Lori Lee Kursa, a 13-year-old girl, was last seen alive on November 20, 1972, in Santa Rosa, California. She was reported to have been a habitual runaway. Her body was discovered on December 14, 1972, approximately 20 to 30 feet down a steep embankment along Calistoga Road, less than a tenth of a mile from the intersection with Harville Road. The cause of death was determined to be a dislocation of the first and second cervical vertebrae, leading to compression and hemorrhage of the spinal cord
due to trauma.
Kursa was one of the victims associated with the Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders, a series of unsolved homicides that occurred in Sonoma County between 1972 and 1973. These murders involved female hitchhikers who were found nude in rural areas near steep embankments or creek beds close to roads. Despite extensive investigations, the perpetrator or perpetrators remain unidentified.
At the scene where Kursa's body was found, investigators noted two wire loops in her pierced ears, but no earrings were attached. There were no immediate suspects or arrests related to her death, and her murder remains unsolved. The broader investigation into the Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders has explored various leads, but no definitive conclusions have been reached regarding the identity of the killer or killers.
