Cold case breakthroughs in 2023: TN victims that were identified last year

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Several families are one step closer to knowing what happened to their missing loved ones thanks to a series of breakthroughs in a number of Tennessee cold cases last year.

The majority of these cold cases date back to the 80s, when law enforcement relied more on technology like fingerprints, dental comparisons and radiographs to identify victims. Despite investigators’ best efforts, the victims in many of these cases remained unknown for decades.

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However, now that DNA technology has progressed, agencies like the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) said they are seeing “measurable success” in submitting skeletal remains of unidentified individuals for forensic genetic genealogy testing.

As a part of these advances, in 2022, the Tennessee General Assembly approved $100,000 in funding for a DNA cold case initiative. The TBI then submitted a portion of skeletal remains of the victims in 10 cold cases to Othram Inc., a private lab based in Texas, for testing.

Through a DNA extraction and sequencing process, scientists were able to identify possible relatives in six cases and ultimately determine the identities of those victims.

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In one case, a suspect had already been arrested and convicted, but investigators said the identification of the victim hopefully brought long-awaited closure to his family, who had not seen or spoken to him since around 1982 or 1983.

TBI agents are still trying to piece together the events in many of the other cases, but determining the identities of the victims puts them another step ahead.

Below is a list of the victims who were identified last year.

Jerry Harrison: Claiborne County 1986 cold case

On Aug. 24, 1986, a group of hunters found skeletal remains along an isolated and abandoned trail in the Caney Valley area of Claiborne County. Forensic anthropologists determined that the victim had been shot and his death was ruled a homicide.

According to the University of Tennessee Anthropology Department, the man had been dead for about six months to a year before his remains were found. After exhausting all leads, investigators could not determine the victim’s identity and he was classified as a John Doe.

In September 2015, the University of Tennessee Forensic Anthropology Center submitted a sample of the man’s remains to the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification, and his DNA profile was entered into the Combined DNA Index System.

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However, it wasn’t until the case was revisited in December 2022 as part of the Unidentified Human Remains DNA Initiative that detectives reached a breakthrough.

After a sample of the man’s remains were submitted to Othram Inc., scientists provided information about possible relatives connected to the victim.

Agents used that information to locate two potential family members in Arkansas, who confirmed that they had a brother they had not heard from in more than four decades. Then, in June 2023, scientists confirmed their DNA was a match.

The victim was positively identified as Jerry Harrison of Little Rock, Arkansas, who was around 25 years old. He last spoke to his family in 1982 after he began traveling across the country.

However, the TBI is still trying to find information that could help solve his murder. If you have information about this homicide, specifically any knowledge about individuals Harrison may have been with before his death, call 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Michelle Inman: Cheatham County 1985 cold case

In March 1985, a motorist who was having vehicle trouble found a woman’s skeletal remains near a creek bank along Interstate 24 West in Cheatham County. Forensic anthropologists estimated that the woman had been dead for two to five months before her remains were found.

However, investigators were unable to determine the victim’s identity and she was classified as a Jane Doe. In April 2018, scientists developed a DNA profile for the woman, which was entered into the Combined DNA Index System in hopes that she would eventually be identified.

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Then, as a part of the same initiative that helped identify another John Doe only a month prior, scientists at Othram Inc. were able to provide TBI agents with information about possible relatives connected to the woman.

Investigators made contact with one of those family members in Virginia. According to officials, the man confirmed that he had a sister he had not heard from in more than four decades.

Agents obtained a DNA standard from the man to be compared against the victim’s DNA, and it came back as a match. As a result, the victim was positively identified as Michelle Lavone Inman from Nashville, who was around 24 years old.

TBI agents are continuing to try to solve her murder. If you have information about this homicide, specifically any knowledge about individuals Inman may have been with before her death, or recognize any of the clothing from the scene, call 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Linda Karnes: Cheatham County 1981 cold case

On Oct. 21, 1981, a girl’s skeletal remains were discovered at what was then the county’s old landfill on Highway 249 in Ashland City. According to the UT Anthropology Department, the girl was estimated to have been dead for three to nine months before her remains were found.

Despite exhausting all leads, investigators could not determine the victim’s identity and she too was classified as a Jane Doe. Scientists were able to develop a DNA profile for the girl in 2007, and that information was submitted into the Combined DNA Index System.

However, it would be many years before DNA technology would catch up and aid in providing information in this case. In December 2022, scientists at Othram Inc. were able to provide investigators with information about possible relatives connected to the girl in Middle Tennessee and Florida.

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TBI agents made contact with several of those people and confirmed they had a family member they had not heard from in decades. Using Forensic Genetic Genealogy, scientists were able to confirm a DNA match.

In August 2023, the victim was positively identified as Linda Sue Karnes. Officials said she was originally from Cleveland, Ohio, but grew up in Cunningham. Prior to her death, Karnes, who was around 16 years old, spent time in the Montgomery County Girls Home in Clarksville.

Investigators are now hoping the public can provide information that may help solve her murder. If you have information about this homicide, specifically any knowledge about individuals Karnes may have been with before her death, call 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Kenneth Thompson: Cumberland County 1983 cold case

On Aug. 26, 1983, a man’s skeletal remains were found in a wooded area about 25 feet from Sycamore Lane in Crossville. The victim had been stabbed multiple times and his death was ruled a homicide.

Despite not knowing the identity of the victim, the TBI and Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office were able to develop a suspect in the case. In May 1984, the individual was charged and later pled guilty to second degree murder in exchange for a 20-year prison sentence.

Attempts to identify the victim continued, and in 2007, a DNA profile was developed and entered into the Combined DNA Index System. Investigators hoped that would help identify the man, but no matches ever came.

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Then, in December 2022, TBI agents got another breakthrough as a part of the Unidentified Human Remains DNA Initiative. Scientists in Texas developed information about possible relatives connected to the man in Michigan.

One of those people confirmed he had a brother who he had not heard from in four decades, and scientists were able to confirm that their DNA was a match. In September 2023, the victim was positively identified as Kenneth Levall Thompson of Detroit, Michigan, who was around 18 years old.

Investigators said they hope the breakthrough in the case provided long-awaited answers for Thompson’s family, who last saw him around 1982 or 1983. According to officials, the only photo of Thompson that surviving family members could find was taken when he was a child.

If you knew Thompson during his life and have access to a photograph of him taken in late 1970 or early 1980, contact TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND.

James Nuchols: Loudon County 1985 cold case

On Sept. 29, 1985, two children discovered a body while they were riding bicycles along Buttermilk Road off Interstate 40 in Lenoir City. The victim had been shot and his death was ruled a homicide.

According to forensic anthropologists, the man had been dead for one to two weeks before his remains were found. Investigators tried to identify the victim through fingerprints and technology available in 1985, but their efforts were not successful.

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Attempts to identify the Loudon County John Doe continued, and in 2015, a DNA profile was developed and entered into the Combined DNA Index System and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, but no developments ever occurred.

However, investigators wound up having a fifth breakthrough last year after scientists provided information about possible relatives connected to the man. A familial DNA strand then helped them positively identify the victim as James Keith Nuchols of Blount County in September 2023.

Nuchols was around 59 years old. TBI special agents are continuing to try to solve his murder. If you have information about this homicide, specifically any knowledge about individuals Nuchols may have been with before his death, call 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Betty Wisley: Roane County 1987 cold case

On Aug. 29, 1987, a passer-by found a body beside a garbage dumpster in the 2600 block of Highway 58 in Kingston. Forensic anthropologists determined that the victim had been burned after her death and discarded beside the dumpster.

Investigators tried to identify the victim through technology available in 1987, but their efforts were not successful. After exhausting all leads, the victim was classified as a Jane Doe. The woman’s DNA profile was entered into the Combined DNA Index System in April 2009, but there were still no developments.

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Then, the TBI had its sixth breakthrough as a part of the Unidentified Human Remains DNA Initiative. Familial DNA obtained from possible relatives connected to the woman led to her identification in November 2023.

According to officials, the remains belonged to Betty Lou Wisley, who was around 52 years old. She was originally from Clinton, Missouri, but was living in or near the Knox County area before her death.

Now, investigators are hoping this development can help piece together the events that led to her death. Anyone with information, specifically any knowledge about individuals she may have been with before her death, is asked to contact the Roane County Sheriff’s Office at 865-717-4722.

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