Patricia Ann Kelly

Patricia Ann Kelley, 50, was the kind of person people sought out when the lights were about to go out and the bills felt impossible. In St. Louis, she had built a reputation around Missouri EnergyCare and Dollar Help—programs meant to keep poor and elderly residents from falling through the cracks when utility payments turned into emergencies.

On September 27, 1987, that mission of open doors and open hands turned deadly. Kelley was found raped and strangled inside her first-floor off ...