Some believe that the murder of a bright, young teen in 1966 is the first victim of infamous Zodiac killer. Some believe it was an isolated incident. Either way, most agree that the murder of Cheri Jo Bates was what stripped the community of Riverside of its innocence.
Cheri Josephine Bates was born on February 4th, 1948 in Omaha Nebraska to parents Joseph and Irene Bates, the youngest of two children. In 1957, the family moved to Riverside, California, where Joseph found good work as a machinist at the Corona Naval Ordnance Laboratory.
In 1966, Cheri was a recent graduate of Ramona High school as an honour student. She was a vibrant, happy, sweet young girl. She was involved in many school activities, such as student government and varsity cheerleading. As a graduate, Cheri was working part-time at Riverside National Bank, and was attending Riverside City College. Her ultimate goal was to become a flight attendant.
Her part-time job allowed her the funds to purchase her prized possession, a lime green 1960 Volkswagen Beetle. She lived alone with her father, as her family had divorced the year before, but still had a close relationship with both of her parents. She’d also recently become engaged to her boyfriend of two years, Dennis Highland. All in all, Cheri’s future was bright.
On Sunday, October 30th, 1966, Cheri and her father attended church, and then went to a local restaurant for brunch. In the afternoon, Cheri decided to get some school work done. At 3:00PM and 3:45PM, Cheri called a friend, Stephanie, and asked if she’d like to go to the library together. Stephanie declined.
After that, Cheri called a coworker from the bank to inquire as to whether she’d seen a portion of Cheri’s school work that she’d misplaced at the branch. This is the last phone record of Cheri being at her home.
It’s estimated that she left her home between 4:30 and 5:00 PM. When her father returned home, he found a note on the refrigerator that read: “Dad – Went to RCC Library.”
The next time Cheri’s seen is around 6:10 PM. Her Beetle was seen by a witness driving in the direction of the RRC library. This same witness also stated that they’d seen a bronze Oldsmobile following Cheri’s vehicle closely, though it wasn’t seen in the RRC parking lot.
The library closed at 9PM. Many witnesses stated seeing Cheri working in the library until that time. As the library emptied out, a witness stated that they’d seen a young man, roughly 20 years old, and around 5’11 lurking in the dark around Cheri’s car. Mention of this individual has never amounted to much, other than the knowledge that a creep was lurking around the college.
It could be coincidence. It could mean nothing. But there are no witnesses who have come forward with information as to Cheri’s whereabouts after being seen leaving the library around 9:00PM.
Around 10:30 PM, two witnesses claimed that they heard a scream – a very high pitched, distinct, female scream – followed by a car starting up and taking off.
Meanwhile, Cheri’s father stayed up waiting for his daughter. It wasn’t like her to stay out late without letting him know. And it wasn’t like her at all to stay out all night. After fretting all night, Cheri’s father filed a missing person’s report with the police at 5:43AM.
Nearly an hour later, at 6:28AM, on Monday, October 31st, 1966, RCC groundskeeper Cleophus Martin found Cheri’s body. She was sprawled out on her face on a gravel path. The path was on Terracina Drive, close to the library parking lot. She was found between two abandoned houses. She was fully clothed, and her purse was found near her body. It didn’t appear as though robbery or sexual assault were the motive for her attack. This seemed personal.
She was lying in a large pool of blood, having been repeatedly stabbed in the chest, shoulder, neck, and face. Just a few feet from her body, investigators found a “cheap, paint-spattered Timex brand wristwatch with a seven-inch circumference along with a footprint of a shoe produced by Leavenworth prisoners sold solely in military outlets.”
The watch and shoe print indicated that the wrist was smaller than average, for a male in his 20s, and that the killer had small feet, but was suggested to be heavy-set due to the depth of the boot print.
Evidence indicated that Cheri went down fighting, kicking, and scratching. They determined that she’d struggled ferociously, scratching at her attacker, and ripping the watch right off his wrist. This was of very little comfort to Cheri’s friends and family.
When investigators looked at Cheri’s car, they found that the ignition wiring had been pulled loose, but that Cheri’s key was in the ignition. The windows on both the driver’s side and passenger’s side of the car where partially rolled down. The car also produced several greasy, smeared fingerprints and palm prints. Investigators were able to rule out most of Cheri’s friends and family as Cheri’s killer based on these prints.
During autopsy, the coroner discovered that Cheri had been repeatedly kicked in the head. The coroner also found that Cheri had been stabbed with a knife estimated to be 1.5 inches wide, and 3.5 inches long. She’d been stabbed and cut all over her upper body. The killing blow was inflicted by three slash wounds to Cheri’s throat. The slashes nearly decapitated her, severing her jugular vein, and her larynx.
Cheri’s fight with her attacker was worth it, though. Investigators found skin fragments and brown hair near her hands, and under he nails.
The first 24 hours after Cheri’s murder were the most intense of the investigation. Investigators interviewed over 75 individuals. On November 4th, 1966, Cheri’s funeral was held. By November 6th, investigators were beginning to interview military personnel stationed at the March Air Force Base. Of the original 75 individuals interviewed, all but two were eliminated.
The going theory was that the killer disabled the ignition in Cheri’s car, and then waited to lure her out. When she exited the library and found her car wasn’t able to start, the killer offered his assistance. Then, he lured into into the dark path on Terracina Drive, and attacked.
At the urging of Detective Sergeant David Bonine, every witness and individual who had been at the library with Cheri the night of her murder staged a re-enactment of that night. The idea was that the 62 students, 2 librarians, and 1 custodian present near the time of Cheri’s murder would have their memories jogged. They were all staged exactly where they’d been that night.
The re-enactment helped. Witnesses came forward, explaining the scream they’d heard at 10:30PM that night, and the subsequent vehicle tearing off. Other witnesses also came forward, and stated they’d seen a light coloured Studebaker, or Tucker Torpedo parked near Cheri’s car.
Despite the promising new witnesses, no new leads came to fruition, and the owner of the car was never found.
Shortly after all leads in the investigation dried up, an interesting series of events occurred.
Stay tuned for part two.
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Sources:
The Unsolved Murder of Cheri Jo Bates – Heather Monroe – Medium
Criminal Prints podcast – The Murder of Cheri Jo Bates
Murder of Cheri Jo Bates Wikipedia page