Trial begins for man accused of raping, murdering Sarasota woman in 1999

SARASOTA, Fla. - After two decades, the man who Sarasota detectives say is responsible for a murder and sexual assault of a woman will finally stand trial.

In 1999, Deborah Dalzell was found dead inside her brand-new Sarasota home. The killer had slashed her lanai and broke into her home late at night. Detectives said he didn’t take anything, instead, his motive appeared to be to commit a brutal attack. 

Advances in DNA technology allowed detectives to crash the cold case. Using DNA collected at the scene in 1999, detectives were able to build a DNA-based family tree and a profile of Dalzell’s killer. 

It led them to a St. Petersburg man, 39-year-old Luke Fleming. He lived less than a mile from Dalzell back in 1999. Detectives said his DNA matched the DNA gathered at the scene.

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File image of Deborah Dalzell

For Dalzell’s family, it’s been an especially long wait for justice.

“We have all waited over 19 years for this news – 19 years of graduations, weddings, new babies and family milestones that Deborah has missed,” said Peggy Thistle, Dalzell’s sister.

Fleming has been behind bars since his arrest in 2018. The case made headlines as one of the first in Florida to use DNA ancestry to crack a cold case.

Jury selection for the trial begins Monday morning.

Deborah Dalzell's home, the site of the 1999 murder