◼ Family secrets; killer's son brings decades-old Humboldt County murder to light
Nearly 22 years ago, the body of 27-year-old Lysandra Marie Turpin was dumped in a Fieldbrook ditch and burned in a pile of tires and gasoline.
In February, Humboldt County Sheriff's deputies found Turpin's remains, just 14 teeth, some bone fragments and a few articles of burnt clothing. On Wednesday, those teeth were positively identified by a forensic odontologist in Cloverdale as Turpin's, bringing an end to a long-cold missing person's report.
Detective Steve Quenell said that Turpin's life came to an end after weeks of physical abuse, and before the eyes of her murderer's son. And Turpin was apparently not the only victim of such abuse, Quenell said the son told him recently.
After corroborating statements and discovering evidence, detectives believe that Ernest Samuel Christie Jr. was Turpin's killer, and behind at least two other drug-related kidnapping and torture cases that were never reported. Christie died on June 29, 2006, of congestive heart failure.
It was his son, Ernest Samuel Christie III, who recently informed detectives of what he witnessed when he was 16. Quenell said the younger Christie told him that his father, who was a frequent methamphetamine user, had picked up Turpin and brought her back to his house on Fieldbrook Road. The younger Christie said the woman was held captive in a bedroom for weeks, and that her condition worsened over time.
Sometime in June 1988, the son told Quenell, his father said they would be getting rid of Turpin, and loaded her, wrapped in a blanket, into the trunk of his car. The son said that he saw his father take a hard object -- described as a pestle -- and repeatedly strike Turpin in the head. The son said that they then drove a short distance away to an 80-acre parcel owned by his family, put the body in an open ditch, piled tires on it, doused the pile with gasoline and burned it....
◼ Son Says Dad Killed Missing Woman In 1988
,,,,.Son Calls Deputies To Say He Witnessed Father Kill Woman
◼ Cold Case of Lysandra Marie Turpin Solved!
From the murderer's T/S obit:
ReplyDelete"Ernie was a commercial fisherman for 35 years. He captained the f/v Fame L and f/v Claire Louse, the latter being named after his wife, Claire Louise (Williams) Christie, who was lost at sea in 1977."
So, I guess that explains what happened to his wife.
Wow. Sad.
ReplyDeleteWhile I praise the son for coming forward, I have to wonder if they have given him a polygraph to ensure he has not taken part in this or any other murders, with or without his dad.
ReplyDeleteSince no one can truly explain what makes a monster, one might wonder if living with a monster and participating in dastardly deeds (forced or not) is a good start. After all, there are plenty of women missing in N.C.
i lived with his son in durham nc and he made it clear that he helped his father and didn't hate it. he hit me in the face after telling me happy birthday. i'm female. apple doesn't fall far from the tree if you ask me. it's called stockholm syndrome and the police that investigated this just didn't care or sam would be behind bars and i would have never been punched in the face just because he's mental and decided to flip out.
ReplyDeleteand yes, plenty of women dying 2 streets over from where i lived with him 2 days ago. i promise everyone, he's wacked. the police really dropped the ball on this one.
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