DNA links man to slaying of woman found in cornfield 43 years ago, California cops say
Forty-three years ago, field workers found a woman’s body in a California cornfield.
The woman, found in the unincorporated area of Dixon in August 1980, would only be known as Jane Doe for more than a decade, until she was identified as 21-year-old Holly Ann Campiglia from New Jersey in 1992, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office said in a Feb. 27 news release posted to Facebook.
Now, 31 years after she got her name back, a man has been arrested in her killing, the sheriff’s office said.
DNA linked Herman Lee Hobbs, 76, who is currently serving a prison sentence after he was convicted of murder charges in a different case, to Campiglia’s death, according to the sheriff’s office.
“Cold cases are particularly difficult cases to work because sadly, time goes on which leads to gaps in memory and new cases that come in and change the prioritization,” the sheriff’s office wrote, adding that original deputy assigned to the case, Jose “Joe” Cisneros, died in the line of duty in 1985.
After Campiglia was found in 1980, her cause of death was determined to be “multiple gunshots to the head and neck,” the sheriff’s office said.
Despite learning Campiglia’s identity in 1992, her case remained cold, the sheriff’s office said.
There wasn’t a break in the case until after Campiglia’s family asked the sheriff’s office in late 2021 if it could review her case to see if there was any evidence that could be submitted for DNA analysis, deputies said.
Months later, the Serological Research Institute said it found male DNA on one of the pieces of evidence, the sheriff’s office said.
That DNA was submitted to a San Mateo Crime Lab database and was a match for Hobbs, deputies said. Detectives got a warrant to get a new DNA sample from Hobbs, which again confirmed he was a match, according to the sheriff’s office.
Hobbs was transferred from state prison to Solano County Jail to face murder charges in connection to this case, along with the enhancement for the use of a gun, deputies said.
The sheriff’s office said it is working with other neighboring agencies to determine if Hobbs may be linked to additional cases.
Dixon is about 20 miles southwest of Sacramento.
This story was originally published March 1, 2023 at 4:56 PM with the headline "DNA links man to slaying of woman found in cornfield 43 years ago, California cops say."
