Murder of Kathleen Heisey

Kathleen with her children

In 1998 50-year-old Kathleen Heisey was an elementary principal in McFarland, California. Which was 30 minutes away from her home in Bakersfield.  Late in the afternoon on June 29, 1998, Kathleen spent some time at Lynn Runyan's home who was her friend and coworker. She left her friends home around 7 p.m. and headed home.

The next day Heisey didn't show up to a school meeting let alone to the campus. She was reliable and this was odd. On Wednesday people began to worry and Lynn went to check up on her. She first noticed the two days' worth of newspapers outside. What she found inside was a horrifying and bloody sight.

Kathleen wasn't just stabbed, she was hacked and slashed over 50 times making the scene a brutal bloody sight. She was also dragged around the house believed to have started in the living room and dragged to the bedroom. This was where the killer inserted two guns into her body.

There was no robbery or forced entry. The back door was found open though. The knife used wasn't found and it seems that the murderer had brought it to the scene themselves. It's believed she knew her murder and that it was personal. It's also been noted that the murderer was strong.

The murder is not what Kathleen will be remembered for though. Her passion for children and her kind heart is what people will remember her for. In McFarland school, a whole wall has been dedicated to her.

There are few suspects in the case.

One suspect, Lloyd Wakelee, that her son believes was responsible was a coworker who Kathleen was going to leave a bad evaluation on. He went ballistic and She was worried about what he would do in retaliation. He makes a good suspect as he's got a violent short temper and a passion for knives.

Another suspect was Kathleen's married boyfriend, Bob Taylor, who she had a four-year relationship with. In a letter, it was found the Kathleen was going to end the relationship.

But there was no evidence to connect any suspects. It's been noted that the police may have botched the case. Neighbors and others weren't even interviewed till days after Kathleen was found. Which could have allowed time for people to forget or morph their memories of Kathleen's last day.

SOURCES:
http://www.kget.com/kathleen-heisey/special-report
http://www.kget.com/kathleen-heisey/timm-heisey-interview
http://www.bakersfield.com/archives/brutal-murder-of-school-principal-still-unsolved-a-decade-later/article_3a887e01-a540-524c-8b1e-ff7ae892832f.html
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/39399898/murder_of_kathleen_heisey/