Long Beach homicide suspect arrested, 25 yrs later

Community Message has been issued by the LASD - Headquarters Newsroom (SHB), Los Angeles County Sheriff.

Wednesday March 9, 2011 7:06 PM PST
Long Beach homicide suspect arrested, 25 yrs later

(Click on the hyperlink at the bottom of this message to see a 1985 photo of Joanne Marie Jones as she is remembered by her family)

On April 29, 1985, 23-year old Joanne Marie Jones, an aspiring model, seemingly disappeared in the city of Long Beach, California.

After spending the weekend at her boyfriend's Long Beach home, Joanne left at 5:30AM to go to work in the city of West Covina, but she never made it there. Her car, a 1978 Chevrolet Camaro, had been parked at the corner of 1st and Cherry Avenue in the city of Long Beach, but it was also missing.　

Several days later, Stafford Joel Spicer, 33, a White male, was spotted driving the victim’s car in the city of Long Beach. Spicer was subsequently arrested by Long Beach Police Department officers.

On June 8, 1985, Joanne's body was discovered by hikers on a dirt roadway in a remote area of Azusa Canyon, east of Highway 39 on East Fork Rd, Azusa. The Coroner's Office determined that she had been stabbed to death.

The Homicide investigation was handled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Given what was known at the time that her body was found, and what was known about Spicer driving her car, there was insufficient evidence to pursue murder charges against Spicer in a court of law.

In 2009, Sheriff’s Homicide Cold Case Detective Steve Davis re-opened this case. He uncovered additional biological evidence (DNA), and along with advances in technology and additional investigative follow-up, the case was presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, which determined there was sufficient evidence for a homicide case to be filed.

An arrest warrant for murder was issued for Suspect Stafford Joel Spicer, who is now 59 years of age, unemployed, and living in the city of Las Vegas, Nevada.

On Tuesday, March 8, 2011, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officers, assisted by Cold Case Homicide detectives with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, served an arrest warrant at the home of Suspect Spicer, in the 3000 block of Cabana Avenie in Las Vegas. Spicer was taken into custody without incident at about 5:00PM.

He is currently being held in the city of Las Vegas Detention Center pending extradition to California.　

　　 Anyone who may have information about this case should notify Detective Steve Davis of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau, Cold Case Unit at 323-890-5500. Or if you wish to remain Anonymous, call “LA Crime Stoppers” by dialing 800-222-TIPS (8477), texting the letters TIPLA plus your tip to CRIMES (274637), or using the website http://lacrimestoppers.org/

"The motto of the Sheriff's Cold Case Homicide Unit is 'Time is on our side," said Captain Mike Parker, Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau. "Homicide cases are never closed until they are solved."

Lieutenant Wes Sutton
Cold Case Unit – Homicide Bureau
Detective Division
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
(323) 890-5500
http://www.lasd.org/

Captain Mike Parker
Sheriff’s Headquarters Bureau – Newsroom
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
(323) 267-4800
http://www.lasd.org/
SHBNewsroom@lasd.org
Leroy D. Baca, Sheriff
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department

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(Click on the hyperlink below to see a 1985 photo of Joanne Marie Jones as she is remembered by her family)

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