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The long-unsolved murder of Ruth Marie Terry is the central theme of the Oxygen special, Lady of the Dunes, as it focuses on the journey of her son, Richard Hanchett. Richard believed his mother had been missing for decades before he was informed by the FBI about her being murdered in 1974.
Ruth's heavily decomposed body was found at the Race Point Dunes of Provincetown, Massachusetts. The body was mutilated, missing both of its arms. Richard raised funds for Ruth's headstone in St. Peter’s Cemetery in Provincetown. He has retired and lives in Waterford, Michigan.
The upcoming Oxygen special, Lady of the Dunes: Hunting a Cape Cod Killer, covers the murder of Ruth Marie Terry as it airs on Oxygen on Friday, November 29, 2024, at 8 p.m. EST.
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Who is Richard Hanchett?
Richard Hanchett was born in 1958 to Ruth Marie Terry but was left to fend for himself at a tender age as Terry found it difficult to financially take care of a child. Richard was taken in by, Richard Hanchett Sr., the superintendent at the Fisher Body automotive plant adopted Ruth's son in exchange for paying off her expenses, per The Californian.
He was brought up alongside two sisters, Patricia and Lisa Hanchett, in his adoptive family. He battled with addiction and underwent a drug overdose trying to cope with the loss of Patricia in 1972.
Patricia was killed by her ex-husband in 1980. Around the same time, Ruth tried to contact Richard but he could not reach out to her as he was in a comatose state for 18 years. He discovered the identity of his biological mother in 2018.
Richard discovered that Ruth Marie Terry was his mother through a DNA test through Ancestry when he learned that she had been missing for decades. Ruth Marie Terry had left Livonia after Richard was adopted but she met with her tragic death in July 1974. Ruth's body was discovered on July 26, 1974, by a 12-year-old girl, per CBS News.
Ruth's body was exhumed thrice - in 1980, 2000, and 2013 and efforts were made to identify her. The Cape Cod Times reported that the FBI identified the body belonging to Ruth Marie Terry on October 31, 2022.
Where is Richard Hanchett now? Details explored
The upcoming Oxygen special, Lady of the Dunes: Hunting a Cape Cod Killer, focuses on the long-unsolved murder as well as Richard Hanchett's journey to discovering the identity of his biological mother, Ruth Marie Terry. As the FBI identified the identity through forensic genetic genealogy, Richard made efforts to contact the extended family and met 55 members in total.
He raised funds close to $2,200 for a headstone inscribed with the words 'Lady of the Dunes' and her image. The Cape Cod Times reported Richard saying,
“I was under the assumption my mom was alive. But they said ‘No, no, she died a long time ago.’”
Richard Hanchett presently lives a retired life in Waterford, Michigan where his partner, Wendy Couture, operates and owns a pet grooming store.
Catch all the details of Ruth Marie Terry's murder as Lady of the Dunes: Hunting a Cape Cod Killer as it airs on Oxygen on Friday.
