Arlington PD, UTA Partner on Innovative Cold Case Program

Published on September 08, 2025

By Arlington Police Department

The Arlington Police Department, in partnership with the University of Texas at Arlington, has created an innovative, new program that could help solve cold cases.

While presenting to a class of UTA students last year, APD Homicide Sergeant Blake Ritchie was approached by Pat Eddings, a Senior Lecturer with UTA’s Department of Criminology & Criminal Justice (CRCJ) and a former forensic analyst. She wanted to know if APD might be willing to work with the university to develop an advanced course on cold case investigations.

Sgt. Ritchie pitched the idea to APD Command Staff, which immediately jumped on board. After both sides worked through the finer details of the course and signed a Memorandum of Understanding, the program officially launched during the Fall 2025 semester.

“The UTA CRCJ Department is thrilled to have this opportunity for our students and to provide support to APD,” said Dr. Jaya Davis, Professor and Director of Graduate Programs for CRCJ. “We are very grateful for our ongoing partnership with APD that provided the foundation for this course and hope these efforts aid APD in solving additional cold cases.”

15 students pursuing degrees in criminal justice and forensics were selected to participate in the program. Working on teams, the students were given three real, unsolved APD homicide cases to review. APD has provided the students with access to all reports and materials related to each case, with the exception of physical evidence. The students will spend the semester carefully examining each case, and will ultimately present their findings and recommendations on paths forward for each one to APD personnel.

“This is truly a win-win,” said Assistant Chief Kyle Dishko, who oversees the APD Criminal Investigations Bureau and who recently met with the students. “Cold case investigations require significant time and resources. This program gives the department additional eyes and hours that can be devoted to these unsolved cases. In return, these students -- future detectives, crime scene investigators, and crime lab techs -- are gaining invaluable experience that will set them up for future success. We hope this unique partnership will ultimately lead to more cold cases being solved.”

“I am beyond excited as I watch my students share this passion and become fully engaged in dissecting their cases with the hope of developing potential new leads for APD,” said Eddings. “Due to the confidentiality of the casework, the materials being researched can only be evaluated in the classroom. Many of the students are showing up two hours before class and staying late to make sure they are not missing anything! I am very honored for this partnership with APD that provides us with this unique opportunity to guide our students in a learning experience that has the potential to assist in bringing justice to a victim and closure for their family.”

APD does not have a dedicated cold case unit. Unsolved murders are assigned to Homicide Detectives to work on between hot cases. Since 2023, the APD Homicide Unit has solved seven cold cases, including the 1985 murder of Terri McAdams and the 2020 murder of Evan Lacey.