FINAL FOOTSTEPS: WHO KILLED PAM DEVIZZIO?
Investigators Continue to Search for Answers
Summertime is peak tourist season in Saratoga Springs, New York, known for its mineral spas, national monument battlefield and of course, thoroughbred horse racing at the Saratoga Race Course. 28-year-old Pam Devizzio was born and raised in Saratoga and her family is in the restaurant business. She works at Mangino’s in nearby Malta. But on the Fourth of July, she takes the day off to go boating with a girlfriend in nearby Lake George. That same night, Pam’s sister and brother-in-law are celebrating down in the bar district on Caroline Street in Saratoga Springs. It’s a popular destination for tourists, locals and especially for other restaurant workers because the bars stay open until 4:00 AM. As Pam’s sister and brother-in-law walk into a bar called Madame Jumel’s (see map in our show notes at apbcoldcase.com), they run into Pam and her roommate, Andrea. Pam explains to her sister that she did not go to Lake George that day as planned. Instead, she stayed around Saratoga Springs after hearing that her ex-boyfriend was in town visiting from Florida.
About Pam
Pam grew up on Nelson Avenue with her parents, two brothers and two sisters. Pam was the second youngest in the family. Her sister told APB Cold Case that Pam had lots of friends, and enjoyed the typical childhood experiences of sleepovers and pool parties. In high school, Pam excelled in business courses including shorthand and typing. She was offered a job with the State of New York when she graduated from high school.
Before working at Mangino’s, Pam was a bartender at Sage’s Casa 13, a popular downtown bar. She was active in the Saratoga’s night life, she knew a lot of people, and a lot of people knew her.
A Difficult Breakup
Pam had previously been living in the nearby Town of Northumberland with a boyfriend. Her sister said that it had been a serious relationship which lasted about 5 years, until Pam learned that he was allegedly cheating on her. After the breakup in 1987, the boyfriend moved to Florida and Pam moved to an apartment on Court Street in her hometown of Saratoga Springs with her friend, Andrea, within walking distance of the bar district.
Former Boyfriend Back in Town
As Pam had explained to her sister, the reason she and her girlfriend did not go boating that day was because Pam got a call from an acquaintance who said her former boyfriend was in town to visit his father who had terminal cancer; and when Pam heard this, she and Andrea opted to stay in Saratoga Springs, hoping to run into him. Pam had previously mentioned to her sister that the former boyfriend owed her money for a utility bill from the time when they lived together in Northumberland. Pam’s sister also suspected that Pam wanted to reconcile with him.
Last Stop of the Night
After the brief conversation with her sister at Madame Jumel’s (see photo above – Madame Jumel’s circa 1988; Photo courtesy Saratoga Co. Sheriff’s Office) Pam and her friend move on to another nearby bar: Gaffney’s. Pam’s sister and brother-in-law leave Madame Jumel’s around 3:00 AM and as they walk down Caroline Street, they spot Pam through the front window of Gaffney’s. They notice Pam’s friend, Andrea, leaving with a guy named Jimmy just as they enter. They stay only a moment to wish Pam a good night. At around 4:15 AM that morning, July 5, 1988, Gaffney’s is closing up, and Pam is seen leaving the bar alone.
Where is Pam?
The next day, July 5th, is a work day for Pam. Her family told APB Cold Case that Pam didn’t have a license and didn’t drive a car, a decision made after a friend was involved in a fatal crash. So, Pam routinely walks everywhere – as long as it’s within the surrounding neighborhood. And when she needs to go farther, she relies on her sister or father to give her a ride. On this day it’s Tuesday, her sister’s day off, so Pam’s father goes to pick her up for her shift at Mangino’s restaurant, just outside of Saratoga Springs.
When he arrives at her Court Street apartment Pam doesn’t answer the door. For the reliable and punctual Pam, this is out of character, and it alarms him. He calls family members looking for her and then he goes over to the bar district on Caroline Steet with a picture of Pam, asking anyone and everyone if they have seen her. Without any success, he goes to the Saratoga Springs Police Department and reports her missing. By the end of the day, family members, friends, and co-workers are all looking for Pam.
Discovery on Putnam Road
The next day, July 6 at about 10:00 AM, a truck driver notices a dog in a drainage ditch along Putnam Road in the rural town of Northumberland, just east of Jacob Drive. He notices that the dog has a bloody snout and then he sees a body lying in the ditch. (Photo below – police on scene of murder investigation in 1988; Photo: Saratoga Co. Sheriff’s Office). He drives to the nearest house to call authorities.
Is this Pam?
Investigators with the Saratoga County Sheriff’s office respond to the scene and it is obvious to them that this is a homicide. The woman’s body is sent to the medical examiner where she was identified through dental records as the missing Pam Devizzio.
The location where she is found is just 10 miles from where she was last seen. Sheriff’s investigators believe that the location is significant. Putnam Road is rural, and lightly travelled. But it is in relative proximity to the apartment where Pam and her former boyfriend lived until about one year prior to her death.
Notification to Family
At the family home in Saratoga Springs, Pam’s father, sister and others gather to consider what they can do to help find Pam. But then, a detective knocks at the door. The news is their worst nightmare. He tells the family that a body has been recovered in Northumberland, and it matches Pam’s description.
The Investigation
Saratoga County Sheriff’s Investigator Jonathan Grady said they believe that Pam died on the side of the road from injures sustained in a violent attack. The autopsy was performed by the renowned pathologist, Dr. Michael Baden. Capt. Kevin Herrick (Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office) told APB Cold Case that the cause of Pam’s death was blunt force trauma, and the manner of death was determined to be homicide. Asked whether a weapon was involved in the attack, Herrick said they are uncertain. While they did not find any direct evidence of a sexual assault, Herrick indicated that they are not discounting the possibility that the crime was sexually motivated. “The way the body was left leads me to believe that’s a possibility,” said Herrick.
Police interview restaurant workers, patrons, family, and friends; they canvass the bar district, and the area where Pam’s body was found.
Saratoga County Sheriff’s officials also met with Saratoga Springs police to compare notes on another unsolved homicide: In 1980, Sheila Shepherd was murdered in her apartment in what police described as a ‘staged’ scene by a calculated killer. In 1988, Pam Devizzio was last seen not far from where Shepherd’s murder occurred. Sgt. Chris Callahan of Saratoga Springs Police Department said, “Other than the fact that they’re both young women, and last seen in the the downtown area, that’s about where the similarities end.”
Motive to Kill? – Last seen Alive
By all accounts Pam was well liked by her friends and colleagues, and no one indicated that she had been the victim of harassment or stalking. Was she specifically targeted? Was it a random attack? Or did something else happen that escalated into murder? Police said the last witness account they have of someone seeing Pam alive was when she walked out of Gaffney’s at around 4:15 AM, heading in the direction of her apartment. But what happened after that? Did someone meet her? Offer her a ride? Did something happen as she walked toward her apartment? Pam’s sister said that Pam was always conscientious about safety and would not have accepted a ride from someone she didn’t know. But she also would not have wanted to walk alone at that hour either. It seems that Pam did connect with someone. According to Investigator Jonathan Grady, “It was the family’s belief that whoever she left with, she probably knew.”
The Case Goes Cold
After investigators conduct multiple interviews, including polygraphs and door-to-door canvasses in the Saratoga bar district as well as the area where her body was found, and after scrutinizing the physical evidence in the case, they do not have enough information to arrest anyone for Pam’s murder. The case goes cold.
Today’s Investigation
Through the years police have continued to work on any new leads as they come in. But recently they have gone back to the evidence, considering whether modern forensics can provide a clue that was not possible when the investigation originally began. Because of advances in DNA science, the Sheriff’s office has sent some of the physical evidence in Pam Devizzio’ s case back to the lab. One of the processes they used is called M-VAC, a sterile vacuum device that extracts DNA particles from items such as clothing. Inv. Jonathan Grady said that they do now have a “DNA lead.” Police are not saying whether this new information is pointing to a suspect, but they did say it has allowed them to rule out others.
Challenges
In addition to the challenges of a typical cold case – fading memories, the passing of witnesses, deterioration of evidence; this crime also occurred at a point in time when there was a large influx of visitors to Saratoga County. Is there a connection to the tourist season and seasonal employees from 1988 that might be involved with Pam’s murder? Or was that only an unrelated circumstance? While investigators continue to search for answers, they are also hoping that renewed publicity about Pam’s case will draw out new tips – perhaps someone who remembers even the smallest detail from July, 1988.
If you have any information about the murder of Pam Devizzio, call Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office at 518-885-6761.
Listen to this episode and see show notes including photos, maps and timeline at apbcoldcase.com
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Police say they have a “DNA lead” - sounds vague but why haven’t they tried genetic genealogy to try and get to the perpetrator??
If she walked home could it be someone that lives along the route she took? Or it could be her ex.