North Austin News

On January 9, 1980, Susan Leigh Wolfe, a 25-year-old student at the University of Texas Austin School of Nursing, was kidnapped near her home while walking to a friend’s house. A witness described seeing a car stop and its driver forcibly abduct Wolfe by placing a coat over her head and pushing her into the vehicle. The witness identified the car as a 1970 Dodge Polara.

Susan's body was discovered the next morning in an Austin alley. The pathologist determined she had been strangled and died from a gunshot wound to the head. Evidence of sexual assault was also found during the autopsy and retained by both APD and The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Crime Laboratory.

APD investigators pursued numerous leads in the first year following Wolfe's murder, investigating over 40 persons of interest and interviewing six suspects across various states.

In April 2023, evidence related to Wolfe's sexual assault was submitted for testing. By February 2024, test results revealed a male Short Tandem Repeat (STR) profile that excluded the initial suspects. This STR profile was entered into CODIS, which led to identifying Deck Brewer Jr., currently incarcerated in Massachusetts on unrelated charges.

In June 2024, a DNA search warrant was issued by Travis County District Court. APD detectives obtained Brewer's DNA sample in July 2024. Subsequent analysis confirmed that Brewer could not be excluded as the contributor of the DNA found at the crime scene with an exceedingly high probability.

On August 14, based on this evidence, an arrest warrant charging Deck Brewer Jr. with Susan Leigh Wolfe’s murder was issued by Austin Municipal Court.

The investigation remains ongoing as authorities seek to identify another individual who may have been involved in Wolfe’s abduction. Anyone with information is urged to contact APD Cold Case Unit or submit tips anonymously through Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program.