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Today in True Crime History: March 16
1971 — Lisa Smith, 17, is seen hitchhiking in Santa Rosa, California. This is the last time anybody has seen her, but her vanishing is associated with the Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders. Her body has not been found.
1991 — Jessica Keen is killed in Foster Chapel Cemetery in West Jefferson, Ohio. In 2008, Marvin Lee Smith, Jr. is arrested based on DNA evidence. He admits to the murder. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
1991 — Latasha Harlins, a 15-year-old girl, is shot by Soon Ja Du, the owner of a convenience store. Du was eventually convicted of voluntary manslaughter. Harlins was killed 13 days after the beating of Rodney King, and it may have been one catalyst for the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
1997 — Star Stowe is murdered. The Playboy model may have been operating as a sex worker when she was killed in Florida. Her death is linked to that of Sandra Kay Walters, which occurred weeks earlier. Her case remains unsolved.
