Copyright Salt Lake City Deseret News
Heidi Miller knows firsthand what it’s like to have a loved one killed and not know who did it. “It’s an ache that doesn’t go away. It’s constantly there,” she said. Miller’s mother, Sherry Black, was found stabbed to death inside her bookstore, B&W Billiards and Books, 3466 S. 700 East, on Nov. 30, 2010. For nearly a decade, there were no suspects or persons of interest in the case. An Armani Exchange men’s belt with a waist measurement of approximately 36-38 inches and a sticker on the back of the buckle with the number “323” was collected at the crime scene, as well as blood. Ten years later, thanks to advances in DNA technology and good detective work, Adam Durborow was arrested and later pleaded guilty to aggravated murder. He was sentenced to life in the Utah State Prison without the possibility of parole. On Monday, Miller and her husband, Greg Miller, the former CEO of the Larry H. Miller Group, welcomed 150 law enforcers from 19 states and Canada to the Salt Lake Community College Miller Campus, 9750 S. 300 West, for a three-day training symposium on investigating cold cases. The Sherry Black Foundation, created by the Millers in 2017, is sponsoring the conference along with the International Homicide Investigators Association. Officers will learn about the latest in digital technology, forensic investigative genetic genealogy, strategies for prosecuting cold case homicides, investigating staged crime scenes and examining criminal behavior. But maybe most important, Greg Miller hopes the conference gives officers the chance to network and collaborate. “When we were trying to get Sheri’s case solved, it was comforting to Heidi and I to see how many agencies were willing to show an interest and share what they learned and knew about the case with others. And there’s no doubt in my mind that resulted in — eventually, it still took years — it resulted in a conviction that may not have taken place otherwise,” he said. Utah Department of Public Safety deputy commissioner Tyler Kotter says there are 254 unsolved homicides in the state, 131 people listed as “missing,” and the unidentified remains of 42 people collected in the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner. Families of those unsolved murders and missing people are seeking answers just as much as they want closure, he said. “And I know firsthand what it’s like to have an unsolved homicide. And I also know what it feels like to finally get the answers that you need to be able to put that question behind me and move forward. So, we want to help people find answers,” Heidi Miller said. “We just wanted to do what we could to try and help them experience closure to the degree we can influence, or even take a small step in that direction. We just felt that it was important for us to do that,” Greg Miller added, noting the comfort his family felt when Black’s case was solved. “And if we can bring that level of comfort to other families, that’s something we’re very interested in doing.”
