Tracey Kirkpatrick: 1989 Frederick Murder and Grand Jury Case

The Tracey Kirkpatrick murder remains unsolved more than 37 years after the 17-year-old honor student was stabbed to death while closing a women’s clothing store in Frederick, Maryland on March 15, 1989. A Frederick County grand jury indicted a suspect in 1994, but prosecutors declined to bring the case to trial, and no one has ever been charged. The Frederick Police Department continues to investigate, and Maryland has no statute of limitations for murder.¹

What Happened on March 15, 1989

Tracey was working the closing shift alone at Aileen Ladies Sportswear, a store in the Westridge Shopping Center along Frederick’s Golden Mile corridor on Route 40.² She was assigned to close the store and reconcile receipts that evening, and was last seen alive around 8:45 p.m.³

About two hours later, a security guard making routine checks noticed the store’s lights still on and the front door unlocked. He went inside and found Tracey’s body in the back storage room between 10:45 and 10:50 p.m. She had been stabbed more than 20 times.⁴ Her parents, Bill and Diane Kirkpatrick, arrived at the mall around 11:00 p.m. after she failed to come home.³

Investigators determined early that robbery was not the motive.⁴

Who Tracey Kirkpatrick Was

Tracey was a middle child in a family that had moved from Pennsylvania to Point of Rocks, Maryland, for her father’s work. She attended Brunswick High School, wrote poetry, loved animals, and had applied to Mount St. Mary’s University with plans to become a lawyer. Her sister Deonda described her as studious and smart. To save for college, she was working two after-school jobs, including the one at Aileen.⁵

The 1994 Grand Jury Indictment

In May 1994, a grand jury heard testimony from 46 witnesses and returned an indictment against a prime suspect described as a former friend and coworker of Tracey’s who had been a 17-year-old Brunswick High School student at the time of the murder. The deputy state’s attorney declined to prosecute, citing concerns about securing a conviction.⁶

Retired Cpl. Bob Servacek, who took over the investigation in 1992, has publicly said he believes the case was effectively solved that year. He said he was convinced the indicted friend and coworker was the killer, and that “based on circumstantial evidence, more than enough evidence exists for an arrest and a conviction.” He alleged “politics and personal agendas” derailed the process and that “certain individuals did not do their jobs,” without publicly identifying anyone.³

Sgt. Andrew Alcorn, who later led the investigation, has characterized the 1994 outcome differently. In 2019 he said, “the grand jury returned the indictment and did not find probable cause for charges. That’s basically why those two were ruled out.”⁵

The “Don” Confession Call

Three months after the murder, a man called a nationwide confession hotline, identified himself as “Don” from Frederick, Maryland, and claimed he had stabbed a girl to death at a ladies’ sportswear store after a conversation turned into an argument. He said he carried a knife at all times and would not turn himself in because Maryland had the death penalty. Police traced the call to a supermarket in Walkersville, about eight miles from the crime scene.³

Around the same time, a psychic named Martha Woodworth told police that a man calling himself “Sean” had been contacting her obsessively about the case and had mailed her newspaper clippings about the murder. The envelope’s return address led to a home in Walkersville, where the resident went by neither name. When police played the hotline tape for Woodworth, she identified the voice as “Sean.” A local radio DJ then broadcast the recording, and three callers independently identified the voice as the same young man from Walkersville.³

A search of his home the next day produced no physical evidence tying him to the scene. He invoked the Fifth Amendment and was eventually cleared as a suspect.³ The original cassette tape of the confession call has since been lost.⁶

Forensic Testing and the Current Investigation

Investigators have returned to the physical evidence as DNA science has advanced. Samples were submitted for testing in 1998 and again in 2003, and in both instances were deemed insufficient to develop a genetic profile. In 2009, touch DNA was sent to a private contractor working with the Maryland State Police.⁶ The Frederick Police Department has used DNA testing to clear several individuals of interest.⁷ Case records indicate investigators currently have suspect DNA, though collection details and analysis results have not been publicly disclosed.

In 2019, the department changed its approach, assembling a team of its most experienced detectives to review the file collectively rather than assigning the case to a single investigator. Sgt. Alcorn said it was the first time in roughly a decade the department had used a group approach for a homicide, and the team was actively interviewing suspects and re-interviewing people connected to Tracey in 1989.⁵ On March 13, 2026, ahead of the 37th anniversary, the Frederick Police Department renewed its public appeal and released a video message asking for new leads.⁴

How to Submit Information

The FBI’s Baltimore Field Office and the Frederick Police Department are still seeking information about the murder.² Because Maryland has no statute of limitations for murder, charges can be filed at any time if sufficient evidence emerges.¹ Metro Crime Stoppers of Maryland is offering a reward of up to $2,000 for information leading to an arrest.⁴ Tips can be submitted by phone at 301-600-8477, by text to 240-674-8477, or online at tips.fbi.gov.

1
FindLaw. Maryland Criminal Statute of Limitations Laws
2
FBI. Tracey Kirkpatrick – Seeking Information
3
Unsolved. Tracey Kirkpatrick
4
City of Frederick. Frederick Police Department Seeks Information in 1989 Homicide
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DC News Now. Police to Employ New Strategy in Tracey Kirkpatrick Cold Case
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Solve the Case. Tracey Lynn Kirkpatrick
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City of Frederick. Frederick Police Department Seeks Information in 1989 Homicide