Metropolitan Police detectives are giving fresh scrutiny to evidence in the unsolved April 1986 killing of Sally Heet, a Capitol Hill press secretary who was found stabbed in her Washington apartment. Investigators say today’s DNA technology and forensic genealogy could finally surface leads that simply did not exist when the case first landed on their desks in the 1980s.
According to NBC News, Detective Todd Williams, who took on the file in 2022 as part of a broader review of sexual assault kits and cold cases, is overseeing new forensic testing and searching for modern DNA matches. The retesting targets material that contemporary lab methods can analyze more sensitively than investigators could nearly four decades ago.
NBC News reports that Williams said it is hard to believe that in 40 years the person responsible has never made any kind of admission to anyone. Family members told the outlet they are still holding out for answers, and former Sen. Daniel J. Evans wrote that he keeps hoping Sally’s killer will be apprehended and that justice would suffice.
Records And Scene Details
According to the Metropolitan Police Department case bulletin, the victim is listed as Sally Swisher Heet. She was found in the 500 block of E Street NE in the early afternoon of April 17, 1986. The bulletin notes that her death was ruled a homicide and that the case carries a reward of up to $25,000 for information that leads to an arrest and conviction. Detectives have reviewed and updated the original investigative file over the years as they reassess the evidence.
Her Career And Memorial Scholarship
Heet was a University of Washington communications graduate who worked in public relations before heading to Capitol Hill. At the time of her death she was serving as a press aide to Sen. Dan Evans, according to the Puget Sound chapter that created a scholarship in her honor. The PRSA Puget Sound chapter continues to award the Sally Heet Memorial Scholarship to students pursuing careers in public relations.
What Retesting Could Produce
MPD cold case guidance explains that detectives systematically review statements, reports and physical evidence to determine whether advanced DNA testing might generate new leads. If retesting produces a usable DNA profile, investigators can compare it against national databases and coordinate with prosecutors and other agencies to follow up. Families are notified of significant developments under the department’s cold case procedure.
Next Steps And How To Help
The Heet case remains open while detectives reanalyze the evidence, and authorities say any new DNA matches or investigative leads will be pursued. Anyone with information about the 1986 homicide is urged to contact the MPD Homicide Branch or the Major Case/Cold Case Squad. Rewards are available for tips that result in an arrest and conviction.
