Ted Bundy's Murderous Mysteries

by Kevin Sullivan

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Report on the Kimberly Diane Leach Murder

  Ted Bundy’s last murder was the slaying of twelve-year-old Kimberly Diane Leach. What follows is the report from Investigator, James L. Daugherty, of the Lake City Police, Florida. While the first portion of this document is heavily redacted (they even redacted the name of the victim, but I have replaced these redactions with her name), readers will easily be able to follow it, and it paints a good picture of what it was like during those days. The second part deals directly with Ted Bundy and those who interacted with him while he stayed at the Holiday Inn in Lake City, Florida. For those of you who’ve read my book, The Bundy Murders: A Comprehensive History (the main book in my Bundy series now consisting of four books), you may remember the names of these witnesses, as I wrote about them while telling the story of the Kimberly Leach murder. However, for this book, I wanted to present the “raw” reports.

  On February 9, 1978, at 3:26 P.M. the Lake City Police Department received a call from Thomas Leach of (Redacted). Mr. Leach advised that his daughter, Kimberly Diane Leach, age 12, was missing from the junior high school where she was a seventh-grade student. He also advised that the last time she was seen was around 9:00 A.M. that morning. A BOLO (be on the lookout) was put out to all our units and with the Sheriff’s Office. On February 10, in the early morning hours, I received a call from Frieda Leach, the mother of Kimberly Diane Leach, she called me and advised that Kimberly had not returned home and she was very upset and worried and was in fear of foul play.

  I did respond to Morris Williams the assistant principal of the junior high school, who resided on McFarland Avenue, with a resident telephone number of XX. After talking with Mr. Williams it was ascertained that Kimberly Leach, had in fact been at school the morning before, during the ninth (9th), Thursday, and had attended homeroom class and from homeroom class had attended the first period class which was in this case PE (physical education). Physical education was being held in the auditorium that day due to the foul weather outside.

  The first bell rings at 8:30 a.m. and then the bell rings again at 8:35 a.m. which is the tardy bell for homeroom. Homeroom is a session for ten (10) minutes. At 8:45 a.m. the bell rings allowing the students four (4) minutes to go from homeroom to first (1st) period, then the bell rings at 8:49 a.m. This bell indicates that first period is in session. Kimberly Diane Leach had already attended homeroom which was taught by John L. Bishop of XX Street. While being in first (1st) period which is taught by Mrs. Caldwell, who resides at the corner of Montana and Broadway Street, Lake City. The physical education teacher, Mrs. Caldwell, she received a note, at approximately 9:15 a.m. by (redacted), a student of John L. Bishop. John L. Bishop had sent (redacted) with a note to Mrs. Caldwell to advise that Kimberly Diane Leach should return to her homeroom class and retrieve her blue denim purse which she had left in the room while attending her homeroom. This note was received at approximately 9:15 a.m. Kimberly Diane Leach did leave the auditorium area where physical education was being held that day with (redacted).

  They did traverse the area of approximately 100 yards from the auditorium across the basketball courts and entered the south side of central building. They did stop and get a drink of water just inside the door and walked to the second classroom on the left which was John L. Bishop’s and both students did enter the room and Kimberly Leach did retrieve her purse. While retrieving her purse she did joke briefly one student (redacted

  Kimberly Leach left the homeroom, walking south the same way she came into central and opened the double doors at the end of the central building and exited those doors, this was viewed by (redacted) and several of the other students in the class. They viewed her walking south down the hallway but it appears that (redacted) was in a position to observe Kimberly Leach open the double doors and exit the building, in fact the same way that entry was gained by (redacted) and (redacted). This being at approximately 9:17 a.m.

  This was arrived by putting (redacted) under hypnosis and she did advise at 9:13 a.m. is when she left the room to get Kimberly Leach, she looked at the clock and figuring the time it would take to walk the hundred yards over and the hundred yards back. At the time of the disappearance of Kimberly Leach, she was wearing a brown coat, three-quarter length, trimmed in white fur, this coat having a hood also trimmed in white fur. The trimming being at the cuffs, at the tail of the coat, and around the hood. She had on a sky-blue perforated football jersey with the red numeral 83 over a pullover white blouse. Now this pullover type blouse was underneath the blue football jersey. She had on a training bra, a regular pair of panties, the name brand unknown at this time, a pair of blue jeans, a brown pair of shoes, suede-type two-tone shoes with a smooth crepe sole. She had on a very small delicate choker-type gold chain necklace. She had a gold ring with a green oblong stone. She had on gold loop earrings, her ears were pierced.

  She was twelve (12) years of age, she was five (5) foot tall, weighed approximately one hundred (100) pounds, she had shoulder-length hair parted in the center, and she had pretty, well-formed teeth. She also had a scar on one of her knees, the mother could not advise which one it was that had the scar.

  Several people that should have been or were near or around the campus, were interviewed, it was ascertained that one of the janitors, Eddie Goodbread, Route 49, Lake City, Florida, the janitor for approximately twelve (12) or fourteen (14) years and the driver of a 1978 white Buick Riviera with pinstripes and a red interior had just pulled up to the south side of Central as the two girls were entering central. It seems as though Mr. Goodbread got out of his car and walked into the south side of central behind the girls but not seeing the girls. The girls entered the room just before Mr. Goodbread entered the building. Mr. Goodbread had walked past the room and was preparing to exit the building on the other end as Kimberly Leach came back out of the room and was exiting the building behind Eddie Goodbread in the opposite end of the building and in the opposite direction.

  I interviewed Mr. Goodbread at length by myself as well as patrolman Parrish and Tommy Trammel of the Second Circuit State Attorney’s Office and it is ascertained that he did not see anything that he could recall. That he just simply drove up, got out of his car, walked through central and to the office of the main building without noting anything. He did advise that he would be hypnotized if we so desired to see if we could get any further information.

  Subsequently after talking to Mr. Williams, the assistant principal, he advised that I should talk with one (redacted), age 14, of (redacted), in reference to him seeing Kimberly being apparently abducted by a black male driving a blue 4 door Chevrolet at the northeast corner of the campus Thursday morning. (Author’s note: this false story of the abduction of Kimberly Leach goes on for a paragraph or two, and is followed by other perhaps well-meaning, but completely false, renderings of the abduction, and because these are not relevant to the actual case of her abduction, I will pass over them and pick up where the story gets back on track.)

  Kimberly’s parents were interviewed numerous times by myself and Patrolman Parrish, myself and Chief Philpot, myself and Tommy Trammel (of the Second Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office). On every occasion questions were posed to them that they always answered and appeared to be truthful, appeared to be remorseful, or anyhow at a loss by the disappearance of Kimberly Leach. They at no time ever felt that Kimberly Leach had left home or was a runaway as she had never before ever skipped school, skipped classes, or even run-off from home before, that she had no problems at home, that she had never really wanted for anything that she didn’t get, that is anything within reason, and that as a matter of fact that she had just been elected runner-up queen of the Valentine dance that was coming up on the eleventh (11th) of February. And that her mother Frieda Leach and (redacted) had already picked out a dress that she was going to wear to that dance. That Kimberly was real elated about the dance and surprised that she fared as well in th
e contest and was looking forward to the dance with much anxiety.

  Sharon Morgan, a sister of Frieda Leach, who lived next door to the Leach’s for over a year, at that same trailer park which the Leach’s now reside in, described them as a normal family and that they never had any out of the way arguments or any problems and found them to be a very close family.

  Interviews with Kimberly’s teachers which was Mr. Opperman, the principal of the junior high school, Mrs. Newell, Mrs. Caldwell, the PE teacher, Mr. Bishop, Morris Williams the assistant principal, Mr. Bishop being her homeroom teacher. Talking with all these teachers, they all generally agreed that Kimberly was quiet, very studious, made good grades, never skipped school or very seldom was absent and was, all in all, a good average student.

  On February 11, 1978, a news release and photograph of Kimberly Leach were released to channel 12, channel 4, and channel 17 of Jacksonville, channel 20 of Gainesville, the Florida Times Union, and the Lake City Reporter. Also, Agent King of the FBI in Jacksonville contacted this office and advised us that he had been contacted by several residents of the Lake City area and had been requested to enter the case of missing Kimberly Diane Leach. Of course, he informed them as well as myself that he had no jurisdiction in this case, that is the FBI had no jurisdiction, and that they would render any technical assistance or any professional advice that the Lake City Police department so desired in this case but until a kidnapping or an across state lines crime had been committed, that they would not enter into the case.

  On February 12, 1978, being Sunday, members of the Lake City Police Department searched the school grounds and the school. Now this search was literally from top to bottom. We went underneath the school, checked the sand under the school, checked in the attic, on top of the roof, and in every nook and cranny throughout the entire school buildings and campus. The woods to the rear and south of the school were checked, walked out as they were on Saturday. The Lakes in the immediate area, being Lake DeSoto, Lake Isabell, and Alligator Lake, were checked by boat; and a search of the woods around the lake was conducted and lead by Chief Paul Philpot.

  Searches were also conducted of the wooded area behind the Columbia High School North Campus, around the old country club area over to Country Club Road, the woods located to the rear and north of Ken’s Bar-B-Que, South First Street, northward all the way to Ivy’s Trailer park; all of the woods all the way over to the residential area west of that area.

  The wooded areas behind Summers Elementary School from Grandview Avenue all the way around Brown Road including the entire area of the city limits of the southwest portion of the limits were searched.

  The homeroom class of Mr. John L. Bishop was visited by myself and Patrolman Parrish. We addressed the entire class asking for that information would lead to the locating of Kimberly Diane Leach or any information in reference to the disappearance of Kimberly Diane Leach. None could be furnished and again on Monday morning, being the 13th, Patrolman Parrish and myself visited the first period class of Mr. Bishop’s, which would have been the class that Kimberly Diane Leach retrieved her book from. We introduced ourselves to the entire class and asked for any information that may be beneficial to us in locating Kimberly Diane Leach or to her disappearance. (Redacted) said that she saw Kimberly come into Mr. Bishop’s room and pick up her purse but had no further information. (Redacted), a student, stated that Kimberly joked with him briefly when she came in to pick up her purse. (Redacted) stated that he saw Kimberly come into Mr. Bishop’s room and pick up her purse and leave the room and he was also interviewed again on February 18, 1978, as were the other two and no new information or nothing different was gained from these three people.

  Parrish and myself also interviewed the first period class of PE, that being the class that Kimberly Diane Leach left from and never returned, with no one being able to furnish any information other than that she was seen at class and was also observed leaving with (redacted). No one saw her return.

  The residences surrounding the two (2) blocks that the Junior High School is located on were all canvassed by myself and Patrolman Parrish, no one observed anything out of the ordinary or unusual and subsequently no information was gained or obtained that would have been any benefit in this investigation.

  On February 14, 1978, in the a.m., Chief Paul Philpot advised me that he had requested that the FDCLE enter the case and he stated to me that the FDCLE’s feelings were essentially the same as the FBI and that they did not wish to enter the case at this time until more evidence was obtained indicating that the girl had in fact been abducted.

  The names and addresses and telephone numbers of Mr. Leach’s family in Tennessee were provided to the FBI in hope that they would check up there for any information that may lead to the whereabouts of Kimberly Diane Leach. We were informed that they did not think it was necessary and would just advise that we hold on to them by Agent King and Agent Cooke of the FBI. Searches were held or conducted in all of the wooded areas of the city limits and immediately surrounding areas throughout the week and the school was repeatedly searched from top to bottom again and again daily for the remainder of the week. Various leads were checked by Patrolman Parrish and myself, leads which I’ve found to be of no benefit to this case or proved to be false information and subsequently won’t be mentioned in this particular report.

  A list of students that were tardy, absent, or dismissed early was obtained from the school in hopes it may reveal some light on this case, it did not. A list of all the CETA program workers that were working on the campus was obtained. Background investigations of all these individuals were checked with no bearing on this case. A background check of Mr. Williams, the assistant principal was also conducted in depth and revealed nothing detrimental or of no value to this case. Also Mr. Bishop was questioned at length and his background was also checked in depth with no bearing to this case. Lanny Crosier, a teacher with Niblack School was also interviewed with no value to this case. Ray Hart, a PE teacher, was also interviewed, he had nothing to render to this investigation and he was absent that day due to an illness in his family.

  We obtained a list of all sex offenders throughout the entire third judicial circuit and a review of those revealed nothing pertinent to this investigation.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Bundy Florida Arrest Reports

  The below report concerns the arrest of Ted Bundy, and the first of this report deals with the stolen credit cards Bundy had with him when he was apprehended. Because I have dealt with the credit cards sufficiently in two of my previous books in this series, I will skip this and avoid redundancy. However, the report continues with Bundy’s appearance and strange actions during this period. While I have quoted from this report for my first book, I am presenting the full document here.

  Lieutenant Boatwright, of the FHP had secured all these evidentiary items which were the vouchers and folios and the credit card receipts from the Holiday Inn and turned these items over to Tommy Trammel of the Second Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office. I will attempt to relate the way these cards were used as according to an interview with Karen Elizabeth Tadlock, Rt. 5 Box 132, Lake City, Florida. The telephone number being a Branford Extension. She is the assistant innkeeper at the Holiday Inn at the Lake City exit at I-75 and US 90.

  Evidence item #2 was a dining room charge voucher for the evening of February 8, 1978, which indicates that, two beers had been purchased and that the subject ate at the buffet. The check number was (redacted) and it was charged to evidence item #1A, which was a charge voucher, which was in turn put in a folio which is evidence item #1 at the desk which was number (redacted). David Cane was the waiter and Doris Whitehead was the dining room cashier. The Evans subject (Author’s note: Bundy was using the credit card of a Mr. Evans) checked in at 8:44 p.m., February 8,1978, Pearl Walker, Dale Sconyers, Randy Jones, and Denise Lee were the desk clerks. Evidence item #4 is a disco lounge voucher, a bar tab which i
ndicated that he sat at the bar and not at a table. He charged four gins and one draft beer. The lounge is open from 8:00 p.m. to 12:00 p.m. February 8, 1978. The amount $6.40 was charged to his room. The subject did sign the voucher, he also changed the names.

  On February 19, 1978, at 10:55 p.m., I did talk with Sharon Colquitt, who was the bartender at the Holiday Inn on February 8, 1978, and did wait on Mr. Evans (Author’s note: Bundy) who showed her a room key and wrote “Miller” on the top of the ticket after he had signed Miller at the bottom. He advised that he was Evans at first. He was sitting with another man, it was on a Wednesday night and he sat on the third seat south of the curve in the bar and the bar running from east to west and then south and he was at the west end of the bar at the curve.

  Wednesday night was a very busy night at the bar and Mrs. Colquitt states that she was training a new bartender named Joe, the rest of his name in unknown as he never returned. A lot of loud music and dancing, she could not remember if the “Evans” subject got up at all. She stated that she couldn’t remember anything about the other man and that they were standing together preparing to leave when Evans signed the ticket before he left.