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The upcoming episode of 20/20 on ABC will delve into the murder of 19-year-old mother Cathy Swartz, a case that shook the entirety of Three Rivers, Michigan. Moreover, the murder remained unsolved for decades as the police failed to find enough evidence to link it with anyone who could have wanted to harm Cathy. She had a nine-month-old daughter in the house during the murder, but the kid was left unharmed.
This case will be covered in the latest episode of 20/20, which drops on Friday, March 7, 2025, at 9.00 PM EST on ABC. The logline for the episode, as revealed by ABC News, reads:
"20/20 co-anchor David Muir reports on the murders of two young women — each unsolved for decades — and how they are linked by cutting-edge forensic DNA technology that cracked open the cases and led to long-awaited justice."
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Apart from Cathy Swartz, the murder of Catherine Edwards will also be covered in this episode, which will primarily focus on how advancements in DNA technology helped get justice for these two women whose murders remained unsolved for decades.
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Who was Cathy Swartz, and what happened to her?
Cathy Swartz was born on May 24, 1969, and had her upbringing on a two-acre farm in Mendon, Massachusetts. She grew up to be an adventurous young woman, who was a girl scout and even had a pony of her own. She initially attended Mendon High School but later shifted to Three Rivers, Michigan, where her father reportedly opened a pro shop at the local bowling alley. She was also into camping and participated in a bowling league.
During her final year in school, she discovered Cathy Swartz was pregnant and decided to drop out. She worked briefly in different places and started focusing on her motherhood. In March 1988, her daughter was born. She named her Courteney Swartz.
In September of the same year, she met Mike Warner, a worker at a paper plant. The two hit it off immediately and, within months, got engaged to each other. They even moved into an apartment together and planned on raising Courteney together.
However, on December 2, 1988, Warner came home in the afternoon to discover a shocking scene. He found Cathy Swartz lying in a pool of blood in their home. Her daughter was still in the crib and was left unharmed.
As the authorities came and investigated the scene, they found several pieces of physical evidence, but with little advancements in DNA technology, these did not lead anywhere.
As for Cathy, an autopsy revealed that she was stabbed in the neck multiple times. She was also beaten and strangled. She also had some defensive wounds on her arms. Authorities concluded that there was an attempted assault on her as well.
There were no signs of forced entry, and this led to the conclusion that she possibly knew the person who had killed her. After trying to link Mike Warner and her ex-boyfriend, Troy Schulthies, to the crime, the authorities ultimately had nothing on their hands.
It took decades before technology was advanced enough to finally uncover the identity of the killer from the DNA they found. It turned out to be Robert Waters, an acquaintance of the young couple. He was arrested and charged but committed suicide before he got his punishment.
The upcoming episode of 20/20 will cover this case in detail.
