Gretchen Hardister Drafts

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Roswell Police Department (GA)

Offense Location:

Roswell, Georgia

Summary:

Gretchen Hardister, 37, was killed inside a Roswell, Georgia home on July 20, 2003. Co-owner of a hair salon Simon Scates was stabbed 47 times, and Gretchen Hardister's presence inside Simon Scates' house remains unexplained. To this day, police have made no arrests.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Offense:

Simon Scates and Gretchen Hardister were killed inside a Roswell home in 2003. Gretchen Venable Hardister, 37, died Sunday, July 20, 2003, in Roswell. Simon Scates, who was a co-owner of a hair salon, was stabbed 47 times. Gretchen Hardister's presence inside Simon Scates' house remains unexplained. The exact cause of Gretchen's death has not been publicly disclosed by authorities, though her sister stated that investigators were praying new crime technology would help answer how she died.

Additional Details:

Gretchen had a Masters degree in electrical computer engineering and a sensitive job for a major defense contractor. Gretchen's husband was killed at age 26 in a crash along Interstate 20. A couple of Roswell police crime scene experts have sent some of the evidence from the case to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for retesting, as family members began urging police to find answers. They now have persons of interest they have identified in the case. Detectives are reinterviewing people, having old evidence retested, and have persons of interest they have identified in the case. Gretchen's sister Lane worked with the victim crime advocate and with Governor Sonny Perdue to get that reward/executive order.

Case Last Updated:

Sep 03, 2026