“CSLEA is proud of the continuous work that California DOJ criminalists do in labs throughout California to assist with identifying suspects by processing DNA and developing DNA profiles. This work is a valuable part of investigations by law enforcement, and criminal justice.”
CSLEA President Alan Barcelona
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY – On April 3, 2025, The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office announced that it has identified the person suspected of killing a young woman whose body was found near Aptos Village Park on May 28, 1976.
The death was investigated as a homicide. The victim was identified as 25-year- old Karen Percifield. Detectives at the time collected forensic evidence, but they were unable to develop any forensic leads for a suspect. No arrests were made, and the case went cold.
In 2019, while re-evaluating the case, Sheriff’s Office criminalists found several evidentiary items to send to the California Department of Justice (DOJ) Bureau of Forensic Services for further testing. California DOJ criminalists developed a male DNA profile, but the suspect was not in the DNA database.
During the initial investigation, Richard Sommerhalder was named as a person of interest, but the original investigators never had enough evidence to arrest him. Just a few months later, in September of 1976, Sommerhalder was arrested for two other murders in Santa Cruz County. He served 8 ½ years in prison before being paroled and moving out of state.
While trying to locate Sommerhalder for a DNA reference, detectives learned he had died in 1994. However, through genetic genealogy and familial DNA testing, and with the help of DOJ and Othram Laboratories, detectives were able to identify Sommerhalder as the suspect responsible for the murder of Karen.
“No matter how much time has passed, we will never stop seeking the truth. Advances in DNA technology continue to provide new opportunities to deliver justice and closure to victims and their families. This case is a powerful example of how those advancements can give us the answers we’ve been searching for.” said Sheriff Chris Clark.
Below are statements from the family of Karen Percifield:
“To the detectives, and forensic team, I appreciate them not giving up. This has been weighing on me my whole life, not having a memory of my mom and just wondering who it could have been, this just means so much. I’m just so grateful you didn’t give up.” – Daughter of Karen.
“It’s nice to know this is finally not an open case, even though it was closed in my mind. It just proves that DNA is a good vehicle to solve these things and put things to rest. I was so young then and wasn’t equipped to understand everything and I’m just so grateful it’s finally over.” – Sister of Karen.
