Cold Cases of the Golden Coast

At 1:00pm on Saturday, January 26, 1980, a hiker found the remains of two decedents in a riverbed/wash south of the Valencia Sewage Treatment Plant, north of Magic Mountain Parkway and west of the Old Road in the Valencia neighborhood of Santa Clarita, LA County, CA. One of the decedents, who I will be calling Younger Doe, was estimated to be 17 to 24 years old, while the other, who I will be calling Older Doe, was estimated to be 17 to 35 years old; while these two decedents may have been the same or similar ages, I am giving these nicknames in order to easily distinguish between the two of them. Reconstruction of Younger Doe, from NamUs. Younger Doe was determined to have died by homicide by gunshot wound. While not explicitly stated by sources, it is implied that this is also how Older Doe died as well; Older Doe's case is also being investigated as a homicide. Younger Doe's estimated PMI is months prior, though less than two years, and both of the Does' estimated DODs a...

Peter Joseph "Pete" Bonick and Richard Nelson "Rick" Lamson are two friends who are believed to have gone missing together on Sunday, February 22, 1970. Despite this, accounts of each boy's disappearance differ both between boys and across sources. Because of this, I will be discussing the circumstances of each one separately. Richard Lamson Photo of Richard Lamson from NamUs. Richard Lamson, 18, was last seen at home in San Mateo, CA on Sunday, February 22, 1970. His friend Peter Bonick disappeared at the same time; authorities believe they left together. Neither of them have ever been seen or heard from again. Very few details are available in his case. According to Ancestry and the City of San Mateo directories from 1969 and 1971, Richard was living with his parents Richard Charles Lamson and Lorraine Lamson (nee Zell) and his older sister Constance, who was a student. Richard's father, Richard Sr, was a field supervisor at San Francisco Naval Shipyard, w...

On the night of Sunday, September 8, 1968, a fire erupted at the home of the Walker family at 1042 Panadero Way/Court in Clayton, Contra Costa County, CA. The parents, Richard and Jean, were at a hospital fundraising event at the time. A neighbor, James Hanson, noticed the fire when his dog began to bark at the sparks; he called the fire department. Earlier that evening, the son of a neighbor, a Contra Costa County municipal court judge, had been visiting to play with the children, though he left after dinner. Another neighbor, Dale Ross, rushed to the scene, where he saw two of the children, Carolyn, 6, and Carlton, 9, banging on a window. Ross broke the window and pulled the children out of the house. However, Carlton stated that he needed to go rescue his 6mo baby sister, so Carlton ran back into the house. Ross was unable to follow after him due to the intense heat. Neighbors reported hearing numerous small explosions during the fire, followed by a final "big blast." Flam...

Barbara Nantais. Photo from FindAGrave. On the weekend of Saturday, August 12, 1978, Barbara Jane Nantais's parents Ralph and Judy left San Diego to visit friends. A family friend was looking after Barbara and her three siblings. Practically as soon as Ralph and Judy left, Barbara, 15, and her boyfriend Jim, 17, as well as friend Rick Selga and his girlfriend, got together and drove to Torrey Pines State Beach, where they all hung out together. The Perseid meteor shower was visible in San Diego after dusk. Around 9:30pm the friends called it a night. Rick and his girlfriend decided to sleep in the station wagon that they had driven, while Jim and Barbara went down to the beach for some privacy. They zipped their sleeping bags together, crawled in them, had sex, and then went to sleep. Barbara was lying in Jim's arms when they fell asleep. The next morning, Jim woke up cold and alone, covered in blood. Blinded by blood and disoriented, he had to feel his way along a fence up the...