Politics & Government

Trial to Start in Former Cold Case in ’88 Slaying of West Roxbury Woman

Janet Phinney, 20, of West Roxbury, was murdered in March of 1988, and found by her Cedar Road home.

 

The first-degree murder trial for a man accused of murdering a 20-year-old West Roxbury woman in 1988 begins on Thursday.

Michael Coker, 50, formerly of Hyde Park, is charged with first-degree murder of Janet Phinney, according to a Suffolk County District Attorney press release.

Find out what's happening in West Roxburyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Lawyers’ opening statements and the beginning of prosecution testimony is scheduled for Thursday morning.

Phinney was last seen by family members at her Cedar Road home on March 18, 1988, according to a press release. Her remains were discovered by a neighbor a few days later on March 21 in a wooded area behind her home, and she had been strangled to death.

Find out what's happening in West Roxburyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

The case was regarded as a cold-case, until 2011, when Coker was charged after renewed forensic testing was undertaken with the benefit of 21st century DNA technology unavailable at the time of Phinney’s death, according to a press release.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

More from West Roxbury