She was treated at Novato General Hospital for a skull fracture and multiple, severe cuts and bruises. The friend declined to accompany the girls to smoke with the man, whom she had never seen before. [19] Police reported in 1975 that it was a rectangle connected to a square, with bars running along side constructed of twigs or sticks. [4], Lindsay Cutshall and Jason Allen grew up in the Midwestern United States. Graham and Trimble, who had been associating with classmates who used drugs, had gone to school that day but did not attend classes. It was also proven that Allens killer had bound her wrists and ankles prior to her death. It is . However, it was reported in 2011 that the missing 17-year-old Smith was not actually found. [2], Carolyn Nadine Davis, 15, ran away from her home outside Anderson in Shasta County[3] on February 6, 1973[16] and spent the next five months traveling. Based on what detectives have been able to learn, we feel confident that we have Jason and Lindsay's killer in custody. The Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders were a series of at least seven unsolved homicides involving female hitchhikers that took place in Sonoma County and Santa Rosa of the North Bay area of California in 1972 and 1973. This unidentified victim had been hog-tied, with the killers rope looped around the womans throat. Although Graham and Trimble are only suspected victims of the Santa Rosa murderer, there is plenty of circumstantial evidence, from the use of a ravine to the fact that both girls were known to hitchhike, to suggest that they ran afoul of the unknown serial murderer. [22], On July 2, 1979, the skeletal remains of a young white female were found in a ravine[16] off Calistoga Road approximately 100 yards (91m) from where the body of Lori Lee Kursa had been recovered seven years earlier. Police also learned that an eyewitness had seen Jeanette getting into a brown Chevrolet pickup truck. . The Winchester Mystery House is a mansion in San Jose, California which was once the personal residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of gun magnate William Wirt Winchester. This is a family newspaper, please use a kind and respectful tone. [14][15], Authorities speculated that Kursa was kidnapped, forced into the van, stripped of her clothing, and that she opened the passenger door of the speeding vehicle in an attempt to escape her captor or captors, fell or jumped or was pushed out and broke her neck in the fall into the ravine. No known connection to him between Lindsay Cutshall or Jason Allen has been uncovered yet either. [13][2] Her frozen remains were located on December 14, 1972, in a ravine approximately 50 feet (15m) off Calistoga Road,[4] northeast of Rincon Valley in Santa Rosa. The couple met in 2002 while Cutshall was a student at the Appalachian Bible College in West Virginia, and became engaged six weeks later. Indeed, by the decades midpoint, FBI profiler Robert Ressler had coined the term serial killer after conducting several interviews with the likes of Herb Mullin, Edmund Kemper, and Monte Rissell. The city of Santa Rosa, in Sonoma County, California, was once the location for just one series of horrific murders, which would go on to shock this . ", "No Contest Plea In Notorious 2004 Jenner Beach Murders; DA Agrees Not To Seek Death Penalty", "Jenner beach killer Shaun Gallon sentenced to life in prison", "10 years on, Jenner beach killings haunt 2 families", "Retracing the doomed couple's steps / Slain Christian camp counselors spent some time in S.F. Her biological parents then located her shortly afterwards and took her back to their home in Livermore, California, according to the article, which quoted a juvenile officer from the sheriffs office.[31]. Strychnine was sometimes mixed with other drugs, but an autopsy showed no trace of either heroin or amphetamines in her system.[18]. Gallon made statements to the detectives with new information (he spontaneously confessed) and additional investigative leads into the case. It is also possible that the killer may have carried Walshs body for miles prior to disposal.[7]. Police thought it was suicide, but friends are sure it's murder. [5], On July 16, 2009, a 62-year-old drifter named Joseph Henry Burgess was killed in a shoot-out in the remote Jemez Mountains of New Mexico. Shannon McAlvain, Lead Detective Joe Horsemen, Detectives Jeff Toney, Jayson Fowler and Jesse Hanshew. Want to post on Patch? (Gallon in fact led them to a soda can with the two bullit casings). Anyone with information about Georgia's case is asked to call the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office at 707-565-2185 or 707-565-2650. 1976: Alvin Maddux and Faye Maddux; Elaine Lehtinen, 1980: Charles Slack; Ruben Huijon; Douglas Hancock, 1981: Ian Dallas; Lloyd Johnson; Henry Villanueva, 1991: Kin Po-Ko; Peggy Swarts; Marty Davis, 2007-2009: Johnethel McGehee (McGhee's remains were found in the Berryessa area in 2009; detectives determined she died in 2007. The . 5. Nine days later, her body was found near a Highway 101 offramp in south Petaluma. Robert Levinson The Daytona Beach Killer The Burrowing Burglars Quadriga The Evansdale Murders Dwayne Jones Philip Fraser The Delphi Murders Danniella Vian The Abduction of Violet Ripken The Monster With 21 Faces Cyle Van Komen & Kevin Nelson Brittany Phillips The Assassination of Philip Barton Key Judy Weichert Larry Chism West Mesa Bone Collector [2][7] Davis was last seen hitchhiking that afternoon near the Highway 101 ramp,[4] southbound,[2][17] in Garberville. When the Jane Doe was discovered in 1979, it was believed to be Jeannette. Sheriff's Office detectives are continuing to follow-up on leads and are working hard to complete the investigation. The following month he was sentenced to serve three consecutive life terms without parole plus another 94 years in state prison for his crimes: the murders of Cutshall and Allen; the 2017 killing of his brother, Shamus Gallon; and an attempted murder in 2004 of a man in Monte Rio. The mystery surrounding her death has always messed with my head, brother Larry Kursa told the Press Democrat in 2011. The cause of the plane's crash remains a mystery. Additionally, I want to thank the members of our community who have come forward with information on this case. [12] Camo beer originates in Wisconsin, is no longer made, and is an uncommon beer in California. [16] A friend witnessed her likely abduction and reported that she entered a faded brown Chevrolet pickup truck fitted with a homemade wooden camper and driven by a 20- to 30-year-old Caucasian male with an Afro hairstyle. (This is a really good theory.) Somewhere there was a piece to this to put it together, but somehow you just can't seem to find it.. [65], Fredric Manalli, a 41-year-old Santa Rosa Junior College creative writing instructor,[66] was suspected[67] when, after his August 24, 1976 death in a head-on collision on Highway 12,[68] sadomasochistic drawings he had created depicting a former student, Kim Wendy Allen, who was one of the victims, were discovered among his belongings. [2] Her home life was troubled and she was a frequent hitchhiker and habitual runaway. Amazingly, friends and schoolmates of both girls had lived for over 30 years without ever knowing that the girls were even missing, let alone dead.[10]. This is a family newspaper, please use a kind and respectful tone. Following an autopsy performed by Sonoma County coroner Andrew Johnasen, it was concluded that Allens killer had tortured her and killed her by slowly strangling her with a cord or wire. I'm grateful to the dozens of detectives, from all of the Sheriff's Office investigative units, who persistently and faithfully worked on this case for nearly 13 years. Authorities later said she had traveled to Illinois and New Mexico. Other investigators later cast doubt on the meaning of the twig figure and whether it had any connection to the girls murder. At 10:30 AM on May 5, 2017, Sonoma County Sheriff Steve Freitas read the following statement regarding the 2004 Jenner double murder case: "Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Revisit some of the most heinous crimes in local history. Since camping on the beach is illegal, it is unlikely the couple planned to camp for more than one night.[5]. Very few witness descriptions are available. The Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders were a series of at least seven unsolved homicides involving female hitchhikers that took place in Sonoma County and Santa Rosa of the North Bay area of California in 1972 and 1973. Carolyn apparently lived with her grandmother in Garberville for a while before deciding to hitchhike to Modesto. Her captor or captors left her by the side of the road. When Ted Bundy was apprehended in 1975, detectives thought he may have killed the girls in the Bay Area; he often targeted young women with long, straight hair parted down the middle, which all of the Santa Rosa victims had. Read about more chilling unsolved murder sprees on 10 Horrific Facts About The Oakland County Child Killer and 10 Terrifying Facts Of The Honolulu Strangler. Her parents found a note waiting for them at their Anderson, California, home. This location connected Walsh with Michelle Way, a road that intersected with Lorraine Way in Santa Rosa. She had been strangled by her killer a week before her bodys discovery. He reportedly brandished a gun and threatened to rape her. And when they called the police, no one yet knew that the search for a killer now spanning five decades and counting had just begun. [3] Detailed credit card records and known whereabouts of Bundy reveal he was in Washington on the dates of some of the disappearances. One-Year Anniversary of the Unsolved Murder of 12-Year-Old Angel Gaspar. On March 4, 1972, at 5:00 PM, Allen left her job at a health food store in Larkspur to attend a night class. The helicopter spotted the bodies and notified the department. She was carrying the barrel, which had red Chinese characters on it, when she was last seen hitchhiking near a ramp to northbound Highway 101 in San Rafael. All of the hospital and law enforcement records related to the case were missing by 2011 and authorities announced their intention to find both Lisa Michelle Smith and the young woman calling herself "Lisa Smith" or someone who knew them. They were last seen sometime between 9 and 11 p.m. on Feb. 4, 1972. She is believed to have been between 16 and 21 when she was killed, had red, auburn or brown hair, was 5-foot-3 and wore hard contact lenses. She posted a letter to her parents shortly after she ran away in which she wrote that she had left voluntarily and never planned to return home. The Sheriff's Office is asking the public for assistance from anyone who may have information regarding this case or who may have been at the Quick Stop Market at 1620 Lincoln Road, Yuba City between the hours of 6: . She visited her grandmother in Garberville, California in early July 1973 and spent about two weeks with her before she decided to leave again. No additional information was provided until the press conference. Eureka/Humbold [16], It was determined that the unidentified victim was approximately 16- to 21-years-old, wore hard contact lenses (kept in a metal candy tin with a picture of cherries on it), had red, auburn, or brown hair, was about 5feet 3inches (1.60m) tall and at one time had broken a rib which was healed by the time of the murder. Sheriff Steve Freitas of Sonoma County said that Gallon made statements about the crime that only the killer would know (Gallon described where exactly in their bodies he shot the victims), and that his office had also found corroborating evidence tying Gallon to the murders. These skeletons would not be identified as Graham and Trimble until 2015. Less than a month later, on December 14, Kursas partially frozen nude body was found by a couple out walking along Calistoga Road. This case is further proof that the men and women of the Sheriff's Office will never give up in protecting our community and seeking justice for crime victims. However, a US Department of Justice report published in 1992 ruled out Bundys involvement due to gas receipts showing that Bundy had not been in the area on the dates in question. Then someone killed him. The individual believed to have been Smith left the hospital before authorities could interview her and purportedly hitchhiked back to San Francisco. In a strange turn of events, both girls would go missing on the same day but would be reported missing on different days. For that reason, we are releasing a photo of Shaun Gallon. Many claim to have spotted a beautiful woman in ghostly blue, and legend has it that she was murdered while walking up to the restaurant. [8][9] Initially believed to be a suspect,[10] Burgess's DNA was tested, and did not match that left at the Jenner crime scene.[11]. All of them were wearing life jackets. ", "Secret Witness - Officials seek killer of woman", https://www.santarosahitchhikermurders.com/articles/davis/strychnine_killed_caroline.pdf, "Is he Zodiak? A California deputy stopped a van with 2 corpses inside. The crime remains unsolved, and the Sonoma County Sheriffs Office recently asked for the publics help identifying a suspect in the case. The Sheriff's Office has identified Shaun Gallon, a 38 year old resident of Forestville, California, as Jason and Lindsay's killer. [4] Two people later called in tips to the police about possible sightings of Kursa. Her grandmother drove the 15-year-old girl to the downtown district of Garberville on July 15, 1973, and parked in front of the post office, which was located two city blocks away from Highway 101. I'd like to make a brief statement and then I will take some questions. I also want to thank the many men and women of the Sheriff's Office who have worked on this investigation over the years. [13] The girl had a single wire loop in each earlobe, but the rest of the earrings were missing and were not found at the scene. In May 2006, 21 months after Cutshall and Allen were slain, Sonoma County Sheriff's detectives released new evidence in the case, which they hoped would generate new leads. [4] A single earring, orange beads and a 14-carat gold necklace with cross were found at the scene. It's a pretty accurate portrayal of events and was shot locally. On their last day alive, the girls had gone to Coddingtown Mall in Santa Rosa in order to buy Christmas gifts for their friends and family. She was discovered wedged under a log; investigators believed it was possible she had floated several miles downstream from the initial dump site, as it had rained heavily in recent days. Seven years before and about 91 meters (300 ft) away had been the spot where the body of Lori Lee Kursa had been found.[9]. The Black Dahlia. Panic rose in their parents throats as they searched the skating rink for Maureen and Yvonne. From Fatty Arbuckle's notorious sexual assault scandal at the St. Francis Hotel in 1921 to the 1974 kidnapping of heiress Patty Hearst, there's a dark side to San Francisco. No clothing was found, so it was assumed they had been nude when they were left about 66 feet from the road. They planned to marry in autumn of 2004. At least it should be. To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to [email protected]. They also found a distinctive hat on a turnout above the beach on Hwy 1. Kursas body showed no signs of sexual assault. To this day, Jeannette Kamahele has never been found. Carlstedt and Siebe both said the murders stopped after that man died. Dental records were not a match, however, and Jeannettes body has never been found. Trimbles mother reported her missing to police within a few days when she had not returned home. [4] Both girls, like other young people in that era, often hitchhiked. [58] Allen was arrested on September 27, 1974, by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office[59] and charged with child molestation in an unrelated case involving a young boy. Jason, from Michigan, and Lindsay, from Ohio, were in California working at a Christian youth white water rafting camp in El Dorado County and were on a three day sight-seeing trip of the Northern California coast. She was last seen alive on December 22, 1973, at Zuma Beach in the tiny resort town of Malibu, California. More recently, the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office announced it was looking into Jack Alexander Bokin; Bokin was linked to a cold case murder in 1996 with new DNA technology. Gallon had a history of criminal misconduct, including attempted murder with a package bomb in June 2004, a conviction for wounding a man with an arrow and allegedly killing his younger brother in March 2017. the deaths never accounted for or answered for, justice elusive. Reports also stated that the van was noticeably damaged on one side and that the driver was a white male with a Afro-like hairstyle.[5]. 4 Year Anniversary of the Unsolved Murder of Gregory Ruffin Jr. Read More . No profanity, hate speech or personal attacks. A single bird-shaped earring was found at the scene that Grahams sister later identified as one she had given to Graham. Gallon is well known to Sheriff's Office Investigators, and early on in the Jenner murder investigation Gallon was a person of interest who detectives never ruled out as a possible suspect. The victim had been bound at the ankles and wrists, raped and slowly strangled with a cord for an estimated thirty minutes. No profanity, hate speech or personal attacks. We know that we have miles to go before the case is closed with a conviction, but we also know the power and wonder of God's grace. At least seven women and girls were killed in the span of a few years, all dumped on the sides. Fiften-year-old Kerry Graham (left above) and 14-year-old Francine Trimble (right above), both of Forestville, California, went missing sometime in December 1978. It is unsettling how many strings of mysterious unsolved murders are out there that have never been solved, their perpetrators . The Violent Crimes Unit (VCI) is comprised of One Detective Sergeant, and Four Detectives who investigate felony crimes against persons. BY PRESS DEMOCRAT STAFF. Namely, in Zodiac Unmasked, Graysmith notes that a police officer had informed him that chipmunk hairs had been found on the bodies of several Santa Rosa victims. 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