Who murdered Lucinda Strange?

In 1983, Lucinda and Jerome Strange moved to Nelson County, Kentucky. They settled on a 10-acre property in a secluded location. The couple had found paradise at 129 Clarktown Road in Bardstown, Ky. The couple also had a son and daughter. The Strange family life seemed perfect.

Lucinda had settled into a routine. She became employed as a hostess at a Holiday Inn in Bardstown. After work, she often took walks near her home for exercise.

Unfortunately, life changed on March 25, 1990 for the Strange family. After returning home from work, Lucinda went for her regular walk along Clarktown Road around 7 p.m. As it got dark, Jerome became concerned after Lucinda didn’t return home.

According to a passerby, he had spotted someone crumpled alongside the road. The unidentified person was within 200 feet of the Strange family home. The passerby had stopped by the Strange home to tell Jerome about the body in the road. After calling 911, Jerome investigated. What he saw burned a permanent scar inside his brain. The crumpled body was his beloved Lucinda. She was dead.

Jerome also found her headphones and broken radio next to her body. He covered her body with his coat and waited for help to arrive. Allison Strange, the couple’s teenage daughter had followed her father to find out what had happened. Jerome stopped his daughter from getting near Lucinda’s body.

Lucinda's murder has been cold for 30 years

The coroner originally thought Lucinda’s death may have resulted from a hit-and-run. On further examination, the coroner realized someone had stabbed Lucinda multiple times. The coroner ruled her death a homicide. Lucinda didn’t participate in criminal activity, didn’t live a reckless life and didn’t have any known enemies. Authorities investigated a rumor that Lucinda may have either seen or known about illegal drug activity at her workplace. The police investigated the rumor and found nothing to corroborate the Holiday Inn drug rumor. Police also investigated Jerome since police try to rule out obvious suspects like a significant other, family members, friends, or co-workers. Months later, Jerome sold his home and left.

This year marks the 30-year-anniversary of Lucinda Strange’s unsolved homicide. Authorities no longer receive tips and the case remains cold. According to www.visitbardstown.com, Bardstown is “located in the heart of the Bluegrass State and offers the ultimate getaway with an atmosphere that seems to have magically leaped from the paintings of Norman Rockwell and the pages of Mark Twain.”

Bardstown, Kentucky has a dark history

For such a beautiful city, Bardstown also has a dark side. Over the past few years, several podcasts and documentaries have covered several other Bardstown, Kentucky cold cases. Besides Lucinda Strange, authorities also have the following four cold cases in Bardstown, Kentucky:

– May 25, 2013: An unknown assailant shot and killed Bardstown police officer Jason Ellis on the Bluegrass Parkway.

– April 22, 2014: An unknown assailant shot and killed both Kathy Netherland and her 16-year-old daughter Samantha inside their home.

– July 2, 2015: Crystal Rogers was last seen by her boyfriend Brooks Houck. For now, authorities consider him a person of interest in her disappearance, but haven’t charged him with a crime. Crystal is a presumed homicide victim.

– November 19, 2016: Tommy Ballard crusaded to find out what happened to his daughter Crystal Rogers. While on a hunting trip with his grandson, an unknown shooter killed Ballard.

Bardstown has an estimated population of just over 13,000 people. For such a small city, it’s difficult to grasp that someone got away with murdering Lucinda Strange almost 30 years ago. It’s believed Lucinda’s killer planned her death and carried it out after she left her home. Based on the brutality of the murder, her killer most likely knew her and that she walked regularly.

The Kentucky State Police (KSP) are handling this cold case and still seek tips or clues leading to an arrest. What happened to Lucinda Strange in March 1990? Do you know? If so, the KSP and Lucinda’s family request your help in solving this cold case.