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Detectives testing residents' guns 2 Bodega Bay men voluntarily help investigators in Jenner killings, say rights violated Friday, September 3, 2004 By DEREK J. MOORE THE PRESS DEMOCRAT Detectives investigating the slayings of two young campers on a Jenner beach have visited the homes of at least two Sonoma County residents this week, seeking permission to test their handguns. Sheriff's officials wouldn't discuss why the people were contacted, but a Bodega Bay man said he voluntarily handed over two guns. Bruce, who asked that only his first name be used, wouldn't divulge the make or caliber of the weapons, saying...

JENNER, Calif. More mystery in the investigation into the killings of two youth camp counselors on a remote Sonoma County beach. A Jenner man has told investigators that he saw the couple alive more than 24 hours after they failed to show up for work at a Christian youth camp. Lodge owner Bert Rangel told the San Francisco Chronicle he's certain he saw the couple last Monday night. The couple had stopped to ask if there were any cabins available. 23-year-old Lindsay Cutshall of Ohio and 26-year-old Jason Allen of Michigan were reported missing last Monday after they failed to...

Sonoma County, California, authorities have located the young Wisconsin man they were looking to question in connection with the mysterious shooting deaths of two camp counselors in Jenner. Twenty-one-year-old Nicholas Scarseth contacted authorities after he found out through media reports that they were looking for him. Sonoma County Sheriff's Department Lieutenant Dave Edmonds says Scarseth remains a — quote — "person of interest" in the case. Scarseth has not been charged and authorities are not saying exactly what tip led them to question the young man from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Investigators say Scarseth was in the area about the time...

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) - A 21-year-old Wisconsin man contacted police Tuesday and was questioned in the mysterious shooting deaths of two Christian camp counselors. Sonoma County detectives sent out a statewide alert Tuesday seeking Nicholas Edward Scarseth, of Chippewa Falls, Wis., as a "potential witness" in the killings. When Scarseth heard about that from media reports, he got in touch with authorities, Sheriff's Lt. Dave Edmonds said. "We have located him and we are speaking with him," Edmonds said. "We want to question him to determine what he knows about this case. He has not been charged. This is...

SANTA ROSA, California (AP) -- A 21-year-old Wisconsin man was being sought for questioning in the mysterious shooting deaths of two camp counselors, according to a newspaper report. Sonoma County detectives sent out a statewide alert Monday seeking Nicholas Edward Scarseth, of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported Tuesday. "We have information he may have been in the area at the time of the incident," Sheriff's Lt. Dave Edmonds told the newspaper. "He could have information related to the case." Edmonds wouldn't say why detectives are interested in Scarseth. Scarseth was stopped on Friday by police in...

The mysterious shooting deaths of two campers from the Midwest who planned to wed next month have prompted a massive manhunt on California's North Coast, where some residents in the Russian River area were terrified that a killer was on the loose. [snip]...[I]nvestigators were considering the possibility that they were killed in a hate crime against Christians because the pair were missionaries who spent the summer working as river guides at Rock-N-Water, a religious camp near Coloma in El Dorado County about 40 miles east of Sacramento. ...[snip]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Two soon-to-be-married Christian camp counselors reported missing earlier this week were shot to death in their sleeping bags on a remote beach, authorities said. The bodies of Lindsay Cutshall, 23, and Jason Allen, 26, were discovered Wednesday when deputies rescuing a stranded hiker spotted the crime scene from their helicopter. "They were shot in the head, presumably in their sleep," Sheriff's Lt. Dave Edmonds said. "It appears to be a terrible crime absent of motive, which is a concern to us." There were no signs of sexual assault or robbery, and the possibility of a murder-suicide...