A retired Vermont university dean was shot to death on a trail near campus. Now police are looking for her killer

By Paradise Afshar, Jennifer Henderson and Holly Yan, CNN

(CNN) — A retired university dean was found shot in the head on a hiking trail near the Vermont State University Castleton Campus where she’d worked, and authorities are searching for clues to help lead them to whoever killed the beloved educator.

Honoree Fleming, a retired dean of education at the university and wife of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ron Powers, is believed to have entered the trail near campus around 4 p.m. Thursday and was found dead less than an hour later, Vermont State Police said.

A medical examiner determined Fleming, 77, was killed by the gunshot wound, police said.

As of Monday, no one had been arrested, and police say they don’t have a motive in the killing, adding it’s unknown whether it was random or targeted.

“The suspect is considered armed and dangerous,” Vermont State Police said. “The public is urged to remain vigilant and alert for suspicious person(s) and activities and to report anything suspicious to the Vermont State Police at 802-773-9101. Tips also may be submitted anonymously online.”

Police are looking for a “person of interest,” described as a male with short red hair, about 5 feet, 10 inches tall. He was last seen wearing a dark gray T-shirt and carrying a black backpack.

Investigators are asking local businesses and members of the public to review their surveillance footage for possible information.

At a Monday news conference, Vermont State Police’s Dan Trudeau said the department has received more than 200 tips in Fleming’s killing. “Every tip is better than no tip,” he said. He added search and rescue teams were combing the trail area for evidence.

“This type of case is gonna be probably a blend of old-fashioned detective work, along with new age technology-based detective work,” he said.

Trudeau also said the public should be “vigilant” and “maintain some self-awareness.”

“We don’t really know yet if the community is in any further danger,” he said.

The university’s Castleton Campus opened Monday to provide “a supportive environment for those who wish to come together,” but students were excused from class. Regular class will resume Tuesday.

“Our hearts go out to the members of our community who taught with Honoree and had her as a beloved teacher during their time at Castleton,” the school said in a statement posted on Facebook.

“Scores of students benefited from Dr. Fleming’s teachings and research. Before she joined Castleton, she was also a faculty member at Trinity College, Middlebury College, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Honoree lived in Castleton with her husband, Ron Powers, a Pulitzer Prize-winning and New York Times bestselling author,” the school said.

Powers was co-author of the book “Flags of Our Fathers,” a New York Times best seller about the men involved in the famous flag-raising during the 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima. He also won a Pulitzer Prize in 1973.

“Our deepest sympathies go to her husband, Ron, family, and friends. This is an unbelievable tragedy for the Castleton campus and for all of Vermont State University,” the school said. “Honoree will be deeply missed.”

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.