Cold Cases of the Golden Coast

On Sunday, September 7, 1969, three brothers — Charles, Larry, and Phillip Law — were out with their wives and children, hiking, target shooting, and picnicking in the area of Whitaker Peak, approximately 16-19mi south of Gorman and 9-10mi north of Castaic, Los Angeles County, CA. This area is within the Angeles National Forest, and  about one mile off of the old Golden State Highway . At about 2pm that day the brothers were walking along a trail near Whitaker Peak/Summit, a short distance from the Ridge Route, when they smelled a foul odor.  Charles Law looked under the trees to the sides of the trail and saw what he first thought was a deer. When he got closer, he saw a leg sticking up and realized that he was looking at a human body. From there the Law brothers notified authorities as soon as they were able to do so. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) and Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office (LACME) responded to the scene. The Law brothers and...

Warning : this write-up mentions the use of a homophobic slur that was originally used in a purposefully derogatory way. While it is not immediately relevant to the mystery at hand, I believe it is important to include any information I am able to find on such under-reported cases. Lisa Jane Borden was born on January 15, 1960 in Cooke, Texas to parents Jack Fred Borden and Joyce Mildred Borden (nee Hester). She grew up alongside her five siblings, one brother and four sisters. From what little I could find, it seems that Lisa was the baby of her family: her mother was 38 when she was born, and Lisa's older sister Shirley Arlene was already 18 at the time, and gave birth to her own daughter in 1961. The only other sibling of Lisa’s that I could find, her sister Jackie, was born in 1952, making her 7-8 years older than Lisa. Lisa Borden. Photo from the Charley Project. Lisa attended Gainesville High School during the 1975, 1976, and 1977 school years; in the 1975 yearbook that is a...