Jeffrey Hastings
- Jul 20, 2023

1981 Cold Case Murder Solved In Portsmouth. Is The Suspect Linked To Other Cases?

PORTSMOUTH, NH - The New Hampshire Attorney General's Office held a press conference Thursday to name the suspect of a 1981 murder involving a young woman.

The advances in DNA technology made a significant difference in this case which had gone cold.

DNA evidence linked the killer to the scene and the crime. The suspect, Ronney James Lee died in 2005.

Lee was in the Army and traveled to New Hampshire before being arrested and sentenced to the New Hampshire State Prison. While in New Hampshire he was in locations spanning from Portsmouth to Keene

An extensive and detailed 28 page report about the investigation can be found by CLICKING HERE

At the Press conference attended by Manchester Information authorities were pressed if Lee was a suspect in other cases. They repeatedly said that other cases are being investigated separately, and at this time this is the only case.

A press release with the basic details is shared below:

New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella and Chief Mark Newport of the Portsmouth Police Department announced that a cold case homicide from September of 1981 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire has been solved. No arrest will be made, and no prosecution commenced, however, because the perpetrator died in 2005.

During the morning hours of September 28, 1981, the body of Laura Kempton (age 23) was discovered in her residence in Portsmouth, by a police officer attempting to serve a court summons. Investigators learned that Ms. Kempton had last been seen alive in the early morning hours of September 28, 1981, entering her apartment alone after a night out socializing with a friend.

An autopsy later concluded that she died as a result of massive trauma to the left side of her head. The autopsy also revealed that Ms. Kempton was killed in the early morning hours of September 28, 1981. Physical evidence was collected from the scene that, years later, revealed a male DNA profile.

Over the next four decades, investigators pursued hundreds of leads and potential suspects, but were unable to identify the perpetrator. In 2022, the Portsmouth Police Department, working in conjunction with the New Hampshire State Police Forensic Laboratory, the Maine State Police Forensic Laboratory, the Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit, and Identifinders International, used forensic genetic genealogy technology to identify the perpetrator through analysis of numerous DNA samples recovered from the scene in 1981. That forensic genetic genealogy analysis, combined with additional evidence which includes additional analysis completed in 2023, identifies the individual responsible for Ms. Kempton’s death as Ronney James Lee. Mr. Lee died of acute cocaine intoxication at the age of 45 on February 9, 2005. He was 21 years old at the time of Ms. Kempton’s homicide.

Based upon all of the evidence gathered during the investigation into the September 28, 1981 homicide of Laura Kempton in Portsmouth, the Attorney General has concluded that if Mr. Lee were still alive, the Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit and the Portsmouth Police Department would seek alternative charges of first degree murder for knowingly causing the death of Laura Kempton before, after, or while engaged in the commission of, or while attempting to commit aggravated felonious sexual assault; and alternatively, for purposely causing Ms. Kempton’s death by striking her with a blunt object.

“It is my hope that this conclusion and announcement will be the long-awaited first step in providing what closure the criminal justice system can provide for Laura Kempton’s family and community,” said Attorney General Formella. “The Portsmouth Police Department should be commended for its commitment and perseverance in seeking justice for Ms. Kempton and her family. I would also like to express my sincere thanks to the members of our Office’s Cold Case Unit and all of our law enforcement partners that were involved in investigating and finally resolving this case.”

As there is sufficient evidence to seek criminal charges, but no ability to resolve those charges because Mr. Lee is deceased, this case will be closed and identified as “solved,” but without an arrest and prosecution.