A photo published Tuesday by NOLA.com has pushed a long‑dormant New Orleans homicide back into the spotlight, drawing fresh attention to the 1981 fatal stabbing of Donald Faul on the riverfront Moonwalk at the foot of St. Peter and Decatur. The killing, which unfolded in the early hours of Jan. 25, 1981, is still listed as an open and unsolved homicide in public records.
What Modern Reporting And Case Files Show
According to NOLA.com, Faul was found fatally stabbed on the steps of the Moonwalk on Jan. 25, 1981, and the outlet published a photo and brief case note on May 12, 2026. The case is also listed in national cold‑case records: the Project Cold Case Database records the killing as unsolved and gives an incident location of 5660 St. Peter Street, highlighting a small discrepancy between contemporary databases and historical reporting about where the attack took place.
Family Material And Early Leads
Family‑supplied material and a case summary reproduced online by Defrosting Cold Cases include photographs and suspect sketches circulated in 1981. That write‑up says a witness described the attacker as a slim, fair‑skinned man wearing a cowboy‑style hat and a jacket with flap pockets. The sketches and early reporting originally appeared in The Times‑Picayune, according to the post.
Why Decades‑Old Killings Sometimes Stay Open
New Orleans has long struggled with low homicide arrest rates and heavy detective caseloads, a combination that researchers and policing sources say feeds a backlog of older files. An analysis by The Washington Post of big‑city homicide divisions found that New Orleans made arrests in roughly a third of homicides in its study and had among the highest caseloads per detective, a pattern that helps explain why some killings from the early 1980s remain unsolved.
How To Contact Police With Tips
Anyone with possible information about Faul’s death can contact the New Orleans Police Department Homicide Section at 504‑658‑5300, or submit an anonymous tip to Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans at 504‑822‑1111, according to official NOPD notices. Even small details, such as a name, a photo, or an old memory, can help generate a lead in a long‑dormant case file.
A Victim Remembered
Donald Cedric Faul was 30 when he was killed, according to family material reproduced online, and his death on Jan. 25, 1981, still appears on cold‑case lists. Family members and advocates hope that renewed attention, including the recent NOLA.com image, will surface new information for investigators who continue to keep the file open.
