A Body in the Basement on ID: How many times was Dennis Dolinger stabbed?

Dennis Dolinger was a Washington D.C. gay activist who was viciously stabbed to death in the basement of his Potomac Avenue home in June 1999. Friends and other community members recalled attending several parties at the same house.

The medical examiner revealed Dolinger was stabbed 25 times in the head and the neck using a Phillips head screwdriver. The crime scene suggested that his slaying occurred during a botched burglary, as valuables were reported missing from the house.

Blood evidence and an investigative process called "cold hit" were used to identify the killer as Raymond Jenkins, a man already serving time on unrelated burglary charges. Jenkins was later convicted of murder and other charges stemming from the stabbing dead.

A Body in the Basement on ID will revisit Dennis Dolinger's gruesome murder in an all-new episode titled Deadly Invitation, scheduled to air on the channel this Wednesday, August 23, 2023, at 9:00 pm ET. An official synopsis says:

"In 1999, a killer brutally murders well-known community activist and member of the gay community Dennis Dolinger in the basement of his Washington, DC, home. With DNA technology in its infancy, the race is on to find the culprit before they strike again."

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Police suspected Dennis Dolinger, who died of 25 stab wounds, possibly knew his killer and had willingly invited the individual to his house

Dennis Dolinger, a gay activist, was stabbed 25 times in 1999 (Image via IMDb)

According to the Washington Blade, gay D.C. Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner and activist Dennis Dolinger was stabbed inside his 1516 Potomac Avenue home on June 4, 1999. He was also the founder of his neighborhood's Orange Hat crime-fighting group and a vocal advocate for beautification efforts.

The 51-year-old was killed in one such act of violence. His body was found in the basement, and the medical examiner later confirmed that he had been stabbed at least 25 times to the head and the neck with a weapon consistent with a Phillips head screwdriver. The crime scene was ransacked, and multiple valuables - nearly $1,000 in cash, gold chains, and a diamond ring were - were reported missing.

Reportedly, a trail of blood was found leading out of the basement across the house's three floors and into the front yard and the neighboring sidewalk. Subsequent tests revealed that the blood found belonged to Dolinger and another unidentified individual, pointing out that the killer was possibly injured during a struggle with the victim.

Police confirmed no signs of forced entry at the house, implying that Dolinger may have willingly invited the attacker over. They even found a lead within days when the victim's stolen credit card was used at a hair salon in Old Town Alexandria, as per The Cinemaholic.

Following this, a man named Steven Craig was arrested, and during a search of his apartment, Dennis Dolinger's other missing belongings were found. But Craig's DNA failed to match the blood extracted from the scene, and all charges against him were dropped.

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How was Raymond Jenkins linked to Dennis Dolinger's stabbing death via the "cold hit" method?

Raymond Jenkins was behind Dennis Dolinger's 1999 stabbing death (Image via IMDb)

The Washington Bade report further stated that while the road to justice in Dennis Dolinger's slaying was long, a second suspect named Raymond Jenkins first surfaced after police sent the DNA information from the unidentified blood sample found at the crime scene to other states to locate the suspect. This was the "cold hit" method of investigation.

A breakthrough followed when Jenkins' DNA, arrested and charged with an unrelated burglary in Virginia, matched the one taken from Dolinger's house. Jenkins was then identified as the killer in the gay activist's stabbing death later that year.

The outlet reported that links between Jenkins and Dolinger were found through witness accounts. Witnesses claimed that the two frequently hung out at the Dupont Circle gay bar called The Fireplace.

In January 2000, Raymond Jenkins was charged with first-degree murder while armed, among others, in Dennis Dolinger's stabbing death. He stood trial in 2006 and was found guilty and sentenced to 30 years in prison in October of that year. But his sentence was vacated in 2013 on technical grounds.

Jenkins accepted a plea deal offered to him in 2015. He then pleaded guilty to reduced charges of first-degree burglary and second-degree murder. The new sentence included five to fifteen years for the burglary charge and 20 years to life for the murder charge. His sentence was further reduced to 11 years, but the federal inmate died in August 2021.

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Learn more about Dennis Dolinger's slaying on ID's A Body in the Basement on Wednesday.