THE NIGHT OF NOVEMBER 13th
Deborah Ann Brooks, 17, who her family called Missy, left her Northeast Washington, D.C., home on the evening of November 13, 1980, to visit a pharmacy a few blocks away.
Paul Brooks, Deborah’s brother, told Dateline that he can still clearly recall that evening. We were in the living room when Paul mentioned that it was almost 7:00 or 7:30 and that my mother had just returned from work. My sister had to travel to the neighborhood pharmacy, which at the time was called Peoples Drug Store and was located on 12th Street, roughly three blocks up the street.
Paul claims that he volunteered to go with his sister. Paul stated that although though I was younger than her, I frequently felt like one of her big brothers.
Paul claims that he was frequently protective of Deborah. frequently found himself in certain predicaments as a result of her, he claimed. I recall a time in high school when she was being harassed by a young man in the lunchroom. She responded, “Well, I’ll get my brother on you.” You’re going to get me? I’m staring at her, tiny as I am. Yes, we used to make jokes about that.
It was just the two of them because Paul and Deborah’s brother Frederick was in the Army and stationed in Germany at the time. Paul stated, “We leaned on each other.” We were each other’s best friends and grew up together.
By the time Deborah disappeared that November evening in 1980, Frederick had been gone for around nine months.
I told her that she needed to go fill a prescription. Paul said, “Hey, you know, the drugstore is about to close.” “I said,” she said. You know, Mom, if I run, I can be there in time. I was also planning to accompany her. Deborah, however, informed him that she didn’t need Paul to accompany her because she would also be visiting her boyfriend’s house, which was nearby.
The subsequent events are described in detail on the Charles County Sheriff’s Office website. At around 8:20 p.m. on Thursday, November 13, 1980, Deborah Ann Brooks returned home to her home [on] Monroe Street in Northeast Washington, D.C., and inquired about a prescription that her mother, Constance Canty, had picked up for her at the People’s [sic] Drug Store on 12th Street in Northeast, according to the website. Deborah discovered that the prescription had not been filled correctly when she opened the bag. She claimed she needed to hurry because the pharmacy was about to close, but she was going to go obtain the right prescription.
Deborah was described as leaving her house wearing blue pants, a brown sweater, a green waist jacket, and brown shoes, according to the website of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office.
Paul Brooks claims that after Deborah left their home that evening, he dozed off after watching TV on the couch. Around 10:30 p.m., he awoke.
My mother was still there in the living room, pacing back and forth, when I woke up. Paul remembered that she was concerned. His mother informed him that his sister had not come home and that she had contacted the home of Deborah’s lover, finding out that Deborah had departed some time ago. Paul remarked that her being out past 10:00–10:30 on a school night was out of character.
Paul also mentioned that the family of Deborah’s boyfriend attested to Deborah’s visit to their home. She was seen by his father, mother, and sisters.
Deborah must have experienced something on the five-minute walk home from her boyfriend’s house that evening.
THE NEXT DAY
That entire night, my mother remained up, and I kept checking in on her and making calls in hopes of hearing from her. Paul noted that when I woke up the following morning, I thought, “Okay, maybe she’ll meet me at school.” My mother left for work that morning, and I went to school without her.
Paul told Dateline that he had met a man who used to conduct neighborhood maintenance on his way home from school that day. He informed Paul that Deborah’s prescription bag had been discovered on the sidewalk by a member of the property owner’s family. The bag was ripped.
There was blood on the bag, if that wasn’t frightening enough.
Paul said, “I knew immediately that something had happened to my sister.”
Paul walked straight to their mother, who was still at work, to see her.
Have you heard from Missy, you know? she asked. Paul claimed that once I showed her the bag, she broke down in tears and fell to the ground. We phoned the police, of course, and that’s when it all began.
Paul claims that because his sister’s absence was still shorter than the mandatory 24-hour period for reporting, the family had not yet filed a missing person’s report. But everything changed when he found the prescription bag, he said. They immediately dialed the Metro Police Department.
With the help of my aunt, my mother’s sister, and neighbors, the family sort of came together. They arrived and provided some consolation because, as Paul explained, this was the first time our neighborhood had experienced such a trauma.
A GRUESOME DISCOVERY
The family’s biggest nightmare came true the day after Deborah was reported missing.
According to Paul, that’s when they discovered her dead in Maryland. About an hour’s drive from her last known location, Deborah was discovered in Waldorf, Maryland.
The Charles County Sheriff’s Office website states that two hunters were searching for a deer hunting location in a wooded area off Sharpersville Road in Charles County while driving a four-wheel-drive vehicle. They saw what looked like a body laying face-up beneath a stack of drywall when they were roughly three-quarters of a mile off the road.
According to Lieutenant Frank Tona of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, who was interviewed by Dateline, Deborah’s body was discovered on November 14 at approximately 3:00 p.m. The Prince George’s County, Maryland Police Department was notified by the two hunters on the 14th. When those cops arrived on the scene, they discovered that our county, Charles County, and Prince George’s County are divided by a creek, he stated. The police officers contacted the Charles County Sheriff’s Office after discovering her on the south side of the creek, which is technically in Charles County.
Lt. Tona reports that on November 16, Deborah’s relatives positively recognized her body.
According to Paul Brooks, his aunt and grandfather went to identify the body. They were so traumatized by what they seen that they were unable to explain it. My grandpa sobbed for a while. Paul claimed that it broke him.
According to Paul, his aunt informed him that Deborah had been stabbed and that her hair had been ripped off in places. Deborah seemed to have retaliated against her assailant. Paul recalled that my sister used to say that she would fight back with everything she had if someone ever attempted to rape or otherwise harm her. My sister’s nails were long, too. Her fingernails would remain long. She was fighting back, and her fingernails were all shattered.
Lieutenant Tona verified Paul’s report and stated that several injuries from blunt force trauma and sharp objects were Deborah’s official cause of death.
A DECADES-LONG QUEST FOR ANSWERS
Deborah’s boyfriend and his family were questioned by investigators, and they confirmed that Deborah had dropped by on her way home the night she vanished. Lt. Tona told Dateline that they were also able to learn more about her, victimology, and other related topics from them. However, they didn’t find any information that pointed to a suspect. These were merely names discovered during the initial investigation in 1980, but we have already ruled them out using forensic technology.
Noelle Gehrman, the Charles County Sheriff’s Office’s Deputy Director of Forensic Science, was also interviewed by Dateline. More than 40 pieces of evidence have been gathered in this case over the years, particularly since the early 2000s and even up to this week. Additionally, she stated that over 25 pieces of evidence had been processed, examined, or tested. Technology has come a long way. It hasn’t yet given Deborah’s family the answers they so sorely need.
Forty-four years have passed since Deborah was killed. This occurred when I was sixteen. You know, I’m sixty now. How much longer do I have to wait? Paul asked.
In an interview withNBC 4 Washingtonin 2017, Paul said his mother passed without learning what happened to her daughter. Right before my mother passed, she said that she regretted that we were never able to find out what happened to my sister, he said. It won t bring her back, but it will give my family the satisfaction of knowing the persons responsible have been dealt with.
We are applying every method of advancement in technology that we can to this case. Noelle Gehrman stressed. We have a list of names from — who we know were associated with her. But, obviously, she may have friends that we didn t know. So, anybody that thinks that they know something — even something small — that could be such a break in the case if they just come forward and share it, she said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS, by texting CHARLES + your tip to CRIMES (274637), or by submitting a web tip. Crime Solvers is offering a reward of up to $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest or indictment. All individuals who provide tips through Crime Solvers will remain anonymous.
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