80-year-old Calif. man charged in 1994 killing of 2 criminal justice students

"On the morning of May 23, 1994, two best friends, Lawrence “Larry” Loehr and Eugene Cates, were brutally killed at a north Stockton construction site. Both were 23 years old, engaged to the women they planned to marry and on the verge of careers in law enforcement. For 32 years, no one was held accountable. Now, authorities say they have solved the case: Donald Lee Clark, 80, a lifelong Stockton resident, has been arrested and charged with murder."

"Loehr had been bound, gagged and shot once in the back of the head inside a security trailer. Cates was found near a chain-link fence surrounding the site, his body beneath a section of fencing that had seemingly been knocked down by a car, police said. That car was Cates’ own vehicle, which the killer used to smash through the fence and flee. It was found abandoned and burned about 3 miles away two hours later."

"Both men were criminal justice students at San Joaquin Delta College. Loehr had already taken the entrance exam for a Stockton Police Department training program. Cates had passed the tests to become a state corrections officer and was ready for his first assignment, pending a background check. Donna Whitlatch, Cates’ sister, told the Stockton Record that her brother’s death robbed her of everything."

"At around 3 a.m., police received a report of an assault at the site. When Stockton police officers arrived, they found both men dead. Police were initially uncertain whether Cates had been shot or run over. Nothing appeared to have been taken from the site, and robbery was ruled out as a motive."

On May 23, 1994, Lawrence “Larry” Loehr and Eugene Cates, both 23 and best friends, were killed at a north Stockton construction site. Loehr worked an overnight security shift at the Spanos Park site, and Cates stopped by after finishing his shift at a nearby Chevron station. Around 3 a.m., police responded to a reported assault and found both men dead. Loehr was bound, gagged, and shot once in the back of the head inside a security trailer. Cates was found near a chain-link fence, with his body beneath knocked-down fencing. His own car was used to smash through the fence, then was abandoned and burned about three miles away two hours later. Authorities say robbery was ruled out and no one had been held accountable for 32 years.

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