Rosemary A. Downs, 42, was found in her Springfield, Massachusetts apartment on February 11, 1998, having suffocated from a gag after an attack the night before. A mother and a nurse’s aide who struggled with drug addiction, she had met Alfred Gaynor at a crack house on February 10 and brought him back to her home.

Investigators later linked Rosemary’s death to a pattern of similar murders in Springfield. Biological evidence tied Gaynor to multiple crime scenes, including Rosemary’s, and he was arrested and prosecuted. During a court hearing Rosemary’s son, Eric Downs, lunged at Gaynor. Gaynor was convicted for Rosemary’s murder and others and received multiple life sentences without parole.

Does anyone have memories of Rosemary, her family, or the neighborhood from that time who can add context to her life and the case?