On April 20, 1999, the serene corridors of Columbine High School were shattered by the harrowing sound of gunfire. Amidst the chaos, teenage couple Nicholas Kunselman and Stephanie Hart-Grizzell found themselves hiding, waiting with bated breath for rescue, while their classmates faced an unthinkable tragedy.

By a stroke of fate, they survived.

Tragically, twelve students and a devoted teacher lost their lives that day. Among the victims was Rachel Joy Scott, a colleague of Kunselman at a nearby Subway, situated just a few blocks from the school.

In the aftermath of the horrific events orchestrated by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the community grappled with immense grief. Kunselman, then 15, and Hart-Grizzell, 16, leaned on each other for support, their bond deepening as they navigated the aftermath of the massacre together.

Having been friends since middle school, their relationship had blossomed into a romantic partnership. As they dreamed of a future beyond their devastated community, their love seemed to grow stronger with each passing day.

Yet, despite their dreams of a life together, that future was not to be.

Less than a year later, the pair were murdered side by side at the Subway store where Kunselman had worked with Scott.

And unlike Harris and Klebold – who killed themselves at the scene – the person responsible for Kunselman and Hart-Grizzell’s deaths has never been caught.

Nicholas Kunselman and Stephanie Hart-Grizzell survived Columbine but fell victim to gunfire less than a year later in a double murder that remains unsolved

They were killed at the Subway where Kunselman worked – just blocks from Columbine’s campus

The tragedy was realized shortly after midnight on Valentine’s Day 2000.

Grizzell’s mother, Kelly, last saw her daughter in her bedroom, in pajamas, working on homework. She told her she loved her, wished her good night, and went to sleep.

After her mother went to bed, Grizzell slipped out of the house to see Kunselman, who was closing the late shift alone at the Subway where he worked.

When Kelly woke the next morning, she noticed her daughter’s car was gone. She got dressed, turned on the television, and saw a breaking news headline: double murder at a Subway restaurant in Littleton.

As footage from the scene aired, she recognized her daughter’s car in the parking lot. It struck her as strange, but she had no reason to believe Grizzell had been inside.

That changed when police officers and news crews began arriving at her front door.

‘I can remember somebody saying, “Is this the mother?” and you can’t imagine – you’re hoping somebody is standing behind you, or that they’re not really looking at you, or that you’re dreaming,’ she told Denver7 in 2017.

‘I can remember bits and pieces after that…it was February; I didn’t have a coat. I remember falling to the ground.’

Grizzell left home late on February 13th to visit Kunselman at work while he worked the late shift alone

At around 12:45am, a co-worker driving past the Subway noticed the lights were still on, hours after Kunselman should have closed the store at 10pm.

The employee went inside and found Kunselman and Grizzell shot to death behind the counter.

Investigators with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said at the time they had gathered crucial evidence but were withholding details known only to the killer.

Kunselman’s mother, Wendy, recalled screaming when she learned her son had been killed.

‘I screamed and said, “No, no … this can’t be happening,”’ she told local media in 2000. ‘I have no idea what happened. I want to know why.’

It has never been publicly revealed exactly how Kunselman and Grizzell were killed, how many injuries they sustained, or what weapon was used.

Investigators struggled to establish a motive and quickly hit a wall. Interviews with more than 500 people led only to dead ends.

Early on, detectives explored whether the killings were the result of a botched robbery, though nothing was taken from the store.

The co-worker who discovered the bodies reported seeing someone running from the scene – a white male, estimated to be between 16 and 20 years old, about 5-foot-7 and 150 to 170 pounds, with blondish hair, wearing a red jacket and flared pants.

The description generated hundreds of leads, sending investigators across the country, including to South Carolina and Florida. Several people later confessed to the crime after it drew national attention due to its connection to Columbine, but each claim proved false.

A composite sketch of the man who was spotted running from the scene was shared by investigators but the culprit was never identified

Kunselman, 15, and Hart-Grizzell, 16, believed they were soulmates and were planning to spend their rest of their lives together. Their families buried them in a joint ceremony

More than two and a half decades later, the man seen fleeing the scene has never been identified.

Investigators also examined whether a local drug network may have been connected to the killings. Detectives said there were indications both teenagers had used drugs, but declined to elaborate.

Interviews tied to more than 50 drug cases in the area yielded no evidence linking the activity to the murders, though they did result in the prosecution of 35 people on unrelated charges. Most were accused of selling cocaine and methamphetamine to young people in their teens and early 20s.

In 2003, Grizzell’s mother sued the owner of the Subway franchise, accusing him of allowing drug activity at the store and permitting dealers and customers to enter through an unlocked door. 

A judge later dismissed the claim because her daughter was not an employee. The owner denied wrongdoing.

Grizzell was Kelly’s only child.

‘My family was pretty much destroyed from this,’ she told the Denver Post in 2001. ‘My dad still cries every day. The impact is so far beyond me.’

The families initially believed the killer would be quickly identified. Instead, weeks turned into months, and months into years, as leads dried up.

The case has since passed through multiple investigators and agencies. Detectives have amassed over 40 binders of material, including more than 150 pieces of evidence and hundreds of interviews.

That evidence has been re-examined multiple times, including for DNA, but no breakthrough has been made.

The case was reassigned again last year and is now formally classified as a cold case, though officials say it remains a priority for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

‘The horrific murders of Stephanie Hart and Nick Kunselman in 2000 remain a deeply significant and heart-wrenching case for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and for the surrounding community,’ a JCSO spokesperson told the Daily Mail.

‘The JCSO has invested thousands of hours investigating this case and pursuing every potential lead. The department will remain relentless in its pursuit of tips and information to hold those responsible accountable.’

Rachel Joy Scott, who worked with Kunselman at the Subway, was the first victim of the Columbine High School massacre of April 1999

She was among 13 people killed by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. Another 24 were injured

Wendy Kunselman, who died in 2012, previously said her son believed Stephanie was his soulmate.

‘He believed there was no way they could ever be apart,’ she said in 2000. ‘He’ll be very missed by all of us.’

Kunselman and Grizzell were buried together in a joint ceremony.

In 2020, Grizzell’s mother addressed the killer directly, urging: ‘You know who you are and you know that you did this – you just need to come forward.’

‘I think people talk about closure,’ she said in a separate interview a year earlier. ‘Certainly, I don’t expect closure, but I do hope for justice. I know the case can still be solved.’

A reward of $60,000 remains on offer for information leading to an arrest.

Anyone with information about the murders is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867 (STOP) or submit a tip online.