Killer identified in 51-year-old Cobb County cold case

The 50 year search for the killer of Debbie Lynn Randall, 9-year-old Marietta girl who was abducted, raped, brutally murdered, and dumped in a woody area in Marietta as been solved thanks to DNA technology.  

During a Monday morning press conference, Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady identified the killer of the third-grader, who attended Pine Forest Elementary School, during a press conference, however, her killer cannot be held accountable for his actions because he committed suicide years after her young body was found. 

Broady announced that Mableton resident William B. Rose was connected to the murder via genetic genealogy testing. 

Evidence from 1972, combined with DNA technology, identified William B. Rose of Mableton as Debbie’s killer. Rose was 24 at the time of Debbie’s disappearance. Two years after the victim’s death, Rose committed suicide, Broady Jr. said. 

In January 1972, Debbie was sent across the street to do laundry at the laundromat in her community. Debbie never returned home. Her disappearance rocked the community and over 4,000 people joined in the search for Debbie. 

Her brutalized body was found 16 days later during a massive search. Debbie had been raped, killed, and left in woods near her home. Rose, who was not a person of interest during the time of her disappearance, had relatives who lived in the same apartment complex as Debbie’s family. Investigators said Rose didn’t know Randall and it was a “crime of opportunity.”

During his press conference, DA Flynn credited the work done by the four original detectives on the case, Lt. Bill Hutson, Maj. Tim Buckley, Capt. Bill Elliott, and Lt. Ray Owens. He said their ability to gather and preserve evidence was key to solving the case. Broady said,  “We could not have closed this case without them.”

DNA on a round piece of flowery cloth found with Debbie’s body was the break they needed, along with modern technology, which did not exist until recent years. 
Investigators used Florida-based DNA Labs International to identify Debbie’s killer, which linked Rose to the crime. With cooperation from Rose’s family, his body was exhumed for familial DNA testing confirmed that Rose was indeed the killer of Debbie that police had sought for over five decades.