TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas — The Travis County Sheriff's Office (TCSO) is looking for new leads in cold cases dating back to the 1970s.
The TCSO has launched a new webpage dedicated solely to cold cases that date back decades. The goal of the page is to provide a permanent place where the known information about the cases can live, in hopes that the agency can reach people who can help solve them.
On the new page, the cases are sorted into the four decades when the investigations were launched: the '70s, '80s, '90s and '00s. There is also a category for cases where the victims are "unidentified." Each category includes photos of the victims, if available, as well as a description of their cases.
"We feel deep compassion for the loved ones of these victims. Some of them have gone most of their lives without answers and without justice. We hope this will jog memories and bring information forward," Sheriff Sally Hernandez said.
On the new page, the TCSO plans to periodically feature specific cases as part of a series of videos diving into the specifics. The first of these featured cases is that of 19-year-old Ruth Elizabeth Bettis.
Bettis, a dancer and pianist, was found dead in a pasture off Sprinkle Cutoff Road in northeast Austin in 1982. The TCSO said it has followed countless leads and witness statements in the Bettis case, but the person responsible for her death remains unknown.
“We are still in contact with Ruth’s mother to this day and, like her, we want answers,” said Det. Javier Hernandez with the Cold Case Unit. “We hope that someone out there still has that missing piece of the puzzle, that they will see this video and share that information with us. No detail, no matter how small you think it may be, is insignificant.”
If you have any information on a TCSO cold case, you can submit a tip online, call or leave an anonymous tip to either the TCSO Tip Line at 512-854-1444 or Crime Stoppers at 512-472-8477, or email the TCSO Cold Case Unit at coldcase@traviscountytx.gov