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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 McDevitt 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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| To report information
concerning the case of Rhonda A. Hinson, contact Lt. Becky Weatherman 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 Criminal Investigation
Division is cid@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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