Gloucester suspect indicted in 1986 murder of Salem State student

Aug. 25—SALEM — For 36 years, Claire Gravel's father carried a picture of his late daughter in his wallet. On Wednesday, that photo served as the backdrop for a dramatic turn in the North Andover woman's 1986 murder case.

With two images of Gravel projected on a wall behind him, Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett announced that John Carey has been indicted for Gravel's murder. The 63-year-old, who grew up in Gloucester and graduated Gloucester High School in 1977, is serving a prison sentence for the attempted murder of a Hamilton woman in 2007.

Gravel was a 20-year-old sophomore at Salem State College when her body was discovered in the woods off Route 128 in Beverly on June 30, 1986. A medical examiner determined she had been strangled to death.

Gravel was last seen alive being dropped off at her apartment on Loring Avenue in Salem at 1:30 that morning after going to Major Magleashes' Pub on Washington Street with members of her softball team.

Blodgett said investigators interviewed dozens of witnesses and "persons of interest" over the years and followed through on every lead and tip they received. He said a new lead developed in the case in 2012, and that evidence recovered from Gravel's clothing was "instrumental" in solving the case.

"For 36 years, Claire Gravel's family and friends have had nothing but questions about her death," Blodgett said in a press conference at his office in Salem. "Today we are able to give them some of the answers."

Blodgett said he would not speculate on a motive. When asked if DNA was used to track down Carey, he said, "I didn't say that." Blodgett said details on the 2012 lead as well as "new evidence" will be disclosed when Carey is arraigned on a charge of first-degree murder in Salem Superior Court at a later date.

'Just a sweet person'

Blodgett said Gravel's family, which includes her father, two brothers and a sister, were "relieved and very, very grateful" that their loved one's alleged murderer has been found. A woman who answered the phone at the home of Robert Gravel in North Andover said the family was "still trying to take everything in" and did not want to comment at this time.

Paula Crudale Lynch, who grew up with Claire Gravel in North Andover, said she was overwhelmed with emotion when she heard that Carey had been charged with Claire's murder.

"At first I thought, 'You've got to be kidding me,'" Lynch said. "And then I just cried."

Lynch said Gravel came from a large family in North Andover and that Gravel's mother had passed away many years ago. She described Gravel as a petite girl with freckles and reddish-brown hair who was funny and outgoing.

"She was just a sweet person," Lynch said.

Shaun Corcoran, who grew up with Gravel, recalled playing "kick the can" and "hide and seek" with her and the other neighborhood kids. He described Gravel as "smart and witty and very popular."

"It was a travesty to find out a close friend never came home," Corcoran said.

The indicted man

Carey is serving a 20-year prison sentence at MCI Concord for attempted murder, home invasion, and assault and battery. He was convicted by a jury in 2008 of wrapping a cord around a woman's neck in her Hamilton home and dragging her through the kitchen. The woman's young son tried to stab Carey with a kitchen knife and beat his fists on his back before Carey ran away, according to a story in the Gloucester Daily Times.

Prosecutors argued that Carey was attempting to act out a sexual fantasy of strangling a woman to death, a scenario that was depicted on hundreds of images found on his computer after his arrest.

In a victim-impact statement in court in the 2008 trial, the woman called Carey "an evil, horrible, dangerous, twisted man" who showed no remorse.

'Not forgotten'

In announcing Carey's indictment, Blodgett, who will retire as district attorney at the end of the year, stood with an array of law enforcement officers, investigators and DA staff members at his sides. Among them were former Salem police Chief Bob St. Pierre, who became chief the year before Gravel's murder and worked on the case for years.

"It makes me proud of the persistence of the District Attorney's office," St. Pierre said. "They kept this alive for 36 years. It's emblematic of what justice should be."

"I can't imagine what Mr. Gravel felt all these years and now he's going to get closure," St. Pierre added. "It doesn't bring her back, but it brings closure."

Retired state police Detective Lt. Elaine Gill, who kept a file box under her desk with pictures, clues and notes about the case for more than two decades, said Wednesday that Gravel's murder stayed with her even after she retired.

"Believe me, I've never stopped thinking about this case and praying that the person responsible would be caught," Gill said Wednesday after the indictment was announced.

Blodgett credited assistant district attorneys, state police detectives assigned to the Essex DA's office, and Salem and Beverly police for continuing to pursue the case over the years. He said his office continues to work on cold cases, some of which date back to the 1970s, with the hope that new technologies and a fresh look will lead to breakthroughs.

"We are mindful of the victims and their family members who continue to want answers," he said. "They are not forgotten, and we will seek those responsible and hold them accountable at every turn."

Blodgett said Carey's indictment was the result of a "tireless and relentless pursuit of justice."

Lynch, Gravel's childhood friend, said she is happy that Gravel's family now has some closure. Gravel would have turned 57 years old on Aug. 7.

"Now there will finally be some justice," Lynch said.

Paul Leighton can be reached at 978-338-2535, pleighton@gloucestertimes.com, or on Twitter at @heardinbeverly.