On June 22, 1986, 49-year-old Stanley Howard was fatally stabbed in his Merced, California, home while he slept. The attack happened in the early morning; Howard was in bed with his wife and their ten-year-old daughter was asleep in the next room. An intruder entered the house, took a knife from the kitchen, and stabbed Howard. He managed to struggle and briefly chase the assailant before succumbing to his wounds.

The killing remains unsolved. The case profoundly affected Howard’s family, and his daughter Rachel Howard later wrote a memoir, The Lost Night, about her father’s personality, their complicated relationship, and the emotional aftermath of that night. No motive or perpetrator has been identified.

Did anyone in Merced at the time remember details or encounters from that night that might still help investigators or family?