The Keddie Murders
On the night of April 11–12, 1981, a horrific crime took place in a small resort community in Keddie, California. Three people were found murdered inside a family home, while a young girl who had been there that evening was missing. Her disappearance added another troubling dimension to a case that would remain unresolved for decades.
Known as the Keddie murders, the case involved the killings of Glenna Susan “Sue” Sharp, her son John Sharp, and John’s friend Dana Wingate. Sue’s daughter Tina Sharp disappeared from the home and was later confirmed dead after her remains were discovered in 1984.
Investigators examined numerous leads and potential suspects over the years. Later developments, including the discovery of a hammer and reported DNA evidence, renewed interest in the case, but the murders remain an enduring example of an investigation marked by unanswered questions.
The Sharp Family and Their Life in Keddie
Sue Sharp was born Glenna Susan Davis on March 29, 1945. In 1979, after separating from her husband, James Sharp, she left Connecticut with her five children and relocated to northern California, where her brother lived.
The family initially stayed in a trailer in Quincy before moving to house number 28 at the Keddie Resort, a small community in the Sierra Nevada region. Sue lived there with her children John, Sheila, Tina, Rick, and Greg.
By April 1981, the children ranged in age from five to fifteen. The family lived among neighbors in a rural setting where people were familiar with one another. Nothing about the location suggested that it would become the scene of a crime that attracted attention for generations.
John Sharp, born in 1965, was a teenager. His friend Dana Hall Wingate, born in 1964, was also part of the events leading up to the murders. Tina, born in 1968, was twelve years old at the time.
The Events of April 11, 1981
On April 11, Sue, her daughter Sheila, and her young son Greg traveled from the home of friends to collect Rick, who was attending baseball tryouts in Quincy. During the trip, they encountered John and Dana hitchhiking near the canyon road between Quincy and Keddie. The family gave the boys a ride back to Keddie.
Later that afternoon, John and Dana hitchhiked back to Quincy, where they were reportedly seen downtown. Their activities during the evening became part of the timeline investigators tried to reconstruct.
That night, Sheila planned to sleep at the neighboring Seabolt family’s home. She left house number 28 shortly after 8 p.m. Tina had been watching television at the neighboring residence but returned home after asking the time at approximately 9:30 p.m.
Sue remained at home with Rick, Greg, and Justin Smartt, a young friend of the boys.
The movements of the family members and visitors during those hours became important as investigators attempted to establish when the killings occurred and who may have entered the house.
The Discovery of Three Victims
At approximately 10 a.m. on April 12, Sheila returned to the family home and discovered the bodies of Sue, John, and Dana in the living room.
All three had been bound with medical tape and electrical cords. The scene showed signs of extreme violence. Investigators found two bloodied knives and a hammer inside the house, and blood-spatter evidence indicated that the attacks had taken place in the living room.
Sue had suffered fatal knife wounds and blunt-force injuries. John had a severe wound to his throat and blunt-force trauma to his head. Dana had multiple head injuries and died from asphyxiation, according to the autopsy findings.
Tina was not at the house. Rick, Greg, and Justin were found physically unharmed in an adjoining bedroom.
After discovering the bodies, Sheila ran back to the neighboring residence for help. Jamie Seabolt later entered the home briefly through the back door to check whether anyone was alive. Investigators subsequently recognized that this entry may have affected the crime scene.
The absence of Tina immediately raised questions about whether she had been taken from the home and whether she could provide information about the attacks.
The Missing Girl: Tina Sharp
Tina Louise Sharp was twelve years old when she disappeared from Keddie. Initially, investigators considered the possibility that she had been abducted.
The search for Tina continued for years without a confirmed location. Her disappearance was one of the most troubling aspects of the case because it was unclear whether she had left the house before the murders, been taken away during the attacks, or witnessed events that placed her in danger.
On April 11, 1984, three years after the murders, a person collecting bottles discovered part of a human skull and a portion of a lower jaw near Camp 18, close to Feather Falls in Butte County, California. The location was roughly 62 miles from Keddie.
A forensic examination later confirmed that the remains belonged to Tina. The discovery established that she had died, but it did not fully explain how she had been transported to the location or who was responsible for her death.
An anonymous caller reportedly contacted the Butte County Sheriff’s Office shortly after the discovery and identified the remains as Tina’s. The call was not documented at the time. A recording was reportedly found in an evidence box years later, after 2013, by a deputy assigned to the case.
Early Investigative Leads
Investigators interviewed neighbors and other people who might have known something about the events of April 11 and 12. Several people recalled seeing a green van parked near the Sharp residence at around 9 p.m.
Justin Smartt gave accounts of the night that changed over time. In a later statement made under hypnosis, he claimed to have seen Sue with two men. Because his accounts were inconsistent, investigators faced challenges in determining which details were reliable.
Composite sketches of two possible suspects were created based on descriptions attributed to Justin. The men were described as being in their late twenties or early thirties, with different heights and hair colors. However, the sketches did not establish their identities, and the information did not result in charges.
Authorities also considered rumors that the murders were linked to drugs or ritualistic activity. The sheriff publicly dismissed those theories, noting that investigators had not found illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia in the home.
As the investigation progressed, attention turned toward people living near the Sharp family, including Martin Smartt, Justin’s stepfather, and John Boubede, another individual associated with the neighboring cabin. Both were discussed in connection with the case, but suspicion and allegations are not the same as proof of criminal responsibility.
Martin Smartt and the Missing Hammer
Martin Smartt told investigators that a claw hammer had gone missing from his home. This detail attracted renewed attention years later when another hammer was recovered from a local pond.
According to reporting published in 2016, Smartt left Keddie and traveled to Reno, Nevada, shortly after the murders. He sent a letter to his wife, Marilyn, reflecting on their troubled relationship. The letter included a disturbing reference to having paid for her love with the lives of four people.
A special investigator later said the letter had been overlooked during the initial investigation and had not been admitted as evidence. A counselor who had worked with Smartt also reportedly claimed that Smartt had admitted involvement in the deaths of Sue and Tina, while denying responsibility for the deaths of John and Dana. These were reported allegations, not a court-established finding of guilt.
On March 24, 2016, a hammer matching the general description of the one Smartt said was missing was discovered in a pond in the area. Investigators collected it as evidence. The discovery raised new questions about whether the object could be connected to the killings, although the available information does not establish that the hammer definitively proved who committed the murders.
John Boubede, another person considered in the investigation, died in 1988. No charges were filed against him in connection with the Keddie murders.
DNA Evidence and Renewed Attention
The case received renewed attention in the twenty-first century as investigators revisited old evidence and examined new leads.
In April 2018, special investigator Mike Gamberg stated that DNA recovered from a piece of tape at the crime scene matched that of a known living suspect. This announcement represented a significant development, but the publicly described information did not, by itself, establish a conviction or conclusively resolve the case.
The reported DNA finding, the recovered hammer, the letter attributed to Smartt, and earlier witness accounts all contributed to renewed public interest. However, each piece of evidence must be assessed within the full investigative record, and a reported match should not be treated as proof of guilt without further corroboration and legal findings.
Despite these developments, the Keddie murders have remained unsolved in the information summarized here. The public record described in the source material does not establish that anyone has been convicted of the killings.
Why the Keddie Murders Remain Unsolved
The investigation faced several obstacles from the beginning. The crime scene was entered by people attempting to help, potentially complicating the preservation of evidence. Witness accounts were inconsistent, and early investigative decisions later came under criticism from a special investigator.
Tina’s disappearance also complicated the reconstruction of the crime. Her remains were not discovered until 1984, and the distance between the home and the recovery site raised further questions about what happened after she vanished.
Over time, memories faded, some individuals connected to the investigation died, and evidence had to be reassessed using methods that were not available in 1981. New technology provided additional opportunities, but it did not automatically resolve every uncertainty.
The case demonstrates how the early handling of a crime scene, the reliability of witness information, and the preservation of physical evidence can influence an investigation for decades.
The Legacy of the Keddie Murders
The Keddie murders remain one of the best-known unsolved homicide cases associated with rural California. The killings devastated the Sharp family and left unanswered questions about the deaths of Sue, John, Dana, and Tina.
The case has also highlighted the importance of reviewing old evidence, preserving forensic materials, and examining investigative leads as scientific methods improve. The hammer recovered in 2016 and the DNA announcement in 2018 showed that evidence from a decades-old case can still be examined for potential new information.
For the victims’ loved ones, however, renewed attention is not the same as resolution. The central questions remain: who carried out the attacks, what happened to Tina after she disappeared from the home, and what evidence will ultimately establish the full sequence of events?
Until those questions are answered through reliable evidence, the Keddie murders remain an unresolved chapter in the history of American true crime.
Frequently Asked Questions
What were the Keddie murders?
The Keddie murders were a quadruple homicide that took place on the night of April 11–12, 1981, at house number 28 in the Keddie Resort in California. Three victims were found inside the home, and a fourth victim, Tina Sharp, was later confirmed to have died.
Who were the victims?
The victims were Glenna Susan “Sue” Sharp, her son John Sharp, John’s friend Dana Wingate, and Sue’s daughter Tina Sharp.
When were Tina Sharp’s remains found?
Part of Tina’s skull and other bones were discovered near Camp 18 in Butte County, California, on April 11, 1984. The remains were subsequently identified as hers.
Was a suspect ever convicted?
The source material summarized here does not report a conviction for the Keddie murders. Several individuals were examined as possible suspects, but no charges were filed in the developments described.
What was the significance of the hammer found in 2016?
A hammer was discovered in a local pond on March 24, 2016. It was considered potentially relevant because Martin Smartt had previously reported a missing claw hammer. The discovery did not, by itself, establish who committed the murders.
What DNA evidence was reported in 2018?
In April 2018, investigator Mike Gamberg stated that DNA from a piece of tape recovered at the crime scene matched a known living suspect. The announcement was an investigative development, but the information summarized here does not establish a resulting conviction.
The Keddie murders remain a case in which evidence, witness accounts, and later investigative developments continue to be examined in the hope of answering long-standing questions about the four victims.
