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New Hampshire Names Ernest Gable in 1975 Judy Lord Killing, Closes Cold Case

Modern testing of preserved biological evidence identified Ernest Theodore Gable after a flawed 1975 FBI hair analysis misdirected investigators.

Overview

  • Attorney General John Formella announced the identification on Monday and said the case will be marked solved with no prosecution because the suspect is deceased.
  • Gable, 24 at the time of the crime, died in 1987 in Los Angeles from a stab wound, according to state authorities.
  • Investigators said reanalysis of biological material from the scene corrected a 1975 microscopic hair comparison that had wrongly excluded Gable.
  • Evidence from 1975 included fingerprints on the outside of Lord’s window, witness accounts that she feared Gable, and indicators of sexual assault and a violent struggle.
  • Judy Lord, 22, was found strangled in her Royal Gardens apartment on May 20, 1975, with her 20‑month‑old son discovered unharmed in a nearby room, and the renewed focus followed added Cold Case Unit staff after public pressure.