by officers responding to a suspicious vehicle call. But despite recovering physical evidence and the vehicle tag number reported by the witnesses, the investigators hit a wall due to insufficient evidence.
It wasn't until 2022 that a glimmer of hope flickered for the case when a Crime Stoppers tip pointed to a potential suspect. Unfortunately, this lead proved unfruitful, as the implicated individual was later cleared of involvement in the incident. The CMPD's dedication to the case, however, never waned with the Crime Lab's subsequent effort and analysis of evidence held in an evidence lockup that mapped a new course for the investigation, revealing Mr. Herbert Stanback, 68, as the suspect in Mrs. Buchanan's death. At the time of his identification, Mr. Stanback was serving a sentence in the Scotland Correctional Institution for unrelated crimes.
The CMPD revealed in an interview that Stanback admitted to being the driver who struck Mrs. Buchanan back in 1989, during the time he was part of a work-release program at the Charlotte Correctional Facility. Stanback, who was inexplicably able to elude the hands of justice for the hit and run for over three decades, was formally charged in June 2024 after being transported to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office from his current place of confinement. Mrs. Buchanan's son was given the long-awaited news of the arrest, as reported by the CMPD.
This closure comes as a result of the unwavering persistence of the CMPD Major Crash Investigation Unit, CMPD Crime Lab, CMPD Homicide Unit, CMPD Cold Case Review Team, District Attorney’s Office, NC Department of Corrections, and the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), reaffirming the potential of DNA technology in solving crimes that once felt as if they were beyond the reach of retribution and justice.
