In the quiet of her Atlanta, Georgia home, a life was tragically cut short on March 4, 1989. Annie Kate Britt, a 42-year-old African American woman, was found deceased in her bedroom, the victim of a brutal and senseless act of violence. The scene that greeted investigators painted a grim picture of her final moments. She was discovered naked on her bed, a sock knotted tightly around her neck, a stark testament to the strangulation that ended her life.
The signs of a violent struggle
were evident throughout the room. A broken fingernail, bruises, and scrapes on Ms. Britt's body spoke of her desperate fight for survival. The home itself bore the marks of a forced entry; a back window had been pried open, the screen discarded on the ground below. The interior of the house was in disarray, having been ransacked by the intruder. A briefcase, car keys, and an undetermined amount of money were missing, suggesting robbery as a possible motive. An autopsy would later reveal the full extent of the horrific assault, confirming that Ms. Britt had been sexually assaulted.
For years, the case of Annie Kate Britt was one of a series of similar, unsolved murders that haunted the city of Atlanta. The victims were all African American women, living alone in the Vine City area, who had been raped and strangled in their homes. A break in the cases came in October 1992 with the arrest of Lyndon Fitzgerald Pace on charges of armed robbery, burglary, and assault related to the Vine City burglaries. Fingerprint analysis connected Pace to several of the crime scenes, including the murder of Ms. Britt.
With a growing mountain of evidence against him, prosecutors charged Pace with the murders of four women: Lula Bell McAfee, Mattie Mae McClendon, Johnnie Mae Martin, and Annie Kate Britt. During his trial, the prosecution presented a compelling case built on DNA evidence from semen, blood, and hair samples, which was further corroborated by the crucial fingerprint evidence. On March 5, 1996, a jury found Lyndon Fitzgerald Pace guilty on 14 counts, including homicide. He was subsequently sentenced to death for his heinous crimes, finally bringing a measure of justice to the family and memory of Annie Kate Britt.
