Ending one of the most enduring mysteries in the history of Hermosa Beach, officials announced Monday that they had used DNA evidence to discover the identity of the killer of Karen Klass, the ex-wife of Righteous Brothers singer Bill Medley, whose brutal murder went unsolved for more than 40 years. The announcement came at a Sheriff’s Department Press Conference held Monday afternoon at the Downtown Los Angeles Hall of Justice.
Authorities said that DNA evidence convinced them that the killer was a man named Kenneth Troyer. Troyer was shot and killed in 1982 as officers from the Anaheim and Santa Ana police departments attempted to apprehend him following an escape from prison.
Klass was found in her North Hermosa home on the morning of Jan. 30, 1976. She was unconscious when police found her, and had been strangled and sexually assaulted. She was taken to a hospital where she survived in a coma for five days, then died Feb. 4.
The case generated immense attention. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department handled the investigation, along with HBPD officers, with tips rolling in over the years.
Tom Cray was one of two HBPD detectives assigned to the case. In an interview, he said that the failure to catch Klass’ killer had haunted officers at the Hermosa department for decades.
“That’s a great feeling to see that one solved. That was the one that just kind of haunted all of us,” Cray said.
At the press conference, Medley complimented Sheriff’s deputies and HBPD officers for their efforts. He said the news provided immense relief to his family.
“I’ve been dealing with it for 40 years,” he said. “Every two years or so it comes up in my mind. A voice in the back of my head, probably Karen’s, tells me to drop it, and the [the killer] is probably dead or in prison. But it’s closure. It’s kind of an out of body experience.”
