In the early morning hours of a cold November day in Springfield, Missouri, the life of Matthew Wade Cline, a 33-year-old male, came to a violent and tragic end. On November 3, 2014, Cline was brought to the emergency room of a local hospital by a private vehicle. He was suffering from what would later be described as apparent gunshot wounds. Despite the efforts of medical staff, his injuries proved to be fatal, and he was pronounced dead, sparking the beginning of a complex homicide
investigation.
The Springfield Police Department quickly delved into the circumstances surrounding Cline's death. Their investigation led them to an apartment in the 1500 block of West Nichols Street, a location they believed to be connected to the shooting. As detectives processed the scene and interviewed potential witnesses, a person of interest emerged. The police publicly identified this individual as Gary D. Patterson, a 54-year-old white male. Authorities released a description of Patterson, noting he was 5 feet, 10 inches tall, weighed approximately 180 pounds, and had brown hair and brown eyes. They also stated that he was known to frequent the areas of west-central and northwest Springfield.
As the investigation unfolded, law enforcement officials urged the public to come forward with any information regarding Patterson's whereabouts, cautioning that he should be considered armed and dangerous. They released a photograph of the person of interest in the hopes that it would generate leads. Despite these efforts and the initial surge of media coverage, public information regarding any arrests or charges in the case of Matthew Wade Cline's death has since dwindled.
The narrative of what transpired in that Springfield apartment and the events leading up to the fatal shooting remains shrouded in mystery. While the police were quick to identify a person of interest, the subsequent trail of public information grows cold. There have been no widely disseminated reports of Gary D. Patterson's apprehension in connection with this case, nor have there been any announcements of other suspects, arrests, or convictions. The story of Matthew Wade Cline's untimely death, as it is known to the public, concludes with a lingering question of whether justice was ever served.
