The Murdered
Kimberly Sue Morse
Rhode Island
Kimberly Sue Morse, affectionately known as “Kimmie” to friends and family, was a small town girl from York, Maine. Born in 1967, she was the youngest of four children; her youngest sibling being a full thirteen years older than she was. Kimberly was loved by many, and known to be outgoing, caring, and charismatic. She was a generous and good natured person.
Kimberly was passionate about travel, never turning down an opportunity to see a new place. She enjoyed several trips in her young life; at one time, even living in St. Croix in the Virgin Islands, where she was involved in an initiative to help paint homes that had been rebuilt due to hurricane damage.
Kimberly would always return to York to visit her family and friends, as well as a young girl she had befriended and mentored from nearby Kittery, Maine, but she eventually decided to pursue a different life for herself in the city. She decided to move to North Providence, Rhode Island.
Shortly after moving, Kimberly enrolled in classes at The Warwick Academy of Beauty Culture, where she studied to become an esthetician. She began dancing a couple of nights a week at the Foxy Lady Gentlemen’s Club in Providence, RI, to cover her living and student expenses. Despite common assumptions about this line of work, Kimberly was very careful. She had taken self defense classes, she carried mace everywhere she went, and she was also very selective in choosing the specific club where she was employed. This more reputable club had stricter rules and procedures to protect all of its dancers. The club prohibited dancers from leaving with customers. Dancers were also required to sign in and out of the building. Aside from these precautions, Kimberly defied all typical stereotypes associated with her line of work. She led a life free of any drugs, and was known to be very health conscious. She was very focused in school, and had plans to leave Providence upon graduating her program.
On January 19, 2000, firefighters responded to a fire in a basement apartment in the Brick Manor Condominiums in North Providence, RI. Upon entry into the apartment, they were met with an aggressive odor of gasoline. Their findings in the home after the flames had been doused and extinguished, would propel a murder investigation that, to this day, has not yielded any resolution.
The body of Kimberly Morse was found in the bathroom of her home. She had been stabbed several times. Her throat had been slit, and she was placed, nude, into her bathtub. She was then set on fire.
When police were able to process the scene, what remained was an apartment splattered in blood. Evidence at the crime scene showed that Kimberly had been stabbed from behind just a few feet into the home, leading investigators to believe that she knew her attacker. It can be surmised that this person also likely had access to the apartment, was familiar with her schedule, and had been lying in wait. The crime was a very personal one. It was determined that there was no sign of forced entry, and that neighbors noticed Kimberly’s front door open in the hours before she returned home from work. Investigators have also stated that Kimberly was murdered several hours before the fire was set in her apartment, and that the perpetrator may have left for a brief time to acquire the accelerant used to start the blaze.
Police quickly began investigating, and despite several leads, nothing concrete was ever established, and no arrests were made.
Most recently, in 2019, the Attorney General’s office asserted they were hopeful that the advancements in DNA testing would lead to the arrest of Kimberly’s killer. Shortly after this statement was given, it was declared by the Attorney General that no more testing of the crime scene evidence is to ensue, until all other efforts have been exhausted. In a case that has remained unsolved for over twenty years, it seems astonishing that this testing has not been pursued by this point in time.
Throughout the investigation into Kimberly’s unnecessary end, one thing was certain, everyone that knew her considered it a privilege. She was genuine, kind and insightful. Her York High School yearbook quote read: “You’ve got to make the most of every day, because it may all be gone before you know it.” According to her many friends and family, she did just that.
In the wake of Kimberly’s death, a memorial fund was set up in her name. A portion of this fund was given to the young girl from Kittery that Kimberly had become so close to. With the funds, she was able to attend a summer school program, and join a local basketball team.
Anyone with information is asked to call the North Providence Police Department at 401-231-4533 or 1-877-RI-SOLVE.
Sources:
Murdered: Kimberly Morse | North Providence, RI | Uncovered
Kimberly Sue Morse Knew Her Killer — Murder, She Told: Maine & New England True Crime
Detective to killer: ‘When you think you got away with it—think again’ | WPRI.com
UNSOLVED HOMICIDE: KIMBERLY MORSE – LAST SEEN ALIVE
Sister of 2000 murder victim can’t wait to see the killer ‘face to face’ | WPRI.com
The Lost & The Taken 
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