Carl Woolwine, aged 50, was tragically found dead on October 13, 2015, at the Alta Sierra Ski Resort in Wofford Heights, California. Woolwine, who worked as a maintenance worker at the resort, was discovered buried in a shallow grave. An autopsy conducted by the Kern County Coroner determined that the cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the head. The investigation revealed that Woolwine had made a comment to a co-worker, Joan Noble, which she found unsettling. Woolwine had allegedly expressed that he enjoyed watching her work. Noble reported this comment to her boyfriend, Thomas Ertz, who also worked at the resort. This led to a confrontation involving Woolwine, Ertz, and Bobbie Dale Rhynes, a supervisor at the resort.
On the day of the incident, Woolwine, Rhynes, and Ertz went to a maintenance building at the resort. Shortly after their arrival, a gunshot was heard, and only Rhynes and Ertz returned from the building. Rhynes later admitted to shooting Woolwine, claiming it was an accident and that he had intended to shoot above Woolwine's head. Following the shooting, Rhynes, with the help of Noble and Ertz, buried Woolwine's body and moved his van to another location.
The legal proceedings that followed saw Rhynes initially charged with first-degree murder, which was later reduced to second-degree murder. In May 2016, Rhynes was found guilty and sentenced to 14 years in prison. Noble and Ertz were also arrested and charged as accessories after the fact. They both pled no contest and were sentenced to three years of probation. The case highlighted the tragic consequences of a seemingly minor workplace conflict escalating into a fatal incident.
