INDIANAPOLIS — A local journalist who spent years uncovering a murder mystery in Martinsville wants to make sure the story of Carol Jenkins does not go untold.
The first screening of "The Girl in The Yellow Scarf" is happening Thursday at Kan Kan Theatre in Indianapolis.
"I've looked for many years at her face. That's one of the only good pictures of her. And what I see when I look in her eyes is a young woman that had innocence and hope," Sandra Chapman said.
It's a murder that still tugs at the hearts of many Hoosiers.
"It had a chilling effect. African Americans across central Indiana then said be careful going through Martinsville," Chapman said.
Sept. 16, 1968, nearly 55-years-ago, 21-year-old Carol Jenkins was selling encyclopedias in Martinsville when a man killed her in the middle of the street.
"There was a feeling that this was racially motivated but the investigators and others dismissed it as that," Chapman said.
Chapman, a local journalist, spent years looking into Jenkins's story.
Two days after her series aired in 2001, Chapman received a message that would change things.
"A woman called me and left me a very chilling message. She said if this girl had a yellow scarf and was killed with a screwdriver, my father could be the killer," Chapman said.
That tip plays a significant role in Chapman's new documentary titled "The Girl in The Yellow Scarf."
This weekend there will be a second sold-out screening of the documentary at Princess Theater in Rushville — the city Jenkins was from.
"I was made aware of Carol Jenkins's story as a kid. I grew up about probably a block to a block-and-a-half from where Carol would have been living when she passed," Mike Pavey, Rushville’s Mayor, said.
Pavey has played an important role in making sure Jenkins' story doesn't go untold.
"My hope is that people can learn from the tragedy, and we've said over and over here that Carol's life had value. The story gives an opportunity to teach future generations about inclusion and diversity. That's kind of the core of everything we've believed here," Pavey said.
"That's part of the reason why I’m doing what I’m doing because I want people to know her. I want them to know what happened to her and I want them to know what her legacy is," Chapman said.
Chapman said the overwhelming support has prompted a third documentary screening, next Thursday, Sept. 28 at The Living Room Theater.
