A rare blemish for Cold Case Files - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

wiseguy182 · 10-07-2015, 08:10 AM

Recently, I obtained an extremely rare episode of Cold Case Files that has not been aired in many years. The title of it is "Murder Illustrated/Blood Relations", and it's the first segment that is the subject of controversy.

It concerns the 1987 murder of Peggy Hettrick, who was last seen leaving a bar alone one night in Fort Collins, Colorado. The next morning, her body was recovered from a field in the same city. She had been stabbed to death, and had also been sexually mutilated.

Investigators questioned the people at the nearest residence to where the body was found, which were Timothy Masters, aged 15, who lived in a trailer with his father. Investigators found assorted knives and many violent drawings Tim had made, many of which were sexual in nature. Unfortunately, this was enough to get Tim convicted of murder after 12 years had passed, despite the fact there was absolutely no physical evidence linking him to the crime, no eyewitnesses and no confession from Tim after much interrogation. Timothy had no other criminal history, and in his early adult years served in the military and worked as an aviation mechanic for Learjet. Further distressingly, Cold Case Files labeled Tim Masters as a "murderer".

After I watched the episode yesterday, I thought "What. The. Hell?" Drawings were enough to put this poor soul behind bars for life and Cold Case Files went along with this crap? Yet another stupid jury. Thinking about the case, some things just didn't add up for me:

How would Tim Masters even have come in contact with Peggy Hettrick? Needless to say, there aren't a lot of 15 year olds that killed 37 year olds they have never met before. But Masters wasn't of driving age yet, so unless Hettrick stopped at this strangers property for some unknown reason, there is seemingly no way the two could have come in contact. My initial reaction is someone from the bar followed her.

Investigators were also suspicious of something else Tim did. When Tim walked to school, he usually made a straight line out of his trailer. The morning of Hetrick's murder, Tim made more of a zigzag route. Later, Tim stated he did see Hettrick's body that morning while walking, but thought it was a mannequin. Police found this to be odd, but later discovered that Tim did keep a homemade stuffed "doll" that resembled a mannequin in his home.

I decided that I needed to look up this case. I was not surprised at all to learn that Timothy's conviction was eventually vacated and he was completely exonerated. Thank God. There are at least a couple of other suspects in the case, including Hettrick's "sometimes boyfriend", but to date, the real perpetrator has never been found.

The Cold Case Files episode has been removed from viewing circulation and Bill Kurtis has refused to comment on the episode. Also from the Wikipedia page on this case, there are a lot of other things that will really make your blood boil in regards to how the police treated Tim Masters.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peggy_...ck_murder_case

The other segment was pretty odd also. I will detail that in a future post.

Laura77 · 10-07-2015, 09:50 AM

I remember watching this episode about 10 years ago, at the time I remember thinking how ridiculous the conviction was.

LooksLikeCRicci · 10-07-2015, 01:40 PM

My money is on the doctor who committed suicide as being the killer.

Spark Of Spirit · 10-07-2015, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LooksLikeCRicci

My money is on the doctor who committed suicide as being the killer.

Agreed.

In my opinion, what he was doing was far creepier than anything Masters was convicted for and he actually had a relation to the murder site.

Shoddy work all the way around on this case.

wiseguy182 · 10-10-2015, 12:34 PM

The other segment was "Blood Relations". It was about a young woman Mrs. Stephens, who was returning home from a nightclub with a friend one night in 1976 in Lynnwood, Washington. She was having her 18 year old sister, Kimberly Kuntz, watch her 3 year old daughter. As they were arriving back to their apartment complex, they noticed a flasher. The 2 young ladies avoided the flasher and Mrs. Stephens eventually made her way to her apartment, where she noticed her sister had been murdered. Her young daughter was unharmed. Kuntz had also been tied up and raped.

The flasher ended up being an odd coincidence as he had nothing to do with the crime and just happened to be in the area at the time. Suspicion quickly fell on Mrs. Stephens estranged husband, James Stephens. Mrs. Stephens later stated that in the days preceding her young sisters death, her husband had made his way into her apartment and tied her up and raped her twice. Mrs. Stephens speculated that the night her sister was killed, James was looking for her again, but ended up using Kimberly as an alternate victim.

This happened on Mother's Day 1976. Investigators didn't have sufficient physical evidence to arrest James at the time, but later testing would seal his fate 23 years later to the day.

Now my question is, how the hell could Mrs. Stephens allow her sister and her daughter to be home alone in the same place where she was raped several times in the preceding days and not even tell her sister about it? I mean, I do feel bad for Mrs. Stephens and what she went through with her husband, but jeez, I feel her ignorance directly led to her sister's rape and murder!

wiseguy182 · 10-11-2015, 11:11 AM

You know, Lifetime has aired half-hour episodes of Cold Case Files before, with just the one segment. I distinctly remember it because it was the segment "Traces Of Murder", which I talked about a bit on here years ago. The episode concerned a Hispanic immigrant who was killed in the New York state factory where he worked by a coworker, with said coworker getting "nailed" by a nail in his boot and eventually proved guilty.

I'm sort of surprised they just didn't do the same thing with "Blood Relations". Since the other segment from that episode -- "Murder Illustrated" will never see the light of day on t.v. again, I don't know why they couldn't just show "Blood Relations" as a half-hour episode instead of having that never air again on television either.

Of course, as many of you know, we've talked a lot about the "never aired on Lifetime" segments of UM, so here's one for Cold Case Files, with a confirmed reason behind it.

libby2130 · 05-20-2017, 10:12 PM

glad that young man was finally cleared...he thought the body was a mannequin, that happens more than you know, I had a friend whose relative saw a body by a creek and thought IT was a mannequin...I think that happens because the mind is trying to protect us when we see something like that

OleMustyBalls · 05-20-2017, 10:41 PM

Does anyone know where a copy of A&Es Investigative Reports: Murder at Fort Devens (1998) can be found? I can not find a copy of this anywhere. Very strange that this aired exactly one time and has never aired again.

darkrage6 · 09-03-2025, 12:50 PM

If you still have that rare episode i'd really like to see it.

TJ · 09-03-2025, 07:31 PM

"Murder Illustrated" is on YouTube. I know I've watched "Blood Relations" in the past on Daily Motion, but I don't see it up anymore.

Murder Illustrated

48 Hours did a two-hour episode on the case called "Drawn to Murder" in 2008.

S22, E8: A two-part report on the February 1987 murder of 37-year-old Peggy Hettrick in Fort Collins, Colorado. Her mutilated, half-naked body was discovered in a field near the home of Tim Masters, a 15-year-old who lived near the crime scene.

darkrage6 · 10-11-2025, 03:35 PM

Turns out this episode was actually released on DVD, just saw it and yeah it was stunning to see this show actually believe Masters guilt, his Defense Attorney was absolutely right in that it's hard to imagine the idea that a 15-year old could somehow outsmart the entire police department. I don't blame the jury though, they probably demonized the hell out of Masters in court and this being the late-90s there was still elements of the Satanic Panic of the 80s lingering around and some kid who likes draw mutilated women probably seemed like someone they didn't want to take a chance on.

um · 03-24-2026, 07:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wiseguy182

The other segment was "Blood Relations". It was about a young woman Mrs. Stephens, who was returning home from a nightclub with a friend one night in 1976 in Lynnwood, Washington. She was having her 18 year old sister, Kimberly Kuntz, watch her 3 year old daughter. As they were arriving back to their apartment complex, they noticed a flasher. The 2 young ladies avoided the flasher and Mrs. Stephens eventually made her way to her apartment, where she noticed her sister had been murdered. Her young daughter was unharmed. Kuntz had also been tied up and raped.

The flasher ended up being an odd coincidence as he had nothing to do with the crime and just happened to be in the area at the time. Suspicion quickly fell on Mrs. Stephens estranged husband, James Stephens. Mrs. Stephens later stated that in the days preceding her young sisters death, her husband had made his way into her apartment and tied her up and raped her twice. Mrs. Stephens speculated that the night her sister was killed, James was looking for her again, but ended up using Kimberly as an alternate victim.

This happened on Mother's Day 1976. Investigators didn't have sufficient physical evidence to arrest James at the time, but later testing would seal his fate 23 years later to the day.

Now my question is, how the hell could Mrs. Stephens allow her sister and her daughter to be home alone in the same place where she was raped several times in the preceding days and not even tell her sister about it? I mean, I do feel bad for Mrs. Stephens and what she went through with her husband, but jeez, I feel her ignorance directly led to her sister's rape and murder!

A majority of crime cases are like that with certain people not taking proper precautions even though certain crimes had already happened to them, or people they know, and even repetedly in certain places like the home or in the neighborhood and being committed by certain people who have time and time again have done the same harm.

This is one that just got some publicity.

It goes to show that , as I have heard in the past, the worst crimes are not those involving money, but involving emotions, and social interactions, and which are called "crimes of passion."

10-07-2015, 08:10 AM	#1
wiseguy182 Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Apr 11, 2006 Location: Wendy's salad bar Posts: 7,030	A rare blemish for Cold Case Files Recently, I obtained an extremely rare episode of Cold Case Files that has not been aired in many years. The title of it is "Murder Illustrated/Blood Relations", and it's the first segment that is the subject of controversy. It concerns the 1987 murder of Peggy Hettrick, who was last seen leaving a bar alone one night in Fort Collins, Colorado. The next morning, her body was recovered from a field in the same city. She had been stabbed to death, and had also been sexually mutilated. Investigators questioned the people at the nearest residence to where the body was found, which were Timothy Masters, aged 15, who lived in a trailer with his father. Investigators found assorted knives and many violent drawings Tim had made, many of which were sexual in nature. Unfortunately, this was enough to get Tim convicted of murder after 12 years had passed, despite the fact there was absolutely no physical evidence linking him to the crime, no eyewitnesses and no confession from Tim after much interrogation. Timothy had no other criminal history, and in his early adult years served in the military and worked as an aviation mechanic for Learjet. Further distressingly, Cold Case Files labeled Tim Masters as a "murderer". After I watched the episode yesterday, I thought "What. The. Hell?" Drawings were enough to put this poor soul behind bars for life and Cold Case Files went along with this crap? Yet another stupid jury. Thinking about the case, some things just didn't add up for me: How would Tim Masters even have come in contact with Peggy Hettrick? Needless to say, there aren't a lot of 15 year olds that killed 37 year olds they have never met before. But Masters wasn't of driving age yet, so unless Hettrick stopped at this strangers property for some unknown reason, there is seemingly no way the two could have come in contact. My initial reaction is someone from the bar followed her. Investigators were also suspicious of something else Tim did. When Tim walked to school, he usually made a straight line out of his trailer. The morning of Hetrick's murder, Tim made more of a zigzag route. Later, Tim stated he did see Hettrick's body that morning while walking, but thought it was a mannequin. Police found this to be odd, but later discovered that Tim did keep a homemade stuffed "doll" that resembled a mannequin in his home. I decided that I needed to look up this case. I was not surprised at all to learn that Timothy's conviction was eventually vacated and he was completely exonerated. Thank God. There are at least a couple of other suspects in the case, including Hettrick's "sometimes boyfriend", but to date, the real perpetrator has never been found. The Cold Case Files episode has been removed from viewing circulation and Bill Kurtis has refused to comment on the episode. Also from the Wikipedia page on this case, there are a lot of other things that will really make your blood boil in regards to how the police treated Tim Masters. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peggy_...ck_murder_case The other segment was pretty odd also. I will detail that in a future post.

10-07-2015, 09:50 AM	#2
Laura77 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Mar 01, 2015 Posts: 125	I remember watching this episode about 10 years ago, at the time I remember thinking how ridiculous the conviction was.

10-07-2015, 01:40 PM	#3
LooksLikeCRicci Likes to live in a clean house Moderator Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Nov 27, 2005 Posts: 4,050	My money is on the doctor who committed suicide as being the killer.

10-10-2015, 12:34 PM	#5
wiseguy182 Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Apr 11, 2006 Location: Wendy's salad bar Posts: 7,030	The other segment was "Blood Relations". It was about a young woman Mrs. Stephens, who was returning home from a nightclub with a friend one night in 1976 in Lynnwood, Washington. She was having her 18 year old sister, Kimberly Kuntz, watch her 3 year old daughter. As they were arriving back to their apartment complex, they noticed a flasher. The 2 young ladies avoided the flasher and Mrs. Stephens eventually made her way to her apartment, where she noticed her sister had been murdered. Her young daughter was unharmed. Kuntz had also been tied up and raped. The flasher ended up being an odd coincidence as he had nothing to do with the crime and just happened to be in the area at the time. Suspicion quickly fell on Mrs. Stephens estranged husband, James Stephens. Mrs. Stephens later stated that in the days preceding her young sisters death, her husband had made his way into her apartment and tied her up and raped her twice. Mrs. Stephens speculated that the night her sister was killed, James was looking for her again, but ended up using Kimberly as an alternate victim. This happened on Mother's Day 1976. Investigators didn't have sufficient physical evidence to arrest James at the time, but later testing would seal his fate 23 years later to the day. Now my question is, how the hell could Mrs. Stephens allow her sister and her daughter to be home alone in the same place where she was raped several times in the preceding days and not even tell her sister about it? I mean, I do feel bad for Mrs. Stephens and what she went through with her husband, but jeez, I feel her ignorance directly led to her sister's rape and murder!

10-11-2015, 11:11 AM	#6
wiseguy182 Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Apr 11, 2006 Location: Wendy's salad bar Posts: 7,030	You know, Lifetime has aired half-hour episodes of Cold Case Files before, with just the one segment. I distinctly remember it because it was the segment "Traces Of Murder", which I talked about a bit on here years ago. The episode concerned a Hispanic immigrant who was killed in the New York state factory where he worked by a coworker, with said coworker getting "nailed" by a nail in his boot and eventually proved guilty. I'm sort of surprised they just didn't do the same thing with "Blood Relations". Since the other segment from that episode -- "Murder Illustrated" will never see the light of day on t.v. again, I don't know why they couldn't just show "Blood Relations" as a half-hour episode instead of having that never air again on television either. Of course, as many of you know, we've talked a lot about the "never aired on Lifetime" segments of UM, so here's one for Cold Case Files, with a confirmed reason behind it.

05-20-2017, 10:12 PM	#7
libby2130 Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Mar 13, 2017 Location: CA Posts: 62	glad that young man was finally cleared...he thought the body was a mannequin, that happens more than you know, I had a friend whose relative saw a body by a creek and thought IT was a mannequin...I think that happens because the mind is trying to protect us when we see something like that

05-20-2017, 10:41 PM	#8
OleMustyBalls Banned Banned!! Occasional Poster Join Date: May 19, 2017 Location: in a camper van Posts: 9	Does anyone know where a copy of A&Es Investigative Reports: Murder at Fort Devens (1998) can be found? I can not find a copy of this anywhere. Very strange that this aired exactly one time and has never aired again.

09-03-2025, 12:50 PM	#9
darkrage6 Member Forum Regular Join Date: Apr 28, 2012 Location: Zion Posts: 664	If you still have that rare episode i'd really like to see it.

09-03-2025, 07:31 PM	#10
TJ Site Owner Administrator Forum Star Join Date: Feb 03, 2000 Location: Marietta, GA Posts: 10,648	"Murder Illustrated" is on YouTube. I know I've watched "Blood Relations" in the past on Daily Motion, but I don't see it up anymore. Murder Illustrated 48 Hours did a two-hour episode on the case called "Drawn to Murder" in 2008. S22, E8: A two-part report on the February 1987 murder of 37-year-old Peggy Hettrick in Fort Collins, Colorado. Her mutilated, half-naked body was discovered in a field near the home of Tim Masters, a 15-year-old who lived near the crime scene.

10-11-2025, 03:35 PM	#11
darkrage6 Member Forum Regular Join Date: Apr 28, 2012 Location: Zion Posts: 664	Turns out this episode was actually released on DVD, just saw it and yeah it was stunning to see this show actually believe Masters guilt, his Defense Attorney was absolutely right in that it's hard to imagine the idea that a 15-year old could somehow outsmart the entire police department. I don't blame the jury though, they probably demonized the hell out of Masters in court and this being the late-90s there was still elements of the Satanic Panic of the 80s lingering around and some kid who likes draw mutilated women probably seemed like someone they didn't want to take a chance on.