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A 19-year-old woman is killed after returning home from a Christmas party.
CASE DETAILS During the holiday season, office Christmas parties are a traditional way of easing into the festive spirit. The night of December 22, 1981, marked the first company Christmas party for a 19-year-old girl named Rhonda Hinson. Rhonda had recently graduated from high school in Valdese, North Carolina, and was celebrating her first job as a clerical worker for a local steel company. At midnight, Rhonda left the party with two girlfriends. After dropping off her companions, Rhonda planned to make the 10-mile drive to her home, where she lived with her parents. At exactly 1:00 AM, Rhonda’s mother, Judy Hinson, awoke from a sound sleep with a strange premonition:
 A witness saw a man at Rhonda’s car Rhonda’s car was discovered just a half a mile from her home. The driver’s door was open, and a few feet away Rhonda was found dead. She was lying on her back and her arms appeared to have been deliberately placed at her side. Tests showed that Rhonda Hinson had been killed by a single bullet, fired by a high-powered rifle. This bullet was fired with such force it passed through the trunk of her car, through her seat, and penetrated her heart. The murder of Rhonda Hinson at first appeared to be a random act of violence. But as the investigation proceeded, disturbing clues began to surface suggesting that Rhonda may have been murdered by someone who knew her. In high school, Rhonda was a popular girl, an expert tennis player who had many close friends. But several weeks after her graduation, she began to behave strangely. Though normally happy to drive alone, Rhonda began to ask her father to accompany her on trips into town. And on one of these trips, she made a disturbing statement to her father Bobby Hinson:
 Rhonda’s mother keeps her room exactly the same Her mother also recalled an uncharacteristic conversation shortly before Rhonda’s death. According to her mother, Rhonda wanted to know if it was acceptable to date a married man:
Rhonda’s comments suggested that she was under some kind of personal pressure. According to Special Agent John Suttle of the North Carolina FBI, the police investigation began to uncover evidence that someone may have been stalking Rhonda on the night of her death:
 Rhonda’s gravesite The car was parked next to the same off ramp that Rhonda used to exit. It was spotted 30 minutes before the fatal bullet was fired and just 200 yards from where her body was found. Later that evening, another witness traveling down the same road passed a similar blue car, with a single man at the wheel, speeding away from the murder site. As he continued down the road, the witness saw Rhonda’s vehicle parked at the same spot where her body was found. A woman was slumped over the steering wheel and a man was standing at her door. The witness was unable to get a close look at the man, and drove on, assuming the couple was drunk. With so few clues to go on, police put their witness under hypnosis and asked him to recall more details about the murder scene. This is an excerpt from the actual audio tape from the hypnotized subject:
Surprisingly, the witness also recalled seeing a second car parked down the road from Rhonda’s vehicle. The car was a black or dark blue Trans-Am. Some believe that car may have been driven by the murderer. Many years have passed since that Christmas party ended in tragedy. But Rhonda’s mother still keeps her daughter’s room exactly the way it was when Rhonda was alive:
A $20,000 reward is being offered in this case. Watch this case now on Amazon Prime in season two with Robert Stack and season seven with Dennis Farina. Also available on YouTube with Dennis Farina. Various seasons available now on Hulu. SUBMIT A TIP |
Ryan B.
Rhonda died less than 7 hours before I was born.
I Can't Say
You really REALLY need to look at the local PD around this time. Any one who may have left within a year or 3 of the murder…..
Emily
Was there an autopsy? Is it possible she was pregnant?
Murder is the #1 cause of death for pregnant women. This could explain the bad thing her dad said she wanted to share, and her questions to her mom regarding a married man. It would also provide a motive for whomever she may have been involved with.
Nicole
why would someone want to kill Rhonda Because she fall in love with a married man maybe his wife found out about the affair she haired someone to kill her
Judy
I’m wondering if she was pulled over by a cop saying her back light(s) was out. She’d be told to stay in the car while they walked around the back of it. Cops have rifles in their vehicles. This would give reason that the gun/rifle was fired from the rear of the trunk through to front seat where Rhonda was sitting. She had obviously stopped her vehicle for someone whether it be a cop or an acquaintence. Any young woman, by herself, would never stop for a stranger, in a pitch black, unpopulated area. Her parents should have, or family, should now contact the FBI to investigate this case. So sad.
Jason
My guess was it was a completely random act of violence. People naturally want to see what they can get away with. There are a lot of skilled hunters/shooters. Keep in mind, this was the early 80’s; no internet, cellphones, Instagram, or even the internet. Forensic Science didn’t come around (heavily used) until the late 90’s/early 2000’s.
After watching Forensic Files and other true crime stories for yrs there’s plenty of jacked up people on this planet-either due to mental illness or drugs-or both. Someone thought they were in a position of power with her in his scope and he pulled the trigger. It’s coincidental that she was asking about dating married men and showering at night (possibly a victim of sexual abuse). Did her boss hunt, shoot, etc? He had money, but we don’t know anything else. My guess was a random act of violence until we hear more-we may never hear anything else.
Brian Jansen
http://Www.youtube.com type in Texas tenors amazing grace its a very beautiful song I think that song is what everyone needs right now including Rhonda Hinson and her family god bless us everyone RIP rhonda Hinson
Anonymous
I want to be careful when discussing who I think did it. Because Muslims are very good people. I think John Allen Muhammad was at least motivated by this crime. Just the way it went through the truck of the car. John enjoyed reading about his crimes in the papers. One wrote a white van. And he actually waited until he saw a white van. He was in the military. During the holidays they are granted leave. And he could of went anywhere. The DC proximity was more of his habitat.
Penelope
It seems like something happened the night of the Christmas party that made her change her mind about staying overnight with her girlfriend. It was already said that she didn’t like driving anywhere alone and when she did exactly that in the dark of the night, she was killed. Rhonda knows who killed her and so do others in that town. I hope that information doesn’t remain in the grave with her. Rest in Peace Rhonda and I hope her parents are able to find some level of comfort despite these horrific circumstances.
Brian Jansen
The only suggestion left would be to pray to god and ask him to bring closer to this case
Brian Jansen
Some cases can be solved and some cases will never be solved
Enough
Has anyone stopped to think about the boyfriend’s dad touching her? it was mentioned int he Facebook articles. How the boyfriend would never talk back to his dad, much less stand up to him. So if she got tired of being touched and decided to date someone and found someone she thought would protect her, why not a cop? Back in those days, the younger cops sat through town and preyed on young girls. I know because we stopped going to Valdese to ride around because of the perverted cops. They would pull you over and search your vehicle and you. Men searching young girls because they said it was for us acting suspicious. So Rhonda, God love her, “may” have found a cop or another who she felt safe with. Someone who didn’t let thier father rub her legs underneath he dinner table, or have those private conversations alone with her at his house. Why would any boyfrined’s dad do that? Molestation? Perversion? She is my son’s girlfriend so I can do with her what my wife doesn’t allow? Come on people….this young gal was killed because someone was losing control of her. Either the boyfriend, who needed to keep his “daddy” happy, or he and a friend or the father? Otherwise, how did his hoodie end up BACK in her car after they had broken up, and it had’t been there earlier. Why did his dad move to Georgia after the murder so quickly? OR, there is always the other theory…The married man. If a married man, a cop especially, was perverting around in Valdese and got caught and decided she had to go, what better way? Cops back up cops. Still happens today in Valdese. Rumors, and I say “rumors” have it that the cop she was seeing was the son of another cop. They were in high standings because of their stature in the community. That he told his father about the affair and Rhonda was already in love with him and wanted more. He had to get rid of her so she wouldn’t ruin his marriage to the young lady whose prominant family could ruin his and his father’s careers. Some story huh? She lays dead on the side of a highway and her killer goes home and goes to bed. Welcome to Valdese NC.
Anonymous
That is an interesting gateway. But they didn’t have too many snippers back then. Today the are more common. But back then there were no wars the entire 1980s. So if a person had that skill, there was no way to legally use it. It is a really small list of possible perfessional snipers for that time period.
Brian Jansen
Obviously your 100 percent correct on that who ever committed the crime is either in a nursing home or has passed away
Brian Jansen
Obviously your 100 percent correct on that
Nathan
What always made me curious about this case was that I suspected that Rhonda may have been killed by her boss, the one from the company Christmas party. The part where she asked her mother if it’s ever OK to go with a married man is what got me to believe this. I’ve heard about incidents similar to this and although it’s just a theory, maybe that’s exactly what might have happened.
Brother David
Yeah, my brother was shot and killed off of Laurel Rd. In Valdese ,within about 2-3 weeks, of Rhonda’s murder . The valdese police department covered it up just like they did my brother’s murder!!!!! THE BULLET THAT WAS TAKEN OUT OF HIS CHEST ,DIDN’T MATCH THE BALISTIC’S OF THE GUN ,THAT WAS FOUND LAYING BESIDE HIM, AND ALOT OF OTHER GRIMMY DIDNT AD UP NEITHER!!!! I KNOW WHAT HAPPENED ,TO MY BROTHER , IT WASN’T SUICIDE, IT WAS COLD BLOODED MURDER , THATS EXACTLY WHAT IT WAS , IT WAS PRINTED IN THE NEWS PAPER ,THAT HE WAS FOUND IN A WOODED AREA, OFF LAUREL RD. ,BUT NO HE WASN’T, HE WAS FOUND ,SHOT IN THE HEART ,IN THE ROBINSON’S YARD !!! THATS WHERE HE WAS FOUND ,AND MY MOTHER MADE THE NEWSPAPER PLACE REPRINT THE PAPPER, TELLING EVERYONE, WHERE HE WAS FOUND , SHOT TO DEATH!!!! I WILL NEVER FORGET WHAT SORRY WORK THAT THE VALDESE POLICE DEPARTMENT DID , AND THEY WILLCOME BEFORE GOD AND PAY FOR WHAT THEY DONE ,AND SO WILL THE SHOOTER ,AND EVERYONE ELSE THAT HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT , SO GOD ,REST YOU’RE SOUL!!!!!! I MISS MY BROTHER DEARLY!!!!!
Sara
So is thie about Rhonda, as it should be, or your brother? Also, your nonsense is hard to read in all caps.
Jess
Sara, You are rude and I was always taught if you don’t have something nice to say don’t say it at all, all cases are important point blank period
Penelope
Not sure why you would post such a mean response to this gentleman’s post but there is absolutely nothing wrong with his adding the information about his brother whether in all caps or otherwise, at least in my estimation. His depiction of the events involving his brother gives us some additional insight into these troubling events. You certainly could use a lesson or two in kindness and humanity.
Mary John Rogers
Could you be any more hateful? If you can’t be nice, get off this site!
Mike C
If this was a contract hit, the men came from out of town. I do question why they shot through the trunk when shooting her through the back window would’ve been lethal enough.
C Stone
In a small town like this I can’t imagine not being able to find the culprit. Something is being covered up.
Brian Jansen
I agree with you 100 percent
Bill Blaski
Rhonda case does not get the emphasis it needs. Was this a jealous lover? A deer spotlighter in the woods who misfired? What about kids shooting at vehicles? I nominate this to have an extra set of eyes, or the new unsolved mysteries.
L
https://www.facebook.com/rhonda.annette.hinson/
scott
I have not seen any speculation as to how close the shooter was when making the shot. Was she traveling up or down hill? most shooters aim at the rear window not the trunk. to make that shot the shooters gun and the trunk had to be on an even level. also the bullet had to be strong enough to penetrate steel and not one seat back but 2 seat backs to strike her. the shooter had to be a marksman with possibly military or police training.
Candace Lowman Cox
Valdese, NC is a very small formerly ” textile ” town, lots of small mills located just off I-40 that runs from Wilmington, NC to Barstow, CA. In the early 1980’s, the population was in the 4000’s, as a kid then it seemed huge but as an adult I realize the size. To the author, Valdese did not have a high school in 1981, Rhonda graduated from the consolidated East Burke High School which is east of Valdese and had around 900 students from several small towns and communities back then. To answer the folks screaming about DNA testing…that was not prevalent in small towns then, it did not gain popularity until after 1987 when a case in Florida exonerated a young man of rape. To those who are questioning why all the Chevelles and Trans Ams were not tested, most everyone with those cars were spoken to…again rural area with loads of muscle cars. The rumors around this case are too numerous to mention, facts are what is needed. LE here has multiple filing cabinets full of evidence–there are numerous people who have come in to solve the case from “Unsolved Mysteries” on NBC to psychics. To the person who asked why would anyone be shooting up the street? It is RURAL here, guys getting drunk and driving around to shoot street signs happened back then. Lastly, to the persons who claim to know who did it but cannot find anyone to confess to…call WSOC TV in Charlotte, Dave Faherty…he does investigative reporting in the area and has helped solve cases with his inquiries. There are monetary rewards for actual/factual information leading to the resolution of this case. Rhonda’s parents are getting older and the peace of closure to the rumors would give them a gift like no other.
Anonymous
There is a Facebook page Remembering Rhonda Hinson-1962-1981. It gives a lot of insight to this case.
Dan Kuchenmeister
Seems to me , it was a very lucky shot if you will , going through a trunk and hitting someone in the heart , impossible to do that shot on purpose , I’m not 100% sure the shooter meant to shoot and kill her , Maybe scare to threaten her to keep her mouth shut about something by shooting the car to make it look like the person or persons would kill her if she talked about whatever she knew that she was going to tell her mother . seems she wanted to tell her Mother something weighing heavy on her mind ? If it was that small of town back then surely someone knew of a Chevelle with primer on the front ???? Maybe he even ditched it and is in the back of a barn or in the woods rotting away you would think someone would have come across that Car somewhere through time … I’m just not sure this is a lay and wait killing , how would they know when to park there and wait for her ? she could have been another hour or two coming home if she had stopped somewhere ? they are not going to sit in one spot for hours waiting for her to come home , and there were no cell phones back then to track or have someone communicate with the person or persons involved …that’s just a snibbit of problems I see with this case
Brian Jansen
I agree here is my theory they murderer must of studied her every move and knew exactly the right time and place and exit that she would take. So having said that the murdere went down the exit ramp parked the car and waited for her to come along and then boom he got out of the car with his weapon aimed it and shot her then took off and fled the scene
Anonymous
I’ve contacted the Burke County Police Department several times by E-mail and I’ve gotten no response. I had a man tell me his stepfather did it and the police there are not interested in hearing more. I think because nobody would know or care about a town called Morganton, NC; this case puts them on “Unsolved Mysteries”, Fox News and gets them publicity. I will not contact them again.
Unsolved
Please send us more information at unsolved@unsolved.com, through our tip form (https://unsolved.com/content/tips) or through our app. Thank you.
Jason
Why can’t you call them??
Leigh
Poor young woman. Barely got to start her adult life. It sounds like she had wonderful parents who loved her well. Imagine her mom waking up sure that her daughter was dead, and learning very quickly that her fear was correct. How terrible.
Anonymous
i know who did it
unsolved
Please send us more information at unsolved@unsolved.com, through our tip form (https://unsolved.com/content/tips) or through our app. Thank you.
Brian Jansen
If you know who did it then click on the submit tip and fill outball the info and tell unsolved mysteries who did so that Rhonda Hinson and her family can bring closure to this case
Ashley
I feel I heard a rumor from my dad that she was involved with a cop. And this was covered up due to him being married and in police enforcement. Can not confirm any of this, just hear say.
Jenifer
I heard the same thing. I sent an email, but no reply.
Jason
This makes most sense to me out off all the theories. Driving home, maybe a police car pulled her over. She saw who it was, and sped off. He had a deer rifle (they mentioned “high-powered rifle”) and this person was skilled enough to hit her through the heart in a moving target with one shot?! She was a teenage girl, how would she have enemies?
Also, I feel in this small of an area, this heinous a crime on a teenage girl, would be solved QUICKLY, or at least some leads. People would howl for blood unless their police dept was crooked/protecting one another.
Christine
I went to high school with Rhonda and remember this case well. I pray her killer will be found. One thing I remember is all guys in the area that drove black Trans Ams or Camaros were questioned. I also remember rumors about the father (a preacher) of her boyfriend being questioned. I believe he moved away to another state with another woman. I am not too sure what clues the police have that point to someone stalking her. The area where this happened is very secluded and does have a lot of random gunfire especially at night by drunks. It would probably help solve the case if more details were released to the public or if the case were highlighted more. Keep in mind at the same time this happened a man in the same town was killed for driving too slow. I cannot remember what Rhonda’s boyfriend drove, sad because he drove me home from school one day but I am sure it was not a Trans Am. He was a super guy and would not do such a terrible thing. I can’t imagine any of her friends doing this either. If it was someone stalking her it had to be related to her job or someone she met post high school.
joey
Any updates yet
Bill
Where are you getting this information?
Anonymous
So many areas to start on here. Married tennis instructors, boyfriend home from college which I’m sure he was grilled, look into every vehicle that’s driven by all in attendance at the party as well as everyone in the area that drives a trans am. These are just a few.
MY
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