Convict Charged in ’85 Anaheim Death

A drifter within days of completing a prison sentence for the 1988 kidnapping and molestation of an Orange County girl has been arrested in the 1985 murder of an Anaheim teenager, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Lynn Dean Johnson, 48, was identified as a murder suspect after he provided DNA under a 2002 state law that requires a sample from those convicted of violent sexual crimes.

Because the state DNA database has a two-year backlog of samples, the results of Johnson’s tests weren’t known to prosecutors until a week before his scheduled May 18 release from the state prison in Soledad.

Johnson was arrested in the murder of Bridgett Lee LaMon, 19, whose nude, battered body was found in a trash bin 19 years ago Wednesday.

At his Tuesday arraignment, Johnson pleaded not guilty to charges of homicide and a special-circumstance allegation because the murder occurred during a rape. A preliminary hearing is set for June 7. There is no bail.

At the time of the slaying, Anaheim residents raised $10,000 for information about the crime, and police sought a psychic’s help.

Authorities got their break this month when DNA from the crime scene was matched to Johnson, who is serving a 30-year term for attacking an 11-year-old.

For LaMon’s sister, Christine Straight, 36, finding a suspect has brought a sense of relief. Straight was a high school senior when her only sister was killed.

“I’ve lived with a lot of fear and questions as to who actually killed my sister,” Straight said, adding that the family later relocated to Santa Maria. “Now I have an answer and I can start the healing process. I’m very happy that my sister’s murderer will be brought to justice.”

LaMon had lived in Santa Maria with relatives the year before her death. She loved animals, owned two dogs, and, after overcoming drug and alcohol problems, planned to become a veterinarian.

The night she disappeared, LaMon came home from her job as a restaurant hostess and told her family she was going out for a walk.

The next day her body was found behind an industrial building in the 5400 block of East La Palma Avenue, about two miles from her home.

The investigation into her death languished in the cold-case file until the DNA match this month, Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas said at a news conference Wednesday.

The DNA processing delay is not that unusual, a coroner’s spokeswoman said, because the state’s database contains about 280,000 samples. It takes a week to complete one sample, she said.

“Other than DNA, there was no evidence linking Johnson to the crime,” said Anaheim Police Chief John Welter.

The DNA evidence will allow police to reopen the investigation, Welter said.

With the knowledge about Johnson, investigators will renew the search for other evidence, he said.