5-18-04 - An unsolved murder from 1986 still haunts the Sherman police department, but DNA evidence discovered four years ago could bring them closer to the killer.

Bridgette Denise Stone, 16, was stabbed to death on August 29th of 1986, while babysitting at a duplex on Walnut Street. She’d been sexually assaulted and was found half naked, but the two children in her care were unharmed and sleeping one room away.

Officer Mike Ditto was the first on the scene that summer day. 18 years later, he’s the detective still trying to get to the bottom of the murder. But in 2000, the detective got a break – DNA evidence entered into a national database showed a match - a man who was already serving a life sentence for murder. Ditto interviewed the convict, but has yet to connect him to the crime.

Police won’t comment on some specifics of the case, but do say the killer was probably someone Bridgette knew; the knife used came from inside the duplex. Her family had no idea then or now who killed their daughter, who was about to be a sophomore in high school.

If you have any new information on this case, call the Sherman Police Department at 903-892-7338.