AZ - Deana Bowdoin, 21, raped & murdered, Tempe, 7 Jan 1978

Azlaw

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A nearly 25yr old case in Phoenix has been solved using DNA. Ted Bundy was once a suspect, but the DNA matched to a co-ed rapist and killer who was already serving time in prison. Sandra Day O'Connor was a young state level judge and she released the suspect 2 days before this victim was murdered.

There is going to be a book on this case and it is going through the criminal court process right now. The defendant is representing himself.

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache...f.html+deana+bowdoin&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=9

"It's a long process," said Magazzeni, who began focusing on cold cases in 1998.

"There're always roadblocks in any investigation, more so in cold cases."

Bobbie Bowdoin's daughter, Deana, had been dead longer than she had been alive before Magazzeni solved her murder.

Deana, 21, was found strangled and stabbed in her Tempe apartment on Jan. 7, 1978. Almost 25 years later, in November 2002, Clarence Wayne Dixon was indicted. He was already in prison for a 1986 assault and was identified through DNA.

"This is strange, but I'm so glad that it wasn't someone that Deana knew and that she had trusted," Bobbie said.

She followed the 24-year police investigation and now follows the court proceedings. Dixon faces a June 15 trial.

http://www.phoenixmag.com/

In 1978, Clarence Dixon was found not guilty by reason of insanity after assaulting a teenage girl – the judge in the case was Sandra Day O’Connor. Just two days after his release, he allegedly raped and murdered Deana Bowdoin, a young ASU student. Today, Dixon is back in custody, awaiting trial and a possible death sentence. Time will tell if justice is served, but it seems possible, since DNA links him to the crime, and he’s decided to defend himself.
— By Joe Watson
 
Azlaw said:
A nearly 25yr old case in Phoenix has been solved using DNA. Ted Bundy was once a suspect, but the DNA matched to a co-ed rapist and killer who was already serving time in prison. ...

Deana, 21, was found strangled and stabbed in her Tempe apartment on Jan. 7, 1978. ...
Ted Bundy was actually on the loose at the time. He had escaped from jail in Colorado, traveled next to Chicago, and from there to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he watched the Rose Bowl at a bar on New Year's day 1978.

Bundy took a bus to Florida arriving on 7 January 1978 (the same day that Deana was found dead in Arizona). Ted assumed a low profile cover as Chris Hagen, got an appartment and did some job hunting. On 14 January, only a week after his arrival, he attacked several girls at a Florida State University Sorority House - killing two and gravely wounding two others.

Ted stole a campus van and drove to Lake City, Florida where, on 9 February 1978, he abducted and murdered 12 year-old Kimberly Leach. He returned to Tallahassee in his stolen van, ditched the vehicle and stole a Toyota.

On 12 February 1978, Ted stole a VW Bug (his favorite car) and traveled to
Pensacola, Florida. It was in Pensacola, on 15 February 1978 that Ted was pulled over for erratic driving. He got into a struggle with the officer and was captured. He gave his name as Kenneth Misner and was booked on a number of charges, including auto theft. He was fingerprinted and that led to his true identification.
 
That would have been 12 yrs before Danny Rollings did his killings in Gainseville. Wonder if he got out and about killing a little earlier?
 
Wow, thanks for all the info Richard, it is very interesting. I think I'm going to read up on Bundy again. His case fascinated me but it's been so long that I don't remember most of the details.

Thanks again.
 
Becba said:
That would have been 12 yrs before Danny Rollings did his killings in Gainseville. Wonder if he got out and about killing a little earlier?
Among other investigative techniques used on the Gainsville Student Murders was forensic examinatin of the bodies. Wounds indicated a very wide blade which was at least 7.5 inches long, and of a certain blade shape. The blade would make a pentagon shaped (five sided) stab wound. It also left a hilt mark on the victims.

Because of this information, it was concluded that the weapon used was a US Marine Corps K-Bar fighting knife. Search of nearby stores produced evidence that Danny Rolling had purchased such a knife only a week or two prior to the murders.

Although the actual knife was never found, prosecutors obtained permission to introduce an identical knife during trial, which had a profound effect on the jury when they saw and handled it.
 
From February 2008:

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/news/article_103dd150-934b-5f7b-8207-e6e5e9d60348.html

Clarence Wayne Dixon got away with rape - and nearly got away with murder. But when then-Tempe homicide Detective Tom Magazzeni took over a 1978 cold case, Dixon's nearly 25-year-old secret was exposed.

The 52-year-old former gas station attendant was sentenced to death Jan. 25 for brutally raping and murdering 21-year-old Arizona State University student Deana Lynn Bowdoin...

Sometime after midnight, investigators believe Bowdoin left a Phoenix nightclub and stopped to buy a carton of milk. The young woman also picked up her mail, and as she walked into her apartment - or just after she got inside - Dixon attacked. He raped her, tied a belt around her neck and stabbed her three times in the chest, court records show. Her carton of milk never made it to the refrigerator.

Deana's mom passed away in 2009:

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/azcentral/obituary.aspx?pid=129375500
 
I do not see unsolved cold case victim Gretchen White (1981) anywhere on here. She was found in Tempe, strangled as well. I feel that the person responsible knew her because they knew of her home address and her name.
 
Does anyone know why the original reports said there was no evidence of rape?

"Police said Miss Bowdoin was fully clothed and apparently had not been sexually molested. Police Sgt. Jerry Warren said there was no sign of forced entry or struggle in the apartment." (Arizona Republic, 8 Jan 1978)

I was surprised to not be able to find anything explaining why the story eventually was changed to say she had been raped, but I'm new to this case and perhaps I just haven't looked hard enough. Thank you in advance for your thoughts.
 
I see that the Judge has concluded that Dixon is competent to be executed next week.
 

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