Charles Holifield is behind bars for the murder of a 13-year-old girl, Christina Marie Williams, whose remains were found in a wooded area in Monterey County, California.
At around 7:30 p.m. on June 12, 1998, Christina, a student at Fitch Middle School at the time, left her home at the Fort Ord military base in Seaside to walk her dog—a collie mix that she got for her birthday, according to CBS SF BayArea.
About 45 minutes later, her mother, Alice Williams, spotted the dog wandering nearby with its leash still attached, but Christina was nowhere to be found. That’s when relatives contacted the local police department and reported Christina Marie Williams missing.
For several months, the search-and-rescue team searched surrounding areas, along with hundreds of residents in the Monterey area. The Coast Guard also assisted in the search, searching coastal waters off Marina and Seaside, but there was still no sign of Christina.
It wasn’t until seven months later, on Jan. 12, 1999, that an ecological surveyor, who was working on a small University of California nature reserve, discovered human remains in a wooded area.
Officials said the skeletal remains were hidden underneath branches on a property near Imjin Road—just three miles from where Christina was last seen.
The remains, including strands of hair and weathered clothing that was found at the scene, were transported to the coroner’s office in Monterey County.
It was there that the remains were identified through dental records as those of Christina Marie Williams.
Months before Christina was found, the community organized several search parties. During those parties, they searched the area where her body was found, but there were no sightings of her.
This led to the conjecture that the perpetrator may have placed her body at that location after it was searched.
After Alice and Michael Williams found out that their missing daughter was in fact deceased, which came on Alice’s 47th birthday, they were devastated, as they were hopeful that they would find Christina alive.
Michael, a Navy meteorologist, stated that “this is extremely difficult for us, but we have the strength to pull through this… There’s no way I could be out here without the faith that I have.” He added, “This should never, ever, ever be allowed to happen. Never.”
“I’ve been praying to God to bring Christina back. I’ve been praying to bring her back, whatever comes out,” Alice said. “Now I’m praying to God that whoever took our daughter will get caught. You know who you are.”
“We know these bad people; they are around. They are around us, driving around, looking for innocent children like our daughter Christina. Don’t be surprised when one of these days there is another victim.”
An autopsy was performed, but because the “remains were so deteriorated from exposure,” the medical examiner was unable to determine Christina Marie Williams’ cause of death, according to SF Gate.
Police officials stated that the evidence suggested she had been murdered.
Witnesses told investigators that just before Christina went missing from her home, two men, one slim and the other heavy, in a vehicle, were seen in the area.
The FBI had offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Christina’s killer, but despite their efforts, no arrests were made.
Christina’s murder went unsolved for nearly two decades.
In April 2017, police officials arrested Charles Holifield after the California Department of Justice Crime Laboratory re-tested Christina’s underwear for DNA evidence and found traces of sperm cells that belonged to Holifield.
He was charged with kidnapping, sexual assault, and first-degree murder.
At the time of his arrest, Holifield was 56 years old and already serving 25 years to life in prison at the Correctional Training Facility in Soledad.
He was convicted of raping and strangling a 14-year-old Monterey girl and attempting to kidnap an 18-year-old woman in the early 1980s.
Both victims gave testimony during the trial.
Holifield waived his right to a jury trial and opted for a bench trial to avoid the death penalty.
The District Attorney’s Office gave their approval after consulting with the victim’s family, who stated that they just wanted justice and finality in the case.
In March 2020, following a 10-day bench trial before Judge Pamela L. Butler in Monterey County Superior Court, Holifield was found guilty of murdering Christina.
The judge asked Holifield, who showed little emotion, if he wanted to speak, but he shook his head and said no.
After the verdict, the Monterey Herald reported that Michael told reporters that “what’s really nice is the fact that it’s over. This is the end and no appeals. So this is the last we’re going to hear about this case and the last we’re going to hear about Charles Holifield.”
“In that 20 years, we have kind of went back to our lives. We still remember Christina all the time, but we had gotten back to it, and now we were taken back 20 years.”
“Our lives have changed forever,” Alice said.
Jeannine Pacioni, who prosecuted Holifield’s case in the beginning, stated that she was “saddened he won’t get the ultimate penalty, because I do believe it’s justified in this case.”
“I’m hopeful the family can try and move forward now.”
Holifield was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.