In the summer of 2011, the life of 48-year-old Barbara L. Goldsmith of Memphis, Tennessee, came to an end. An obituary published in The Commercial Appeal announced her death on July 14, 2011, but did not specify the cause.
The year 2011 was marked by a series of violent crimes in South Memphis that instilled fear in the community. Authorities were investigating a string of unsolved murders of women, some of whom were involved in sex work.
The victims in that case were identified as Tamakia McKinney, Jessica Lewis, and Rhonda Wells. A fourth woman, Katrina Peterson, survived a similar attack and was able to provide a description of the assailant to police.
Despite the circulation of information on online forums suggesting a possible connection between Barbara Goldsmith's death and these unsolved homicides, no official sources from law enforcement or credible news outlets have publicly linked her case to the serial killings. The investigation into the South Memphis murders remains ongoing, with no arrests having been made and no officially named suspects. The specific circumstances surrounding Barbara Goldsmith's death have not been detailed in publicly available records, and her case is not officially listed among the victims of the 2011 serial killer.
