- The 1976 murder of 24-year-old James Norris (AKA Richard Gunning) is Dixie County's oldest unsolved homicide
- FDLE believes there may be people in Steinhatchee and other areas that can help solve the case.
- Anyone with information is asked to call FDLE at (800) 342-0820
Just over 50 years ago, on October 4, 1974, James Norris arrived in Florida. According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Norris flew into Miami with a large amount of cash, and using the alias of Richard Gunning.
FDLE says Norris intended to buy Colombian-grade marijuana. In the timeline investigators have pieced together, Norris and an associate traveled from Miami to Crystal River, in Citrus County. That same day he also mailed his family a postcard from Inglis, in Levy County. FDLE says that's the last contact his family ever had with Norris.
Eighteen months later, a bulldozer operator cutting through the woods off U.S. Highway 19 in Dixie County, found skeletal remains. That was near the Taylor County line.
In 2010, those remains were sent to the University of North Texas. UNT's Center for Human Identification came up with a DNA profile, but there was not enough to enter into CODIS, the Combined DNA Index System. CODIS is used to help identify people by their DNA. The system relies on DNA from known suspects and crime scenes.
Instead, the DNA profile from the Dixie County remains were turned over to FDLE Special Agent Mike Kennedy. While reviewing the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUS), Kennedy noticed that James Norris had gone missing from Florida, about 18 months and 100 miles from where the skeletal remains were found. Special Agent Kennedy also discovered that Norris' family had provided their DNA to the California Department of Justice for Comparison.
The University of North Texas came back into the picture. Using the Norris relatives' DNA to compare with the remains, UNT confirmed the remains belonged to James Norris. His family flew to Florida in April of 2011 to claim his remains, but Norris' killer has not been named.
FDLE says its investigation shows Norris went to Citrus County to buy marijuana from an organization operating their. FDLE knows the names of people who were members of that group. Investigators believe people living in Steinhatchee, Panama City, Miami, or Citrus County can help find his killer. They may have known Norris by his alias of Richard Gunning. Norris/Gunning may also have had associates or acquaintances in San Francisco, San Deigo, Nashville, Memphis, and Des Moines.
“Even though it’s been 50 years, we do have persons of interest and they should be held accountable for their actions even if it is 50 years later," said Special Agent Supervisor Mike Kennedy in a press release, Wednesday.
Anyone with information is asked to call FDLE at (800) 342-0820
The Norris family has established aFacebook page and a website sharing information about the search for their loved one.
