The 1973 murder of Veda Woodson, a 38-year-old mother of four from Sperry, Oklahoma, was tied by DNA in 2018 to Stanley Clabough, a longtime person of interest first identified during the original investigation. Prosecutors never filed charges, Clabough has since died, and the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office still lists the case as open.
What Happened on July 26, 1973
Woodson finished a janitorial shift at First National Bank in downtown Tulsa around 1:00 a.m. and started the short drive home in her 1958 Chevrolet Bel Air. The car broke down near East 88th Street North and North Cincinnati Avenue, in a rural stretch between Turley and Sperry.1KTUL. TCSO Finds DNA Match in 45-Year-Old Murder Case
Around 2:00 a.m., Sperry police found the Chevrolet on the side of the road. The headlights were still on, the driver’s door was open, and the driver’s window had been shattered.2Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office. Cold Case: Veda Woodson Woodson’s brothers Jack, Orville, and James Barnes joined a search party and found her body in a nearby field. She had been abducted, raped, and strangled.3KJRH. Oklahoma’s Cold Case Files: Who Killed Veda Susie Woodson
Detectives identified Stanley Clabough as a person of interest during the original investigation but could not gather enough evidence to charge him.4News On 6. Evidence Linking Man to 45-Year-Old Cold Case Is Misleading, Relatives Say The case went cold.
The 2018 DNA Match
Tulsa County Sheriff Vic Regalado established a Cold Case Task Force in June 2016, staffed by retired investigators and civilian forensic specialists.5Tulsa County Sheriff’s Foundation. Projects Retired Tulsa Police homicide sergeant Mike Huff led the team, and the Woodson file was among those reopened.6Public Radio Tulsa. Sheriff’s Office Says Cold Case Cleared
Investigators retested preserved evidence from the 1973 scene. A piece of cloth found in a vehicle produced a DNA profile matching Clabough.1KTUL. TCSO Finds DNA Match in 45-Year-Old Murder Case The sheriff’s office announced the match in October 2018. Clabough was then 78 and believed to be living in the Tulsa area.6Public Radio Tulsa. Sheriff’s Office Says Cold Case Cleared
Huff also said the investigation had uncovered evidence that Clabough “shared details of the murder with people in his inner circle,” and he urged those individuals to come forward. Witnesses had reportedly seen Clabough with the vehicle connected to the crime after the murder, changing a tire on it and cleaning it.4News On 6. Evidence Linking Man to 45-Year-Old Cold Case Is Misleading, Relatives Say
Why No Charges Were Filed
The Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office declined to prosecute. Available reporting does not spell out a full rationale, but a sheriff’s investigator identified as Roebuck told KJRH in 2024 that the DNA evidence alone “wasn’t enough to get charges filed.”3KJRH. Oklahoma’s Cold Case Files: Who Killed Veda Susie Woodson
Clabough’s family also pushed back. His daughter, Debbie Pilgrim, told News On 6 the evidence was “misleading” and maintained her father’s innocence. She said Clabough had donated the vehicle to a church weeks before the murder and that she was working to find documentation. Pilgrim also accused investigators of “harassing him and harassing our family.” Huff responded, “We don’t want to disregard anything,” while noting that witness accounts placed Clabough with the car after the killing.4News On 6. Evidence Linking Man to 45-Year-Old Cold Case Is Misleading, Relatives Say No public reporting indicates the church donation records were ever produced.
Why the Case Is Still Open
Clabough died at some point after the 2018 announcement. Officials have said only that he “passed away a few years ago” as of the 2024 coverage; the exact date and circumstances have not been publicly reported.3KJRH. Oklahoma’s Cold Case Files: Who Killed Veda Susie Woodson
His death created a procedural problem. Agencies can typically close a case administratively under a “death of offender” classification, but that protocol requires that formal charges have been filed before the suspect died. Because Clabough was never charged, the sheriff’s office cannot use that mechanism to close the Woodson case.
Woodson’s brother Jack Barnes told KJRH the outcome left him little comfort: “The only satisfaction that I can get out of that he is having the flames of hell lick him right now and he’s burning in hell.”3KJRH. Oklahoma’s Cold Case Files: Who Killed Veda Susie Woodson Her daughter, Marcia Mongold, has said the family will “never stop fighting for justice.”7KTUL. Children of Sperry Woman Killed in 1973 Still Searching for Answers 46 Years Later
How to Submit Information
The case is listed on the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office cold case database and the Tulsa Crime Stoppers website, which maintains an active tip link.8Tulsa Crime Stoppers. Tulsa County Cold Cases The Cold Case Task Force, now led by Sgt. Chris Garrison, is still seeking anyone who heard Clabough discuss his involvement or who has knowledge of others involved.9Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office. Cold Cases Tips can be directed to Sgt. Garrison at (918) 596-5690 or submitted anonymously through Tulsa Crime Stoppers at (918) 596-2677.