On the night of July 4th, 1980, an evening of celebrations in the rural town of Anson, Maine ended in the murder investigation of a young local mother.

Tire tracks at the scene raised suspicion and rumor,

but despite the evidence and apparent confidence

of investigators, years passed without any movement in the case.

By the time it went to trial, Rita St. Peter's case would be the longest standing unsolved in the state of Maine.

Yet the person believed to be responsible for her violent death had been at the top of

the suspect list from the very first day of the investigation.

This story is proof that even decades later,

cold cases can be solved.

I'm Kylie Lowe, and this is the case of Rita St. Peter was born in Dexter, Maine on March 16, 1960. She was adopted as a baby by Eva and Eugene St. Peter, and they raised Rita alongside

their other children in Anson, Maine.

As a teenager and young 20-something, Rita was a dynamic personality.

David Robinson and Aaron Rhoda write for the Morning Sentinel that she was a member of the Drama and Photography Clubs at Carabec High School and was also a two-season

athlete playing basketball and softball. Rita was in the Pep Club, the Business League,

and a vocational training program while also participating in the

future homemakers of America organization.

She found something to love about everything she tried.

In October of 1977 when Rita was 17 years old, she became a mother to a little girl and she

was quote, the greatest joy of Rita's life, end quote.

The morning Sentinel reports that in 1979,

Rita may have been preparing to enter the military

as she granted guardianship of her daughter to her mother.

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