CA CA - Lompoc, WhtFem 16-25, 205UFCA, overbite, horseshoe earrings, Aug'69

[Richard]

The Camping trailer in which Collins and Manuel had traveled to California was located on August 1, 1969 in Salinas County, behind the home of Andrew Manuel's grandfather (not his uncle as I incorrectly stated earlier).

A forensic examination of this trailer revealed it had been completely wiped of fingerprints. Upon questioning Manuel's grandfather, investigators were informed that his grandson and one John Collins had temporarily resided in the trailer—which they had hired from a Ypsilanti rental firm—between June and July, before both men had abandoned the trailer and (he believed) returned to Michigan.

It is believed by some, however, that only Collins returned to Michigan and that Manuel remained in California before moving on to Arizona.

Having compared case notes, investigators in both California and Michigan agreed enough similarities existed between the murder of Roxie Ann Phillips and the Michigan Murders to establish a definite connection between the cases, and on August 5, 1969 this connection was formally announced.

An FBI arrest warrant was issued against Andrew Manuel, who was located in Phoenix, AZ on August 6 and detained by FBI agents. Manuel was extensively questioned as to his potential involvement in both Phillips' murder and those committed in Michigan which investigators had linked to Collins, and agreed to submit to a polygraph test. No hard evidence would ever arise suggesting Manuel's involvement in any of the murders, and the Washtenaw County (Michigan) prosecutor's office would publicly announce on December 18, 1969 their satisfaction that Manuel had "no knowledge of the murders."

A formal indictment would later be served against Collins by the state of California for the first degree murder of Roxie Ann Phillips in April 1970, although the evidence surrounding this indictment was ordered to be sealed until after Collins' trial for the murder of Karen Sue Beineman had concluded.

 

[Richard]

In regard to the Michigan Murders, believed to have been committed by John Norman Collins, one thing that tended to tie some of the cases together was that besides similar MO, he had a tendency to leave behind items taken from one victim at the crime scene of another.

The leaving of a shirt at the site of an attack or body disposal could be a clue which ties the crime to another victim. Collins definitely took souvenirs from his victims - particularly one earing from each, as well as items of clothing. Some of these he disposed of at various locations, and some he took home.

 

[Richard]

From the San Francisco Chronicle 6 August 1969:

"... Christensen said he and his associate, Detective Tom Nasser, would probably go to Los Angeles later this week to investigate the June 23 murder of Virginia Lynn Smith, 13.
She was killed in much the same manner as the seven Michigan coeds and Miss Phillips.
Collins and Manuel left Ypsilanti, with their trailer, on June 21, and returned sometime in July, police said.
Miss Phillips, Miss Smith and a still-unidentified girl whose murdered body was found near Salinas, were killed between June 17 and July 16...."

This article makes a reference to the murder of a 13 year old girl, Virginia Lynn Smith, and another then unidentified girl who had been killed around the time that John Collins and Andrew Manuel were in California.

I could not find anything further on these two cases, but possibly they are related to that of Lompoc Jane Doe.

Roxie Ann Phillips was found in the Carmel Heights area near Highway 1 which runs down the California coast line. Lompoc Jane Doe was also found alongside Highway 1, near Lompoc, which is about 150 miles further south.

The route away from Salinas taken by Collins and/or Manuel is not known, but if you look at a map, it would seem that a logical route to take either to Michigan OR to Arizona would be to head south down Route 1, to Route 101, into Los Angeles and then Route 10 eastward. Due to mountainous terrain and slow roads north of Los Ageles, this would be a logical route for them to connect with cross country highways such as Route 70 or 80.

Considering Manuel traveling in a stolen vehicle (not a known fact, but certainly a possibility), or by hitch hiking, the route from Salinas, CA to Phoenix, AZ would be exactly this one. There are many beaches, and tourist attractions along Route 1 where he might have encountered Jane Doe. Route 10 goes directly from Los Angeles to Phoenix.

The time frame would also seem to match pretty closely. IF Manual left Michigan on or about 23 July 1969 by bus, as he claimed, then he would have arrived in California before 29 July, which is the estimated date of Jane Doe's murder. She was discovered in a state of decomposition on 6 August 1969, the same day Manuel was arrested in Phoenix, AZ by the FBI.

Although Collins was in Michigan at the likely time of Jane Doe's death, Manuel was by his own statements in California around that time.

 

[carbuff]

Given the tie to Arizona, that's likely the route. But I thought I'd mention that for people heading from California to the northeast, another popular route is up I-5 to I-80 and then across.

 

[Richard]

Given the tie to Arizona, that's likely the route. But I thought I'd mention that for people heading from California to the northeast, another popular route is up I-5 to I-80 and then across.

Very true. Again, the actual route from CA to Michigan taken by Collins and Manuel in the car is not known. However, Manuel claims to have gone back to California by bus, so that part of his journey probably is known by LE.

Manuel's subsequent trip from Salinas, CA to Phoenix, AZ is most likely the one outlined above, regardless of how he traveled it.

There would have been many, many opportunities to meet and "pick up" a young woman along the California coast, and ample opportunites on Route 1 to hitch hike or pick up hitch hikers. Lompoc is about 150 miles from Salinas, and a convenient place to kill and/or dump a body prior to entering the Los Angeles area.

 

[theshadow45]

Lompoc Jane Doe has been unidentified for 49 years today.

 

[Richard]

John Norman Collins is most likely the killer of Roxie Ann Phillips, who was murdered in California in June of 1969. A piece of her clothing was found in his car when it was searched in Michigan. He was only convicted of murdering Karen Sue Beinneman in Ypsilanti, Michigan in July 1969, but he is the prime suspect in several others. He was never extradited to California to stand trial for Roxie's murder.

Collins was arrested and jailed in late July in Michigan and his friend Andrew Manuel was questioned and released.

Manuel stated later that he immediately got on a bus back to California and from there he made it to a relative's home in Phoenix, Arizona before being captured by the FBI. So he was in the area at the time of Lompoc Jane Doe's murder, and that crime bears some strong similarities to the murder of Roxie Ann Phillips.

Here is a link to Collins' Michigan prison file:

Offender Tracking Information System (OTIS) - Offender Profile

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

Wow! According to this BuzzFeed article (of all things!), the Lompoc Jane Doe case was major motivation in starting the DNA Doe Project!

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/jtes/dna-cold-case-crime-doe-project-genealogy

when [Margaret Press] finished “Q” Is for Quarry — based on the real story of an unknown woman found in Lompoc, California, in 1969 — she was struck by an idea.

By 2017, Press had been a hobbyist genealogist for about a decade, most recently helping adoptees find their birth parents, and she thought she knew a way to identify Sue Grafton’s Jane Doe. She reached out to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office — which didn’t return her calls — and then to Grafton herself, who was interested in hearing more but asked Press to hold off while she finished “Y” Is for Yesterday. It was then that Press contacted Colleen Fitzpatrick, whom she knew only via Facebook as the pioneer of “forensic genealogy,” to brainstorm. This was the beginning of the DNA Doe Project.

The more you know, and such

 

[Richard]

Sue Grafton, who wrote her "Alphabet Series" of mystery novels passed away last December shortly after her last novel "Y is for Yesterday" came out. Here is a link to a news story about her death:

Bestselling Mystery Novelist Sue Grafton Dies

Sue was very interested in the Lompoc Jane Doe case and did some careful research and interviews of the case officers. Her book "Q is for Quarry" was based roughly on the case, but done as a novel with fictitious characters. On the last page of that book, however, she does include a very good summary of the actual case and a photo of the composite likeness of Lompoc Jane Doe. Perhaps some day Sue's hope that the case be solved will come true.

 

[carbuff]

She's still not in Namus. Sigh.

 

[Two for the road]

She's still not in Namus. Sigh.

I wonder if she is but just not made public because of the publicity Sue Grafton brought to her case. Like sheriff office was worried they'd be inundated with thousands of amateur sleuths sending in any and every "match" multiple times.

 

[carbuff]

That could be.

 

[Richard]

Lompoc Jane Doe has been listed here in Websleuths for 12 years now, so I don't think LE would be inclined to keep her out of any kind of data base or public forum.

It is true that many police investigative units are reluctant to publicize cases (for various unknown reasons), but when you look closely, you will see that they really do rely on outside tips and assistance from the public and from "amateur" sleuths to help solve old cases.

I have contacted LE and investigators about a number of different cases with suggestions and tips. In almost all instances, they were very receptive to what I had to say and some even called back later to discuss my information further.

Investigative units have a turn over of personnel like any organization does, and as cases get older and colder, corporate memory fades and information gets boxed up or filed away. Sometimes just calling a new case officer and expressing your interest in one of his or her cases is enough to focus renewed attention on it.

 

[carbuff]

All you say is true, but it's also true that sometimes you run into closed agencies, narrow-minded detectives, and cases that have been burned by the negative effects of social media and online sleuths.

 

[Two for the road]

All you say is true, but it's also true that sometimes you run into closed agencies, narrow-minded detectives, and cases that have been burned by the negative effects of social media and online sleuths.

This is what I was getting at! Thank you carbuff!

She could be on namus already just not made public because of Sue Graftons book. CA LE isn't best known for their willingness to work with public on high profile cases.

 

[dotr]

Bumping.
205UFCA
205UFCA - Unidentified Female

Reconstruction of the victim, pants and teeth.

Date of Discovery: August 3, 1969
Location of Discovery: Lompoc, Santa Barbara County, California
Estimated Date of Death: Days prior
State of Remains: Unknown
Cause of Death: Homicide by stabbing

Physical Description
Estimated Age: 16-25 years old
Race: White
Sex: Female
Height: 5'2" to 5'4"
Weight: 120 to 130 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown, dyed a reddish blond and shoulder length.
Eye Color: Blue
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Pierced ears. She wore silver nail polish.

Clothing: She was wearing brown sandals with a gold colored buckle, a dark blue blouse, black bra, pink bikini panties, and what appeared to be homemade white hip hugger bell bottom pants decorated with a blue floral print (daisies with a red center). The clothing appeared consistent with that worn by youth during this time period.
Jewelry: Thin, horseshoe-shaped, gold earrings.

 

[Richard]

This coming August will mark the 50 year anniversary of the murder of this young woman.

 

[theshadow45]

Lompoc Jane Doe has been unidentified for 50 years today.

 

[Suglo]

Bumping for Lompoc Jane Doe. 50 years?!! Almost my whole lifetime. She needs to go home.

 

[Richard]

Lompoc Jane Doe (facial reconstruction)

Date of Discovery: August 3, 1969
Location of Discovery: Lompoc, Santa Barbara County, California
Estimated Date of Death: Days prior
State of Remains: Unknown
Cause of Death: Homicide by stabbing

Physical Description
Estimated Age: 16-25 years old
Race: White
Sex: Female
Height: 5'2" to 5'4"
Weight: 120 to 130 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown, dyed a reddish blond and shoulder length.
Eye Color: Blue
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Pierced ears. She wore silver nail polish.

Identifiers
Dentals: Available. She had buck teeth. Dental work included 19 fillings done within the year or two preceding her death. Based on her dental work, investigators surmised that she may have come from abroad.
Fingerprints: Available, but of poor quality.
DNA: Available.

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: She was wearing brown sandals with a gold colored buckle, a dark blue blouse, black bra, pink bikini panties, and what appeared to be homemade white hip hugger bell bottom pants decorated with a blue floral print (daisies with a red center). The clothing appeared consistent with that worn by youth during this time period.
Jewelry: Thin, horseshoe-shaped, gold earrings.
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Discovery
Hunters found the victim's body in a quarry a few feet down an embankment. Her body had been dragged there across dust and scrub brush and dumped behind a cluster of rocks within sight of old Highway 1. Investigators believe she was killed there.

She had been stabbed and her throat was slit.

She was buried in the Lompoc Cemetery in 1969.

In 2001, she was exhumed for DNA collection and to have reconstruction created.

Author Sue Grafton's novel "Q" is for Quarry is loosely based on the investigation of this victim.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 805-681-4100
Agency E-Mail: detective(at)sbsheriff.org
Agency Case Number: 3690943

Agency Name: Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department - Coroner Bureau
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 805-681-4145
Agency E-Mail: coroner(at)sbsheriff.org
Agency Case Number: W7707

NCIC Case Number: U763720372
NamUs Case Number: Not entered

Information Source(s)
Santa Barbara County Sheriff (archived)
Doe Network

LINK:

205UFCA