jun 4, 1963 - Linda Faye Edwards & Robert George Domingos

Description:

Domingos (18yo) & Edwards (17yo) , fiances, skipped school as part of Senior Ditch Day on Tues., June 4. Instead of joining other classmates at another location, the pair chose to be alone together at an isolated stretch of a remote beach in Gaviota State Park, south of Gaviota in Santa Barbara County, CA.

The killer apparently approached while they were sunbathing, likely in the late afternoon. Edwards was forced to bind Domingos at gunpoint with lengths of narrow rope ("probably pre-cut"). As the man was likely trying to bind Edwards's hands, Domingos somehow freed himself and fought back: Domingos was found with bruises on his face, indicated "he may have struggled with the gunman before the shooting", long enough for the couple to be able to run away.
Both victims tried to flee and were shot numerous times in the back. The killer first fired upon them from ~25yd south of them (15 shots) as they ran away. He then moved in closer to where they lay and fired the remaining shots at close range (either 5, 11, or 12 times). Domingos was shot 11 times, and Edwards was shot either eight or nine times, one of which shattered her right leg.

The killer then dragged ~30ft to an empty shack that had been occasionally occupied by transients. Edwards was placed face-up on top of Domingos, who was lying face-down. The top of Edwards's bathing suit was cut open with a sharp instrument (probably a knife), exposing her breasts, though she was not sexually assaulted.

The killer then possibly tried unsuccessfully to set fire to a tarp covering the door of the shack (scorch marks on the exterior surface + spent matches on the ground); however, it's unknown if these scorch marks & matches were already present beforehand, so it's possible they are unrelated

The weapon was a .22 caliber semi-automatic firearm, probably a rifle. The ammunition was Winchester Western Super X copper-coated long rifle bullets. Due to the remoteness of the location, the bodies weren't found until the following evening (Wed., June 5, at 10pm, dead for ~24hrs). Two days before the attack (June 2), a sniper had shot at a group of teens at Tajiguas; none were hit; .22 caliber weapon

JUNE 4
LUNAR PHASE: waxing gibbous
ZODIAC SIGN: gemini
DAY OF WEEK: Tuesday

June 2: Mars-Regulus 16:13
June 3: Moon Apogee 5:52

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