PACE, Lyndon Fitzgerald

Coretta Scott King, widow of the late Martin Luther King, has survived a lot in her life. Including a brush with serial killer Lyndon Fitzgerald Pace.

Pace attacked elderly African American women in the dangerous Atlanta neighborhood of Vine City. On February 24, 1988, Pace was released from state prison after serving time on drug charges. He began killing.

Lula Bell McAfee was first. She was murdered on August 28, 1988. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled. The 86-year-old woman was found nude by the bed. She had a bra and rag wrapped around her neck.

Just a few days later, on September 10, Pace struck again. Seventy-eight-year-old Mattie Mae McClendon was found dead in her Atlanta home. She showed no initial signs of foul play. An autopsy showed she had been sexually assaulted. Police believe she was manually strangled. The cause of death was listed as asphyxiation by suffocation: her face was pressed into a pillow.

Elderly Atlantan Johnnie Mae Martin had been active in the community. She helped raise money for a memorial for the principal of the Booker T. Washington High School, and served on the board of the NAACP. On February 4, 1989, Pace broke into her home, sexually assaulted and strangled her. She was found the next day by her sister. She lived just an 11 minute walk from McClendon.

So far, Pace had been targeting elderly African American women who live alone. He changed his M.O. on March 4, 1989, with the murder of 42-year-old Annie (Ann) Kate Britt by targeting a younger woman. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted. Her nude body was found on her bed. Her face had been pressed into a pillow. She had a sock around her neck.

Police weren’t fooled by the change in M.O. They knew all the slayings may be connected. They called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The GBI has more sophisticated equipment for evaluating evidence. They soon form a task force to investigate and capture the murderer.

Pace breaks into another home on December 28, 1990. This time, after being confronted by the single, elderly woman living in the home, he takes a radio and flees without harming the woman. The woman, who has been burglarized before, is Coretta Scott King. King is the widow of Martin Luther King, the American Civil Rights activist. During the day, she had security guards. But at night, she was alone. Pace is arrested later that day for a minor offense.

Years later, her son found out about the break-in. He, along with the help of friends like Oprah Winfrey, find King a new home. She moved to a more secure condominium in a better neighbourhood.

On July 11, 1991, authorities order Pace released from prison due to overcrowding. They knew only about 2 burglaries and did not suspect him of murder. He had been a good inmate.

On September 18, 1992, Mary Hudson is strangled. Known as Miz Mary in the neighborhood, she was found in her home fully clothed. There were no visible signs of rape. Hudson knew she lived in a bad neighborhood, and made an effort to stay away from people in the drug trade.

Less than a week later, Sara Grogan was up at 3am for a snack. She found an intruder in her kitchen and fled to her bedroom. He chased after her, intent on murdering her. Grogan managed to find her gun and fire a shot at the intruder. He fled, leaving her alive and unharmed. Fingerprint analysis show it was Pace.

Less than another week after that, the elderly Susie Sublett, 83, woke up to find a man pointing a gun at her. He said he was going to kill her. They scuffled and he fled. Fingerprint analysis would show it was Pace.

On October 30, 1992, Pace is arrested on armed robbery, burglary and assault charges, for the Vine City Burglaries. They match his fingerprints to the Sublett burglary. The police consider him for the murders of elderly women in the area. He remains in custody. Pace is 28 years old.

Within a month of Pace’s arrest, the Atlanta Chief of Police announce he is 90% sure Pace is a viable suspect in the slayings.

The prosecutors go forward with charges in 4 murders. They are McAfee, McClendon, Martin and Britt. As they were also rapes, there was DNA evidence. Pace is indicted. Prosecutors later say the torture and “depravity of mind” in the cases warranted the death penalty. He is suspected in, but never charged with, 3 more murders.

Pace’s trial begins February 21, 1996. Prosecutors say they have matched DNA from semen, blood and hair samples, and have fingerprint evidence. Pace’s lawyer says, “scientific evidence means nothing.” She said other elderly women were murdered during the same period, and police found no evidence Pace had anything to do with them. Of course, that is why he wasn’t charged with them. By the penalty phase, Pace has changed lawyers.

On March 5, 1996, Pace is convicted on 14 counts including homicide. During the trial, evidence was presented that Pace had also broken into a home and tried to rape a 12-year-old girl. No charges were brought in that case.

Pace was sentenced to death on March 7, 1996.

Lyndon Fitzgerald Pace’s story appears in a number of Robert Keller books, including Blood Brothers Volume 1: 25 Terrifying African American Serial Killers (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 2016)  and Serial Killer Case Files Volume 2  (2017)