CA - Pamela Johnson, 59, murdered, Alturas, 21 Feb 2017 *Arrest, found deceased in jail*

[Auntie Cipation]

[FONT=&quot]I'm not quite sure how to classify this thread because it doesn't seem to fit the standard categories as I understand them. If I've put it in the wrong place I hope it will be moved to wherever's proper.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]One year ago there was a murder in Alturas, CA. Pamela Sue Johnson was found dead in the home of Robert Vogee. He has been charged with her murder via strangulation and blunt force trauma. The crime as reported has some bizarre aspects to it -- he was found unconscious and locked in a closet in his home, and the home had been set on fire, with a couch blocking the front door. The police later reported that she had been killed in her own home across town, which means that he (allegedly) moved the body to his own home after killing her.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]When Vogee was arrested, it was reported that there was a warrant out for him in Oregon for assault and strangulation of his then-girlfriend in about 2006 or so. The police in Oregon apparently knew he was living in Alturas but declined to extradite him, for unknown reasons.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]This makes me wonder if there weren't other past incidents associated with him. The FBI got briefly involved with investigating Johnson's death, but I believe that was mostly because the local LE doesn't have the training nor the budget for high-tech investigatory techniques. I have heard nothing about what they found or whether the investigation is continuing.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]I should explain that I live in the general vicinity, and I knew Vogee several years ago. I don't have any direct knowledge about this murder nor about any previous crimes by him, only what I have read in the news and to some extent the "word on the street" about the trial prep (which seems to be on track for mid-late 2018). I was interviewed by the Alturas police shortly after the murder, giving them whatever information I could about him as a person.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]The Modoc newspaper, a small weekly, reported on this, of course, but they are not google-able and only have excerpts and archives online in front of their paywall. I can post screenshots when new articles appear. Their 2017 archives, with the stories of the murder and immediate aftermath, should be in front of the paywall soon and I will post links when that happens. Here are some links for the MSM reports of the murder.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]https://kobi5.com/news/woman-found-dead-inside-burning-home-in-n-california-47395/[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]https://kobi5.com/news/regional-news/vogee-charged-with-murder-in-modoc-county-court-47895/[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]http://krcrtv.com/news/local/missing-alturas-woman-found-dead-inside-burned-home[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]http://krcrtv.com/news/local/new-details-on-homicide-in-alturas[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Personally I am interested in both the trial and the possibility of his being linked to other crimes in the past. Let's see what the sleuths find.[/FONT]
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[Auntie Cipation]

I forgot about tags when I started this thread. Can someone guide me as to how to add them now? TIA...

I also forgot to put Feb. 2017 in the title... Can a mod add that for me please?

 

[Tricia]

I forgot about tags when I started this thread. Can someone guide me as to how to add them now? TIA...

I also forgot to put Feb. 2017 in the title... Can a mod add that for me please?

I had to remove the last bit to be able to include the date.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

I had to remove the last bit to be able to include the date.

We lost the town name (Alturas), is there room to put that back? I'm hoping to catch the eye of the sleuths here to see what they can find about the past of the alleged perpetrator. Maybe see whether there seems to be any connection with any cold cases?

 

[Lilibet]

We lost the town name (Alturas), is there room to put that back? I'm hoping to catch the eye of the sleuths here to see what they can find about the past of the alleged perpetrator. Maybe see whether there seems to be any connection with any cold cases?

What a sad story. Pam seemed like a lovely person. The Medford TV stations will be your best source for coverage. If I were you, I’d search all three sites for news, and if necessary call the news desk at each station to ask if they know anything. Don’t let them know you know Vogee though, or they will want to interview you for a story...unless you’re OK with that.

I agree that Alturas needs to be in the title. CA is a big state. It’s usually best to make requests like this directly in a private message so it will be seen. Not all threads are monitored regularly.

 

[Lilibet]

This would also be a good source, since it covers Klamath county. I searched, but didn’t find anything from 2006, but again, a phone call or email to the reporter might help.

https://www.heraldandnews.com/news/...cle_b6c676e7-191b-5094-aa02-2e4ff20f5b5b.html

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Thanks. It is sad indeed. Pam, who I did not know, had apparently been in the area only about a year, and her family is back east, so there hasn't been the kind of public outcry there might otherwise have been, pressure to see justice keep moving along, etc. She was a family counselor for the county mental health agency and by all reports well-liked.

I appreciate the comment about the Medford TV news. I don't have TV so I sometimes forget it's there, lol. I google search now and then but will specifically check those stations' sites. I don't care to be interviewed by media so will keep any inquiries anonymous or at least not mention any personal knowledge.

But given that there was an known episode of violence in RV's past, and knowing that tendencies toward strangulation indicate strong lead-in to homicide (https://www.washingtonpost.com/outl...4417592cf72_story.html?utm_term=.e55fdc1979a3), I became curious about any connection to missing persons or other cold cases in the places he has lived (which is easily sleuthable, so I won't inject my personal knowledge here.)

I'll post more as the case progresses toward trial, and appreciate all the WS eyeballs it can garner.

I will PM a mod re putting Alturas back into the title. Any advice on how I can add in the tags I neglected when creating the thread? I imagine it helps people who search for certain kinds of cases? Thanks again.

 

[Lilibet]

Here is info about tags if you scroll down. It just indicates that the person who starts the thread adds tags initially and then others can too. But it doesn’t say how. I don’t recall adding tags to threads I’ve started, but they all have tags somehow. Another mod question!

https://www.websleuths.com/forums/faq.php?faq=vb3_board_usage#faq_vb3_thread_tools

It’s so annoying when these cases just drop out of MSM. On another thread recently, I had to go digging in the Shasta County Superior Court site to find out about a trial date. I have found that it often takes about two years for a trial to get going.

 

[Lilibet]

Just digging a little, Vogee was on the Modoc County “Behavioral Health Advisory Committee” from 2014 until March 2017. How ironic! Pamela wasn’t on the committee, but as a social worker I wonder if this is another way she knew him in addition to her art.

http://modoccountyca.iqm2.com/Citizens/Board-Member/1142-Robert--Vogee#history

 

[Lilibet]

A history of the local KILN radio station with a bio of Robert Vogee (page 3). He has lived in Modoc County for 20 years, having come from the SF Bay Area. Klamath County Oregon (where the warrant was issued) is pretty much just across the Oregon border.

I didn't see or notice in the linked articles that Klamath County LE knew he was in Alturas, but he lived openly, so they could have tracked him down if they wanted to. I wonder why they didn’t. Is it possible that the initial evidence that was enough for an arrest warrant wouldn’t have been enough for trial?

http://modoccountyca.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=6&ID=1231

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Trial set for July 2.

http://www.modocrecord.com/news.html#Vogee]

They bumped it up from later in the summer in order to have room on the calendar for another murder trial, that of Jack Breiner, accused of killing Modoc County Sheriff's Deputy Jack Hopkins (https://www.websleuths.com/forums/s...-31-fatally-shot-Alturas-19-Oct-2016-*Arrest*), if that case doesn't end up with a change of venue.

I really wish there was an active investigation into possible previous murders. Maybe there is and it's just being kept quiet, but I don't think so.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Trial pushed back a few weeks to mid July.
Modoc County Record News

I'm still undecided about whether I should attend. Some folks, including a counselor whose opinion I respect but who doesn't know me personally very well, says it would be a bad idea. I'm not so sure.

When it was scheduled for July 2 I would not have been available the first two days anyway (which might be completely taken up with jury selection for all I know) but with this new schedule I think I have most days available so I need to decide.

I half wish this case had gotten more media attention so that more people would be following it and interested in the outcome. Pam was new to the area and her family lives across the country so I don't even know if they will attend.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

More complications. In the June 5th election, the county DA position was on the ballot, with the incumbent being challenged by the current public defender (who is Vogee's attorney).

Well, the public defender won. That would all be irrelevant because they don't officially take their new positions until January and this trial was supposed to be taking place right now. But the defense atty keeps asking for continuances and the judge keeps granting them.

Now I read in the local paper (www.mododrecord.com) that the public defender has quit his job early, even though the District Attorney hasn't quit yet so there is nowhere for him to go for the next six months.

So this apparently means that the county must bring in a new public defender, who then needs months to get up to speed on the case. Months getting up to speed means that the lame duck District Attorney will probably be gone (January 2019) by the time the new defense atty is ready. The new DA can't prosecute this case because he was previously the public defender and knows the defense's case. Which means that someone from the State Attorney General's office might have to come be the prosecutor... Sigh...

This really sounds like it should be on a crime show or at least a courtroom drama novel.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

This week's paper says the trial setting is scheduled for Sept. 12 -- sounds like they are still attempting to hold the trial before the DA leaves office in January.

Here is a barely-contained screenshot of the article:

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Vogee was back in court on Tues 9/11 and the trial is now set for Dec. 10.

Pushing it, calendar-wise, to have the trial before the DA finishes his term and leaves office in January, especially with the holidays in there. Not much room for any more delays...

Modoc County Record News

 

[Niner]

Hi - just found this thread & have added Pamela to my list to keep up with.

I tried to find some court sites for Modoc County, but I can't seem to find one. Would you know a link to it?

TIA!

Justice for Pamela!

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Hi - just found this thread & have added Pamela to my list to keep up with.

I tried to find some court sites for Modoc County, but I can't seem to find one. Would you know a link to it?

TIA!

Justice for Pamela!

As far as I know, this is all there is. Clicking on the left link to the pdf shows the current week's court calendar and sometimes a week or so in advance (right link for draft calendar)

Modoc County Superior Court Calendar

Thank you for following Pamela's case!

 

[Niner]

Thank you for the link! I had that & thought there might be a better one! I've put it on my list of cases to look up everyday.....

 

[Niner]

An Update!

Hearing: Tuesday, October 9, 2018 9:01 am
Motion Hearing - Marsden Motion
Vogee, Robert Allen - Defendant
Cotta, Richard - Attorney for Defendant

link: Modoc County Superior Court Calendar

 

[Niner]

Tuesday, October 9th:
*Motions Hearing (@ PT) – CA – Pamela Sue Johnson (49) (Feb. 20, 2017) – Roger Vogee (59) charged with 1st degree murder with premeditation & deliberation, burglary (Pam’s house), arson (his house) & the use of a deadly/dangerous weapon. Plead not guilty.
Trial starts 12/10 & expected to to 2 to 3 weeks.