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Who
Killed Rhonda Hinson?
The most investigated case in the history of the Burke
County Sheriff's Office remains unsolved. The shooting death of Rhonda
Annette Hinson, an attractive 19-year old from
Valdese, continues to frustrate detectives assigned to solving a crime
which has no apparent motive.
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On the evening of Tuesday, December 22, 1981, Rhonda attended
her office's (Hickory Steel Company) Christmas party at the American Legion
Hut in Hickory. After leaving the party around midnight, she stopped by a
friend's house to pick up her vehicle and call her boyfriend.
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After leaving the friend's residence, Rhonda drove her beige
Datsun 210 two-door west on Interstate 40 and exited onto the Mineral
Springs Mountain/Highway 350 off-ramp. She turned right (north) and began
traveling up a steep hill toward her home when a high
powered rifle projectile was fired into the vehicle. The bullet
entered the Datsun through the trunk and continued through the back seat
and driver's side seat, entering Rhonda's back and
piercing her lung and heart.
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Rhonda was found lying in a ditch beside the open driver's
side door of her Datsun. She was less than a mile from the home she
shared with her parents in Valdese. The vehicle was running and
apparently had rolled backwards across the opposite lane into a ditch
near the top of the grade after Rhonda was shot.
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Numerous questions shroud Rhonda's death. There are medical
opinions which feel she would have been rendered incapacitated after being
shot, yet her body was found outside the vehicle. Did the assailant pull
her body from the car? Did Rhonda know her assailant? Was this an act of
random violence or a case of mistaken identity? Was anyone in the company
of the shooter? What was the motive behind firing the fatal shot?
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Throughout the years, hundreds of persons have been
interviewed by investigators assigned to the case. The file on the Hinson
murder contains thousands of documents and has expanded to fill several
filing cabinets. Potential suspects and witnesses have been polygraphed;
psychics have been called in to assist; the crime scene and evidence have
been analyzed and re-analyzed; yet Rhonda's death and the strange circumstances
around it remains a mystery.
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The Hinson case was featured on the NBC television program
"Unsolved Mysteries" in 1989. The program was filmed on location
at the actual site where the crime occurred, and many of those involved
with the case portrayed themselves. Hoping to gather new information,
investigators flew to Los Angeles and fielded telephone calls immediately
after the piece was aired. Although the documentary was well produced and
meticulous attention was given to ensure accuracy during filming, the new
leads developed from telephone calls across the country led to dead ends.
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On January 8, 1982, Governor James B. Hunt issued a
proclamation offering a $5,000.00 reward for information in this case that
will bring the killer to justice. The town of Valdese is also offering a
$5,000.00 reward. Along with funds set aside by Morganton-Burke
Crimestoppers and private donations and pledges, the reward exceeds
$20,000.00.
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Rhonda's parents, Bobby and Judy Hinson continue to seek
answers. They are frequently in touch with Sheriff Whisenant and
investigators who are assigned to work the case, their lives shattered by
this cowardly act. If life were fair, they would be spending time with the
children Rhonda never had the opportunity to bear, rather than repeating
trips to the Sheriff's Office. In regards to the
killer, they often wonder, "Does he or she have a conscience?" It
is their hope that Rhonda's assailant (or an accomplice/person having
knowledge of this crime) will one day understand the heartache they feel
from losing a child in such a senseless manner. If the killer does have any
semblance of a heart and is not the cold, callous person as many perceive, perhaps one day he/she will face up to their
deed and provide the answers they deserve.
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**********************
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To report information concerning the case of Rhonda A. Hinson,
contact Lt. Rodney Norman of the Burke County Sheriff's Office at (828) 438-5506,
or Crimestoppers at (828) 437-3333. The e-mail address for the Sheriff's
Office's Administration is admin@burkesheriff.org. Remember,
you may call anonymously and be eligible for the reward money listed above
if your information leads to the arrest and conviction of Rhonda's killer.
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