CA CA - Barbara Nantais, 15, Torrey Pines State Beach, 13 August 1978

It is hard to think it was anything but a serial killer. 1) the two murders had remarkable similarities and 2) someone who kills and mutilates doesn't just commit one murder and then stop.

 

I have a hard time believing it isn't a serial killer. Possibly you didn't read what I previously posted:
Both the Hough and Nantais murders have many conclusive and reported similarities that seem to be either a serial murderer or a copy cat. Outside of these possibilities it is difficult to see how the similarities could accurately be labelled as coincidences. The SDPD has said there is no link between the two BUT I think it is questionable whether this means they can't link the two or that they have CONCLUSIVELY eliminated the possibility of a link. Those are two ENTIRELY different positions. (I have noticed that in this case, if the SDPD says something, you should think very carefully about rather there could be more than one interpretation of that statement. Misleading statements seem at times to be deliberate.) Additionally, if SDPD keeps saying there is a link, it casts a shadow on whether they have actually solved Hough's murder.
Saying there is no link, helps them look better.

 

Sounds to me like they know who did this, and are waiting on forensics. Probably some inmate chatter brought this about.
Justice for all concerned.

 

Here is an article from People Magazine: Who Killed 14-Year-Old Claire Hough, Whose Mutilated Body Was Found on Calif. Beach in 1984?

And here something about the DNA: DNA results stun in Calif. beach cold case

 

This is a very interesting case. The Clair Hough Case is officially “solved” but since there has never been a trial an both suspects are dead, it isn’t reall all that settled. To accept that resolution, you must acknowledge that the Natais Case is unrelated to the Hough Case.

Beyond that is the whole question of Contamination. DNA was not used forensically in the US at that and no one had even considered the possibility of amplifying minute quantities of DNA. Standards used in forensic labs were based on existing technology. Besides efforts to avoid contamination, there are allegations that things were just” done differently” back then and that could explain the results of the Hough investigation.

 

I think that Tatro is the murderer and somehow Brown contaminated the DNA sample. I dont know if there is also a check with evidence in the Nantais case.