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Santa Rosa Hitchhiker Murders

UNSOLVED1972Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
The Sonoma County Museum on 7th St., Downtown Santa Rosa, California, United States. Completed in 1910, it was originally the Post Office and Federal Building. — location anchor for the case
The Sonoma County Museum on 7th St., Downtown Santa Rosa, California, United States. Completed in 1910, it was originally the Post Office and Federal Building. — location anchor for the case — Credit: CC BY 3.0

Beginning in February 1972, a series of at least seven unsolved homicides and disappearances involving young female hitchhikers occurred in and around Santa Rosa and Sonoma County, California. Victims were found nude, with little physical evidence, dumped in rural areas near steep embankments or creek beds; the actual crime scenes were never located. Investigators have theorized that the perpetrator or perpetrators approached or "interviewed" potential victims before killing them.

Maureen Sterling, 12, and Yvonne Weber, 13, disappeared on February 4, 1972, after visiting an ice arena and were last seen hitchhiking on Guerneville Road. Their skeletal remains were found on December 28, 1972, off Franz Valley Road; cause of death could not be determined. Kim Wendy Allen, 19, a Santa Rosa Junior College student, was picked up hitchhiking on March 4, 1972, and found the next day raped, bound, and strangled off Enterprise Road. Lori Lee Kursa, 13, a runaway and habitual hitchhiker, disappeared in November 1972 and was found dead on December 14, 1972, off Calistoga Road with a broken neck; witnesses described a possible abduction involving two men and a van.

Carolyn Davis, 15, who had run away from Shasta County, was last seen hitchhiking in Garberville on July 15, 1973, and was found dead in Santa Rosa on July 31, 1973, near where Sterling and Weber had been recovered; her cause of death was strychnine poisoning. Theresa Walsh, 23, was last seen hitchhiking from Malibu in December 1973 and was found hogtied, sexually assaulted, and strangled in Mark West Creek. In 1979, skeletal remains of an unidentified young woman — the "Sonoma County Jane Doe" — were found near where Kursa had been recovered; she had been hogtied and bound in a manner similar to Walsh, and remains unidentified.

Additional possible victims include Lisa Michele Smith, whose 1971 disappearance and a subsequent violent hitchhiking incident remain unresolved and unclear, and Jeannette Kamahele, last seen in April 1972 entering a pickup truck; her body was never found. Kerry Ann Graham, 15, and Francine Marie Trimble, 14, disappeared from Forestville in December 1978 and were found in Mendocino County in 1979; their remains went unidentified until DNA profiling confirmed their identities in November 2015.

A number of suspects have been investigated over the decades, including the unidentified Zodiac Killer, Arthur Leigh Allen (a Zodiac suspect who lived in Santa Rosa and was later convicted of an unrelated child molestation charge), Ted Bundy (who has been examined and reportedly ruled out by investigators based on travel records), Fredric Manalli (a college instructor whose belongings included disturbing drawings of victim Kim Wendy Allen), Jack Bokin (a convicted serial rapist linked by DNA to a 1996 murder), and Jim Mordecai (a teacher explored in a 2024 documentary after a box of unexplained jewelry was found among his effects following his death). No one has been charged in connection with the Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders, and the case remains unsolved more than fifty years later.

Key facts

Victims
Kim Wendy Allen, Kerry Ann Graham, Francine Marie Trimble, Lori Lee Kursa, Yvonne Lisa Weber, Jeannette Kamahele, Lisa Michele Smith, Maureen Louise Sterling, Carolyn Nadine Davis, Theresa Diane Smith Walsh
Date
1972
Location
Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California
Case status
unsolved

Case timeline

  1. 1972-02-04

    Maureen Sterling and Yvonne Weber disappear after being last seen hitchhiking on Guerneville Road.

  2. 1972-03-04

    Kim Wendy Allen is last seen hitchhiking near the Bell Avenue entrance to Highway 101.

  3. 1972-03-05

    Kim Wendy Allen's body is found off Enterprise Road in Santa Rosa.

  4. 1972-04-25

    Jeannette Kamahele is last seen hitchhiking near the Cotati on-ramp of Highway 101; her body is never found.

  5. 1972-11-11

    Lori Lee Kursa is reported missing after disappearing while shopping with her mother.

  6. 1972-12-14

    Lori Lee Kursa's remains are found in a ravine off Calistoga Road.

  7. 1972-12-28

    The remains of Maureen Sterling and Yvonne Weber are found off Franz Valley Road.

  8. 1973-02-06

    Carolyn Davis runs away from her home in Shasta County.

  9. 1973-07-15

    Carolyn Davis is last seen hitchhiking near Highway 101 in Garberville.

  10. 1973-07-31

    Carolyn Davis's body is discovered in Santa Rosa near the site where Sterling and Weber were found.

  11. 1973-12-22

    Theresa Walsh is last seen hitchhiking at Zuma Beach in Malibu.

  12. 1973-12-28

    Theresa Walsh's body is found by kayakers in Mark West Creek.

  13. 1974-09-27

    Arthur Leigh Allen is arrested by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office on an unrelated child molestation charge.

  14. 1976-08-24

    Fredric Manalli, a suspect, dies in a highway collision; suspicious drawings are later found among his belongings.

  15. 1978-12-16

    Kerry Ann Graham and Francine Marie Trimble disappear from Forestville.

  16. 1979-07

    Remains of Kerry Ann Graham and Francine Marie Trimble are discovered near Willits in Mendocino County.

  17. 1979-07-02

    Skeletal remains of an unidentified young woman (Sonoma County Jane Doe) are found off Calistoga Road.

  18. 2015-11

    DNA profiling confirms the identities of Kerry Ann Graham and Francine Marie Trimble.

  19. 2021-12

    Suspect Jack Bokin dies in prison.

  20. 2022-08

    A DNA profile of suspect Jim Mordecai is turned over to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department.

  21. 2024

    HBO Max documentary The Truth About Jim examines Jim Mordecai as a possible suspect.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Kim Wendy Allen

    VICTIM

    19-year-old victim; raped and strangled March 1972

  • Kerry Ann Graham

    VICTIM

    15-year-old victim; disappeared December 1978, identified via DNA in 2015

  • Arthur Leigh Allen

    CONVICTED

    Suspect in the Santa Rosa murders; convicted of an unrelated child molestation charge in 1975

  • Francine Marie Trimble

    VICTIM

    14-year-old victim; disappeared December 1978, identified via DNA in 2015

  • Lori Lee Kursa

    VICTIM

    13-year-old victim; found dead December 1972

  • Jack Alexander Bokin

    CONVICTED

    Suspect in the Santa Rosa murders; convicted serial rapist linked by DNA to a separate 1996 murder

  • Yvonne Lisa Weber

    VICTIM

    13-year-old victim; disappeared February 1972, remains found December 1972

  • Jeannette Kamahele

    VICTIM

    20-year-old possible victim; disappeared April 1972, body never found

  • Lisa Michele Smith

    VICTIM

    17-year-old possible victim; reported missing March 1971, fate uncertain

  • Maureen Louise Sterling

    VICTIM

    12-year-old victim; disappeared February 1972, remains found December 1972

  • Carolyn Nadine Davis

    VICTIM

    15-year-old victim; died of strychnine poisoning, found July 1973

  • Theresa Diane Smith Walsh

    VICTIM

    23-year-old victim; found hogtied, sexually assaulted, and strangled December 1973

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Archival records

  • The Sonoma County Museum on 7th St., Downtown Santa Rosa, California, United States. Completed in 1910, it was originally the Post Office and Federal Building. — location anchor for the case

    archival location

    The Sonoma County Museum on 7th St., Downtown Santa Rosa, California, United States. Completed in 1910, it was originally the Post Office and Federal Building. — location anchor for the case

    Credit: CC BY 3.0 · Source

Places

Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California

38.4404, -122.7141

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
Beginning in 1972, at least seven young female hitchhikers were murdered or disappeared in and around Santa Rosa and Sonoma County, California. Despite decades of investigation and multiple named suspects, no one has ever been charged and the case remains unsolved.
Where did the murders happen?
Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California.
Who was convicted?
Arthur Leigh Allen (Suspect in the Santa Rosa murders; convicted of an unrelated child molestation charge in 1975) and Jack Alexander Bokin (Suspect in the Santa Rosa murders; convicted serial rapist linked by DNA to a separate 1996 murder).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: unsolved.
More cases in California

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICSanta Rosa hitchhiker murdersWikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. PRESSTed Bundy a suspect in Sonoma County cold casesSFGate · 2026-07-07
  3. PRESSMurdered teens identified as missing girls Kerry Graham, 15, and Francine Trimble, 14news.com.au · 2026-07-07

Record history

First published
JUL 10, 2026