SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — With the help of genetic genealogy and extensive DNA testing, the 45-year-old murder and sexual assault of a Spokane teenager has finally been resolved.
Krisann Baxter was found dead in Spokane in 1978 when she was just 16 years old. For more than four decades, her case remained unsolved, but detectives with the Spokane County Sheriff's Office (SCSO), the Washington State Patrol (WSP) crime lab and a private forensic sequencing lab were recently able to identify Baxter's suspected killer as Keith D. Lindblom, who died two years after her murder.
On Oct. 4, 1978, a teenage girl's body was found near power lines south of and between Whitworth Drive and Division Street. SCSO deputies and detectives responded and started gathering evidence from the scene, including DNA samples.
During the autopsy, the victim was identified as Baxter, who deputies say was reported missing by her mom on Sept. 30, 1978.
Although DNA samples were collected at the scene and during the autopsy, testing abilities were much more limited than they currently are. Other evidence believed to contain DNA was collected but also couldn't be tested, so it was securely stored away for future testing.
In 2006, SCSO sent that evidence to the WSP Crime Lab for testing, Thanks to advancements in technology, technicians identified DNA consistent with Baxter and "an unknown male." The male DNA was entered into an indexing system, but no match was found.
By 2014, the unknown male's DNA had been matched to every DNA entry in the nation on a rotating basis. Despite this, a match was not found.
SCSO detectives submitted the DNA samples to the WSP Crime Lab again in 2020. A sample of the test results were then sent to Othram Inc., a forensic sequencing lab, for additional processing. Once that testing was complete, Othram scientists told SCSO they had enough DNA from the male suspect for genealogical samples to be submitted for ancestry searching.
Genealogists identified a likely familial DNA match as a "direct descendent," likely a child, of a known person who was deceased. Detectives contacted the known person's living family members, who agreed to be interviewed and provide DNA samples. Those samples were inconsistent with the unknown suspect's DNA profile, but were consistent with a sibling or step sibling of the suspect.
Eventually, detectives identified Lindblom as a person of interest in Baxter's murder.
A search of law enforcement databases showed Lindblom had previously been arrested and charged with another violent assault of a 16-year-old girl in 1975, three years before Baxter's murder. It was also discovered that Lindblom's previous attack happened near the area where Baxter's body was found.
Lindblom pleaded guilty to first-degree assault in exchange for the rape charges against him being dropped. He stated he was innocent but decided to plead guilty due to the possible results of a trial.
Records show Lindblom was released from prison on Aug. 7, 1978, and was not in custody at the time of Baxter's murder. Detectives later learned that Lindblom died in a fire in 1980 before DNA testing capabilities expanded.
While investigating in 2020, detectives found one of Lindblom's children living in Louisiana. They were able to get a sample of his child's DNA from the Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff's Office and compare it to the DNA collected in 1978. That DNA showed 320 times more likelihood of being a match to Lindblom than anyone else.
The nearly 45-year-old cold case was brought to the Spokane County Prosecutor's Office, where it was ultimately decided that Lindblom would have been charged with Baxter's murder if he was still alive. The investigation will now be closed with "exceptional circumstances."
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