OIympia man arrested for murder in 40-year-old Everett cold case after DNA matched to evidence at scene
EVERETT, Wash. - DNA evidence helped detectives crack a decades-old cold case involving the murder and sexual assault of a woman in Everett.
Police arrested Mitchell Gaff in Olympia in connection to the 1984 death of Judy Weaver after investigators say they collected something containing his saliva and matched it to DNA found at the crime scene.
In June 1984, Weaver was found bound and burned inside of her home in Everett after crews responded to reports of a fire. The medical examiner said that she was strangled before the fire was set.
Gaff made his first appearance in Snohomish County Court for the Weaver case Thursday.
"Mr. Gaff is being held on an aggravated first-degree murder charge," said the judge in court.
Court documents state that Weaver walked home alone in 1984. Her body was later discovered by firefighters on a burning bed. She was found partially naked, beaten and tied up, a telephone cord "wrapped around her neck tightly multiple times."
The fire, according to investigators, was started using a jar of Ponds Cold Cream. It was put out before some crucial evidence was destroyed.
"It takes a lot of tenacity and vigilance to continue working on a case as old as this one," said Everett Police Chief John DeRousse.
Detectives remained determined to solve the case. Documents state that DNA testing was recently done on a "fabric ligature used to bind the victim’s wrist."
Investigators said a CODIS hit came back connecting Gaff to the case. Undercover officers then secretly collected items containing his saliva, further confirming a match.
"Due to all kinds of reasons, including the advancements in technology, we can go back and hold somebody accountable," said DeRousse.
Documents state that detectives noted similarities between Weaver's murder and Gaff's prior convictions, including a 1979 attempted rape of a woman who he forced to the ground with a gun while she was "putting her lawn mower away in her garage."
He also threatened to cut her throat with a knife that he had on him at the time. That victim fought and was able to escape. He received a "5-year suspended sentence," along with probation.
Investigators said he then violated his probation in 1984 after pleading guilty to attacking two sisters while they were sleeping in their home, then using a "telephone extension cord" to bind them before "violently raping and beating both sisters in front of each other."
Those court records indicate that one of the victims was able to escape and was able to get help and contact police. After his arrest and conviction, Gaff was "civilly committed for 11 years". He was released in 2006 and then changed his name to "Sam Wise Price".
"I’m also going to ask the court to set bail in the amount of no bail," said the prosecutor in court Thursday.
The judge in the Weaver case found probable cause for several charges, including rape, arson and murder.
"The facts do establish the defendant shows a propensity for violence that creates a substantial likelihood of danger to the community," said the judge.
The judge stated in court that the potential penalty could be life in prison without parole for the charges Gaff is facing. He decided for no bail Thursday.
As far as for the victim's family members, and members of the community, the police chief says this type of arrest can offer hope that cold cases can be solved.
"I think there is a lot of hope and the family members, the people that maybe worked the case even years ago, that have long since retired, that the work that was done then, the police department in the town where they live or used to live, will not give up on cases and will continue to work on them," said DeRousse.
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