Phyllis G. Harris

In the summer of 1994, a palpable sense of fear lingered in the city of Richmond, Virginia, a city already grappling with a staggering number of homicides. Amidst this backdrop of violence, the life of 58-year-old Phyllis G. Harris, a white woman, was tragically cut short. On August 16, she was discovered in her home in the city's West End, having been strangled to death.

The year her life ended, Richmond was in the throes of a crime wave, with homicides reaching a record high. The city's ...