Saundra Jean McCarty Miller, 1977, Bucks County, Pennsylvania
January 3rd, 1977 was a Monday night. It was almost a full moon but not quite yet. The moon would be full the next night on the 5th. It was cold and crisp and the weather was clear. It should’ve been an ordinary and quiet Monday night, but that night in eastern Pennsylvania two women were murdered in close proximity.
Deborah Ann Hales was abducted and murdered by a policeman in Upper Moreland shortly after she left work around 11 p.m. Her murder was solved right away when her body was turned over and the badge of the policeman who had attempted to rape her was found covered in her blood. John Joseph Palmer was that police officer. He was tried and convicted. He is still serving a life sentence today.
Saundra Jean Miller was abducted and murdered by an unknown person sometime after 9:20 p.m. (Her name is spelled Sandra in most news articles.) She was found on Narrows Hill Road in Bridgeton Township about 12:45 p.m. on Tuesday the 4th of January. At least two drivers saw her and called the police.
Early on, the two murders were thought to be connected in newspapers but only for a short time. Once more information was known it became obvious that the same killer could not have committed both murders that night.
The spot that she was found was described as “about 200 feet from the turn off for Ringing Rocks in Upper Black Eddy of Route 32”. (Ringing Rocks is a wooded campground and state park.)
36 year old Saundra Jean Miller was a stewardess for Eastern Airlines in 1977. She had been with Eastern for 13 years. On Monday evening she had flown on the Tampa to Newark, NJ flight. She was last seen about 9:20 p.m. getting off the crew bus at her car in the airport parking lot.
She stopped at a Dunkin Donuts shop on the way home and bought a box of Munchkins for her daughter. I wonder if that was a tradition with them.
She would have been heading home that night to a home near Frenchtown, New Jersey. She made it home that night because her car was found in the driveway on Fitzer Road between Frenchtown and Flemington.
Saundra and her daughter rented a room at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Fitzer. They were an elderly couple and Sandra and her daughter, Karen, had been boarding with them for about 15 months. The cared very deeply for Saundra and Kelly. Sadly, they had not heard anything on the night of the murder.
Blood was found in the driveway near her 1973 Pinto. The donuts and her handbag were still in the car. Had a stranger followed her from Dunkin Donuts? Would she have gotten out of her car for a stranger in her driveway? Who would she have gotten out of her car for in her driveway in the dark of night? Had her killer gotten there ahead of her and hidden somewhere? The area is wooded and rural so that could have been a possibility.
She was found about 40 minutes away in Pennsylvania in the middle of Narrows Hill Road. She had been stabbed only one time and dumped in the ditch by her killer. But she had crawled up into the road to seek help. She tragically died before help arrived. She was still in her Eastern Airlines uniform.
Saundra Jean Miller was born Saundra Jean McCarty. Her parents were Olga McCarty and Matthew P. McCarty. She had two brothers.
She was a graduate of Frenchtown High School in Frenchtown, New Jersey. I believe she graduated in 1958. She was called Sandy. She was busy with clubs like Future Nurses and activities like Cheerleading. She was bright and ambitious.
Sandy married Dale O. Miller in July of 1969. His parents were Mr. and Mrs. Percy Miller. Saundra was already working for Eastern Airlines then. Dale O. Miller was the Head Wrestling Coach and P.E. Teacher for the Manville School District in Manville, New Jersey when they married. (At the time of her murder he lived in Somerville, New Jersey. It looks to be about an hour's drive or less from Frenchtown.)
Saundra had worked hard and invested wisely for her daughter’s future. She owned three small homes and two cars but always lived in rented apartments or boarded. She likely rented out the three homes which were all mortgaged.
She moved a few times while her divorce proceedings were underway. After her divorce she continued to rent. One apartment was above a delicatessen. The owner spoke glowingly of her. She seemed to seek out places to live that had people around. Was she afraid of her ex husband or of some other man?
Her funeral was packed full of friends and acquaintances. Everyone loved Saundra Jean.
Who killed her but did not rob her? It wasn’t a professional hit because they left her alive. It wasn’t a robbery because they took nothing. Her handbag was still in her car in her driveway. It wasn’t a sex crime according to the newspaper articles of the time as she was still dressed. Why would a stranger not just leave her in the driveway if he wasn't trying to rob or rape her?
Why take her to Pennsylvania? Why not drive her further away? Did this killer need to get back home? Did he have work the next day on Tuesday?
Saundra's funeral was held in Baptistown which is close to or part of Frenchtown. Saundra is buried under her maiden name of McCarty. It took a lot of research to find her grave online. Her parents are buried now on either side of her there at Locust Grove Cemetery at Quaker Town, New Jersey.
I believe her murder is still unsolved and unprosecuted. But, there might still be evidence. Did she struggle with her attacker? Could his DNA be under her fingernail? Was a rape kit collected? Were her clothes preserved in evidence?
It seems like the person with the most motive would have been her ex husband. I have not been able to find a photo of him online. I believe that he remarried and continued to work as a coach and is now deceased.
But, if it was someone else, shouldn't we investigate? Doesn't every murder victim deserve justice?
There is no statute of limitations on murder. Sandy’s murderer could still be brought to justice today.
If you know anything that can help investigators solve Saundra McCarty Miller’s murder please call 1-800-4PA-TIPS.
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