INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — Diana Ault was found shot to death in her home on January 31, 1994. The investigation into her death had evolved into a cold case, but the Independence Police Department announced on Oct. 9, the case has been reopened.
Ault was 26 years old when she was shot and killed in her home on the 19000 block of E. 9th Street in Independence. Her family has set up the website ‘Justice for Diana Ault’ and the Diana Marie Ault Tribute Page on Facebook.
Nearly 20 years after Ault’s death, her son said he remembers the night she was killed.
“I can remember being put in the closet,” Josh Ault said. “I can remember the police showing up and that’s about it.”
Josh was four years old at the time.
“I think the hardest part is looking back at pictures and stuff that brings back the memories,” he said.
But those pictures and memories could hold the key to bringing Ault’s killer to justice. That’s partly why they launched the website and Facebook page. The Ault family believes the smallest detail could make a huge difference.
“I think that somebody has live a life long enough that they didn’t deserve,” Josh said. “I think that they should be punished for what they did.”
Social media have played a role in solving other cold cases, including a 45-year-old fatal hit-and-run in Fulton, N.Y. and a 26-year-old stabbing death in Columbus, Ohio.
Josh said he hopes the website and Facebook page created for his mother will bring in new leads that will help police find her killer.
“You learn to live with it, I guess,” he said. “There have been some rough times and they’re have been some times that are all right. I don’t mind talking about it now, whereas when I was younger it did bother me quite a bit.
People with information about the case can contact the Independence Police Department at (816) 325-7300 or the TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-TIPS. Calls to the TIPS Hotline remain anonymous.
