Authorities recover gun used in cold case, suspect arrested

HOPKINS COUNTY — Nearly three decades later an East Texas homicide case has come to a close after a search warrant was executed on Tuesday at the suspect’s house, where they located the firearm used in the murder.

According to our news partner KETK, the Texas Rangers reopened Geraldine Blackmon’s 1996 unsolved homicide case with renewed efforts, including interviewing witnesses, conducting extensive forensic analysis and examining new ballistic evidence. Earlier this year, officials recovered a firearm barrel that matched the bullet collected from the 1996 crime scene from William Doyle Magness’s residence. A search warrant was executed on Tuesday, where Magness was arrested without incident and charged with Blackmon’s murder.

“The arrest of Magness marks a significant step toward achieving justice for Blackmon and offers long-overdue answers to her family and the Hopkins County community,” the sheriff’s office said.

The office also thanked the original lead investigator assigned to the case, Cherry Rice, for her hard work, without which the case would have never been solved. “Her determination ensured that evidence and documentation were preserved for all these years, which proved instrumental in bringing us to this point,” Sheriff Lewis Tatum said.

This case remains ongoing and no additional details will be released at this time, the office said.