Ruth Ann Knave, 76, a McDowell, Virginia seamstress and restorer of antique dolls, was fatally shot on September 17, 2017 while sewing at her dining room table. The wound was to the back of her head; investigators determined the shot came from outside the house through a window and was taken with a high-powered rifle using the scope, a detail that indicates the shot was deliberately aimed.

The primary suspect was her 14-year-old grandson, R. Marshall Cornelius, who was in her care while his parents were traveling in France. After the shooting he ransacked his room, took more than $1,200 in cash and two credit cards, and fled in his father’s car to Richmond International Airport, where airport police stopped him as he tried to buy a plane ticket to Moscow. He was initially charged as a juvenile but later tried as an adult; his defense called the shooting accidental while prosecutors noted his flight and inconsistent statements. Cornelius pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Highland County Circuit Court under a plea deal that dropped credit card theft and firearm charges; he received a 20-year sentence with 10 years suspended, resulting in a 10-year prison term.

If anyone knew Ruth Ann Knave, her routines, or saw unusual activity around her home in McDowell before September 17, 2017, please share what was seen or heard.