In 1873, Gray sought the Republican Party nomination for District Attorney and came within seven votes of winning. With the right mixture of herbal pills and a change of dietHan told me to eat lots of red meat and stay away from bread, she recalledBardach found relief. Retired deputy Leon Boyer says that Chili Bob finally radioed in on Jan. 10, five days after the Bermans were last seen in camp, to report an abandoned Datsun truck at the Palm Spring campground. All this was just getting off the ground when Tramel and Kurtzman murdered Stephenson. Did the Zodiac Killer strike in Santa Barbara County? Neither Frederick Smith nor Courtney responded to questions from The Santa Barbara Independent. He was always an elected delegate at Republican Party conventions. Zemaitis recalled his father saying she was so strikingly beautiful that everyone would drop what they were doing to catch a look at her. 56 Video Forecast . It was surreal, she recalls. 1980 in Ventura, when Charlene Smith, 33, and her husband Lyman . Not just any property it was adjacent to President Ronald Reagan's Rancho del Cielo. Then, in a narrow side channel of the wash, which easily could have been overlooked, the men discovered a grave-sized pile of rocks. But before he became known as the Zodiac Killer, he may have honed his proficiency with the 1963 killings of Domingos and Edwards in Santa Barbara County. Years later, after Louise found her soul mate in Barry, a fellow spiritual seeker, the couple received a generous wedding gift: In May 1981, Jules Berman bought property for Barry high above the ocean on exclusive Refugio Road near Santa Barbara. Soon after Yanikians conviction, 40 Turkish diplomats were gunned down around the world. On January 19, 1979, Patricia Laney, 21, was found shot to death, the day after she was reported missing, in Refugio Canyon near Santa Barbara. By the time Han was 18, the political winds shifted. Index includes name, sex, date and place of birth, date and county of death, father's last name, and mother's maiden name. Peter Cacavas . Massacres do not form a defense, Minier told the judge. Even though it wasnt Hans discipline, he crammed nonstop for two solid weeks, took the tests, and qualified for one of the openings. With rippling, wind-formed sand dunes, the valley boasts some of California's most magnificent scenery. [14][3] But on April 16, 1980, Christiansen was found guilty of first-degree murder and assault, after a psychiatrist testified that Christiansen displayed some degree of "provisional planning. The ammunition, Winchester Western Super X copper-coated bullets, matched the bullets used in the other Zodiac murders. Domingos was three years older than him.His cousin said he looked up to Domingos. Before the two went on the prowl, another student asked him, What are you going to do, kill someone? He replied, Thats the idea., James Tramel (left) and David Kurtzman | Photo: Christopher Gardner, As Tramel and Kurtzman entered Alameda Park, they thought they were following one of the gang members, but they quickly lost him in the dark. The next day a forensics team unearthed human remains, the underwire from a bra and the waistband from a pair of underwear. When funding for the movie deal collapseddone in, it would turn out, by actions of the State Department and the Shah of IranYanikian began searching for a Plan B. He committed an act of justice. On July 27, 1979, after interviewing over 115 persons over the previous two years, Christiansen was arrested for the murders of Patricia Laney, Jacqueline Rook, and Mary Sarris. No other details wereprovided. He had invited them to reclaim a painting stolen from the Turkish sultanate more than 100 years ago. As hope of finding the couple alive faded, Jules Berman formed a dark theory about their fate. He bought a seven-acre spread with a gated driveway a quarter mile long. The photos provided a clue: Barry and Louise were wearing Nike sneakers. the state of California in the 1970s and 1980s, killing at . An Eagle Scout, he had told Tramel earlier that night that he knew about gutting a deer. I checked her out, of course, he says. Han pursued both these projects on Wednesdays, the one day of the week he did not work at the Herb Clinic. The relationship was sweet they were good partners, says Sullivan, then an El Capitan dweller and now an acupuncturist in North Fork, California. He looked for signers named Mike and found one who'd written down his address at a Marine Corps base. Clarence Gray ranks as one of the great villains in Santa Barbara history, yet few people know his name. She had. He told the Sun that just before his death, Domingos landed a job driving a fuel delivery truck for Atlantic Richfield oil company. It was the murder of a homeless man in a city decried for its homeless laws in the county where the president lived. Within two, the symptoms were all but gone. Carlson was convinced. This week, over 40 years later, Gresham police identified a Troutdale. National homeless rights advocate Mitch Snyder vowed to wage a massive civil disobedience campaign in the city. Sullivan even gave birth to her daughter in one of the cottages as Barry looked on. Three years before he died, Berman told UCLA's oral history program that, because of the brutal killings of his son and daughter-in-law, My philosophy is, if there's a God, he's not for me; he's for someone else.. Please note this login is to submit events or press releases. Han, his older sister, and his parents were exiled to a re-education camp in the rural outposts of western China. Her ex-husband, former L.A. firefighter Wes Westerman, now retired in the San Juan Islands, remains bitter about her radical awakening, complaining, She met people who brought in drugs. He didnt want them to suffer, he later testified, but he also told the jury, I destroyed two evils. It has yet to be approved by the Senate, however, and no voteas yethas been scheduled. All rights reserved. While some students basked together on the beach, Bobby Domingos and Linda Edwards instead went to a different beach by themselves. Old police interviews obtained by the Weekly show that the last day they were seen alive, Barry and Louise hung out with Pepe and a laid-back bunch of other strangers at Saline Valley's natural hot springs. Grays role in community life, however, was more complicated than his rap sheet might suggest. She was last seen on November 20, 1976. She miraculously survived. He marked the spot with a cairn and carried the skull to camp. Louise Berman turned 52 five days before she and her husband set out for the desert on Jan. 3, 1986. The two investigators pressed him, and Pepe eventually said, Oh hell, I might have gone to the peace [sign] that day. Pepe said he didn't remember if he was on foot or in his truck, saying, I think I went off um checking up whatever area it was., Deputy Leon Boyers sketch of Mike the Marine; Credit: Photo by Doug Kari, Asked if he'd brought up the idea of a threesome at the camp, he responded, I do recall conversations like that coming up., An investigator said, Perhaps you had put feelers out towards the Bermans to see if they would be willing to participate in such an activity? The Marine responded, I don't think that's true.. There were no children, a source of significant friction. According to Bruce Albert, a Bureau of Land Management ranger who drove through that day, about 50 travelers were camping at Lower Warm Springs, whose waters fed an oasis of palm trees and hot tubs. But when the two got back to their dorm, Tramel bragged to other students: We bagged a Mexican. When no one believed him, Tramel led them to the scene. The third trial proved the charm; Gray was flat-out acquitted. [4][17], To the prosecution's surprise, when the trial began on May 28, 1980, Christiansen pleaded guilty to all three counts of murder. His victims had long, straight hair, wore similar clothing, and had about the same build. Barry was our only child, the grieving Jules Berman said in a Nov. 16, 1988, Los Angeles Times article. Tramel and Kurtzman were tried as adults, found guilty, and sent away for a long time. On Dec. 30, 1979, Debra Manning and Robert Offerman were killed in Goleta, near Santa Barbara. Retired Inyo County Sheriff's deputy Leon Boyer, who has lived with the baffling case for three decades, today says, You can't commit a homicide and get away with it.. Fiesta was just around the corner, but a new hot-button issue had just landed in Santa Barbara. A March 25 KGTV San Diego newscast featured Oceanside neighbors, who remembered Haobsh as off. The night of Haobshs arrest, the suburban neighborhood saw authorities search his home with flashlights. Lucas found the skull jauntily arranged atop a picnic table with flowers in its eye sockets and a patch of moss for a hairpiece. We have found that there appears to be a high degree of probability that this subject is responsible for the double murder in our county., The police never said how they came to this conclusion. Authorities believe he could still be alive. Maybe this act will bring attention., It did, though not as he had thought. For me, they were not really human. Artists Scaling Down, Thinking Bigger at Santa Barbara City College Exhibition. He became so brazen with his reputation that the Golden State Killer taunted the public in a poem he sent to Sacramento-area news outlets. The young men were jacked out of their minds on adrenaline, testosterone, and hyperactive fantasies of revenge. We worked and worked and worked.. The deaths of Domingos and Edwards are more than just a grim footnote in Californias history. Zepeda was transported to the Santa Barbara County Jail and booked for Homicide (felony) and Robbery (felony). He killed at least eight women and men in Santa Barbara, Ventura and . The riders hadn't. I had a bad feeling about him., When the various visitors broke camp, no one immediately thought to tell the authorities that the Bermans were still out there a serious oversight. Thor Nis Christiansen was born in Denmark, and emigrated to the United States with his parents when he was five years old. Thirty years later, the FBI, in conjunction with police from Contra Costa and Sacramento counties, announced in June a national campaign to identify the killer. The only vehicles seen in the Corridor on Jan. 6, 1986, were three dirt bikes and Pepe's pickup. [20], Patricia Laney has become a prominent symbol for groups that advocate against violence to women in the Santa Barbara/Goleta/Isla Vista area. Then more teams descended, not to mention helicopters from the Navy, Army and California Highway Patrol. At age 77, Yanikian was known to many in Santa Barbara as a retired civil engineer, folk-dance aficionado, and man about townbut the true story of his life had been written long ago in the blood of slaughtered Armenians. Above Lower Springs, about a dozen campers orbited the less-developed Palm Spring oasis. Three Murders That Made Santa Barbara Shiver Armenians and Greeks, Bullies and Editors, Teen Soldiers and Homeless by Nick Welsh | Published October 31, 2019 Santa Barbara may be paradise, but its inhabitants have been killing each other in ways mundane and spectacular since the days of Adam and Eve. If the Golden State Killer is still alive, police believe he is somewhere in the range of 60 to 75 years old. The unnamed woman repeated to the Weekly what she told long-ago investigators: Mike the Marine told us he'd been in a threesome. Startled by the arrival of Tramel and Kurtzman, Stevenson sat up, startling Kurtzman. It is mind-boggling that he committed so many crimes without a slip-up, Biondi said, adding that he still believes the killer can be brought to justice. Copyright 2023 Santa Barbara Independent, Inc. Reproduction of material from any Independent.com pages without written permission is strictly prohibited. Kahlua after turning the Mexican coffee-flavored drink into Americas top-selling liqueur. Note: An earlier version of this story said Mary Sullivan gave birth in Barry Berman's cottage. He caught the attention of investigators in February 1977, when he was cited for being a minor in possession of liquor. Words were exchanged. They are still loved. And new location? Short would dress in all black and wear a black flower in her hair. You just have to wait it out, Carlson recalls being told. One lucky, FAMILY AFFAIR: INSIDE SNOOP DOGG AND HIS BOSS LADY, By continuing to use our site, you agree to our, Newsom Ends 3-Year COVID-19 State of Emergency In California, Vanessa Bryant And L.A. County Reach Settlement Over Kobe Crash Site Case, Record Storm Tests The Limits Of Los Angeles Infrastructure, Gallery: Bravos Top Chef Brings The Best Of Britain To Hancock Park, Regarding Her Celebrates Womens History Month, A Stabby Meal at Chain and Tea Returns To The Biltmore Heres Whats Popping Up. The NCIS, the Los Angeles U.S. Attorney's Office and Inyo County Sheriff's Office all knew and shared with one another the fact that Pepe had been the key suspect in an old double murder, but they never went public with it. Barry and Louise came together in Santa Barbara in the 1980s through the same guru master. On July 11, 1979, Preston spotted Christiansen at a bar in Hollywood. Accordingly, the killings in Isla Vista were dubbed the "look-alike" murders. During this time, Christiansen gained a great deal of weight, at one point weighing 275 pounds (125 kg). Yanikians defense was diminished capacity brought on by the trauma he experienced as a genocide survivor. 101 Near La Cumbre, Housing Challenge Intensifies Between Goleta and County of Santa Barbara, Santa Barbaras New DA Gets $500,000 for Racial Disparity Analytics, Lake Cachuma Releases Expected to Contribute to Flooding in Lompoc, Giant Eucs Down at Santa Barbaras Shoreline Park, Investigation Launched After Student Is Sedated, Arrested, Isla Vista Man Charged with 26 Counts of Illegal Electronic Peeping, An evening with Peter White and Richard Elliot, Dos Pueblos Jazz Festival Jazz in Paradise, Please note this login is to submit events or press releases. 1980 - June 9, 2000 Shot. Barry took note of the beautiful woman who had a way with men. Jennie, whom Neely remembers as vivacious like Emily, waitressed for two years at Saigon Noodle House about six years ago, said the restaurants manager, who preferred to be identified as David. Pepe, who told investigators that when alone in the desert he carried a gun, did not respond to multiple letters seeking comment sent by the Weekly. For the past 30 years, Hana skilled, quietly charismatic, and by all accounts brilliant herbal doctorhad treated roughly 13,000 people, many confronting serious health challenges such as cancer, osteoporosis, and hepatitis. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers. [5][9], On August 20, 1979, Christiansen was charged with the murder of Laura Benjamin. Kathy Neely, who taught Emily for two years during preschool at the Waldorf School of Santa Barbara, remembers her as strong-willed, courageous, and having a joyful personality. She loved to play, Neely said. Once, he recalls how Domingos had a brush with death when he accidentally shot himself in the lip with a .22 bullet, the same kind of gun that would end his life just a few years later. Its believed that the Golden State Killer would sometimes call his victims homes pretending he had called a wrong number. During his trial, Yanikian sought to represent himself as a philosopher king. Like Barry, she was a rebel. Santa Barbara area voters defeated it by a wide margin. Panic, his attorney later argued, is simply not murder.. In 1874, when Judge Pablo de la Guerra died, Gray was one of 12 pallbearers who carried the coffin through a crowd of 2,000 mourners. In an online video, retired Sacramento County Sheriffs Department detective Ray Biondi said he regrets not being able to solve the crimes. [18] The plea change came just weeks after the Los Angeles trial, where Christiansen was found sane by six out of at least seven psychiatrists. Jeannie Mills (39), was a female early defector from the Peoples Temple along with her husband and teenage daughter, who were all murdered on 26 February 1980 in front of their Berkeley, California home. In fact, Han personally intervened to help Relis and his wife adopt a baby girl from China 19 years ago. More victims followed. Healer-acupuncturist Mary Sullivan says, We have a living master, his job is to take you back home it doesn't matter how you die., Jules Berman, who died in 1998, didn't enjoy such peace. On May 26, 1979, the decomposed body of Laura Benjamin, 22, was found in a drainage culvert near Big Tujunga Dam. The paperunder a previous editorhad described Gray as a blatherskite and brazen-faced demagogue and hoodlum. In 1876, Gray beat up William Russell, editor of The Index, another publication, leaving his head a bloody mess. Powered by WordPress VIP. Relis recalled Han telling him how his parents sneaked out late at night, armed only with flashlights and minimal medical equipment, to treat peasants living nearby. One of the most notorious, and perhaps gruesome, murders connected to Santa Barbara County is that of Elizabeth Short, whose nude body was found in Leimert Park, Los Angeles, in 1947. Santa Barbara prosecutors Hilary Dozer and Ben Ladinig, public defenders Christine Voss and Mindi Boulet, and Deputy County Counsel Michelle Montezwho represents the Sheriffs Officewill return to court April 12. The bullet struck one of Glanceys wrists, broke both bones, entered his stomach, and blew a hole through him. He had spent more than 20 years trying to make a Hollywood film depicting the Armenian genocidethree million dead, killed by the Turks in 1915. However, his arrest came about when Lydia Preston called investigators on July 11, 1979, stating she saw her attacker at a bar in Hollywood. 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