MARTINEZ — A man was convicted of murdering a transgender woman in a crime that went unsolved for nearly 30 years, until a DNA match, authorities said.
James Grimsley, 57, was convicted of second degree murder in the Dec. 2, 1994 killing of 28-year-old Terrie Ladwig, a Concord resident who was strangled in her home during a violent struggle. The case went unsolved until late 2022, when cold case homicide investigators went to Utah to take a secret DNA sample from Grimsley, which was later matched to blood from Ladwig’s turtleneck and skin cells underneath her fingernails, according to court records.
Grimsley allegedly confessed to an old girlfriend, telling her he’d strangled a transgender person, and showed her the scar to prove it, authorities said. The woman only came forward after Grimsley was arrested in early 2023, and said she was scared of retribution, according to police.
After his arrest, Grimsley spent more than two years behind bars before heading to trial in April. His lawyer didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
Grimsley, an Oregon native who lived in the Salt Lake City area, was employed as a trucker at the time of his arrest. Police say his job could have brought him to Contra Costa County in the 1990s.
Ladwig lived on Adelaide Street in Concord with her husband, who worked in the U.S. Navy. The Contra Costa Times reported in 2004 that Ladwig called her husband to report someone was trying to break into the house, and that when he rushed home from a base in Bangor, Wash., he discovered her body. Police said at the time there did not appear to be forced entry into the home.
Ladwig lived on Adelaide Street in Concord with her husband, who worked in the U.S. Navy. The Contra Costa Times reported in 2004 that Ladwig called her husband to report someone was trying to break into the house, and that when he rushed home from a base in Bangor, Wash., he discovered her body. Police said at the time there did not appear to be forced entry into the home.
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