Deborah Phemister was 21 when she traveled from Portland, Indiana, to New York City in the summer of 1973 to attend Juilliard summer classes. In the early morning hours of July 20, 1973, after a late night, she took the subway back to her Brooklyn Heights apartment on Grace Court. Surveillance is not described, but someone followed her from the subway to her residence and, in the hallway of her building, she was attacked and stabbed to death.

The NYPD assigned twenty detectives to the investigation and the killing received heavy media attention. A witness reportedly heard the attack, and Mayor Richard Lindsay visited Deborah’s parents at Gracie Mansion to offer condolences. Her funeral took place at the First Methodist Church in Portland. Despite the intense investigation, no arrests have ever been announced and the murderer’s identity remains unknown.

If anyone knew Deborah’s movements that July night or remembers seeing someone near Grace Court, please share what you know.