On December 5, 1978, 84-year-old Ottelia Tavender was found beaten to death at her residence at 1 E. Court Street in downtown Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio. The brutal nature of the attack drew community shock given her age. The Cincinnati Police Department led the investigation, which produced no publicly identified suspects and later became a cold case.

The exact motive for the killing has not been determined. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office lists Tavender’s homicide among its unsolved cases and authorities have periodically appealed for information from anyone who might have seen or heard anything unusual that day. The investigation remains open but has not yielded new leads that clarify why she was targeted or who was responsible.

Did anyone in downtown Cincinnati on December 5, 1978, or with family memory of that period have information that could help resolve this case?