JOANNE DOLLY BURMER (25) Murderers will often dispose of bodies in areas they are familiar with because they can assess the risks of being caught in the act. Two skulls (one belonging to Donna Lass) and a jawbone were found in the general area surrounding Lake Spaulding and possibly Fuller Lake (3.5 miles north of Emigrant Gap and Interstate 80, where Drum Canal crosses State Route 20), and matching the location of the skull described in the death certificate of Donna Lass. The Lake Spaulding Dam and Fuller Lake are both part of the Drum-Spaulding hydroelectric system, operated by PG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric Company). In fact, two workers from PG&E discovered the skull of Donna Lass in a drainage ditch according to The Doe Network and death certificate. The question being: was the murderer of Donna Lass familiar with these PG&E locations, such that he used them as relatively safe deposition sites? Could we have one killer who used this location to conceal a minimum of two bodies?
This may appear like grasping at straws, until you consider that a skull fragment of Joanne Dolly Burmer (25) was found by a man cutting firewood on Chalk Bluff Road on May 30th 1993, and not identified until a DNA breakthrough in 2019, when matched through her son, who was 3 years old when she went missing. Joanne Burmer was belatedly reported missing on March 8th 1973, having been dropped off by friends nine days earlier at the junction of Highway 20 and Excelsior Point Road on February 27th 1973. This location is just 3 miles from Emigrant Gap, and 4.5 miles from Lake Spaulding.
This may appear like grasping at straws, until you consider that a skull fragment of Joanne Dolly Burmer (25) was found by a man cutting firewood on Chalk Bluff Road on May 30th 1993, and not identified until a DNA breakthrough in 2019, when matched through her son, who was 3 years old when she went missing. Joanne Burmer was belatedly reported missing on March 8th 1973, having been dropped off by friends nine days earlier at the junction of Highway 20 and Excelsior Point Road on February 27th 1973. This location is just 3 miles from Emigrant Gap, and 4.5 miles from Lake Spaulding.
EXCELSIOR POINT RD. CLICK IMAGE. On February 27th 1973, after she was dropped off by friends, including Ron Inman, she had planned to snowshoe to see her on-off boyfriend Robert Brownlee, who lived in a cabin about 3 miles away. She was never seen again, with detectives suspecting foul play. Philip Desmet, son of Joanne Burmer (adopted after her disappearance) thought that Robert Brownlee was a womaniser: “My mom was a hippie” he said, adding that she had been living in a Quonset hut just outside Colfax, bouncing between there and Reno, and had worked for a while at a local bar. At some point, Joanne married a man named Robert Burmer, but then became involved in a tempestuous relationship with Brownlee. "He was a womanizer, apparently”. Desmet said. “My understanding is, she was the other woman, and she was going up there to deliver an ultimatum (to him)".
Ron Inman and Burmer’s mother, Ruth Schroll, told investigators that Robert Brownlee and Joanne Burmer had frequent fights, sometimes violent. He was obviously a prime suspect in her disappearance and possible murder, but as of writing, this case is still unresolved. Robert Brownlee worked for PG&E to maintain the quality of their canals. The skull of Donna Lass, who went missing on September 6th 1970, was found in a drainage ditch by two PG&E workers in 1986 (if The Doe Network and death certificate are correct). See here. Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) operates an extensive hydroelectric system in California that includes approximately 172 miles of canals. Did somebody like Robert Brownlee ever visit the Sahara Tahoe Hotel & Casino in 1970 - a possible womaniser with a short temper according to accounts, who must have been knowledgeable of the locations around Lake Spaulding and the Drum Canal crossing due to his working experience with PG&E.
PG&E honored 4,183 employees with long service awards in 1975, with Robert E. Broenlee of Emigrant Gap receiving a 15 year award according to the newspaper cutting below. However, newspapers reported he received a 15 year award in 1980 as well, followed by a 20 year award in 1985. Therefore, it's evident that the 1975 award should have been for 10 years service. This means he was first employed by PG&E in 1965, so would probably have been at least in his early 20s in 1970 and around his mid 20s in 1973. Indications through ancestry searches suggests somebody much older, who may have been 47 in 1973. He was still employed at PG&E in 1985, so one would presume he still lived in the Emigrant Gap area at the time the 1986 remains were found. Thanks to Jibberjabber for this extra information and newspaper cutting below.
Ron Inman and Burmer’s mother, Ruth Schroll, told investigators that Robert Brownlee and Joanne Burmer had frequent fights, sometimes violent. He was obviously a prime suspect in her disappearance and possible murder, but as of writing, this case is still unresolved. Robert Brownlee worked for PG&E to maintain the quality of their canals. The skull of Donna Lass, who went missing on September 6th 1970, was found in a drainage ditch by two PG&E workers in 1986 (if The Doe Network and death certificate are correct). See here. Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) operates an extensive hydroelectric system in California that includes approximately 172 miles of canals. Did somebody like Robert Brownlee ever visit the Sahara Tahoe Hotel & Casino in 1970 - a possible womaniser with a short temper according to accounts, who must have been knowledgeable of the locations around Lake Spaulding and the Drum Canal crossing due to his working experience with PG&E.
PG&E honored 4,183 employees with long service awards in 1975, with Robert E. Broenlee of Emigrant Gap receiving a 15 year award according to the newspaper cutting below. However, newspapers reported he received a 15 year award in 1980 as well, followed by a 20 year award in 1985. Therefore, it's evident that the 1975 award should have been for 10 years service. This means he was first employed by PG&E in 1965, so would probably have been at least in his early 20s in 1970 and around his mid 20s in 1973. Indications through ancestry searches suggests somebody much older, who may have been 47 in 1973. He was still employed at PG&E in 1985, so one would presume he still lived in the Emigrant Gap area at the time the 1986 remains were found. Thanks to Jibberjabber for this extra information and newspaper cutting below.
THE ABOVE NEWSPAPER CUTTING IS PROBABLY OUR SUBJECT
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