Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Mother of Three Choked to Death; Body Flung in Signal Hill Oil Field

May 12, 1947
Long Beach

While driving to his post early this morning, oil company patrolman Bert Winfield made a ghastly discovery, just a block from busy Long Beach Blvd. There in the dirt of the oil field was the body of a woman, still warm and apparently but recently hurled from an automobile. The victim’s clothing included one open-toed white shoe, a three-quarter length black coat and a cotton garrote around her neck.

Seeking to identify her, reporters on the Long Beach newpaper police beat canvased local dry cleaners about a laundry mark on her coat and got a name: Mrs. Laura Eliza Trelstad, 37. Soon they had a husband, too: Ingman Trelstad, 34, 2211 Locust Ave.--just a dozen blocks from his wife's dump site in the 3400 block of Locust.

Ingman Trelstad described his last encounter with his wife for Long Beach Det. Capt. Lorin Q. Martin. The couple had been playing cards with some friends in the late afternoon, and Mrs. Trelstad grew bored. If he was going to play cards, she said, then she was going to a dance. Mr. Trelstad went home to cook dinner for the couple's three children, Audrey, 8, Janet, 7, and Thomas, 3. When Mrs. Trelstad failed to return home, he said he couldn't go out and look for her, as there was no one else to watch the children.

Meanwhile, Coroner's Surgeon Frederick Newbarr made a preliminary examination of the body and announced that Mrs. Trelstad had been sexually assaulted before death. Police called for the public to be on the look out for the missing white shoe, which might be at a primary crime scene. They also requested that anyone who might have seen Mrs. Trelstad at a dance last night come forward to give a statement.

12 comments:

notarysojack said...

This is, of course, one of the many killings attributed by "Black Dahlia Avenger" to George "Evil Genius" Hodel, who in addition to committing every unsolved murder in Los Angeles (with stops in Chicago, Cleveland and elsewhere) from 1900 to 1975, designed the 1958 Edsel, developed New Coke and treated Rin-Tin-Tin for a bad case of STD from Lassie. He also introduced John Lennon to Yoko Ono, gave Bob Dylan his first electric guitar and taught Nancy Ling Perry (then a Barry Goldwater Republican) to play blackjack.

Note the incredible similarities between the Black Dahlia and Trelstad cases:

Drunk
Elizabeth Short: No
Laura Trelstad: Yes

Crime scene
Short: Residential neighborhood
Trelstad: Oil field

Manner of death
Short: Hemorrhage and shock from concussion and loss of blood
Trelstad: Strangulation

Body clothed
Short: No
Trelstad: Yes

Sexually assaulted:
Short: No
Trelstad: Yes

Body posed
Short: Yes
Trelstad: No

Postmortem mutilation
Short: Yes
Trelstad: No

Cut in half
Short: Yes
Trelstad: No

Coffee mug/T-shirt/tank top/baby bib/dog bandana icon and Internet meme
Short: Yes
Trelstad: No

www.lmharnisch.com

50sme said...

L O L!! Finally someone else who thinks the George Hodel thing is just plain hinky...to put it nicely. very nicely.

Unknown said...

I'm Laura's granddaughter - Audrey's daughter. What's really interesting is that my aunt Janet recalls being asked by her dad to bury that shoe in the backyard of the house they lived in at the time, and to never tell a soul. Well she did a great job, as I believe the only person she ever has told this story to is my sister, and that was in 1986. Mr. Trelstad died in 1986...but it sure would be interesting to dig up that backyard and see if that shoe or any remnants are there. If it is, was he a serial killer? Or did he just kill his wife? Seems as though most folks on here don't think Laura was murdered by the same person as the rest. Interesting, though, that neither her killer nor the other's killer(s) were ever caught, though, and that the murders stopped after he left the area. That should give you enough to chew on for a bit :)

Kim said...

Jen, thanks for stopping by to share your aunt's troubling story. Although news stories from 1947 said that police were looking for a 21-year-old sailor with whom Laura left a bar, it's possible that she returned home later and had a fatal altercation with her husband. If your aunt's memory of burying the missing shoe is correct, it strongly suggests that Ingman was involved in her death. Unfortunately, a Google streetview search seems to show an apartment house on the site, which would make a search of the former backyard difficult, if not impossible. But if that shoe ever did turn up, it would shine a light on a very cold case. Why do you think your aunt waited until the year her father died to talk about this? Was he a scary guy?

Unknown said...

When she died, Janet was only...5 I believe? The kids went to South Dakota to stay with Laura's family (aunts, uncles, etc.) and were all 3 separated at a relatively early age due to moves, not enough family to pass around to, etc. - so they lost contact not only with each other, but with Inky as well. It wasn't until '86 or just prior that they rediscovered each other. I've asked my mom about what she can remember every now and then (it's still hard for her to talk about, even 70 years later - as it happened when she was only 8, the body was found on Mother's Day, and the great impact it had on all of their lives being torn apart like they were). Why didn't Janet say anything to anyone for 39 years about the shoe? I think fear is probably the reason - fear at first of disobeying her father at the age of 5, being the only parent left, then later, maybe fear that he did do something wrong but not being sure, or fear of not being believed? Hard to say, really. I don't think that she remembers him well enough (and she was so young), to really have had a feel for whether he was a scary guy or not - from what I understand he really didn't see the kids at all after they went back to South Dakota. We just recently found out that he later re-married and had a few more children - my mom and Janet (Tommy passed away a few years ago) were just as surprised to find that out as anyone, and it was just a coincidence through Facebook on a last name search and digging, that the other family did, that happened to reveal a connection. Which makes me wonder (of course) - why did his newer family wait at least 27 years to make contact with his first family? Why didn't he mention his 2nd wife and children to my mom, Janet, or Tommy in 1986 at all? Who knows. Even that day in '47 at the police station, my mom said there weren't any problems at home that she knew of, but when Janet was asked, she told the same officer that their parents fought all the time. It is too bad that there's an apartment building there now - I'm certainly still curious to have answers to lifelong questions, but I'll be surprised if I ever get any. Even if it were to be recovered, what would that prove? Janet kept every news article over the years that she either had (kept by relatives) or could find (some she had to pull from microfish and archives) - more than one article actually clears that sailor. He got off the bus before Laura did, and the timing as well as the distance would not have been feasible for him to have been the murderer. Anyway - I do check this blog every now and then - and I appreciate all of the conversation/viewpoints, etc. and find it pretty interesting that folks still ponder these deaths so many years later. Thank you for replying and keeping it going.

Unknown said...

Video Game 「L.A Noire 」 is inspired this case.

Unknown said...

I can not agree that George hodel killed this woman Laura trelstad the murder do not fit his mo but I do believe that the murder of Louise Springer in 49 and the murder of crime. Writer James ellroy mother jean ellroy and here the Laura trelstad are all related and I believe that the same man murdered all three of these women for the fact the jean ellroy murder in 1958 and the murder of Laura trelstad was definitely committed by the same man and it won't George hodel it was his crime partner Fred Raphael sexton for the fact in the jean ellroy murder the unknown man she was seen with was a swarty dark hair man in which sexton was that plus he matched jean ellroy sketch drawing to the tee.of her killer he killed jean ellroy the same way he killed Laura trelstad he first assaulted the both of them then he raped the both of them jean ellroy and Louise Springer then he garrotted the both of them killing them by strangulation and just as in the Laura trelstad case a quarter length black coat was placed over her and in the jean ellroy case after the kill her as well founded with a coat on her and in Laura trelstad case her coat all hiked up as in jean case her bra hiked up to her chest now these murders are related killer had the same mo something to garrote them after the rape both of them was killed by the same man and it won't George hodel It won't his mo his friend Fred sexton was the one who killed Laura trelstad in 47 and was involved in the black dahlia with George hodel but he didn't kill her and then Fred sexton resurfaced in El Monte in 58 in that desert inn bar the swarthy man and murdered jean ellroy in almost the same fashion as he did with Laura trelstad

Unknown said...

What u need to understand Ms are that I believe that George hodel killed the black dahlia and what his son Steve hodel has presented I how ever can not agree with him in the murder of Laura trelstad... I can only tell you that if you read any thing in regards to the murder of jean ellroy the mother of crime writer James ellroy then you would kind of get the clue that your grandmother and jean ellroy was murdered by the same man and it won't George hodel but I do believe that it was his crime partner the creator of the Maltese falcon Fred Raphael sexton I believe killed Laura trelstad and jean ellroy for the fact. The way they both was killed was almost the same way and in both the cases they cloths was hiked up they both was assaulted before raped and in both they murders both times a cotton cord was used to garrotted them other then in one of this case the jean ellroy case a cotton cord with used by a stocking finished the job all in all both women was killed almost in the same fashion by the same man the swarthy man and I believe was Fred Raphael sexton and not George hodel they mo are completely different from one another

Unknown said...

George hodel killed the black dahlia with brutal surgical procedures did not rape her but then turn around and kill Laura trelstad in a non surgical way with rape hell no not buying that if he killed the black dahlia he damn sure ain't change his mo that's why I can't tie him to this murder I can only point Fred Raphael sexton as Laura trelstad killer and jean ellroy murder the mo in both killings are the same then George hodel line of work in how he killed the black dahlia

Unknown said...

Use your brain in both cases the Laura trelstad and jean ellroy case both women last seen at a bar that ain't no coincidences the killer of both these women picked lone women at bars dance hall for me to believe the Laura trelstad and jean ellroy murders are related both murders are damn near perfectly the same the same killer and i don't believe it was George hodel but it was swarthy man Fred sexton

Andrew D. Gable said...

Oh, last seen at a bar, there's a damning piece of evidence. You know how many missing and murdered people are last seen at bars?

Andrew D. Gable said...

Kim: They did end up tracking down that sailor, he had nothing to do with it. He did give them some leads as to where she went after that though.