Georg Ann Reiter:1970, Hamilton, Ohio

    

   Georg Ann Reiter was born on November 8th, 1948 to Mr. and Mrs. George Reiter of Hamilton, Ohio. Georg Ann had a twin sister named Geo Ann. (I believe her name is pronounced like Joann.) The twins also had a brother named George. The family lived at 1598 Biscayne Drive in Hamilton. 

   She grew up in Hamilton, Ohio. It’s a northern suburb of Cincinnati. The Miami river flows through the town. In the 1960’s it probably seemed like a completely different and more rural town but the suburbs have crept ever closer in recent decades. 

   She graduated from Ross High School in Hamilton, Ohio. She participated in Future Teachers of America. She smiles broadly in the group photo. She also competed on the track and volleyball teams.  Georg Ann played French horn in the high school band. She was even the Queen of the Sadie Hawkins Dance. A Sadie Hawkins dance is an old tradition where the girls ask the boys to go to the dance. Sometimes everyone would also dress up in “hillbilly” costumes. Nowadays, most people just ask whomever or go in a big group.  Having an official designated date to a school dance is rarer. 

   On Wednesday September 9th 1970, 21 year old Georg Ann Reiter and a friend decided to stop off at a park late off Highway 128, one night. The park had bathrooms and water fountains. The two young women were returning home from a night out. Not many places were open all night in 1970 but the park was accessible. 

   As they sat in the car and a man stepped out of the darkness. He ordered them out of the car and to walk away. He demanded the car keys. He called out to someone else and said something like “Are you going to come out and help me?” Did he have an accomplice waiting in the woods? They tossed the keys at him and turned to run but he just started shooting. 

   Both women were hit. Georg Ann had been shot in the back and the arm. Her friend had also been shot in the back as well.  

   

   Oddly enough, the man did not take the car.  Maybe his intention was to simply kill these two women. It was 1970 after all.  America has always been a violent place. The violent crime rate was rising throughout the 1970’s. There are far more senseless crimes in the 1970’s through the 1990’s than there are crimes with nice neat Agatha Christie motives. 

   Georg Ann’s friend did not die from her wounds but blacked out. Despite the pain and trauma her first thought was to help her friend. Upon waking, and critically injured, she managed to flag down a passing truck. The driver of the truck helped her get Georg Ann into the car. Georg Ann’s friend then drove to the hospital. She was an incredibly brave young woman. She should be commended for her courage. The truck driver followed them to the hospital to make sure that they arrived safely. Thank goodness that he did. 

   It’s remarkable that no one from one of the houses across the street heard the shots and came to aid them. Sometimes small caliber guns aren’t very loud, though. Maybe they were all just sleeping deeply enough. I’ve seen many cases where shots were fired in a home and others in the home slept through the noise. 

   Georg Ann Reiter was pronounced dead at the hospital. Her friend survived her injuries after spending many days in intensive care. Police would find that the women had been shot with a .22 caliber weapon. 

  

   That same night, not far away on the same road as the park; a 39 year old man was found blocking the road with his vehicle. He had parked it in an intersection. He had been drinking and said he ran out of gas. He had a .22 caliber weapon with him. He was arrested. But, police would ultimately dismiss that weapon as not involved in the crime. The police found that the slugs in both women did not belong to that .22 caliber rifle. Who examined the slugs and what experience did they have in ballistics? 

   I really wish we knew the name of that man. I think that once he ran out of gas he walked and came upon Georg Ann and her friend. I think he decided to rob or harass them. Many of the violent criminals of the 1970’s don’t have normal motives like greed. Sometimes they are just senselessly violent. 

  One Indiana man that would have been the right age was Kenneth Clay Richmond. He was a hard drinker. He often traveled for work. He senselessly killed Carol Jenkins in Martinsville, Indiana in 1968. He wasn’t arrested for that murder until a tip came in and exposed him in the early 2000’s. He died before he could stand trial. He and an accomplice had murdered Carol Jenkins in cold blood. They did it almost on a whim and in broad daylight. The accomplice held Carol’s arms while Richmond stabbed her in the chest. 

   His little daughter saw the whole thing as she waited in the car. Miss Jenkins was black and Kenneth Clay Richmond was a hate filled racist. He was also an alcoholic, impulsive and very violent. His daughter came forward as an older adult and told what she knew. Another family member also testified. Police and prosecutors are satisfied that Richmond was guilty.

  Assumptions have been made by news reporters and others over the years that Georg Ann and her friend were a romantic couple. There was a not so subtle disparagement of the victims. Victim blaming hampers investigations. It’s also just a cruel and nasty thing to do. We don’t know that they were a romantic couple. It doesn’t really matter one way or another. But, If the killer assumed they were; this could be a hate crime. 

   When Georg Ann was murdered her twin sister Geo Ann was already married and living in another town. Her brother, George, still lived in Hamilton with their parents then. I can’t imagine the devastation and grief of this sudden loss of Georg Ann. The terror they must have felt knowing that the killer was still out there somewhere must have been incredibly stressful and horrifying.

  Georg Ann’s friend went through a horrific and traumatic experience. She also lost her dear friend. It’s not easy to find a close friend in a small town. Then to lose that person…my heart goes out to her. She was so brave and she tried so hard to get help for Georg Ann. I can only hope that time has allowed her to heal and find some peace. 

  Rest in peace, George Ann

If you have information about the murder of Georg Ann Reiter please submit a tip at the link below:

https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Files/Law-Enforcement/Investigator/Cold-Case/Homicides/Reiter