{"id":41705,"date":"2026-04-05T08:05:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T08:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=41705"},"modified":"2026-04-05T08:05:37","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T08:05:37","slug":"washington-state-killer-james-randles-nabbed-in-1992-cold-case-solved-by-janice-randle-daughter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=41705","title":{"rendered":"Washington State killer James Randles nabbed in 1992 cold case solved by Janice Randle daughter"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F04%2Fnewspress-collage-epvjt8rhi-1775372889605.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall%261775358547\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft wp-block-nypost-editor-partner-article-links\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>More than three decades after a Washington mother was found dead inside her home, investigators have made an arrest in a case that had gone cold.<\/p>\n<p>In November 1992, Janice Randle was found dead on her bed inside her Graham, Washington, home, with her young daughter nearby in a crib.<\/p>\n<p>At the time, her husband, James Randle, told authorities she may have died from a drug overdose, citing a past history of painkiller use.<\/p>\n<p>The couple had been separated and were going through a divorce.<\/p>\n<p>The case was initially treated as a death investigation and possible overdose.<\/p>\n<p>However, autopsy results later revealed there were no drugs in Randle\u2019s system, prompting investigators to\u00a0reclassify the case as a homicide.<\/p>\n<p>Despite that shift, only limited evidence was available, and detectives were unable to establish probable cause for an arrest.<\/p>\n<p>The case remained unsolved for decades.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>James Randle was arrested and charged in the 1992 cold case murder of his wife, Janice, on April 1, 2026. <span class=\"credit\">Fox 13 Seattle\/YouTube<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Janice Randle with her daughter before her death in November 1992. <span class=\"credit\">Fox 13 Seattle\/YouTube<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The investigation was revived in recent years after family members came forward with new information, including accounts of alleged confessions made by James Randle.<\/p>\n<p>Those leads gave investigators a fresh perspective and a new path forward.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities say the renewed investigation ultimately established probable cause to arrest the 68-year-old suspect, who was living in a care center in Everett, Washington.<\/p>\n<p>He was taken into custody on April 1.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>James Randle was arrested at a Washington State senior living center. <span class=\"credit\">Pierce County Sheriff&#8217;s Office<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Investigators now believe Janice Randle died as the result of a violent struggle with her husband, with newly uncovered evidence contradicting the original account from 1992.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis case stands as a powerful example of how advancements in technology and investigative practices can bring justice \u2014 even decades later,\u201d the Pierce County Sheriff\u2019s Office said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMost importantly, it is a testament to the unwavering commitment of the detectives and investigators who refused to let Janice\u2019s story be forgotten,\u201d officials added. \u201cTheir diligence, compassion and determination have given Janice\u2019s family the closure they have sought for so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Janice Randle\u2019s daughter, Kourtney Lewis, speaks out after James Randle\u2019s arrest. <span class=\"credit\">Fox 13 Seattle\/YouTube<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Janice\u2019s oldest daughter, Katie Wakin, credited both her family and investigators for finally\u00a0bringing the case back to light. <span class=\"credit\">Fox 13 Seattle\/YouTube<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Court documents\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox13seattle.com\/news\/man-arrested-1992-murder-estranged-wife-graham\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">obtained by Fox 13 Seattle<\/a>\u00a0indicate the suspect allegedly admitted to two family members in the years after Janice\u2019s death that he killed her and staged the aftermath to appear as a drug overdose.<\/p>\n<p>Investigators also noted Janice had visible bruising and signs of a struggle, though her death was initially ruled undetermined.<\/p>\n<p>The records show the couple had been in a contentious divorce and custody battle at the time, and the suspect had a prior domestic violence conviction and made threats in the weeks leading up to her death.<\/p>\n<p>Jail records\u00a0show James Robert Randle was booked into the Pierce County Jail April 1 on a first-degree murder charge with bail set at $1 million.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe title=\"1992 Cold Case Murder Suspect Arrested 34 Years Later\" width=\"1170\" height=\"658\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SRRcNFpUxE0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The break in the case was driven in part by Randle\u2019s daughters, one of whom was just 18 months old and in a crib next to her mother the night she died and helped bring renewed attention to the investigation decades later.<\/p>\n<p>Janice\u2019s oldest daughter, Katie Wakin, credited both her family and investigators for finally\u00a0bringing the case back to light.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe blessing of having a lot of my mom\u2019s best friends fill in the gaps for us as kids because she was gone,\u201d Wakin told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=SRRcNFpUxE0&amp;t=50s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fox 13 Seattle.<\/a> \u201cI\u2019ve had the pleasure of bonding with my siblings, and we\u2019re very, very close.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wakin was 14 years old when her mother was killed and said she never expected to see an arrest.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t want to say I gave up hope, but I never thought I would see this in my lifetime,\u201d she said. \u201cI accepted that. I was at peace with that\u2014 until about a year ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The break in the case was driven in part by Randle\u2019s daughters, one of whom was just 18 months old and in a crib next to her mother the night she died. <span class=\"credit\">Pierce County Sheriff&#8217;s Office<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>James Robert Randle was booked into the Pierce County Jail April 1 on a first-degree murder charge with bail set at $1 million. <span class=\"credit\">Pierce County Sheriff&#8217;s Office<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>That shift came when her younger half-sister, Kourtney Lewis, who was just 18 months old at the time of the killing, began digging into the case in 2025 while trying to learn more about her mother for her own children.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI never looked at some of the documents \u2026 just the basic documents when someone dies,\u201d Lewis told Fox 13 Seattle. \u201cWhen I looked at them, I knew. I knew exactly what was happening. And, so, I said, \u2018I need to figure this out.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Together, the sisters gathered information and pushed for answers, efforts that ultimately helped investigators reexamine evidence and zero in on the suspect.<\/p>\n<p>For Randle\u2019s family, the arrest marks a long-awaited step toward closure after more than 30 years.<\/p>\n<p>Fox News Digital reached out to the Pierce County Sheriff\u2019s Office for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/04\/05\/us-news\/washington-state-killer-james-randles-nabbed-in-1992-cold-case-solved-by-janice-randle-daughter\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More than three decades after a Washington mother was found dead inside her home, investigators have made an arrest in a case that had gone cold.&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41706,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=41705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/41706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=41705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=41705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=41705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}