A woman is shot after telling her father that someone was looking in her windows
In the early morning hours of August 8, 1968, a sense of terror befell 25-year-old Donna Lee Hart in her home on Route 29 between Dolgeville and Salisbury Center, New York. Alone in her residence, she made a frantic phone call to her father, Richard Karla, who lived just a few miles away. In a chilling conversation at approximately 12:45 a.m., she reported a man with a stocking over his head was attempting to break into her house.
Richard Karla rushed to his daughter's home, arriving within minutes. He found the front door locked and, as he investigated the perimeter of the house, he heard the horrifying sound of multiple gunshots from within. Forcing his way in through a side door that had been broken open, he discovered the intruder had already fled, leaving the previously locked front door ajar. His search of the small house led him to an upstairs bedroom where he found his daughter deceased.
The investigation by the New York State Police revealed a harrowing sequence of events. The intruder had fired a shot through a wall near the side door to gain entry. Donna had retreated upstairs, hiding in a closet in a spare bedroom in a desperate attempt to save her life. The killer pursued her, ripped open the closet doors, and shot her four times with a. 22 caliber semi-automatic pistol before fleeing. Her father heard a vehicle speeding away from the scene, heading toward the Village of Dolgeville. Investigators later determined the killer's car had been parked about 350 yards away on Hopson Road.
Despite an extensive investigation that has spanned decades and included hundreds of interviews, no arrests have ever been made in the murder of Donna Lee Hart. The murder weapon was never recovered. The case remains an active cold case, with the New York State Police continuing to seek information from the public in the hopes of finally bringing justice to Donna and her family.
