In January 1995, Mary Catherine Edwards, a 31-year-old beloved middle school teacher in Beaumont, Texas, was found murdered in her home. The crime scene was chilling—Mary had been sexually assaulted and drowned in her own bathtub. Despite a thorough investigation, the case went cold for over two decades.

It wasn’t until 2020, thanks to advancements in DNA genealogy, that investigators linked the crime to Clayton Bernard Foreman—a former high school acquaintance of Mary’s who had left behind a hidden trace of himself at the scene. His arrest and eventual conviction brought long-awaited justice to a family that had spent 25 years waiting for answers.