Police in Danville have solved a 1980 cold case murder using DNA evidence. Public Safety Director Larry Thomason says it has been determined that DNA evidence gathered from the scene where 18-year-old Virginia Sue Nipper was murdered matches one person: James R. Lyons.
Nipper was assaulted and strangled in her home at 404 Sager Avenue on March 26th, 1980. Also in the home was the victim’s 15-month-old son, who was not harmed.
‘’Over the course of several weeks many people were interviewed,’’ says Director Thomason, ‘’but nothing developed pointing to one suspect. Then in November of 1980, Christina Pesek, then 30, called Danville Police asking to speak with Thomason and now retired investigator Bob Rouse.’’
According to Thomason (shown here), Pesek reported she had been attacked in the early morning hours of November 2, 1980 by James R. Lyons. Ms. Pesek was the sister-in-law of Virginia Sue Nipper. Police say Pesek was well acquainted with the Nipper family and Mr. Lyons.
Director Thomason told VermilionCountyFirst.com News that with similarities between the Pesek and Nipper cases investigators turned their attention to Mr. Lyons as a suspect in the murder case. ‘’Evidence was submitted with necessary comparisons,’’ said Thomason, ‘’but there was no matches found sufficient to go forward.’’
As a ‘cold case’ Detective Phil Wilson re-submitted evidence to the Illinois State Police Crime Laboratory in 2015 for DNA processing. ‘’In the 80’s the lab could only rely on ABO blood grouping but that changed in the 90’s with the ability to test DNA,’’ added Thomason. ‘’With the refinement of the DNA process the forensic scientists re-visited the evidence submitted and the results were reported July 13th.’’
Director Thomason says when Detective Wilson called him with the news he was ecstatic. ‘’I can’t praise the ISP lab enough, and especially Amanda Humke – the forensic scientist, for the tenacity of following through on Detective Wilson’s request,’’ said Thomason.
If Lyons was still alive today, Thomason says police would have asked the State’s Attorney for charges against him. Lyons died in 2003.
Current State’s Attorney, Jacqueline Lacy, applauded the hard work of Danville Police and the Illinois State Police Crime Lab in solving the Nipper case.
The Nipper family has been notified, and Danville Police have closed the murder case…marking it cleared.
