Karen Lynn Tompkins was 11 when she vanished from Torrance, California, on August 18, 1961. She had been in a summer arts and crafts class at Halldale Avenue Elementary School; her younger brother left early to take the family dog home and Karen was last seen walking home about 5:30 p.m., carrying two toy covered wagons she had made. She never arrived and exhaustive searches turned up no trace.

Several suspects were arrested early on but were later cleared for lack of evidence. Investigators later explored links between Karen’s disappearance and Mack Ray Edwards, a heavy equipment operator who admitted to killing multiple children and said he buried some victims under highways he helped build. Edwards was convicted in three murders, but Karen’s body was never found and the case remains open. The abduction and murder of Dorothy Gale Brown from the same area is also unresolved and has been examined for connections.

Anyone who knew Karen, attended Halldale Avenue Elementary in 1961, or has information about children who lived or walked routes in that neighborhood during August 1961 is asked to come forward.