Case against man accused of '84 rape, murder in Lakewood goes to jury after closing arguments

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colorado — The case against Alex Ewing, accused of raping and killing a woman in 1984, went to the jury Wednesday afternoon following closing arguments that focused on two very different narratives about the DNA that exists – and doesn’t.

Ewing, 61, faces first-degree murder charges in the Jan. 10, 1984, slaying of Patricia Smith, who was bludgeoned with an auto-body hammer and sexually assaulted.

A 2018 DNA hit tying Ewing to semen recovered from on and around Smith’s body revived an investigation that had been cold for decades.

Prosecutor Katharine Decker stressed the presence of that semen and similarities to the murders of three members of an Aurora family that was also tied to Ewing through DNA in summing up the case against him.

“This case comes down to semen and similarities – because that’s the evidence that proves that this man, to the exclusion of everyone else in the world, is the one that sexually assaulted and killed Patricia Smith on Jan. 10, 1984,” prosecutor Katharine Decker told jurors.

Defense attorney Katherine Spengler reminded the jurors that Ewing’s DNA was not found on the hammer used to kill Smith or on other items believed to have been handled by the assailant, including her clothing, purse and wallet. She also raised multiple questions about the handling of evidence, suggesting it could have been contaminated.

“Alex Ewing is not guilty,” Spengler told jurors. “The government needs you to believe that this case is simple. They need you to trust in their quick fix. They need you to trust the DNA evidence that they like and to ignore everything else. But it’s not that simple.”

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Ewing is already serving three consecutive life sentences following his conviction last summer of the murders of Bruce and Debra Bennett and their 7-year-old daughter, Melissa, in Aurora six days after Smith’s murder.

District Judge Tamara Russell earlier ruled that the jury could be told about the Bennett killings, evidence in that case, and ties to Ewing – including the presence of his semen on and around Melissa Bennett’s body.

The jury was not told that Ewing was convicted of those murders.

In all, jurors heard from 24 witnesses over five days of testimony.

Contact 9Wants to Know investigator Kevin Vaughan with tips about this or any story: kevin.vaughan@9news.com or 303-871-1862.

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