Seminary Statement on Elizabeth Mackintosh
On March 26, 1990, Covenant Theological Seminary student Elizabeth Mackintosh was murdered on the Seminary’s campus. A multi-year investigation involving several law enforcement agencies followed. This investigation was met with the full cooperation of the Seminary and yielded several suspects. However, despite everyone’s best efforts and the full cooperation of the Seminary, evidence gathered was insufficient to file charges. We grieve this loss and the absence of justice for Elizabeth. This case has remained open and the Creve Coeur Police Department continues to investigate leads as they arise.
As confirmed by Creve Coeur Police Chief Jeff Hartman in our statement of June 2023, Covenant Seminary continues to cooperate fully, providing information as requested by authorities. By extension, when asked to participate in the Cold Justice investigation, Covenant granted that team full access to Covenant’s campus, personnel, and all pertinent documentation in support of their efforts to uncover information which might lead to justice. The authorities, like we, accept Elizabeth’s death as the tragic loss that it is and continue to long for justice.
Recently, Covenant Seminary was made aware that a podcast about this event is scheduled to be released on December 19, 2023. Some current Covenant Seminary staff and faculty were approached about the podcast and have chosen to not participate, leaving the investigative work of this open case to law enforcement professionals. That decision has been interpreted by some as suspicious, suggesting that the Seminary has complicity or knowledge that it wishes to hide. This speculation is categorically untrue. The Seminary grieves the death of Elizabeth, has cooperated fully with law enforcement, and longs for justice. We believe that speculation and innuendo about the facts surrounding Elizabeth’s death and any suspects is unwise, potentially damaging to them, and we cannot condone it.
Again, Covenant Seminary has and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement officials in pursuit of justice for Elizabeth. We long for justice for Elizabeth and peace for all those involved. Because of the finished work of Jesus Christ, we believe Elizabeth has the one thing she longed for most in life: the eternal love of her Savior. May God comfort all those impacted by her murder.
