Jessica Roberts (left), the daughter of Cynthia Gonzalez, stands next to students in the cold case class at the APD-UTA press conference. Credit: UTA
Students in The University of Texas at Arlington’s Criminology and Criminal Justice Department have helped Arlington Police Department detectives break a 34-year-old homicide cold case.
Last month, at a joint APD-UTA press conference, police announced an arrest was made on Nov. 6 in connection to the 1991 murder of Cynthia Gonzalez—one of three cold cases being reviewed this fall by 15 students in Patricia Eddings’ new cold case course.
On Sept. 17, 1991, 25-year-old Gonzalez was reported missing by her ex-husband. Five days later, police received reports of a deceased woman found in rural Johnson County, later confirmed to be Gonzalez. Detectives pursued numerous leads through the years, but never made an arrest.
“I was extremely shocked when the detectives told us an arrest had been made; it made me so happy to hear,” said Jenna Lewis, a senior criminology and criminal justice and biology double-major. “When we first started working on this case and learning about the victim, a fire was lit in me. We just wanted to solve this case so badly for the victim and her family. Our whole class is extremely proud we were able to help them get answers and help them out in this way.”
All the students spent class time, and often for hours before and after, reviewing their assigned case file in groups, which included witness statements, evidence and crime scene photos, and police and detective reports. They worked closely with APD detectives in hopes of finding new leads to bring closure to families long seeking answers.
“It makes me tremendously proud to see my students do something like this. I can’t express in words how proud I am,” said Eddings, distinguished senior lecturer and director of the forensic applications of science and technology minor. “I’ve watched my students absorb so much and work very closely with detectives to help bring justice to these victims.”
During the Nov. 17 press conference, Arlington Chief of Police Al Jones expressed his gratitude to Eddings and her students for the effort they put into breaking the case.
“When we launched our partnership with UTA, we always hoped that we’d get a moment like this,” Jones said. “I want to thank the students for their work and their dedication to this case—you helped us get here. I also want to thank Professor Eddings and UTA for embracing this program. I hope we get more of these types of endings in the future.”
APD and UTA will continue their partnership, and the course will be offered again to students pursuing a forensic science minor next semester.
“Partnerships like what we have just seen are at the very core of the mission of the University,” said Rebecca Deen, senior associate dean for the College of Liberal Arts. “For our students to be able to experience this real-world training through our collaboration with APD had been life-changing for them. Most importantly, the victim's family finally has answers.”
Republished courtesy of UTA