Families still waiting for answers in Massachusetts homicide cases are putting their grief behind a proposed state overhaul that would give cold cases a dedicated review process. Supporters say the measure could keep old investigations from becoming permanent dead ends.
The campaign was highlighted Friday by NBC Boston, which reported that relatives of homicide victims are urging lawmakers to back the proposal. Their message is simple: When a case stalls for years, families should have a formal way to seek a fresh, expert review.
What Massachusetts’ Unsolved Homicide Bill Would Create
Senate bill S.2174 would establish an Office of Unsolved Homicides inside the Massachusetts attorney general’s office. Under the proposal, immediate family members could petition the office once a homicide had gone unsolved for more than three years, asking officials to determine whether a full reinvestigation could produce new leads or identify a likely perpetrator, according to the Massachusetts Legislature.
The companion House measure, H.4114, lays out a statewide task force that would bring together investigators, forensic scientists, crime analysts, victim advocates and defense attorneys. The bill also calls for a confidential tip line, an unsolved-homicide database and annual reporting on cases reviewed, arrests, prosecutions and other outcomes, as detailed by the Massachusetts Legislature.
The Senate version was reported favorably in July 2025 and referred to the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, while the House version remains listed with the Judiciary Committee after a hearing was scheduled last year. In other words, the proposal has moved through committee review but has not yet become Massachusetts law.
Families Have Been Asking For More Than Memorials
The latest push follows years of advocacy by homicide survivors who say recognition is not the same thing as resolution. During a 2025 State House ceremony, families and advocates endorsed legislation aimed at creating a statewide system for unsolved homicides, according to The Boston Globe.
Boston has its own long list of cases that continue to haunt relatives and neighborhoods. In one recent example, the 2019 killing of Dorchester youth mentor Kendric Price remains unsolved, with his family still urging anyone with information to come forward, as previously reported by Hoodline.
There is also evidence that old Massachusetts cases can still move when investigators revisit evidence with newer tools. In July, the Hampden District Attorney’s Office said DNA evidence helped identify the person responsible for the 1995 killing of Celestina Perez in Springfield, although the suspect had died years earlier, according to NBC Boston.
The Bill’s Next Test Is Beacon Hill
For now, local police departments and district attorneys remain responsible for their own unsolved homicide investigations. Boston already maintains an Unsolved Homicide Squad and a case archive, but supporters of the legislation want a statewide structure that gives families a consistent path to request reviews and keeps agencies working from the same pool of information.
That would not guarantee an arrest or solve every cold case. It would, however, give families something they say is missing now: a clear process for asking whether evidence, witnesses or investigative steps deserve another look.
