Texas Rangers, Law Enforcement Solve 1997 Permian Basin Sexual Assault Case

AUSTIN – Authorities in the Permian Basin have now identified the man they believe violently raped a 49-year-old woman in a mall parking lot in Midland almost 30 years ago. Last month, James Lee Woodard, now 61, was arrested in Big Spring and charged with aggravated sexual assault.

On Sept. 1, 1997, Midland Police Department officers responded to the Midland Park Mall after a woman reported being sexually assaulted in the parking lot. The woman was taking out trash when an unidentified man grabbed her, threatened her with a box cutter and forced her into a light-colored van. She was driven around the area by another suspect as the assault took place, and was eventually let out of the van.

Over the years, investigators interviewed several witnesses, reviewed tips from the community and submitted DNA collected from evidence into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) – but no one was ever arrested. In 2001, the Midland District Attorney’s Office presented this case to the 142nd District Court Grand Jury, which issued an indictment of the DNA profile for aggravated sexual assault – nullifying the statute of limitations on this case.

Then, in March 2023, the Texas Rangers, in coordination with the Midland Police Department, identified this case for the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) program, and evidence from this case was resubmitted for advanced DNA testing and genealogy research through Bode Technology.

Last year, advanced DNA testing and genealogy research provided a lead in the investigation. The Texas Rangers utilized that lead to further investigation, which led to identifying James Lee Woodard as the suspect in 2026. On April 1, 2026, the Midland District Attorney’s Office presented the investigation to the 142nd  District Court Grand Jury, who issued a re-indictment of the case for aggravated sexual assault and attached James Lee Woodard’s name to the indictment. The Texas Rangers, with assistance of the Midland Police Department and Big Spring Police Department, located and arrested Woodard at a convenience store in Big Spring the next day.

The Texas Rangers would like to thank our partners, including the Midland Police Department, Midland District Attorney’s Office, DPS’ Crime Laboratory Division, Bode Technology and the Department of Justice/Bureau of Justice Assistance, for their steadfast dedication and collaboration to help identify and arrest Woodard.

About the SAKI Program

The Texas Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) program is funded by the Department of Justice/Bureau of Justice Assistance (DOJ/BJA). DOJ/BJA provides investigative funding for agencies across the United States to further unsolved sexual assaults and sexually related homicides with the hope of bringing justice to victims and their families.

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(HQ 2026-053)