The Keddie Murders: Unsolved Quadruple Homicide in Northern California

The Discovery of the Crime Scene

• 🩸 On April 12, 1981, 14-year-old Sheila Sharp returned home to Cabin 28 at the Keddie Resort in California to discover her mother, Sue, her brother Johnny, and Johnny's friend Dana brutally murdered.
• 🚨 Sheila found her mother covered by blankets, but the boys were not. She also noticed a severely bent knife on the floor and immediately ran to neighbors to call law enforcement.
• 🏠 The cabin, part of a once-thriving resort now considered a low-income area, was home to Sue Sharp and her four children, who had moved from Connecticut to escape an abusive husband.

The Victims and Their Backgrounds

• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Sue Sharp, seeking a better life, had moved into Cabin 28 in November 1980. Her oldest son, Johnny (15), had a basement bedroom accessible from outside. Younger sons Rick (10) and Greg (5) shared a room, while Sue and her 12-year-old daughter Tina shared another.
• 💔 Sue was reportedly trying to escape an abusive ex-husband, and her brother informed police that he did not know her new address.
• 🚶‍♀️ Sheila, the eldest daughter at 14, had only recently moved in after putting a child up for adoption in Oregon. She often shared sleepovers with her younger sister Tina.

The Brutal Details of the Murders

• 🔪 Johnny was stabbed twice in the chest and multiple times in the neck, and also beaten severely. Dana died from head trauma and strangulation, with multiple fractures to his skull and face.
• 🤕 Sue sustained multiple stab wounds to the chest and neck, skull fractures, a fractured orbital bone, and lacerations from a claw hammer and the butt of an air rifle. Her mouth was gagged with a bandana and medical tape, and her underwear was also stuffed inside.
• ⛓️ Johnny's hands and ankles were bound with medical tape and an extension cord. Dana's feet were tied, and his wrists appeared to have been bound. Sue was extensively bound with medical tape and electrical cords, forcing her knees into a bent position.
• 📞 The telephone in the girls' bedroom was unplugged, and its cord was cut, suggesting an attempt to prevent communication.

The Disappearance of Tina Sharp

• ❓ Hours passed before authorities realized Tina, Sue's 12-year-old daughter, was missing. Her shoes and red coat were gone, and a blue sweatshirt, possibly belonging to Dana, was found in the bathroom.
• 🌲 A footprint was found behind the cabin, and search dogs were deployed, but Tina was not immediately found.
• 💀 Three years later, Tina's skull was discovered in a remote area about 30 miles from Keddie, with further bone fragments found later, indicating animal activity had disturbed the remains.

Suspects and Lingering Questions

• 👨‍👦 Suspicion fell on Marty Smart, the husband of Sue's friend Marilyn, who was allegedly abusive and had a history of violence. He was out of town at the time of the murders but returned later.
• 🗣️ Justin, Sue's son, who was staying with the Sharps, implicated Marty under hypnosis, describing a dream that investigators believed might be a repressed memory of the events.
• 📜 A letter from Marty to Marilyn, found years later, stated, "I've paid the price for your love, and now that I've bought it with four people's lives, you tell me we're through."
• 🤫 A therapist later revealed Marty confessed to killing Sue because she was trying to get Marilyn to leave him, but denied killing the others. He also claimed friendship with the then-sheriff.
• 🕵️ Despite extensive investigation, including the discovery of a hammer in a pond in 2016 that matched Marty's description of a missing tool, no arrests have ever been made, and the case remains unsolved.
• 🔍 The current sheriff reopened the investigation in 2010, identifying multiple persons of interest, and authorities believe individuals involved or with knowledge of Tina's fate are still alive.