Suvechha Sarkar
The residents of the quiet town of Carlsbad, New Mexico, were rocked to their core in November 1987 when 38-year-old Donna Sue Hyatt was found dead in her home. She was a devoted mother and a loving member of the community. Investigation Discovery’s ‘On the Case with Paula Zahn: Evil at Its Highest Point’ sheds light on the circumstances that led to the murder and how the suspected killer was identified after more than three decades. It also features the emotional interview of her daughter and the officials who worked tirelessly to solve the case.
Donna Sue Hyatt Was Found Dead in Her New Mexico Home
Donna Sue Black was born in Carlsbad, New Mexico, on August 28, 1948. She arrived as a ray of sunshine in the lives of her parents, Roger Marvin and Sybil Lunsford Black. Growing up, she never faced the absence of love in her household from her parents and her sisters, Marlene and Sandra. Her loved ones often described her as someone kind with a very outgoing personality. After completing her initial education at the local schools, Donna proceeded to pursue higher studies at New Mexico State University. A woman of faith, she was involved with the Christian Women’s Club and First Baptist Church as a member. Eventually, Donna got married and welcomed her daughters, Angela Hulsey and Michelle Perry, into the world. According to Michelle, tragedy struck when Donna’s husband suddenly passed away.
Michelle stated that Donna worked through her grief and bravely took on the role of a single mother. She was always present in her daughters’ lives and ensured they never felt alone. By 1987, she was living with her daughter, Angela, at her residence on Elm Street in Carlsbad. On July 8, 1987, Angela had just returned home with her boyfriend, but to her shock, she discovered Donna lying on the living room floor. Her boyfriend quickly called 911 to inform officials about the situation. When they arrived, they found Donna dead. They noted that she had been beaten and had multiple stab wounds. Since there were no signs of forced entry, detectives deduced that the killer was someone she knew. Donna’s house key was reportedly lying near her, which indicated that she was attacked right after entering the home.
A trail of blood led the officials to the kitchen, where they discovered a bloody hand smear on the light switch. Furthermore, they noticed a knife was missing from the utensil drawer. They also saw a brown bag with a receipt inside it. Upon checking the backyard, they found a shoe impression in the dirt and a fence area that seemed pushed down and had blood on it. The investigators reportedly believed that Donna likely had let the killer in, who escaped from the front door and then the backyard on foot. The autopsy revealed that there was semen in her inner thighs. A rape kit test further confirmed that she was sexually assaulted. Apart from multiple stab wounds, Donna sustained blunt force trauma to the head and neck and a broken hyoid bone due to strangulation. Her cause of death was reportedly determined to be a combination of those factors.
Genetic Genealogy Linked the Murder to a Suspect After Over 3 Decades
Investigators initially questioned Angela, who informed them that she and Donna had argued about finances around 8:30 pm on July 8, 1987. She said that after the incident, her mother grabbed her purse and stormed out. Police reports stated that Donna was at the house for another 15 minutes before she called her boyfriend and left. When she returned around 11:40 pm, she discovered Donna on the floor. Officials reportedly learned from several witnesses that they heard someone running through an alleyway around 10:30 pm. Only one of the witnesses described seeing a tall and thin guy wearing shorts and a white shirt. One of Donna’s friends told the detectives that the 38-year-old had met a guy named Andrew earlier that day in a salon and had given him her number and address.
However, Andrew was soon ruled out as a suspect when officials tracked him down and checked his alibi. Angela and several people from Donna’s close circle were also dismissed as suspects after their alibis were verified. Detectives then checked the receipt found at the scene, which had the time of 9:13 pm, indicating that Donna went out that day, just like Angela mentioned. It was from a local convenience store, so the store clerk was interrogated. According to reports, the store clerk claimed that on July 8, Donna didn’t come in alone. He continued that she came with a guy, and he believed their conversation was allegedly friendly. However, the clerk claimed that Donna and the guy had seemingly met for the first time. The man was reportedly described as someone tall and thin, with brown to blondish hair and lighter eyes, which were not brown.
Since the description matched the one they received from the first witness, detectives made a composite sketch of the individual. Although it was released to the public, the case eventually grew cold with no further leads. More than a decade later, they used the DNA swab taken from the crime scene and entered the profile into CODIS, but unfortunately, it provided no matches. In 2020, new investigators from the cold case unit used genealogy to create the suspect’s family tree. Ultimately, it led them to Michael Ruff Wigley, who was an enlisted soldier in the army. Reports state that following a dishonorable discharge, he was convicted of raping a woman and was released after serving just five years of his 12-year sentence in the mid-1980s. Officials reportedly found out that Michael was released 18 months before Donna’s murder.
The Suspected Killer Died in a Car Crash Two Years After the Murder
Police records state that Michael had a family that lived in Carlsbad, so he lived there for a short while. However, as officials followed up on his whereabouts, they discovered that he was reportedly involved in a car crash on a train track and passed away in October 1989. They decided to team up with the Othram genealogy lab and reportedly obtained a search warrant to exhume Michael’s remains. His DNA sample was then compared to the one found at the scene. On April 11, 2023, the authorities announced that his DNA was a perfect match with the profile left at the crime scene, and they publicly identified him as the suspect. Although law enforcement succeeded in identifying the alleged killer after 36 years, he never got to stand on trial due to his death.
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