Cold homicide case solved

Suzie Harrison

A 21-year-old Laguna Beach cold case homicide appears to be have been

solved after a Michigan man admitted to Laguna Beach police that he

killed Ronald Jay Murphy in December 1983.

“It was really brief, less than 20 minutes, he spent about 15

minutes telling lies and inconsistencies,” said unit supervisor and

division commander Capt. Danell Adams said of the confession provided

by James Paul Snider, 48. “Then he slowly lowered his head, slumped

his shoulders and confessed.”

She said that the impression Sgt. Jason Kravetz and case agent

detective Paul Litchenberg had was that it had been weighing on him.

“He [Snider] said that he did use the toilet tank cover and hit

the victim in the back of the head,” Adams said. “He described the

room and the crime scene and that was sufficient, they booked him.”

The suspect was taken into custody at the Ottawa County Jail in

Michigan.

“Judge Francis Munoz of the Orange County Harbor court issued a

‘no bail’ warrant against Snider for homicide,” Adams said.

After being served the warrant, Snider waived extradition

proceedings and arrangements are being made for his return to

Southern California to stand trial.

Danell said a lot of the groundwork was done early on, but with

the evolution of DNA technology things became more clear.

In April of 2001, DNA obtained from beer bottles and cigarettes

collected at the crime scene were submitted for trace analysis to the

Orange County Crime Lab.

She said the sample was sent to the FBI’s Combined DNA Index

System national database. Information was taken from local, federal

and state databases and exchanged and compared through electronic

data.

The FBI notified the Laguna investigators of a possible DNA match

to Snider in April.

The Coastline Pilot covered the investigation of this cold case

and another in a Oct. 10, 2003 article, “Heating up the cold cases.”

According to a police report, the 22-year-old victim from Santa

Maria was found dead in a Laguna Beach Hotel room on Dec. 11, 1983.

He arrived in Laguna on Dec. 10, 1983 for a weekend visit and checked

in at the Inn at Laguna l at 211 N. Coast Highway. Later he was seen

at Main Street Bar where he befriended a male drifter. The two spent

time together drinking at the bar and were seen leaving together.

Later that evening the victim met four friends for a previously

arranged dinner. He met his friends at his hotel room, and according

to them was in the company of an identified male fitting the

suspect’s description.

When they left for dinner the suspect decided to stay in the room.

“The motive is still in question and has not been elaborated,”

Adams said.

They feel that robbery was the main intent. Snider was in prison

10 years prior for bank robbery and was on parole since April 2003

when he was apprehended.

Adams said it isn’t being investigated as a hate crime, though the

victim met the suspect and went to back to the hotel room after being

at a known gay establishment. Nor does she remember there being any

signs of sexual assault.

“I recall the victim was examined early on, once again technology

has changed since 21 years ago,” Adams said. “I wouldn’t say for sure

that that wouldn’t be a factor of some sort. But at this point we’re

fairly certain it can be eliminated as a hate crime.”

She said in police business, however, they never assume anything.

“It can be going one direction and then take a 180-degree turn,”

Adams said. “We have to be open and reflective of all angles and keep

looking.”

On Sunday, Kravetz and Litchenberg took a plane to Holland, Mich.

to pursue the DNA lead.

“They were really organized paying close attention to detail,

there was a lot of build up and preparation, they didn’t just get the

information and jump on a plane,” Adams said.

“They made sure everything was in order here before,” she added.