Retired officers revisit 1992 murder as team reviews Statesville cold cases

STATESVILLE — There’s a new focus on several murder cases in Statesville that have gone unsolved for decades, leaving families and loved ones without closure.

A team of retired officers is reviewing them again, trying to find new leads and put killers behind bars.

The first case they’re looking into is the murder of Ethel Weaver, who was killed inside her home 31 years ago. Her daughter told Channel 9′s Almiya White the new initiative is giving her hope.

“Over a period of time, I just can’t sleep because it feels like she may have been calling me for help,” Mary Davidson said.

Since 1992, Davidson has had many sleepless nights wondering who killed her mother.

“The way they hurt her, and when they murdered her and stuff like that over her own pocketbook, which was stolen during that time, and they used her knife that she had for protection for herself,” she said.

“She always kept that knife wrapped up in a paper towel on the dresser and she kept a courtesan lamp burning all the time at night,” Davidson said.

In the early morning hours of Jan. 3, 1992, Ethel Weaver was stabbed to death in her home off Bond Street in Statesville. Police said she was found on the floor in her bedroom.

31 years later, the pain is still etched in Davidson’s heart. She wiped tears from her face as she spoke with Channel 9′s Almiya White.

“It’s been a lot of pain because this is something you don’t ever forget,” she said.

Her mother’s case is still top of mind for retired Statesville police investigator Bill Riter. Weaver’s photo hangs on his bulletin board.

“I would like to solve her case,” Riter said. “And that’s what I want to do.”

Riter, along with several other retired investigators, were brought in to work part-time to reopen unsolved cold cases in Statesville. Weaver’s case is the first one the department is trying to bring back into the spotlight.

“To have this group of experience and the ability to come in, focus on that one thing and try to look for any kind of new leads, new ideas -- it seemed like a simple decision in my mind,” Chief David Onley said.

Riter said they’re tackling this case by starting from the very beginning -- learning Weaver’s day-to-day routines, chipping away at clues and witnesses.

“When I got the report, I started to read it,” Riter said. “I started looking at all the notes. I went through the entire case file just to kind of get a feel for where the case went. Anything that might have stood out to me.”

He said there were no signs of forced entry, so he believes whoever murdered her knew her.

“She was very cautious about who she let in,” Riter said. “And that leads us to believe that this was not a break-in. This was somebody that she knew.”

White asked Davidson what comes to mind when she looks at a photo of her mom.

“Mostly, she was murdered by someone who was awfully mean,” Davidson said.

As Davidson stared at the only photo of her mother she has, she hoped some small piece of evidence would lead to fewer sleepless nights and some sort of closure.

“It’s just something you would think would just go away but, you know, it just doesn’t,” Davidson said.

“Especially when you don’t have any answers,” she added.

“You’re wondering who did this, you know, that’s what you mostly want to know -- who would do this to somebody like that?”

Ethel Weaver’s case is just one of 12 cold cases ranging from the early 1990s to the mid-2000s that the Statesville Police Department is planning to reopen in hopes of finding new details.

To do that, they’re asking for help. If you have any information that could bring Weaver’s loved ones closure, please call the Statesville Police Department at 704-878-3515.

(WATCH BELOW: Off-duty officer charged with murder has been terminated)

Off-duty officer charged with murder has been terminated

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