It has been nearly two decades since 18-year-old Natalie Clark was found lying dead in her backyard by a family member, and police are no closer to arresting a suspect than they were the day Clark died.
In October of 2003, Clark, a Hephzibah resident, was a student at (then) Augusta State University and had just been hired as a server at Logan’s Roadhouse. She was reported to have no known enemies or conflicts with anyone, but was, at the time, at odds with her family over her choice to be in an interracial romantic relationship, according to statements by her family.
Richmond County Sheriff’s Office records show that Clark’s stepbrother, Joseph Neville, who discovered her body, told police that Clark once said to him:
“I may be dating a black guy, but at least I don’t drink or do drugs,” she said, according to police records.
The romantic relationship between Clark and a young man later identified as Marcus Patterson only lasted for six months, but her computer records taken into custody by police show that Clark had hoped the pair would get back together.
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Around mid-morning on Saturday, Oct. 18, Neville discovered his stepsister’s body lying face down in the backyard of the home she shared with her mother and stepfather. Her body was clothed only in a t-shirt. Clark was supposed to be in Atlanta with her parents that weekend, but instead had stayed home so that she could continue the training on her new job.
At the time of discovery, her body appeared to have been dead for several hours, as Investigator Paul Godden noted that “rigor mortis appears to be leaving.”
On the scene, Neville recounted that his uncle, Jerry Marks, who lived next door, called him and notified him that the back door to the home was open.
Neville told Godden that he rolled Clark’s body over to check for a pulse, and after he determined that she was dead, he entered the house to retrieve a blanket to cover her half-naked body out of modesty and respect.
According to then Assistant Coroner Grover Tuten’s notes, Clark’s body lay less than 90 feet from the back door of the Fulcher Road home.
Neville reported to investigators that his parents were out of town, and he drove to the scene from his nearby home on his golf cart. One reason no one immediately noticed Clark’s body might be because Clark’s mother, Louise Neville, would tell The Augusta Chronicle in 2014 that the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office completely bungled the investigation, stating that when she arrived on the scene, the area was not roped off, and people were coming and going from inside the house.
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However, the massive number of detailed records in the case show the exact opposite. Richmond County Sheriff investigators literally turned over almost every rock in the yard and examined it with a magnifying glass.
The investigative team, led by (then) Sgt. Scott Peebles, pored over phone records, scoured the contents of multiple computers and interviewed virtually every individual that knew Clark as a friend or acquaintance.
Investigators went so far as to interview Clark’s classmates and professors at ASU. The list of minute fiber evidence, vegetation samples, blood traces, unidentified substances collected, fingerprints and possible traces that might contain DNA fill page after page in the official report.
The first individual to become a prime person of interest was Clark’s ex-boyfriend, according to Peebles’ notes. Patterson volunteered to cooperate and was immediately taken to the sheriff’s office and interviewed. At first, Patterson failed a polygraph test, but upon further investigation, police found his alibi to be credible and the witnesses to his whereabouts on the morning of the murder unimpeachable.
Investigators found no opportunity for Patterson to have committed the crime, nor did they find any motive for him to harm Clark. Patterson and Clark had separated amicably and still talked regularly. Clark had made it clear to Patterson she still wanted to be with him, despite what her family thought of the relationship.
In the hours prior to her death, investigators discovered that Clark accessed a photograph of Patterson on her computer and printed it. The police profile on Patterson showed no evidence of any past violence or criminal conduct in the police profile on his part, adding more evidence of his innocence.
Then, investigators stumbled on a new lead.
Police discovered that Clark’s brother, Andy Johnson, was not allowed on the Fulcher Road property due to past accusations of theft and drug addiction, according to Peebles.
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At that point, investigators knew the very basic facts about the circumstances surrounding the murder as the multiple police reports describe:
Evidence retrieved and documented indicated that an altercation took place inside the home. Small amounts of blood were found on carpet as well as a towel in Clark’s bathroom, and her prescription glasses lay broken on her bedroom floor.
Clark was dressed only in a t-shirt and was naked from the waist down, but the coroner’s report found no evidence of a sexual assault.
The cause of Clark’s death was strangulation with minor blunt force trauma to the back of the head, indicating the perpetrator likely did not enter the property armed with the intent of killing her. According to the investigators’ notes, it appeared Clark was fleeing through the house and dropped her cellphone in the Florida room on her way out. She was tackled from behind and suffocated in the backyard.
The family told police in documented statements that the door to the Florida room at the back of the home, the same door Neville and Marks discovered ajar, was always locked and never used because the door from the carport area was a more convenient way to enter the house.
However, the only hidden key to the property was placed above the Florida room door for emergencies. It is likely that the killer knew of the existence of the key, hidden above the normally-unused door, as all of the other doors in the house were locked tight.
Probably the most important fact documented by Sheriff’s investigators was that family members living nearby had been asked to watch the house that weekend as the Nevilles were planning to go to Atlanta.
As far as the nearby family members knew, the house was to be unoccupied throughout the weekend when the murder occurred, according to statements they made to investigators.
The spotlight then began to turn in the direction of Andy Johnson.
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According to Peebles’ detailed notes, Johnson was extremely apprehensive about taking a polygraph test and was visibly relieved when the test came back as inconclusive.
The following is quoted directly from Peebles’ notes:
At the conclusion of Johnson’s polygraph, SA Rush rendered a decision of INCONCLUSIVE. Sgt. Peebles then exited the GBI office with Johnson, at which time Johnson let out a yell, similar to one that a fan at a football game would give upon their team scoring a touchdown. Sgt. Peebles asked Johnson why he did that and Johnson said, “Because I didn’t fail.” Sgt. Peebles explained to Johnson that he didn’t pass either, at which time Johnson replied, “Yeah, but I didn’t fail.”
Suspicious, Peebles ordered a second review of the polygraph by the American International Institute of Polygraphs, and those results came up as “deception indicated.”
Peebles then attempted to get Johnson to take a second polygraph. Peebles’ report states that he advised Johnson to take the second test without being under the influence of drugs. Johnson agreed to stay clean and commented to Peebles that he likely failed the first test because he was using drugs when the test was administered.
However, that second test apparently never happened. Peebles’ notes indicate that Johnson continued to make excuses to avoid taking the test, and his mother joined along in making excuses for him.
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Records show that Louise Neville, mother of both Clark and Johnson, contacted investigators regularly, pointing them toward other suspects. Neville pointed to neighbors, college classmates and even a woman who was an acquaintance of Clark who was known to “date black men.” Records show that Peebles and his team followed up on every tip Neville provided.
Despite multiple attempts made, Clark’s family could not be reached for comment.
To this day, no one has been charged in the crime, and the murder of Natalie Clark remains listed as unsolved.
If you have any information on this case, please contact the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office at (706) 821-1080 or contact The Augusta Press at (706) 834-8677.
Scott Hudson is the Editorial Page Editor of The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com. Anna Porzio is a correspondent with The Augusta Press. Reach her at anna@theaugustapress.com.
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