New effort to help solve cold cases on the Monterey Peninsula
Law enforcement agencies on the Monterey Peninsula are working to bring closure for families still left without answers to unsolved homicides. The group is renewing its efforts to solve open cases, by sharing information through the Peninsula Cold Case Project.
“Murder cases are very difficult to investigate, they take a lot of hours, they take a lot of time, they take a lot of energy,” said Commander Michael Bruno.
Time, resources and information are three vital aspects to solving tough cases. Investigators said many times they take years to solve. That’s why Peninsula Regional Violence and Narcotics Team Commander Michael Bruno is working with local police chiefs to revitalize the project, which called its efforts off five years ago.
“We went through a few cases and we kind of for whatever reason we get busy with other cases or we run out of leads it took a break,”said Bruno.
Right now the group is working on a homicide from 1983. Police said Jennifer Morris, 20, went missing after she was last seen at the Del Monte Shopping Center. Her skeletal remains were found in a wooded area behind the shopping center in 2011. Bruno believes the suspect may also be responsible in the death of Christina Williams, 13, in 1998.
The Emergency Operations Center at the Monterey Police Department is where members of the cold case project will meet once a month to discuss anything new in each of their cold cases. Police are also hoping anyone with information will hear about stories like this and speak up.
“It’s difficult for us to develop leads but by having the media out there and us giving them the information about whatever that cold case is,” Monterey Police Chief Dave Hober.
So far a number of cold cases have been solved since the start of the project in 2005. Marina Police said they’re working on three cases dating back to the 1970’s. Investigators hope the information will start pouring in, giving them more leads to pursue.
