Lexington police solve 1998 homicide of Linda Rutledge after 27 years
LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC36 NEWS NOW) — The Lexington Police Department says it has solved a homicide case that had gone unanswered for more than two decades.
In a release issued Wednesday, police announced detectives have officially solved the November 1998 killing of Linda Rutledge, bringing long-awaited answers to her family.
Police say the case dates back to the morning of Nov. 7, 1998, when the Lexington Fire Department was called around 7:40 a.m. to a reported structure fire at the Nixon Hearing Aid Center in the 100 block of Malibu Drive. When firefighters arrived, they found heavy smoke inside the business. After the fire was quickly put out, a woman was found dead in a back hallway.
The Fayette County Coroner’s Office later identified the victim as 43-year-old Linda Marie Rutledge. According to police, her cause of death was determined to be multiple gunshot wounds to the head.
For the next 27 years, Lexington police say detectives continued working the case — reviewing notes, reexamining evidence, following up on tips and looking for ways new technology might help move the investigation forward.
A major break came in July 2025, when detectives were contacted by the Austin Police Department after a match was made through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network. Police say a .380 shell casing recovered at the Lexington crime scene matched one found in Austin, Texas, in December 1991 during the investigation into the “Yogurt Shop Murders.”
According to the release, those shell casings were examined by the Kentucky State Police Forensic Laboratory, and preliminary comparisons showed they were fired from the same gun.
Investigators also revisited DNA evidence. In September 2025, a sexual assault kit collected from Rutledge was sent to DNA Labs International for testing. Police say that DNA profile matched evidence from the Austin case.
Based on the ballistic and DNA evidence, police identified the suspect as Robert Eugene Brashers. According to investigators, Brashers has been dead since January 1999. Police say that if he were alive today, he would have been arrested and charged with Rutledge’s murder.
In the release, Lexington police thanked numerous agencies for their help over the years, including law enforcement and forensic teams in Texas, federal partners, the Kentucky State Police crime lab and the Lexington Fire Department.
Police also acknowledged the detectives and investigators who stayed committed to the case for nearly three decades.
Most importantly, the department said the focus remains on honoring Rutledge and her family.
“While her case may be solved, it does not bring Linda back,” the release said. “But we hope that by knowing who killed her, her loved ones can begin to heal.”
