AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 29 (UPI) -- Cold case investigators are looking at the possibility a serial killer is to blame for the death of an Austin, Texas, woman in 1988, a report said.
Investigators say there is a chance the death of Debra Jan Baker could be linked to the 1986 death of Christine Morton and the 1980 slaying of Mildred McKinney, the Austin American-Statesman reported Thursday.
The investigation could bolster claims that Christine Morton's husband, Michael, has been wrongly imprisoned for his wife death, the newspaper said.
Police said Baker's unsolved 1988 slaying has many similarities to the Morton case. Christine Morton and Baker were both beaten to death with a blunt object while lying in bed. The two women lived about 12 miles apart.
Lawyers for Michael Morton, who is serving a life sentence, have been trying to get the court to order DNA testing to determine if Christine Morton's death is linked to the 1980 death of Mildred McKinney, who also was attacked in her bed.
Investigators from the Austin Police Department have started re-interviewing Baker's relatives based on a tip from Michael Morton's attorneys at the Innocence Project of New York, the newspaper said.
