5 key details about Matthew Golder's death 

The Matthew Golder case is a story of four-month-old Matthew Golder's death in 1971, which was then ruled as an accident. His half-sister, Tracy Rhame, later Tracyraquel Berns, was blamed for his death. The ruling was that she had thrown him from his crib.

As Tracy grew older, she began doubting this narrative and started her investigation. Years later, Tracy's tenacity resulted in the exhumation of Matthew's body and a new autopsy, which concluded that he died from blunt force trauma to the head, not from a fall.

The authorities then indicted Jan Barry Sandlin, Tracy's stepfather, for felony murder. Prosecutors argued that Sandlin was the one who had caused the fatal injuries. In 1997, Jan Sandlin was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The case gained greater media attention again after the release of Burden of Guilt, a true-crime documentary on Tracy's quest for the facts and clearing of her name. It premiered on February 4, 2025.

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Five important facts about the tragic death of Matthew Golder

1) The first verdict of the accident

According to the Tampa Bay Times, Matthew Golder was only four months old when he died on December 20, 1971. The coroner first ruled it as an accident.

This ruling produced more questions than it answered, especially for his sister Tracy Rhame, who was then two years old and grew up believing she had killed her brother. The lack of a thorough investigation and autopsy contributed to the confusion surrounding the case.

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2) The sister's lifelong quest for truth

According to the New York Times, Tracy Rhame, now known as Tracyraquel Berns, spent most of her existence asking questions about the situation surrounding her brother's death. As she aged, she started questioning the explanation that had always been given to her from childhood.

In her quest for answers, she requested to see Matthew Golder's medical records and found inconsistencies in the original assessment. This discovery led her to look deeper into what occurred that fateful day.

Crime scene (Representative Image via pexels)

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3) Exhumation and new evidence

According to the Tampa Bay Times, after years of unanswered questions, Tracy's determination finally led to a breakthrough in 1996 when authorities agreed to exhume Matthew's body for further examination.

This decision came after reviewing the case, which showed that his injuries did not correlate with a fall from a crib as had been reported initially. Medical experts concluded that Matthew Golder died due to multiple blows to the head, thus pointing to foul play instead of an accident.

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4) Charges against a family member

According to the Tampa Bay Times, in a dramatic twist of fate more than two decades later, Jan Barry Sandlin, Tracy's stepfather at the time of Matthew Golder's death, was charged with murder.

Crime scene (Representative Imag via pexels)

Prosecutors contended that he had inflicted fatal injuries on Matthew while Tracy was taken away with their mother to do laundry. Upon their return home, Matthew was found injured on the floor. It is claimed that Sandlin was trying to blame Tracy by keeping her in a crib next to Matthew's lifeless body.

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5) Effects on family life

According to the New York Times, this case has also directly impacted the family life and dynamics for years. Kathy Almon, Matthew's mother, initially blamed Tracy as the cause of his death; however, at the trial later testified that she no longer holds her daughter guilty.

This change of perspective emphasizes the emotional chaos experienced by family members as they coped with guilt and blame in connection with Matthew Golder's death.

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For more details on the case of Matthew Golder, watch Burden of Guilt on Paramount+.