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'The case that won't go away': Triad communities remember 'Bitter Blood' murders 40 years later

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A Lee Enterprises, Incorporated newspaper. Majority shareholder: David Hoffmann, Hoffmann Media Group.

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40 YEARS LATER: THE ‘BITTER BLOOD’ CASE

'The case that won't go away': Triad communities remember 'Bitter Blood' murders 40 years later

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Allen Gentry, the lead detective on the Fritz Klenner-Susie Newsom Lynch murder/suicide case 40 years ago, speaks about the 1985 investigation.

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Law enforcement officials work at the scene of a vehicle explosion after a police chase on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C. The occupants killed in the vehicle were Frederick “Fritz” Klenner Jr., Susie Newsom Lynch, and her sons, John, 10, and Jim, 9.

Journal file photo by Chuck Eaton

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People are also reading…

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Read all 6 parts of our new series about the Bitter Blood case, 40 years later. Here are the links.

Want to read the whole story without waiting for each installment to come out in the print newspaper? Well, here it is. Just click on these links. 

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'Bitter Blood' saga 40 years later: The 21 people you should know

Reading our 6-part series on the "Bitter Blood" saga, 40 years later? Here's a quick who's w…

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{photoSource}Greensboro News & Record{/photoSource} (File) Fredrick “Fritz” Klenner is seen in this 1982 photo taken at his father’s Reidsville, N.C. office.

Richard T.Davis

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Column: Long before 'Bitter Blood,' Chief Justice Susie Sharp was a celebrity in my hometown of Madison

They treated us to a fine time at the Chapel Hill K&W Cafeteria, a comforting reunion with a childhood hero who seemed curious about our studies and social lives.

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LEFT: Susie Newsom Lynch (from left) with her sons, James “Jim”, 9, and John, 10 in 1985.

File photo

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ABOVE: The scene where Fritz Klenner’s Chevrolet Blazer blew up during a police chase killing himself, Susie Newsom Lynch and her two children on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C.

Journal file photo

by Chuck Eaton

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More photos of the Klenner/Newsom Lynch explosion in Summerfield, then and now

A crime scene photograph of Fritz Klenner’s Chevrolet Blazer after the explosion on June 3, 1985, is kept in Allen Gentry’s case file from the 1985 Klenner-Newsom Lynch investigation. Photographed on Thursday, July 3, 2025, at Gentry’s home in Advance, N.C.

Allison Lee Isley,Journal

ABOVE: The scene where Fritz Klenner’s Chevrolet Blazer blew up during a police chase killing himself, Susie Newsom Lynch and her two children on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C.

Journal file photo

by Chuck Eaton

Officials with the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation, Guilford County Sheriff's Office and Greensboro Police Department check the scene where Fritz Klenner's Chevy Blazer blew up during a police chase killing himself, Susie Newsom Lynch and her two children for evidence on June 3, 1985.

News & Record file photo by John Page

A Summerfield emergency vehicle travels along N.C. 150 between Strader and Bronco Roads on Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Summerfield, N.C. The police chase with Fritz Klenner and Susie Newsom Lynch on June 3, 1985, ended near this location with an explosion.

Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Fritz Klenner's Chevy Blazer blew up during a police chase killing himself, Susie Newsom Lynch and her two children on June 3, 1985.

News & Record file photo by Duane Hall

Road signs at the intersection of N.C. 150 and Strader Road on Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Summerfield, N.C. The police chase with Fritz Klenner and Susie Newsom Lynch on June 3, 1985, ended near this location with an explosion.

Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Officers with the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation, Guilford County Sheriff's Office and Greensboro Police Department at the scene where Fritz Klenner's Blazer exploded during a police chase killing himself, Susie Newsom Lynch and her two children for more evidence and clues on June 3, 1985.

News & Record file photo by John Page

A crime scene photograph of Fritz Klenner’s Blazer after the explosion on June 3, 1985, is kept in Allen Gentry’s case file from the 1985 Klenner-Newsom Lynch investigation. Photographed on Thursday, July 3, 2025, at Gentry’s home in Advance, N.C.

Allison Lee Isley,Journal

A motorist travels along N.C. 150 near the intersection with Strader Road on Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Summerfield, N.C. The police chase with Fritz Klenner and Susie Newsom Lynch on June 3, 1985, ended near this location with an explosion.

Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Law enforcement officials work at the scene of a vehicle explosion after a police chase on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C. The occupants killed in the vehicle were Frederick “Fritz” Klenner Jr., Susie Newsom Lynch, and her sons, John, 10, and Jim, 9.

Journal file photo by Chuck Eaton

A Summerfield fire truck travels along N.C. 150 near the intersection with Strader Road on Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Summerfield, N.C. The police chase with Fritz Klenner and Susie Newsom Lynch on June 3, 1985, ended near this location with an explosion.

Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Law enforcement officials work scene of a vehicle explosion after a police chase on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C. The occupants killed in the vehicle were Frederick “Fritz” Klenner Jr., Susie Newsom Lynch, and her sons, John, 10, and Jim, 9.

Journal file photo by Chuck Eaton

sspear@rockinghamnow.com

(336) 349-4331, ext. 6140

@SpearSusie_RCN

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Klenner Newsom Lynch Explosion Summerfield 1985

ABOVE: The scene where Fritz Klenner’s Chevrolet Blazer blew up during a police chase killing himself, Susie Newsom Lynch and her two children on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C.

LEFT: Susie Newsom Lynch (from left) with her sons, James “Jim”, 9, and John, 10 in 1985.

Law enforcement officials work at the scene of a vehicle explosion after a police chase on June 3, 1985, in Summerfield, N.C. The occupants killed in the vehicle were Frederick “Fritz” Klenner Jr., Susie Newsom Lynch, and her sons, John, 10, and Jim, 9.

{photoSource}Greensboro News & Record{/photoSource} (File) Fredrick “Fritz” Klenner is seen in this 1982 photo taken at his father’s Reidsville, N.C. office.

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