On a peaceful West Hollywood street in the early hours of February 12, 1977, the promising actress Christa Helm tragically lost her life in a brutal attack.
As a lifestyle enthusiast, I’d rephrase it like this: A once-popular B-list actress, known for her vibrant social life, tragically experienced a brutal attack. She was viciously stabbed 22 times with a butcher knife and struck repeatedly with a heavy object. The assault continued even as she lay there, helpless and drenched in her own blood. It’s a heartbreaking reminder of the harsh realities that sometimes overshadow our glamorous world.
At the age of 27, Helm, who had a strong likeness to the murdered Sharon Tate, tragically lost her life with fatal injuries, lying beneath a vehicle parked on 9022 Lloyd Place.
The killer retreated into the shadows that night and has remained there for nearly 50 years.
Despite scandalous disclosures about a woman who has a child, such as her maintaining a journal detailing intimate encounters with famous individuals and powerful politicians, along with an extensive list of potential suspects, the investigation became puzzling to police and was eventually left unsolved.
No one has been charged with the crime.
Crime writer and podcast host, Jamey DuVall, has delved into the same case for ten years and shared his groundbreaking findings only with the Daily Mail.
In my conviction, the perpetrator was intimately aware of Christa. This was not an ordinary muggings; it was a deliberate act aimed at desecrating her, disfiguring her, and annihilating her radiance.
In a grim scene, Helm was discovered sprawled on her side, her left body half concealed by a car, with her hand tightly grasped between her legs and her car keys tucked beneath her.
However, the distinctive Tommy Boy handbag, rumored to house her famous diary, mysteriously disappeared and remains lost to this day.
According to reports, this diary is said to contain notes about supposed romantic encounters with celebrities like Warren Beatty, Jack Nicholson, Mick Jagger, Joe Namath, and Johnny Rivers. It’s been suggested that she was also romantically connected to the Shah of Iran. In addition, Helm is rumored to have recorded audio tapes detailing her alleged relationships.
No eyewitnesses to the murder ever came forward.
At approximately 1:30 am, Jon Gries, who was 19 years old and residing nearby, awoke to the sound of screams coming from close by.
Grabbing a gun, he stepped out of the house, but stopped short of the road where Helm was attacked.
It was discovered that a woman residing near the crime scene reportedly heard distressing screams, although her perspective was hindered due to bushes blocking her view.
Another ‘earwitness’ said they heard a man and woman arguing on the street.
The night before she died, Helm attended a party in Laurel Canyon with her roommate Stephanie.
Helm tried reaching out to music agent Sandy Smith (who later turned out to be deceased nearby) for a collaboration, but he refused as he was feeling excessively fatigued.
The police initially suspected that Helm was killed due to her having knowledge about influential individuals. In 2006, a tape featuring a threesome with Helm and a prominent Hollywood actor became public.
It was confirmed that Helm was penning a revealing autobiography at the time of her demise, and the stolen transcripts of this work were taken from her friend’s residence on the very night of the murder.
Initially, detectives connected the recent murder to the stabbing of actor Sal Mineo, who played the role of Rebel Without a Cause, that happened in the same area a year ago. According to DuVall, this focus on the previous incident may have allowed the actual killer to escape undetected.
Lionel Ray Williams was convicted of Mineo’s murder and was never questioned in Helm’s case.
That same evening, Helm passed away, a 22-year-old sex worker named Sheila Green was brutally murdered and beheaded approximately 5 miles from Mulholland Drive.
Or, more casually:
On the same fateful night that Helm expired, a 22-year-old woman who worked as a sex worker, Sheila Green, met an unfortunate end when she was killed and decapitated some five miles away on Mulholland Drive.
In 1977, DuVall’s investigation revealed that the police believed both Helm’s and Green’s incidents were carried out by a single culprit, despite lacking any proof that these individuals were acquainted with each other.
In life, Helm had a knack for courting the press, but her murder didn’t garner much attention.
Following a series of cosmetic procedures, which included breast augmentation, the woman from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who stands at 5 feet 9 inches, was admired as being so flawlessly attractive that men found themselves drawn to her, while women felt envious of her allure.
Born Sandra Lynn Wohlfeil, Helm’s parents divorced when she was a young child.
At the age of 17, she found herself expecting a child from a 34-year-old karate instructor. Afterward, they tied the knot, but on the very next day following the wedding, he disappeared without a trace and did not reappear in her life again. Remarkably, he never had the chance to meet their daughter, Nicole.
Determined to be a movie star, Helm moved to New York City and then changed her name.
Helm entrusted her daughter to a close acquaintance in Vermont while planning to live with Nicole permanently once she turned ten. Sadly, Helm passed away only a few months prior to this significant moment.
Back in the ’70s, I was just a struggling actress trying to make it big. My first significant role was in the disappointing film “Let’s Go For Broke” in 1973. After that, I decided to pack my bags and head west to the City of Angels in 1975, hoping for better opportunities.
My luck started to turn when I landed some small parts in “Starsky & Hutch” and “Wonder Woman” in ’76, but alas, my career hit a roadblock.
Days before her murder, Helm had made plans to return to Wisconsin to be with her daughter.
By 1977, the concept of DNA testing was merely an imaginative idea, yet two and a half decades later, it became a tangible truth. Fast forward to 2006, detectives working on cold cases decided to revisit the investigation.
Underneath each of Helm’s trimmed nails, tissue samples were carefully kept. Incredibly, the DNA found within these samples belonged to an unknown woman.
Helm’s lover Patti Collins vanished in the aftermath of the murder and has never been located.
In 1975, when they started living together, the couple embarked on a romantic relationship that was of a sexual nature. Yet, Helm maintained that she was not a lesbian and continued to date men as well.
In my professional opinion, I found myself growing less fond of Christa due to her lack of interest in me and her preference for male company. Our interactions were often filled with disagreements, and I couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy. Unfortunately, this dynamic seemed to have led to her playing a role in my termination from my position.
The DNA has never been matched to any known female.
Rudy Mazella, a suspected drug dealer, attracted attention when his friend alleged that Mazella admitted to committing the murder of Helm. Investigators working on this long-standing case pointed out that Mazella had a history of violence and was often seen with firearms and bladed weapons.
In the initial interrogation, Mazella firmly asserted his innocence and unfortunately, prior to the investigation’s reopening, he had already passed away.
David Stein has emerged as DuVall’s main focus.
It’s said that Stein, formerly known as the second most prominent pimp in New York City, may have encountered Helm during a time when she was living with financier Bernie Cornfeld.
It is claimed that Stein, with a past history of arrest for confining and attacking a Playboy model in 1972, supposedly acquired women for Cornfeld.
According to DuVall, Helm was acting as a go-between, and he suggested about Stein that ‘he was a well-known pimp. He was employing women to gather intel on high-profile clients. It’s possible Christa had learned information that could be dangerous.’
Towards the end of 1976, Helm wrote a troubling postcard to a friend with the message: “I’m in deep water, and I may have to vanish for some time. Should something happen to me, kindly look after Nicole.
Investigators never located Stein, and he died in 2021.
Investigators looked into allegations that Tony Sirico, famously known for his role in The Sopranos, was involved due to rumors suggesting he had taken fur items and recordings from Helm’s apartment on the night of her murder. However, Sirico, who passed away in 2022, claimed he wasn’t acquainted with her.
Eager to counter allegations that Helm was reckless, DuVall, who is writing a book about the case, stated, ‘She didn’t have many opportunities ahead of her, she adopted an act-as-if-you’re-already-successful attitude, and in doing so, she embodied that role.’
She had a radiant spirit filled with kindness and dreams, yet found herself caught in the whirlwind of celebrities and peril.
DuVall is asking the police to grant him access to the case documents, as they may provide information about the location where Helm was killed while wearing a blue jumpsuit.
DuVall stated, ‘There’s a good probability that justice will be served in Christa’s situation. Regardless of whether those responsible will face consequences and are still living is another question.’
‘Her daughter has a right to know who did this to her mother.
It infuriates me beyond belief that somebody managed to escape the consequences for this action, when the solution could have been so easily obtained through a simple conversation or a single lead.
‘Someone out there knows what happened.’
If you’ve got any details related to this unsolved murder case, feel free to reach out to the Cold Case Unit of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department by dialing 323-890-5500.
If you have a tip in the case visit www.whokilledchristahelm.com/submitatip.
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