Do you know who murdered Sterling Lindsey? Sterling Lindsey was a 23-year-old African-American man with a large and loving family in Washington, D.C. He was the father of a son, Sterling Jr., and a daughter, Machelah. He was the son of Mazie and Donald Lindsey Sr., the stepson of Linda Lindsey, and the grandson of Mary Lindsey and Mazie Jackson. To his siblings, Saleta Thomas, Donald Jr., and Donovan Lindsey, and his stepsister, Lisa Edzidema, he was a brother. His life was deeply rooted in his community, surrounded by many other relatives and friends who knew and loved him.
The late afternoon of Tuesday, March 11, 2003, was shattered by gunfire in the Deanwood neighborhood of Northeast Washington. At approximately 5 p.m., a report of a shooting sent members of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Sixth District to the 200 block of 56th Street, NE. There, they found Sterling Lindsey on the ground, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was a resident of the adjacent 200 block of 56th Place, NE.
Paramedics rushed him to a local hospital, but his injuries were too severe. About an hour after he was found, Sterling Lindsey was pronounced dead.
The Deanwood neighborhood, where Sterling was killed, is a community with deep historical roots in the city. At the time of his death, Washington, D.C. was experiencing a high number of homicides, a painful chapter in the city's history that left many families grappling with sudden and violent loss. The investigation into Sterling's murder began immediately, with detectives from the MPD's homicide branch taking charge of the case. However, the initial investigation yielded few public leads. No suspects or persons of interest were ever publicly identified by the authorities, and the motive for the shooting remains unknown.
A week after his death, on March 18, 2003, family and friends gathered to mourn the young man whose life had been cut short. A visitation was held at 9 a.m., followed by a service at 11 a.m. at the Holy Christian Missionary Baptist Church on Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue, NE. It was a final, somber farewell from the large family that had been left to navigate a future without their son, father, and brother. The arrangements were handled by the J.B. Jenkins Funeral Home.
For more than two decades, the murder of Sterling Lindsey has remained unsolved. His case is one of many cold cases on the files of the Metropolitan Police Department, a reminder of a life taken and a family still waiting for justice. The investigation is officially inactive but remains open, pending any new information that might emerge. No arrests have ever been made, and no one has been held accountable for the crime.
As of March 2023, the case is still open. The Metropolitan Police Department continues to offer a reward of up to $25,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the death of Sterling Lindsey. His family continues to hope that someone will come forward with the information needed to finally close this painful chapter and bring them a measure of peace. 
