CMPD makes arrest in 34-year-old unsolved case

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) – An arrest has now been made in a nearly 35-year-old unsolved case, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police announced Friday.

Ruth Buchanan, 52, was crossing the intersection of Fifth and North Tryon Streets on December 29, 1989, when she was struck by a dark-colored vehicle that failed to stop at a red light.

The driver fled the scene and Buchanan was taken to what was then known as Charlotte Memorial Hospital. She died the following afternoon.

The following month, officers found a dark blue vehicle that had been stolen and had the same license plate number associated with the accident that killed Buchanan. Officers concluded that the car had been stolen from a dealer in the area, but the case remained unsolved for 32 years.

Crime Stoppers received a call in 2022 from an anonymous tipster who identified the man allegedly involved in the accident, but investigators determined that this person had nothing to do with the accident.

However, the investigation into this lead also included analysis by the CMPD crime lab of physical evidence seized from the suspect's car years earlier.

Through DNA analysis and evidence examination, 68-year-old Herbert Stanback was identified as the suspect.

He is currently serving a 22-year sentence in Scotland Correctional Institution in an unrelated case.

In March 2024, investigators went to the prison. Stanback reportedly confirmed that he was the driver who hit Buchanan and was on a work release program at the Charlotte Correctional Facility at the time.

An arrest warrant was subsequently issued against him for hit-and-run resulting in serious injury or death.

Stanback was taken to Mecklenburg County and formally arraigned in June 2024.

Buchanan's son was informed of the arrest in connection with his mother's death.

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