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Peggy Hettrick was discovered dead in a Fort Collins, Colorado field on the morning of February 11, 1987. She was 37 years old. Her body was seen by a bicycle rider who initially believed it to be a mannequin. The coroner ruled that Hettrick had died from one stab wound in the upper back.
Her body was also sexually mutilated, with the careful removal of her left nipple and partial vulvectomy. The injuries implied surgical skill and equipment. The killing was a shock to the local community and prompted an extended investigation. For years, the case went unsolved.
Later, a neighborhood teenager, Timothy Masters, was arrested and convicted of the crime, but subsequent DNA evidence revealed that he was not guilty. The murderer was never found, and the case is still open today. Her case was covered in the Crime Junkie Podcast. The episode titled, MURDERED: Peggy Hettrick, was released on their website on May 26, 2025.
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The discovery of Peggy Hettrick's body and the early investigation
As per The National Registry of Exonerations, the body of Peggy Hettrick was discovered in a field within 500 yards of a neighborhood pub in southern Fort Collins. The victim was discovered in the early morning by a cyclist. The coroner's report indicated that Hettrick had died from one stab wound and that it was very likely to have been carried out very early that morning.
The body was found half undressed and with evidence of surgical mutilation. The National Registry of Exonerations reports that the injuries reflected a high level of expertise and the utilization of good-quality surgical equipment. Timothy Masters, a 15-year-old boy who lived in the neighborhood, noticed the body on his walk to school but did not report it, assuming that it was a mannequin.
As per 48 hours, police targeted Masters early in their investigation because he had observed the body and did not call the police. When police searched his house, they discovered a cache of knives and violent artwork, but no physical evidence connected him to the crime. The case went cold for some years, and the investigation ended.
The conviction of Timothy Masters
As per 48 Hours, a decade later, police reopened the case. They once more zeroed in on Timothy Masters, who had by that time served in the U.S. Navy and became an aviation mechanic. In 1997, Masters was arrested and charged with the murder of Hettrick.
The state's case was built around Masters' gruesome artwork and writing, which they claimed evidenced his fascination with murder and mutilation. More than 1,000 pages of his sketches were submitted as evidence—no forensic evidence—blood, hair, fingerprints—linked him to Peggy Hettrick's murder.
As per The National Registry of Exonerations, even without direct evidence, Masters was convicted in 1999 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He twice appealed the conviction, claiming that the drawings should not have been accepted as evidence and that evidence given by a psychologist was used inappropriately.
The appeals failed for years. Afterwards, it was found that certain pieces of evidence, such as hairs and fingerprints at the scene of the crime, did not belong to Masters and had not been made available to his defense counsel.
Exoneration and ongoing investigation
According to Westword, in 2008, new DNA testing was made available. Masters' defense counsel arranged touch DNA testing on crime scene evidence. The results ruled out Masters as the source of DNA on Peggy Hettrick's body. Rather, the DNA implicated another suspect, who was never prosecuted.
Prosecutors conceded that vital information had not been shared with the defense and advised reversing Masters' conviction. In January of 2008, a judge threw out the conviction and sent Masters home. In June of 2011, the Colorado Attorney General formally cleared Masters of any involvement in Hettrick's murder.
According to Westword, following his acquittal, Masters pursued civil lawsuits against the officials who wrongly convicted him. He settled for a combined amount of $10 million. The case resulted in reforms in the law of Colorado that mandated the preservation of DNA samples in all serious criminal cases. Even with the exoneration, Peggy Hettrick's murder is not solved, and the case remains open.
For more details about the case of Peggy Hettrick, listen to the podcast.
