CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte man was arrested Wednesday, Feb. 1 in connection to the 1984 double homicide of Sarah Mobley Hall and her son, Derrick Mobley, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department announced Thursday.
On Wednesday, March 14, 1984, 27-year-old Hall and her 10-year-old son were found dead in her apartment along Ventura Way in north Charlotte, near what is now the Somerset apartment complex along Reagan Drive, according to police.
According to police, Hall was severely beaten and she and her son were both strangled.
Years of extensive forensic testing and evidence examination identified James Thomas Pratt as a suspect in the case, police said. Pratt was 22 years of age at the time of the incident.
According to CMPD, this is the first time in North Carolina that a murder has been solved using familial DNA testing. That means investigators were able to match DNA from the crime scene with a relative to the suspect that's in the nationwide database.
With help from the FBI, investigators were then able to get the suspect’s DNA and find a direct link to what was found inside Hall’s apartment in the Hidden Valley neighborhood.
CMPD Captain Joel McNelly said Hall and Pratt had a friendly relationship, but investigators don’t know the motive behind the suspected murder.
Pratt was not a person of interest in the initial investigation.
McNelly said that Hall worked with children who had special needs, including her son Derrick. Her sister Mary Dae told CMPD in a recorded phone call that she was outgoing and well-liked.
"Sarah kinda treated me like she was my mom," Dae told CMPD. "She had a level of faith in me I didn’t have in myself."
She added that the arrest has brought great relief to her and her family, helping them lay this painful chapter to rest.
"I’m so grateful the police have found this person and I hope he spends the rest of his days behind bars," Dae said.
McNelly added that the cracked case has energized investigators to solve other cold cases using the same DNA comparison method: linking genetic material found at the crime scene to relatives of the perpetrator who are in the national DNA database.
“There's a lot of bad people that have done a lot of bad things that are probably a little concerned right now because they may say, ‘Oh cool I never got arrested and my DNA is not in the system.’ Yeah well, maybe your nephew's is,” McNelly said.
Charlotte Chief of Police Johnny Jennings and Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden were detectives in the 1990s and looked over the case after it had gone cold. CMPD says their decision to submit DNA found on a pillow at the crime scene is what led to the arrest all these years later.
Pratt was arrested Wednesday, Feb. 1, and is charged with murder in the killings of Hall and her son, according to police. Pratt was arrested at a hotel without incident in York County, South Carolina.
Pratt has been extradited back to Mecklenburg County and is currently in the Mecklenburg County Jail, police said.
The investigation into this case is active and ongoing.
After this discovery, former law enforcement shed light on the process and effort to solve cold cases, saying an empowered public can be the greatest factor in cracking cases.
Former FBI Agent M. Quentin Williams told WCNC Charlotte the public can change the tide in an investigation.
"The public is going to be the answer for cold cases, I'd say nine times out of 10," Williams said.
Williams said many times, people believe they have information that's not important, but even the smallest fact could help investigators.
While collecting evidence with technology is easier, and expanding DNA databases helps in cases, the biggest motivator for a detective is being close to the family.
"There are some really good investigators who are committed to solving cold cases and you become close to the family," Williams said. "It really gets you going."
He said the evidence is always there, it's just a matter of finding it in the right places.
"Lots of times, it comes down to a witness, either a witness who knew about the case and didn't say anything or someone who stumbles upon something," Williams explained.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call 704-432-TIPS and speak directly to a detective.
Julia Kauffman: Contact Julia Kauffman at jkauffman@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Contact Colin Mayfield at cmayfield@wcnc.com or follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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