Cold Cases of the Golden Coast

  Very little information is available online about Sean Kenneth Phelan. He was born on February 2, 1960, possibly in a state other than California, as I could not locate him in the CA Birth Index.  For his freshman (1974-1975) and junior years (1976-1977), Sean attended Newport Christian High School in Newport Beach, Orange County, CA. The 1975 yearbook misspelled his first name as "Sian." The 1975-1976 yearbook is not available on Ancestry, but it seems likely that Sean attended the same school his sophomore year. He is not present among seniors in the school's 1977-1978 yearbook; from this it seems that he likely either transferred to another school for that year, or dropped out entirely. According to Ancestry, at an unknown time Sean lived at 22 Lewis in Irvine, Orange County, CA. Other sources also indicate that Sean was recently divorced at the time of his disappearance. I could not find any further information related to his marriage or divorce.  One of the photos ...

Lynn Ruth Connes, 20, was from North Carolina. At some point seemingly after high school she left her mother and younger brother, Lee, to move to California, where she could foster her artistry. According to Lee, he always looked up to his older sister, who he described as loving, passionate, and naturally talented. At the time of her disappearance Lynn lived in an apartment at 2817 Regent St in Berkeley, Alameda County, CA and worked part-time as a telephone solicitor in Marin County. Lynn had recently advertised for employment as a photographer's model in the newspaper The Berkeley Barb , and a man who identified himself as "Jeff" called her, answering her ad. They agreed to meet at the Bateau Ivre Restaurant at 2629 Telegraph Ave, four blocks from Lynn's home. Photo from NamUs. On Thursday, May 20, 1976, Lynn was last seen at her residence, which she then left to meet with "Jeff." This is considered the last definitive sighting of Lynn. An unidentified wa...

Martin Burleson was born on October 9, 1950 in Sacramento County, CA to parents Edward Lee and Geraldine "Gerrie" Burleson (nee Khan). His mother, Gerrie, is half Indian — possibly specifically half Punjabi — through her father; on census records, she is listed as East Indian.  Martin seems to have been either the oldest or second oldest Burleson child, though this is uncertain due to not being able to find birth records for his (possibly older) sister Linda. He had eight siblings total, who — other than Linda — ranged between three and fifteen years younger than Martin. Among family he went by the nickname Marty. It seems that all of the children, including Martin, attended Rio Linda High School.  From what I could find, the Burleson family lived variously in Carmichael, Elverta, and Del Paso Heights (a neighborhood of Sacramento), all in Sacramento County, as well as eventually Live Oak, Sutter County, CA, up to at least 1978 as well as in the 90s. In 1968 and 1978  — t...

1970 graduation photo. Accessed from NamUs. On Friday, April 16, 1971, Michael Pickering, 20, told his family that he was hitchhiking to San Francisco, and that he would return in a few days. However, he never returned to his home in Victorville, San Bernardino County, CA. He has never been seen or heard from again. Few details are available in his case. Michael is a white male who also goes by the nickname "Zappa." At the time of his disappearance he was 6'0 to 6'1 and 130 to 140 lbs. He has blue eyes and strawberry blonde hair, which appears in photos to be wavy to curly in texture. His right ear is reportedly deformed. It is unknown what he was wearing when he was last seen. A photo of Michael as a child. Accessed from NamUs. Michael is classified on the Doe Network as Endangered Missing. His date of birth is December 14, 1950. If alive today he would be 74 years old. He seems to have graduated from high school in 1970. Michael's DNA is available for comparison...

Steven Ericson was born on April 3, 1954 in Los Angeles County, CA. His mother's maiden name is Roeder. Very little could be found about him or his family. 1972 Woodrow Wilson High School senior yearbook photo. Steven attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, LA County, CA starting in at least 1970; he graduated in 1972. The high school yearbook lists him as "Steve Ericson." His junior and senior yearbook photos are available on this post, as well as on sites below; they were originally sourced from Ancestry.   Steven was last seen on Thursday, June 1, 1972 in Grass Valley, Nevada County, CA. It is unclear why he was in Northern California, as he was from Long Beach.  Very few details are available in Steven's case. He is listed among deceased alumni on his high school class's website, linked below. He is classified as Endangered Missing on the Doe Network, while the Charley Project simply lists him as Missing. Steven is a white male with blonde hair and ...

Kenneth Byram, 24, was last seen in Los Angeles, LA County, CA in 1979, possibly in November. Because the exact date of his disappearance is unknown, November 1, 1979 is used as a placeholder by all sources. Very little information is available in his case. Kenneth is a white male with green eyes and blond/strawberry hair. At the time of his disappearance he was 24 years old, 6'2, and 150 lbs. When I first published this post in Sept. 2025, NamUs listed his current age as 70 years old; by late May 2026, his current age had been updated to 71. Based on the aforementioned ages and dates, Kenneth's date of birth may have been between May 29, 1955 and September 11, 1955, inclusive.  There are very, very few details available regarding Kenneth's disappearance. The only source really is NamUs; all other references to him online cite NamUs as the source of all of its information. Based on the agency case number, it is likely/possible that Kenneth wasn't reported missing until ...

Sixteen-year-old Christopher Wells was last seen in December 1972 in Seattle, King County, Washington. Sources differ as to when he went missing: the date provided by NamUs — as well as the Charley Project and the Doe Network, which use NamUs as a source — is Saturday, December 16, 1972, while, according to NCMEC and the Washington Missing Persons Database, Christopher was instead last seen three days earlier, on Wednesday, December 13, 1972. Photo of Christopher c.1972 from NamUs. According to NamUs, Christopher was reported missing on Saturday, December 16, 1972: this is either the day he was last seen, or three days after, depending on the source. The most likely explanation is that Christopher was last seen on Wednesday the 13th before being reported missing on the 16th, and that the reported date was mistakenly entered as the missing date on NamUs, then taken as fact by the Charley Project and the Doe Network. Along with the discrepancies regarding the date, there are very few det...

Elizabeth seems to have been born Elizabeth Mary Underwood on March 21, 1942. At some point she married a man named Rodney B Winn; the pair divorced in November 1970 in Ventura County, CA. Elizabeth then remarried to a 25-year-old man named Robert N Byron in the same county on March 10, 1973; they had applied for/been granted their marriage license in late December of the previous year. Photo from NamUs. Some records on Ancestry give her first name as Mary and her middle name as Elizabeth rather than vice versa. At the time of her disappearance, Elizabeth's surname was Byron, though she may also use the surnames Winn or Underwood. Elizabeth was 36 years old when she was last seen at her home in Oxnard, Ventura County sometime in May 1978. The exact date of her disappearance is unknown. Very few details are available in her case. Based on the lack of information, including the uncertainty of the date of disappearance, it seems possible to me that Elizabeth was not reported missing u...

John Thompson, 20, was last seen on Tuesday, February 8, 1977, by a friend with whom he was staying in Mountain View, Santa Clara County, CA. John told his friend that he was going to go to a job interview. The company with which he had an interview is unknown. John was never seen or heard from again. The aforementioned friend was the one to report him missing, though the date the report was filed is not indicated in any sources I could find. Very few details are available in his case. 1973 high school yearbook photo from NamUs. John was wearing an army jacket, a dark shirt, and dark pants when he was last seen. He is a white male with brown hair and brown eyes. At the time of his disappearance he was 20 years old, 5'6, and 135 lbs. He was born on April 12, 1956; if alive today he would be 69 years old. John's dental x-rays are not available for comparison. His DNA seems to be on file, as he has 41 UID exclusions on NamUs. Only one of these, found in 2006, was from CA, while an...

John Croasdale was last seen on Sunday, February 13, 1977 in North Highlands, Sacramento County, CA. He left his residence for San Francisco, and has never been seen or heard from since. CA DMV photo circa 1971. Accessed from NamUs. John is a white male who was 29 years old, 5'11, and 160 lbs at the time of his disappearance. He has blue eyes and straight brown hair. When he went missing his hair was collar-length, and he had a mustache. He also had a tattoo on his left forearm; a description of it is unavailable. It is unknown what he was wearing when he disappeared. He is classified as Missing on the Doe Network.  Very few details are available in his case. According to NamUs, John was 29 when he went missing, and his current age as of July 29, 2025 would be 77 years old. From this it can be gleaned that his date of birth was sometime between July 30, 1947 and February 13, 1948, inclusive.  It is unknown if his dentals, fingerprints, or DNA are available for comparison....

Winnefred Jeanette Freeman, 20, was last seen on Wednesday, May 8, 1968 in Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon. She was seen getting into her car with a middle-aged, heavy-set man who has not been identified. Her car was a 1964 blue & white Chevrolet. Four days later, on Sunday, May 12, 1968, Winnefred's car was found abandoned in the city. Very few details are available in her disappearance. It is unknown if/when Winnefred was originally reported missing. On September 27, 1968, her parents — Mr and Mrs Isaac Harpole — published a $300 reward — $2,756.93 today — in  The Oregonian  for anyone with information concerning Winnefred or her possible abductor; informants were asked to notify the missing persons department of the Portland Police Bureau. At the time of her disappearance, Winnefred was 20 years old, 5'4, and 115 to 120 lbs. She is a Black female with black hair and brown eyes. It is unknown what she was wearing when she was last seen. 1965 Jefferson High S...

At the time of her disappearance, Kimberly Ann Stewart (nee Morgan), 21, was estranged from her husband, Steven Michael "Mike" Stewart, whom she married when she was 15 and he was a freshman in college. They had met while attending Lincoln High School together. Kimberly was last seen on Tuesday, May 24, 1977, in Sheridan, Placer County, CA. She left her home on Rioso Rd in Sheridan and dropped her two young daughters off with their babysitter, a family friend named Monica Wooden. Kimberly told Monica that she would be back to pick up her daughters later that evening. Photo from NamUs. Kim then left in her gray 1975 Chevy Vega hatchback to meet with her estranged husband Steven. The two had arranged to meet at a pizza parlor for dinner to discuss their impending divorce and/or for Steven to give Kimberly some money (sources vary). Witnesses at the pizza parlor in Wheatland, Yuba County, CA stated that the couple argued, then left soon after arriving. According to Kimberly'...

Connie Gail Minchaca, 17, was last seen either at her home in Napa, CA, or in the late afternoon on Friday, June 9, 1978 after a family friend drove her to a western clothing store where she was supposed to meet a friend. She planned to attend a party the night she disappeared, though friends claim that she never arrived to the party. All of her personal belongings were left behind at the home she shared with her father. Her father, Wesley R Faulk, is listed as living at 2280 Brown St, Apt 9, in Napa, CA in the city directories for 1977, 1978, and 1979. Photo from NamUs. At the time of her disappearance, Connie was "dating" a 25-year-old man, and her family did not approve of the situation. She was having problems with her family as a result. She would often sneak out of her bedroom window at night to meet with the man. Every time that her room was discovered empty, her family would call the police, and officers would pick Connie up while en route to her boyfriend's house...